Interview with Dr. Linda Hill, Harvard Business School
Prior to the Global Forum 2019 in Tokyo, Japan, staff of the GCI interviewed Dr. Linda Hill, professor of Harvard Business School, who is a member of the Board of Directors of the GCI, and asked her about significance of the Forum.
――What is the Significance of the GCI Global Forum for you?
I am excited by the prospect of participating in a discussion on how to develop the next leaders for Japan. We live in a dynamic, complex world shaped in large measure by globalization and emerging technologies. How do we prepare young people to have the moral imagination and courage required to navigate today and tomorrow's challenges and opportunities? When Yumi Kuwana - the President and Founder of GCI - asked me to join the Board of her organization, I was flattered/eager to do so. I fully support GCI's ambition to develop individuals who are both great local and global citizens. Without a deep appreciation for their own culture, a young person is ill-prepared to make their way in the broader world. Moreover, GCI is designed to address the whole person - what they need to know, what they need to do, and who they need to be.
It is fitting that the Forum will be an intergenerational dialogue that includes education, government and the private sectors. Like Yumi, I believe we can only build a better world for us all, if we improve our capacity to engage in innovative problem-solving with those from diverse backgrounds and experiences.
――What will your discuss at the Forum?
Various initiatives are of course, already underway to look at education reform around the world, not just in Japan. For sure, we at Harvard Business School, have been engaged in lively debates about our curriculum and pedagogy. It is wonderful that such an esteemed audience in Japan will progress this conversation. We will have experts with us about the kind of learner-centric methods, like Harkness®, designed to address the "head, heart and hands," of a student. I will help facilitate a discussion that frames ad diagnoses key challenges and opportunities so we can develop action plans on how to move forward. For the roundtable discussion with the next generation the focus will be on how prepared they feel to give voice to their values, pursue meaningful employment and lead a fulfilling life. We will explore:
・What do they aspire to do?
・How prepared are they to fulfill their ambitions?
・What, if anything, do they wish had been different about their education - both with regard to what they learned and how they learned it?
For my fireside chat with global corporate leaders in Japan I will ask them to share their relevant experiences and views with regard to the following questions:
・What corporate culture and capabilities are needed to develop and people?
・What is required to be a great leader today? What does it take to build a world class organization - an organization able to develop top talent and to adapt, to change and innovate as required in our dynamic global economy?
・Do Japanese organizations have the talent and leadership they need to be world class organizations today?
・Looking back to their education and what is required to be a great leader today, what should Japanese education keep doing, stop doing and start doing?
――Do you have a new book coming out prior to the Global Forum?
I am currently researching my next two books. The first, "collective Genius 2.0," focuses on what it takes to lead and build the ecosystem required for innovation. Leaders are building out innovative labs, corporate accelerators and partnering - even with "competitors," to drive innovation in their organizations. The second book, which is closely related to the first, is about digital transformation. Incumbents are finding that digital transformation is much more than implementing new technologies. It requires culture change and the adopt of new organizational capabilities. To utilize the new technologies to create value requires a workforce able to work very differently.
――Any additional comments?
I enjoy visiting Japan - I love the rich traditions and aesthetics of the country. Fortunately, I have clients who bring me to the country at least once a year. A few years ago, Prime Minister Abe invited me to give a presentation on innovation and inclusion - you rarely get innovation without diversity of thought. It was an honor to speak and meet with the other conference guests about how to increase the number of women in leadership positions in Japan. Being in Japan truly feeds my head and heart; I brought my family with me during cherry blossom season and it was hard to get them back on the plane.
ハーバード・ビジネススクールの教授リンダ・ヒル博士は、リーダーシップ研究に関する第一人者。「Collective Genius: The Art and Practice of Leading Innovation」(邦訳『ハーバード流 逆転のリーダーシップ』)、 Business Insiderによる「トップ20のビジネス本」にランクイン。また、TEDTalkでの人気に次ぎ、2013年にThinkers 50 Leadership and Innovation賞の最優秀賞にも選ばれ、Young President's Organization (YPO)や世界経済フォーラム(ダボス会議)で講演。世界的なリーダーシップとイノベーションの先導的なリーダーとして日本の大手企業も含む世界中の企業のためにコンサルタントとして活躍している。Relay Therapeutics(コンピュータの能力と「タンパク質の挙動」に関連する最新の実験的なテクノロジーを組み合わせて画期的な新薬発見エンジンを生み出すバイオテクノロジースタートアップ)や、ハーバード・ビジネス・パブリッシング、グローバル・シチズンズ・イニシアティブ(GCI)のボードメンバーやEight Inc.、Aspen Institute Business and Society Program、American Repertory Theaterのアドバイザリー・ボードなど、数多くの慈善団体、公共及び民間企業の理事会のメンバーとして活動。