Critical to the success of every organization, strategy is not a long planning exercise or document. Strategy can be simple, fun and effective and is founded on a set of five interrelated and powerful choices that positions an organization to win.
Critical to the success of every organization, strategy is not a long planning exercise or document. Strategy can be simple, fun and effective and is founded on a set of five interrelated and powerful choices that positions an organization to win.
Integrative thinking is a form of reasoning which allows you to constructively face the tensions of opposing models. Instead of choosing one at the expense of the other, you generate a creative solution. Your solution contains elements of the individual models, but is superior to each.
Organizations need to incorporate the best of design thinking into their ways of working to unleash innovation and creativity. An organization will be able to counter-balance analytical thinking with intuitive thinking – to enable it to both exploit existing knowledge and create new knowledge.
While prevailing theory holds that stock-based compensation perfectly aligns corporate executives’ incentives with those of shareholders, it does the opposite. As a consequence, executives have done brilliantly while shareholders have become increasingly frustrated. Incentives and governance practice needs to be transformed to enable corporations to prosper in a way that better serves society.
More on Incentives & Governance
The combination of the stagnation of medium incomes and the rapid rise of high incomes is threatening the future of democratic capitalism. Its predictive future requires building a more robust knowledge, transactional and physical infrastructure for broadly shared prosperity.
For both social entrepreneurs and corporations, the key tenet of social innovation is finding ways to make the world a better place. My work focuses on building tools for social entrepreneurs to create more powerful models for creating value for society and developing models to guide corporations on a path of productive corporate citizenship.
Meet Roger
Let's Read
A New Way to Think
When More is Not Better
Creating Great Choices
The Rise (and Likely Fall) of the Talent Economy
Getting Beyond Better
Playing To win
Canada: What it is, what it can be
Fixing the Game
The Design Of Business
The Opposable Mind
The Responsibility Virus
Dia-Minds
The Future of the MBA
Rotman on Design
Let's Engage
Thought Pillars
In 2017, Roger was named the world’s #1 management thinker by Thinkers50, a biannual ranking of the most influential global business thinkers.
Roger is a trusted strategy advisor to the CEOs of companies worldwide including Procter & Gamble, Lego, Ford, BHP & Verizon
Roger Martin is a Professor Emeritus at the Rotman School of Management at University of Toronto where he served as Dean from 1998-2013, Academic Director of the Michael Lee-Chin Family Institute for Corporate Citizenship from 2004-2019 and Institute Director of the Martin Prosperity Institute from 2013-2019. In 2013, he was named global Dean of the Year by the leading business school website, Poets & Quants.
His newest book is A New Way to Think: Your Guide to Superior Managerial Effectiveness (Harvard Business Review Press, 2022). His previous twelve books include When More is Not Better (HBRP, 2020), Creating Great Choiceswritten with Jennifer Riel (HBRP, 2017) Getting Beyond Betterwritten with Sally Osberg (HBRP, 2015) and Playing to Win written with A.G. Lafley (HBRP, 2013), which won the award for Best Book of 2012-13 by the Thinkers50. He has written 30 Harvard Business Review articles.
Roger received his BA from Harvard College, with a concentration in Economics, in 1979 and his MBA from the Harvard Business School in 1981. He lives in South Florida with his wife, Marie-Louise Skafte.
Contact Roger through Twitter or email. Call us to book a speaking engagement or other services.
Roger is available for keynote and other speaking engagements. Advisory services and team workshops can also be booked with Roger.
Articles
Harvard Business Review
Leaders Shouldn’t Try to Do It All
January-February, 2025
Harvard Business Review
The Right Way to Build Your Brand
January-February 2024
Harvard Business Review
January-February 2023
Harvard Business Review
Strategy in a Hyperpolitical World
November-December 2022
Harvard Business Review
The Real Secret to Retaining Talent
March-April 2022
Harvard Business Review
It’s Time to Replace the Public Corporation
Jan-Feb 2021
Harvard Business Review
What Managers Get Wrong About Capital
May-June 2020
Harvard Business Review
The One Thing You Need to Know About Managing Functions
July-August 2019
Harvard Business Review
January-February 2019
Harvard Business Review
Management Is Much More Than a Science
September-October 2017
Harvard Business Review
January-February 2017
Harvard Business Review
M&A: The One Thing You Need to Get Right
June 2016
Harvard Business Review
December, 2015
Harvard Business Review
September 2015
Harvard Business Review
Two Keys to Sustainable Social Enterprise
May 2015
Harvard Business Review
The Rise (and Likely Fall) of the Talent Economy
October 2014
Harvard Business Review
The Public Corporation Is Finally in Eclipse
April 2014
Harvard Business Review
The Big Lie of Strategic Planning
January–February 2014
Harvard Business Review
Rethinking the Decision Factory
October 2013
Harvard Business Review
October 2012
Harvard Business Review
Bringing Science to the Art of Strategy
September 2012
Harvard Business Review
Saving the Planet: A Tale of Two Strategies
April 2012
Harvard Business Review
June 2011
Harvard Business Review
Don’t Get Blinded by the Numbers
March 2011
Harvard Business Review
July-August 2010
Harvard Business Review
The Age of Customer Capitalism
January/February 2010
Harvard Business Review
Two Leading Researchers Discuss the Value of Oddball Data
November, 2009
Harvard Business Review
June 2007
Harvard Business Review
Forethought: Directing For All The Wrong Reasons
June 2006
Harvard Business Review
Breakthrough Ideas for 2005: Validity vs. Reliability
February 2005
Harvard Business Review
Capital vs. Talent: The Battle That's Reshaping Business
July 2003
Harvard Business Review
January 2003
Harvard Business Review
The Virtue Matrix: Calculating the Return on Corporate Responsibility
March, 2002
Harvard Business Review
Changing the Mind of the Corporation
November 1993
Blogs
HBR.org
Leaders Need to Harness Aristotle’s 3 Types of Knowledge
October 2, 2020
HBR.org
Pricing Needs to Reflect Who People Want to Be, Not Just What They Want
January 25, 2019
HBR.org
Remembering Jack Bogle and Herb Kelleher, Two Great Strategists
January 18, 2019
HBR.org
December 28, 2018
HBR.org
Should Mark Zuckerberg Resign?
January 8, 2019
HBR.org
Activist Hedge Funds Aren't Good for Companies or Investors, So Why Do They Exist?
August 20, 2018
HBR.org
Why the U.S. Trade Deficit Can Be a Sign of a Healthy Economy
July 27, 2018
HBR.org
GE's Fall Has Been Accelerated by Two Problems. Most Other Big Companies Face Them, Too.
June 29, 2018
HBR.org
It's Time to Make More Jobs Good Jobs
December 4, 2017
HBR.org
CEOs Should Stop Thinking that Execution is Somebody Else's Job; It Is Theirs
November 21, 2017
HBR.org
In the Workplace of the NFL, the Players Hold the Upper Hand
October 31, 2017
HBR.org
June 13, 2017
HBR.org
What If Investors Who Held Their Shares Longer Got More Voting Power?
April 27, 2017
HBR.org
Strategic Choices Need to Be Made Simultaneously, Not Sequentially
April 3, 2017
HBR.org
A Little Competition Could Improve Your HR, IT, and Legal Departments
February 21, 2017
HBR.org
How the Attacks on Trump Reinforce His Strategy
January 12, 2017
HBR.org
Use Design Thinking to Build Commitment to a New Idea
January 3, 2017
HBR.org
Are Americans Enamored with the Wrong Kinds of Entrepreneurs?
November 11, 2016
HBR.org
The False Premise of the Shareholder Value Debate
September 26, 2016
HBR.org
Strategy and Execution Are the Same Thing
January 12, 2016
HBR.org
How Social Entrepreneurs Make Change Happen
October 14, 2015
HBR.org
October 13, 2015
HBR.org
Yes, Short-Termism Really Is a Problem
October 9, 2015
HBR.org
Why Talking About Strategy “Execution” Is Still Dangerous
September 15, 2015
HBR.org
What Economists Get Wrong About Measuring Productivity
September 14, 2015
HRB.org
How Talent Pulls One Over on the Capitalists
August 4, 2015
HBR.org
The First Question to Ask of Any Strategy
May 5, 2015
HBR.org
Strategy Is About Both Resources and Positioning
April 27, 2015
HBR.org
There Are Still Only Two Ways to Compete
April 21, 2015
HBR.org
Stop Distinguishing Between Execution and Strategy
March 13, 2015
HBR.org
Two Words That Kill Innovation
December 9, 2014
HBR.org
Capitalism Needs Design Thinking
December 8, 2014
HBR.org
The Dark Side of Efficient Markets
October 15, 2014
HBR.org
Why Monopolistic Pension Funds Undermine Capitalism
October 6, 2014
HBR.org
When Talent Started Driving Economic Growth
September 30, 2014
HBR.org
We Can’t Talk About Inequality Without Talking About Talent
September 23, 2014
HBR.org
A Brief History of America’s Attitude Toward Taxes
September 16, 2014
HBR.org
When Star Talent Grew More Powerful than Capital
September 9, 2014
HBR.org
The Fall of the Talent Economy?
September 4, 2014
HBR.org
In America, Labor Is Friendless
August 28, 2014
HBR.org
Does Cheap Online Video Trump Text?
July 4, 2014
HBR.org
Strategy Isn’t What You Say, It’s What You Do
June 18, 2014
HBR.org
Why Smart People Struggle with Strategy
June 12, 2014
HBR.org
Strategy Is Iterative Prototyping
June 6, 2014
HBR.org
How to Win the Argument with Milton Friedman
June 2, 2014
HBR.org
Strategize First, Analyze Later
May 29, 2014
HBR.org
Adaptive Strategy Is a Cop-Out
May 23, 2014
HBR.org
Three Quick Ways to Improve Your Strategy-Making
May 22, 2014
HBR.org
Help Leaders Be Less Useless at Strategy
May 16, 2014
HBR.org
A Simple Nuance that Produces Great Strategy Discussions
May 8, 2014
HBR.org
Which Strategy “Comfort Traps” Are You Falling Into?
May 3, 2014
HBR.org
Are You Confusing Strategy with Planning?
May 2, 2014
HBR.org
The Unexpected Benefits of Rapid Prototyping
February 11, 2014
HBR.org
Strategy in a World of Constant Change
February 3, 2014
HBR.org
The Five Rules Every New CEO Should Follow
October 14, 2013
HBR.org
The Cure for Self-Inflicted Complexity
October 4, 2013
HBR.org
September 6, 2013
HBR.org
Should Barnes & Noble Turn into a Mini-Mall?
July 15, 2013
HBR.org
The Best Companies Combine Marketing and Strategy
March 14, 2013
HBR.org
J.C. Penney Desperately Needs a Strategy
March 11, 2013
HBR.org
Strategy Is All About Practice
February 20, 2013
HBR.org
Don't Let Strategy Become Planning
February 5, 2013
HBR.org
Trending Again: Emoting at the World Economic Forum
January 28, 2013
HBR.org
Placing Strategic Bets in the Face of Uncertainty
January 22, 2013
HBR.org
Strategy and the Uncertainty Excuse
January 8, 2013
HBR.org
Why I Decided to Rethink Hiring Smart People
October 17, 2012
HBR.org
Before You Take a Risk, Lay Out the Logic
June 19, 2012
HBR.org
Do Financial Regulators Have Principles? Wanted: Financial Regulators with Backbone
March 22, 2012
HBR.org
The U.S. Needs to Make More Jobs More Creative
February 27, 2012
HBR.org
How to Make Companies Think Long-Term
October 3, 2011
HBR.org
CEOs Must Model the Behavior for Creating Societal Value
September 26, 2011
HBR.org
You Can't Analyze Your Way to Growth
September 12, 2011
HBR.org
Can Apple Survive Without Steve Jobs?
August 29, 2011
HBR.org
Are You Ready for Some Football?
July 25, 2011
HBR.org
Cool Alone Won’t Save Your Company
July 20, 2011
HBR.org
June 3, 2011
HBR.org
CEOs Should Be More Like Quarterbacks
May 3, 2011
HBR.org
Finding the Hidden Gems in Your Business Model
February 22, 2011
HBR.org
How to Successfully Manage Opposing Strategies
January 27, 2011
HBR.org
The Integrative Strategic Move of “Doubling Down”
January 17, 2011
HBR.org
A Smart Example of an Integrative Strategy
December 10, 2010
HBR.org
When Strategy Fails the Logic Test
November 24, 2010
HBR.org
How I Knew AOL Time Warner Was Doomed (No, Really!)
November 2, 2010
HBR.org
Board Chairs Should Be More Like Judges
October 14, 2010
HBR.org
Six Ways to Tell if You Have a Bad Board
September 29, 2010
HBR.org
Why Good Boards Aren’t There When You Need Them
September 20, 2010
HBR.org
Management Is Not a Profession — But It Can Be Taught
July 1, 2010
HBR.org
Moving from Strategic Planning to Story Telling
June 1, 2010
HBR.org
Five Questions to Build a Strategy
May 26, 2010
HBR.org
It’s Time to Tax the Wall Street Casino
May 11, 2010
HBR.org
My Eureka Moment with Strategy
May 3, 2010
HBR.org
Regulators' Challenge: Correct the Error or the Cover-up?
April 19, 2010
HBR.org
The Secret to Meaningful Customer Relationships
March 24, 2010
HBR.org
Saving Stock-Based Compensation From Itself
March 22, 2010
HBR.org
Why CEO’s Don’t Owe Shareholders a Return on Market Value
March 11, 2010
HBR.org
Five Ways to Heal American Capitalism
March 3, 2010
HBR.org
Why Modern Business Is Bad for Your Mental Health
February 23, 2010
HBR.org
The Inauthentic Communities of the Modern Executive
February 17, 2010
HBR.org
What We All Lost When Business Lost Respect
February 9, 2010
HBR.org
Barack Obama’s Integrative Brain
January 29, 2010