Given today’s geopolitics, variable factors come into play, and cost is no longer the primary consideration. As Korea/Vietnam CEO Joo-Seuk Maing explains in this Advisor, gaining a broader perspective is a necessity for leaders as they navigate global risk.

This Advisor takes a closer look at interoperable energy microgrids enabled by blockchain, which can offer more choices to consumers, improve market efficiency by eliminating middlemen, increase resilience by decentralizing the network topology, and enable new marketplaces.

Although the still-abstract concept of Web3 social media may not immediately appear relevant for the current generation of DAOs, we believe this tooling will emerge as a force multiplier for the growth of token-powered organizations. As we explore in this Advisor, Web3 social media will: promote accessibility in the decentralized technology stack, bring commercial incentives for value capture to the forefront, and create a new standard for identity on the blockchain.

Kimberley Young Milani explores the intersection of leadership, business, purpose, and sustainability in the contemporary world. She emphasizes the need for leaders to embody both competence and character. The article also looks at the intersection of character and organizational purpose, warning that without character, an organization’s purpose might become a hollow slogan or facade.

Kanina Blanchard draws on the findings from a graduate education course that takes a curated approach to self-exploration. She emphasizes the need for leaders to move beyond traditional metrics and recognize their accountability to communities and the broader world. Blanchard reframes responsible decision-making as a journey, highlighting reflection, emotional exploration, and learning from experiences. The article stresses the importance of individual transformation and tangible choices, encouraging continuous learning, humility, and resilience in the pursuit of responsible decision-making.

Karen E. Linkletter explores contemporary and historical perspectives on assessing and developing leadership character. She delves into the question of whether or not character can be learned by examining the viewpoints of philosophers and management gurus. She also explores the liberal arts ideal, which emphasizes education and self-development, contrasting it with modern frameworks such as the Values in Action Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS) and the Ivey Leader Character Framework (ILCF). Linkletter highlights the shift in focus from virtues like integrity and prudence to decision-making capabilities in contemporary character models.

Barbara A. Carlin connects character and ethics by delving into sneaky problems commonly faced by managers. She uses two cases to illustrate the often-obscured moral dimensions of business choices and explains how nonmonetary transactions, framing effects, and ill-conceived goals can contribute to ethical lapses. Carlin proposes remedies such as awareness, collaboration, and fostering an ethical organizational culture. She notes that virtues like humility, collaboration, integrity, and courage can help managers recognize and address the ethical nuances of strategic decisions, ultimately fostering a culture of ethical decision-making within organizations.

Muhammed Shaahid Cassim and Fatima Hamdulay explore the concept of heartfelt leadership through the lens of the Islamic Sufi tradition, focusing on tasawwuf, the science of character excellence. Grounded in the belief that the heart is the seat of emotion, spirit, and morality, the authors delve into the Sufi perspective on good character and its role in leadership. They emphasize three considerations (intentionality, entrustment, and sincerity) that govern the heart and its decision-making.

The authors cover the strategic impact of character development in the public and private sectors. They advocate a shift from mere awareness to integrating character development into organizational practices, with an emphasis on the interconnected nature of character dimensions. Introducing the Virtuosity mobile app as a practical tool for character development, the authors propose a strategic embedding process model for sustained change. They highlight the crucial relationship between individual and organizational systems and emphasize the need for alignment. The article concludes with a call to action, asserting that the tools and understanding necessary for achieving lasting impact are readily available.

There are three main themes in this issue. The first is the importance of embedding character dimensions within leadership processes and frameworks, whether through paradigm shifts, Sufi traditions, ethical decision-making, historical perspectives, or education. The second theme is the interconnectedness of individual and organizational systems. The third theme is recognizing that leadership responsibility extends beyond traditional performance metrics. Leaders need to recognize their accountability to communities, the broader world, and long-term societal and environmental considerations.

As we move into an era of “hyper-enterprise connectivity,” most businesses will need to manage an ecosystem — a complex web of interdependent relationships aimed at creating and allocating business value. In this Advisor, Myles Suer offers his thoughts on a new book that can help enterprise architects and digital business strategists tackle these complex ecosystems with AI to build enterprises of the future.

The world’s chances of avoiding the worst effects of climate change are rapidly decreasing due to our failure to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We can only reach the emissions levels necessary if every business, city, and region moves rapidly toward its net zero obligations. Digital twins can become a key tool in this mission. This Advisor introduces a project by a UK town that is utilizing digital twin technology to facilitate its transition to net zero.

Modern management emphasizes empowerment, flexibility, collaboration, and innovation. But what should we call it? While there are a number of labels thrown around for modern management, none have stuck as much as “command-control” (used to describe traditional management practices). In this Advisor, Cutter Fellow Emeritus Jim Highsmith offers a new label for today’s emerging management practices: agile-adaptive leadership.

Blockchain, a complex technology, and sustainability, an abstract concept, have two things in common: they are (1) fairly comprehensive, and (2) vaguely defined. To understand how the former can impact the latter, core terms and existing trade-offs must be properly explained, and all positive or negative blockchain sustainability implications must be carefully evaluated.

People made decisions for many millennia without the benefit of IT, and it’s not self-evident that we make our really big decisions in the computer age consistently better than before. Smaller decisions in relatively information-rich situations are another matter. As this Advisor explores, IT has been and will continue to be important to decision makers in critical ways.

In a recent survey, we asked organizations about the primary challenges hindering them from carrying out their GenAI plans. This Advisor explores some of their major concerns.

How do organizations create business adaptability? How can CIOs guide their CEOs and other business leaders to build truly adaptable organizations? We asked a group of CIOs these questions; this Advisor shares their responses.

To demonstrate the degree to which digital twins are becoming a powerful tool, this Advisor examines a digital twin framework that was used to create, adjust, and deploy a digital twin of a NATO member’s naval ship. The tool can be used for training, engineering, and operational activities.

The US Supreme Court decision regarding affirmative action has prompted concern among DEI leaders. In this Advisor, I address several of these issues and offer some thoughts based on my experience leading DEI transformation efforts.

 

 

Blockchain Technologies & Environmental Sustainability

November 10, 2023 | 10:00am-10:45am EST | 16:00-16:45 CET (see your local time)

Make no bones about it, data privacy/security and the ethical/responsible use of generative AI (GAI) are hot-button issues. But to what extent are enterprises actually taking steps to address these concerns as they rapidly adopt GAI? In a recent Cutter survey, we asked organizations this key question.

As a woman of color, it is important that when I consider employment with your organization, I see representations of myself in roles across the spectrum — including at the senior level. I’m not suggesting that job qualifications are irrelevant, of course, but I’m asking you to adjust your lens to look past gender and color for talent. Better still, look at women of color and recognize that your organization is in need of their talent.

Cutter Expert Simon J.D. Schillebeeckx and Marco Schletz dive deep into the field of ReFi, a concept that enhances financial practices through decentralization and focuses on environmental and societal systems. The authors highlight several key problems of the space and point out that genuinely disruptive ReFi models are still in their infancy. The good news is that ReFi’s potentials are manifold and exciting. In the not-too-distant future, we might see financial applications backed by blockchain that can enhance data credibility, exchangeability, and transparency to redefine how corporations create and apportion environmental value.

In this issue of Amplify, we delve into the intricate connections between blockchain technologies and sustainability, highlighting how transparency, traceability, and decentralization can empower individuals, organizations, and governments to address pressing sustainability issues, from energy grids and sustainable forestry to agri-food ecosystems and regenerative finance. As we explore this dynamic development, it becomes evident that blockchain is not merely a technological innovation: it can serve as a catalyst for transformative change that aligns with the global imperative to create a more sustainable and equitable world.

This article presents an interview with Michael Marus, conducted by Cutter Expert Curt Hall and Guest Editor Horst Treiblmaier. Marus is CIO and director of IT at the Forest Stewardship Council, an organization governed by a global network of more than 1,000 individuals and member organizations with the mission to protect forests worldwide. It has been testing and applying blockchain since 2021 to enable sustainability with forest-based materials and has found that blockchain’s traceability helps it achieve integrity and credibility for its certification system. Marus provides exciting details about the organization’s practical experiences and offers his outlook on how blockchain might provide further value in the future.