Sally Blount
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Articles by Sally Blount
A Key Ingredient for Making Teams Soar
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.” It’s one of the most frightening phrases we could potentially hear as passengers on a flight. Fortunately, few of us ever do. And that’s largely thanks to the coordinated efforts of the pilots managing tons of stimuli from aircraft gauges and readers while communicating with each other, air-traffic control, and the rest of the crew.
A Key Ingredient for Making Teams Soar
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.” It’s one of the most frightening phrases we could potentially hear as passengers on a flight. Fortunately, few of us ever do. And that’s largely thanks to the coordinated efforts of the pilots managing tons of stimuli from aircraft gauges and readers while communicating with each other, air-traffic control, and the rest of the crew.
Five ways to harness the power of purpose
Photograph by fizkes @ Adobe Stock Leaders instinctively understand the value of corporate purpose. They know that, when it is well articulated, a company’s purpose statement—or the best proxy for it, such as a mission or vision statement—serves as a north star. It is a reminder of what matters most and provides clarity to employees, managers, and leaders about how to focus amid the cacophony of daily, competing demands.
Ask an Expert: How Do I Become a CEO?
We asked Sally Blount, a Fortune 500 board member and former dean at the Kellogg School of Management, and Paul Leinwand, principal at PwC Strategy and author, to respond to an early-career professional seeking to become a CEO. They provide three proven pathways to C-suite. There are three breakthrough pathways that the most successful C-suite residents tend to leverage.
Ask an Expert: How Do I Become a CEO?
We asked Sally Blount, a Fortune 500 board member and former dean at the Kellogg School of Management, and Paul Leinwand, principal at PwC Strategy and author, to respond to a question about how to stand out in order to move into an executive / C-suite position. There are three breakthrough pathways that the most successful C-suite residents tend to leverage. Being a “fixer.” From an early age, people with this type of capability naturally see how things in their organization could run better.
Ask an Expert: How Do I Become a CEO?
Dear Ascend, I am a 25-year-old woman just starting out in veterinary marketing. During my first three years in the workforce, I worked as a certified technician in veterinary medicine, but recently, I decided I wanted more out of my career. While working, I went back to school to complete my bachelor’s degree in business. During this time, I also approached my boss and asked if she could help me gain more experience on the business side of the industry.
The Hope And Horror Of Us-Versus-Them Thinking (Part 1 Of 2)
Republicans versus Democrats. Trumpers versus Never-Trump. White supremacists versus Black Lives Matter. In today’s hyper-polarized world, you don’t have to look far for evidence of us-versus-them thinking. Simply turn on the news or log in to Facebook or Twitter to find heated battles on everything from politics to social issues to what color that viral dress really was.
Why The First Years After College Are Crucial For Women Aiming For The
By Sally Blount3 minute Read A few years ago, after my daughter Haley got accepted into college, she decided that she wanted to take a gap year. Since she was my oldest child and I was not quite sure how I was going to pay for college for all three children, I told her that if she did, she would have to fund it herself. Over the next few weeks, Haley proceeded to research and craft an impressive 12-month itinerary that would have her working on three projects in three different countries.
In a crisis, companies must know their purpose
A crisis brings values to the fore. Though executives were talking urgently about the purpose of business before COVID-19, the topic is even more important now. Organizations across all sectors have a part to play in the shared goal of flattening the disease’s growth curve. At healthcare organizations, of course, employees are aware of their critical role. But the same mentality extends to enterprises of all types. Scholastic is creating new at-home teaching materials.
Five Predictions About U.S. Higher Education In 2040
As the first two decades of the new millennium come to a close, many industries are in the midst of transformation. My colleague, Larry Shulman, senior partner emeritus at the Boston Consulting Group, and I recently analyzed the data and marketplace of the U.S. post-secondary education. Below we offer five not-so-crazy predictions about how the U.S. market for four-year bachelor’s degrees will likely look quite different in 2040.
Management Is All in the Timing
A version of this article appeared in the Winter 2016 issue of strategy+business. The pace of business keeps hastening, as advanced technology hypercharges the speed at which data and business opportunities emerge, in addition to increasing the amount and accessibility of those things. Fundamental shifts in market structure have shortened the life cycles of innovation, products, and even executives. CEO tenure in the Fortune 500 has fallen from an average of 11 years in 2002 to six years today.
Why Are We Here?
Idea in Brief The Problem Many employees feel disconnected from their organization’s purpose. In a recent survey, just 39% said they could clearly see the value they create. More than half weren’t even “somewhat” motivated, passionate, or excited about their jobs. The Solution Organizations need a clearly articulated purpose statement that answers these questions: What is your reason for existing? What value are you giving your customers? Why is your firm uniquely capable of providing it?
Three Ways Aging Biases Your Post-50 Brain
This year, at 57, I took several months off to think deeply about how to invest the next—and perhaps last—major chapter of my career. As a social psychologist, I’ve long been familiar with the research on how our thinking tends to change around 50. Now, with time to reflect, I can see how my own interior landscape is changing. I’ve noticed this happen in three ways. Getty Time horizon shift.
3 Ways Failure Can Help You Grow
A senior executive I know recently asked me to meet with one of his high-potential young professionals — a smart, talented, charismatic man in his mid-30s, and someone I remembered from his time as a Kellogg student. “Joe” — as we’ll call him — is the full package, brimming with promise, and yet he had just made what could have been a career-ending mistake: he had shared confidential information with someone he shouldn’t have.
Three Ways To Grow From Failure
A senior executive I know recently asked me to meet with one of his high-potential young professionals —a smart, talented, charismatic man in his mid-30s, and someone I remembered from his time as a Kellogg student. “Joe”—as we’ll call him—is the full package, brimming with promise, and yet he had just made what could have been a career-ending mistake: he had shared confidential information with someone he shouldn’t have.
The Real Reason Good Managers Are So Rare
The MPW Insider network is an online community where the most thoughtful and influential people in business contribute answers to timely questions about careers and leadership. Today’s answer to the question:What’s the most difficult part of being a leader? is written by Sally Blount, dean of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Power is seductive–folk wisdom tells us so, as does a growing body of psychological research.
How to Deal with a Rude Coworker
If you’re thinking about confronting a coworker who’s been rude, ask yourself three questions: (1) Do I feel safe talking with this person? (2) Was the behaviour intentional? (3) Was it the only instance of such behaviour by him or her? If you answered no to any of the questions, do not discuss the incident with your rude coworker. Concentrate on your own effectiveness and, in future encounters, follow the acronym BIFF: Be brief, informative, friendly, and firm.
What All Business Leaders Can Learn From Marie Kondo
If the book “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up” isn’t on your leadership reading list, I get it. I usually don’t recommend that women (or men for that matter) quote HGTV-type gurus in the workplace. It’s something that doesn’t typically elevate your status. But Marie Kondo is a woman with something new to say -- a simple, compelling message for a world awash in stuff. I recently watched her new Netflix show and was marveling afterward with a friend about her appeal.
Dos & Don'ts: Responding to an Offensive Comment at Work
Your colleague says something that immediately makes you feel uncomfortable. He thinks he’s just being funny, but the comment is inappropriate — maybe even offensive, sexist, or racist. What should you say or do if you find yourself in this situation? Is there a way to draw attention to the comment without putting the other person on the defensive? And are you risking your reputation, job, or career by speaking up? What the Experts Say There’s no denying that this is a tough situation.
How to Leave a Job You Love
Maybe you fell head over heels. Maybe your feelings grew over time. All you know is that you have what everyone is looking for, but few seem to get: A job you love. And you are about to leave it. How do you even start explaining? The work is great. So is the organization. It’s not them. It’s you. And it was not just a moment of temptation. You have been thinking about it for a while. Even if you might regret it, you must part now. It’s the right time.
Two chats to overcome resistance to change
No matter how brilliant your plan or how persuasive your argument, you must make everyone feel understood. Photo: iStock Across industries and sectors, the track record for organizational change is bleak. Research finds that anywhere from 50%–75% of change efforts fail. And for those that do succeed, many don’t achieve the goals of the original vision. Why is change so hard?
Three Books From 2018 That All Values-Based Leaders Should Read
As 2018 comes to a close, it’s important for business leaders to pause and reflect on the past year’s achievements and challenges, as well as their hopes and goals for 2019. In doing so, I believe values-based leaders will benefit from reading three recent books that will challenge and reshape your thinking, because of what they imply for the practice of “conscious” capitalism.
Launch your career on the right trajectory
But we do know that certain choices, especially early in one’s career, can set people on trajectories that increase the likelihood of long-term career success. So, a key question for gaining more gender equality in the c-suite seems to be: How can we maximize the chances of success for our most promising young women as they start their careers?
Three Ways That Having Power Changes Us
I’ve spent the last 15 years of my life growing into roles of increasing influence -- as a business school dean, Fortune 500 board member, and management commentator. This fall, I’ve made a very intentional choice to step back from being a dean, to reflect on what I’ve learned, how I’ve been changed, and where and how I might want to lead next. Having this time, I feel very lucky and very human.
Three Ways To Lead And Succeed In A Biased World
The fact is: we’re all biased, even when we have the best intentions, both consciously and unconsciously. That means that most of us can’t all bring our whole, authentic selves to work each day and be embraced and rewarded just as we are. The human mind just doesn’t work that way. Think about it: The success of organizations relies on relationships, and we all like and trust some people more than others.
Too few female CEOs? Blame man-dominated corporate boards
This year's list of Chicago's most powerful women in business features one Fortune 500 CEO, Mary Dillon of Ulta Beauty, which just joined Fortune 500 this year when its revenue topped $5.8 billion. That's it—one out of the 37 Fortune 500 companies based in Illinois. The Fortune 500 overall hosts 5 percent female CEOs, down slightly from last year's "high" of 6.4 percent, after several departures. It's taken us 20 years to get this far. And clearly, none of these numbers are where they should be.
How to launch your career right, according to the dean of Kellogg School of Management
Careers unfold over a lifetime. Unexpected opportunities and obstacles arise—at work and at home—that affect how a career progresses, especially for women. The same job that may eventually lead one person into the c-suite may end in a stalled career for another. There are multiple paths and no guarantees. It’s all part of the journey. But we do know that certain choices, especially early in one’s career, can set people on trajectories that increase the likelihood of long-term career success.
Demystifying Executive Development: Four Skill Sets For Aspiring C-Suite Execs
Careers unfold over a lifetime. Each executive has different strengths and weaknesses. Unexpected opportunities and obstacles arise – at work and at home – that affect how a career evolves. Every successful career is unique. Yet across those differences, there are general types of knowledge and experiences that all executives need to succeed in the C-suite.
Thriving in the Mid-Career Years: 3 Questions Women Must Answer
This article was coauthored with Perry Yeatman and originally appeared in Crain's Chicago Business. After 40 years of progress, women are still relatively scarce in the C-suite, especially in the CEO role. Data shows that the mid-career years (from the early 30s to late 40s) are where much of the momentum loss occurs. Why? Because this is the time when commitments outside the office escalate at the same time that work commitments do.
Thriving in the mid-career years: 3 questions women must answer
After 40 years of progress, women are still relatively scarce in the C-suite, especially in the CEO role. Data shows that the mid-career years (from the early 30s to late 40s) are where much of the momentum loss occurs. Why? Because this is the time when commitments outside the office escalate at the same time that work commitments do. At work, fast-track professionals move from entry-level to middle management roles.
Leaving well: Why the "last 90 days" matters more than the first 90
Much has been written about the “first 90 days.” Indeed, the phrase has become a management mantra. The original frame, introduced by Michael Watkins in 2000, caught on because it reminds new leaders not to wait too long before taking decisive action and making noticeable, substantive changes. Interestingly, there is no corollary “last 90 days” meme.
Reimagining Effective Cross-Functional Teams
Paul Leinwand is global managing director of capabilities-driven strategy and growth for Strategy&, PwC's strategy consulting group. Based in Chicago, he is a principal with PwC US. Sally Blount is dean of and the Michael L. Nemmers Professor of Management and Organizations at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a director at Abbott Laboratories. A version of this article appeared in the Spring 2018 issue of strategy+business.
How Leaders Use Power To Drive Change
Last April, Larry Fink was quoted in BusinessWeek saying, “I don’t identify as powerful.” Now that’s provocative coming from the CEO of BlackRock, the biggest asset management firm on the planet, and #34 on Forbes Most Powerful People list. Over nearly 30 years as a business school professor and dean, I have interviewed literally hundreds of CEOs and C-suite leaders. I can’t tell you how often when I ask them about power, they deftly dodge the question or change the subject.
Unpacking Vision: Three Capabilities Leaders Must Have
When people talk about leadership, they often use the v-word. Vision: the idea that the best leaders see things that others don’t or can’t. But vision alone isn’t enough. Leaders also need to enable their teams and organizations to embrace and enact that vision. 1. See potential. The first step to becoming an effective visionary leader is learning to see potential – both in individuals and organizations. To do that, you need to free yourself to imagine how the world in which you work could be better.
Six Ways To Demonstrate You're Promotion-Ready
Bigger titles bring bigger responsibilities. Whether it's taking on your first management job or joining your first board, every time your title or responsibilities expand, it requires mastering a new level of interpersonal awareness and finesse. Figuring out how to navigate all the different offices and conference rooms you enter as you move up requires a lot of vigilance - watching how different people behave and noticing how people react to them.
Six Ways To Demonstrate You're Promotion-Ready
Bigger titles bring bigger responsibilities. Whether it’s taking on your first management job or joining your first board, every time your title or responsibilities expand, it requires mastering a new level of interpersonal awareness and finesse. Figuring out how to navigate all the different offices and conference rooms you enter as you move up requires a lot of vigilance — watching how different people behave and noticing how people react to them.
Wrestling with a tough problem at work? Consider a silent retreat
My advice: The next time you feel stuck at work with a hard problem to solve, a complicated team dynamic, or are just feeling burnt out -- instead of hiring a consultant, going to a seminar, or tweeting about it -- consider going away for 2-3 days of silence. For the last decade, I have been going on silent retreats at least once a year. Sometimes they are short, just 2-3 days. But my favorites are the longer ones, where I spend anywhere from 7-14 days in silence.
Getting more women into the c-suite means keeping them in the talent pipeline
Women now make up nearly 60% of college graduates in the US, as well as more than 50% of graduate school classes in many traditionally male fields, including law and medicine. Yet despite these gains, equality has not been reached in business, especially at the most senior levels. As the only female leading a top 10 business school, I find this troubling.
Overcome Resistance to Change with Two Conversations
Across industries and sectors, the track record for organizational change is bleak. Research finds that anywhere from 50%–75% of change efforts fail. And for those that do succeed, many don’t achieve the goals of the original vision. Why is change so hard? Usually, figuring out the right answer is not the challenge, whether it’s a new strategy, more-efficient processes or systems, or a new structure that better meets the needs of a growing company.
Why Physical (Not Just Digital) Architecture Still Matters
Telecommuting has been on the rise for decades, attracting at least one-third of the U.S. workforce in one form or another. At the same time, we've seen explosive growth in online education. Does this mean that digital architecture has replaced physical architecture as the "it" infrastructure investment for the 21st century? I'd argue no. At Northwestern University, we just opened a new 415,000 square foot home for the Kellogg School of Management at a cost of $250 million.
Why You Should Make a Career Jump When Others Think It’s a Mistake
The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for, “What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve ever been given?” is written by Sally Blount, dean at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. If your goal is to find work that truly motivates and challenges you, at some point you will have to conjure up the confidence to buck convention.
Getting More Women into the C-Suite Means Keeping Them in the Talent Pipeline
Leadership Careers Mar 10, 2017 Dean Sally Blount on supporting women through three “pivot points” in their careers. Women now make up nearly 60 percent of college graduates in the US, as well as more than 50 percent of graduate school classes in many traditionally male fields, including law and medicine. Yet despite these gains, equality has not been reached in business, especially at the most senior levels.
3 Ways You May Be Holding Yourself Back From Success
The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for, “What's the biggest hurdle you've had to overcome in your career?� is written by Sally Blount, dean of Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
Why It’s Okay to Be Unsure About Your Career in Your 20s
The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for, “What should every college intern know about succeeding in business?” is written by Sally Blount, dean of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. I often meet young people who think that they will find their true life calling if they can just get the right first job or internship.
Management is all in the timing
A version of this article appeared in the Winter 2016 issue of strategy+business. The pace of business keeps hastening, as advanced technology hypercharges the speed at which data and business opportunities emerge, in addition to increasing the amount and accessibility of those things. Fundamental shifts in market structure have shortened the life cycles of innovation, products, and even executives. CEO tenure in the Fortune 500 has fallen from an average of 11 years in 2002 to six years today.
Management Is All in the Timing
A version of this article appeared in the Winter 2016 issue of strategy+business. The pace of business keeps hastening, as advanced technology hypercharges the speed at which data and business opportunities emerge, in addition to increasing the amount and accessibility of those things. Fundamental shifts in market structure have shortened the life cycles of innovation, products, and even executives. CEO tenure in the Fortune 500 has fallen from an average of 11 years in 2002 to six years today.
How Women Can Break Through in Male-Dominated Fields
The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for: “How do you excel in a male-dominated industry?” is written by Sally Blount, dean of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. There have been so many research studies conducted and books written on male vs. female leadership styles.
Stress Relief Tips for Business Leaders Losing Motivation
The MPW Insiders Network is an online community where the biggest names in business and beyond answer timely career and leadership questions. Today’s answer for: “How do you stay motivated?� is written by Sally Blount, dean of Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. The research, both academic and applied, is consistent and can be summed up simply: Staying motivated at work is about five things.
How the Wormhole Decade (2000-2010) Changed the World
Think 1999—what were the most pressing issues of the day? Perhaps Y2K and the dot-com bubble? Remember 6% interest rates, the flip phone, Sony Walkman, Bill Clinton and Boris Yeltsin, and when the French franc was still legal tender?
Three ways to propel more women to the top of business schools
Gender balance need a rethink of which subjects are ‘serious’, says Kellogg’s Sally Blount In the 2016 Financial Times MBA rankings, only...
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