Case Interview Preparation & Management Consulting | Strategy | Critical Thinking

Welcome to an interview with the author of Likeable Badass: How Women Get the Success They Deserve, Alison Fragale. In her book, Alison addresses the recurring questions from high powered and early career women alike: How do women thread the needle of kindness and competence in the workplace? How can women earn credit for their accomplishments, negotiate better, and navigate complex office politics without losing the goodwill of their peers?   Alison Fragale is the Mary Farley Ames Lee Distinguished Scholar of Organizational Behavior at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Kenan-Flagler Business School. As a research psychologist, award-winning professor, international keynote speaker, and author, she is on a mission to help others — especially women — use behavioral science to work and live better. Her scholarship has been published in the most prestigious academic journals in her field and featured in prominent media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Financial Times, Boston Globe, and Inc. She lives in Chicago with her husband and three children, who are all named after professional athletes. For more information, visit AlisonFragale.com.   Get Alison’s book here: https://shorturl.at/uPfaJ [https://shorturl.at/uPfaJ] Likeable Badass: How Women Get the Success They Deserve   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach]   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf]   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo]

Welcome to an interview with Mitch Warner, a bestselling author and Arbinger managing partner.    In this episode, we dive deep into the critical topic of self-deception and its profound impact on leadership and personal effectiveness. Mitch shares powerful insights on how self-deception can undermine our relationships and professional success, often without us even realizing it. He explains the concept of self-betrayal and how it leads to a distorted view of ourselves and others, creating unnecessary conflicts and reducing our influence as leaders. Mitch shares a valuable advice on how to rebuild trust in relationships damaged by self-deception and how to not let it happen again.   Mitch is the co-author of Arbinger’s latest bestseller, The Outward Mindset. He writes frequently on the practical effects of mindset at the individual and organizational levels as well as the role of leadership in transforming organizational culture and results. He is an expert on mindset and culture change, leadership, strategy, performance management, organizational turnaround, and conflict resolution.    Mitch is a sought-after speaker to organizations across a range of industries, bringing his practical experience to bear for leaders of corporations, governments, and organizations across the globe. Specific clients include NASA, Citrix, Aflac, the U.S. Army and Air Force, the Treasury Executive Institute, and Intermountain Healthcare. Mitch carries his first-hand perspective as a proven leader into his speeches and facilitation, dynamically bringing Arbinger’s concepts and tools to life through his powerful stories and hands-on experience. His audiences leave inspired to improve and equipped with a practical roadmap to effect immediate change.    In his role as managing partner, Mitch directs the development of Arbinger’s intellectual property, training and consulting programs, and highly customized large-scale organizational change initiatives. He has been instrumental in Arbinger’s rapid growth, including its expanding international presence in nearly 30 countries.    Mitch received his B.A. in philosophy and is a licensed nursing administrator. Trained in fine art at the Art Students League and the National Academy, he spends much of his free time painting. His work hangs in organizations nationwide.   Visit Arbinger Institute here: https://arbinger.com/ [https://arbinger.com/]   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach]   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf]   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo]

Welcome to an interview with a seasoned business strategist and operator respected for his pivotal role in Amazon’s early days, John Rossman. In John’s book, Think Like Amazon, he provides 50 ½ answers drawn from his experience as an Amazon executive―and shows today’s business leaders how to think like Amazon, strategize like Bezos, and beat the competition like nobody’s business.   John Rossman is an author, executive advisor and keynote speaker on digital transformation, leadership, and business reinvention. With a career spanning consulting roles at renowned brands like Novartis, Gates Foundation, Microsoft, Walmart, and T-Mobile, he brings extensive expertise in solving complex business challenges and driving customer-centric solutions. As an early Amazon executive, Rossman played a pivotal role in launching the Amazon Marketplace in 2002, shaping its transformative impact.   Rossman is the author of four influential books on leadership and business innovation, including the bestseller “The Amazon Way” and his recent release “Big Bet Leadership.” He served as senior innovation advisor at T-Mobile and senior technology advisor to the Gates Foundation, where he honed his strategic acumen in driving organizational change and creating enduring enterprise value.   Today, Rossman is a sought-after keynote speaker renowned for his insights into leadership for innovation and transformation. His work emphasizes practical applications of Amazon’s Leadership Principles to foster innovation, drive growth, and navigate digital disruption effectively.   Get John’s book, Think Like Amazon: 50 1/2 Ideas to Become a Digital Leader, here: https://shorturl.at/zyUHR [https://shorturl.at/zyUHR]   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach]   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf]   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo]

Welcome to an interview with Richard Ruback and Royce Yudkoff, HBS professors and the hosts of 'Think Big, Buy Small' podcast.    In this episode, we discuss current market trends related to entrepreneurship through acquisition. We also touch on the demographic trend of baby boomers retiring and needing to sell their businesses, and its impact on buying and selling businesses. Most importantly, Richard and Royce share their advice on how to find the right business to buy, the key considerations and how to evaluate businesses, common buyer errors, and the challenges of buying from baby boomers.   Think Big, Buy Small is a new podcast from Harvard Business School that explores this innovative approach to entrepreneurship: acquisition entrepreneurship. The show is an extension of their courses on small firms, including “Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition,” which has been taken by thousands of MBA students, and their highly-regarded book, HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business: Think Big, Buy Small, Own Your Own Company [https://www.amazon.com/HBR-Guide-Buying-Small-Business/dp/1633692507/ref=asc_df_1633692507/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312175933381&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10669029163329105426&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003562&hvtargid=pla-433760205050&psc=1&mcid=863fb68002103b8c8a6e981b70e24462&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=60258871817&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=312175933381&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10669029163329105426&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9003562&hvtargid=pla-433760205050&gclid=CjwKCAjwoa2xBhACEiwA1sb1BHAhoMlb2MfKoyzo6AbkL9jCGqe8Gifv4aC4hDVFmHyb56sC6V1hahoC0cgQAvD_BwE], which has sold more than 65,000 copies.   Richard S. Ruback is a Baker Foundation Professor and the Willard Prescott Smith Professor of Corporate Finance, Emeritus at the Harvard Business School.  Over the last 15 years, he and Royce Yudkoff have been developing and teaching a second year course titled “The Financial Management of Smaller Firms” and a field course called “Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition”.  Ruback and Yudkoff’s book, HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business was published by Harvard Business Review Press in 2017. The book is a practical roadmap through the steps required to find, evaluate, negotiate, and finance the acquisition of a smaller firm.   Ruback earned his Ph.D. in business administration at the University of Rochester in 1980 and taught at MIT's Sloan School before joining the HBS faculty as a visiting professor in 1987. He was appointed associate professor in 1988 and full professor in 1989. Ruback has served as an editor for the Journal of Financial Economics and is the author of numerous articles on corporate finance and valuation.   Royce Yudkoff is the MBA Class of 1975 Professor of Management Practice of Entrepreneurial Management at the Harvard Business School and a General Partner and co-founder of ABRY Partners, LLC in Boston, MA. Alongside Professor Richard Ruback, Royce currently co-teaches a second year case course titled “The Financial Management of Smaller Firms” and a field course called “Entrepreneurship through Acquisition”. These courses focus on how to acquire, finance, and operate your own smaller firm.   As was mentioned above, Ruback and Yudkoff’s book, HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business, was published by Harvard Business Review Press in 2017.  The book is a practical roadmap through the steps required to find, evaluate, negotiate, and finance the acquisition of a smaller firm.   In 1989, Royce co-founded ABRY Partners, a private equity firm focused on the media, communications and business and information services markets. Since 1989 the firm has completed over $27 billion of leveraged transactions and other private equity investments involving approximately 450 properties. Over this period Royce has also served on numerous private and public corporate boards.   Royce graduated from the Harvard Business School in 1980 as a Baker Scholar and is an honors graduate of Dartmouth College.   Get a copy of HBR Guide to Buying a Small Business: Think Big, Buy Small, Own Your Own Company: https://rb.gy/2omnrh [https://rb.gy/2omnrh]   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach]   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf]   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo]

Welcome to an interview with the author of Beyond the Hammer: A Fresh Approach to Leadership, Culture, and Building High Performance Teams, Brian Gottlieb. In his book, Brian shares his straightforward business ideology of having a clear strategy, inspiring teams, providing best-in-class training, using metrics for empowerment, and executing with consistency. Beyond the Hammer provides five foundational pillars of leadership and an actionable path to weaving these pillars into any business, giving leaders and managers the power to build teams that perform at a high level, consistently.   Brian Gottlieb is an inspirational business leader who founded a home services business in 2009 on a plastic folding table with $3,000. Twelve years later when he sold the family of businesses he created, they had diversified products, expanded across multiple states, grown to 600 employees, and neared $1 billion in lifetime sales. INC 5000 recognized the organization as one of the fastest-growing companies in America.   Get Brian’s new book here: https://rb.gy/f4gq2v [https://rb.gy/f4gq2v] Beyond the Hammer: A Fresh Approach to Leadership, Culture, and Building High Performance Teams   Here are some free gifts for you: Overall Approach Used in Well-Managed Strategy Studies free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/OverallApproach]   McKinsey & BCG winning resume free download: www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/resumepdf]   Enjoying this episode? Get access to sample advanced training episodes here: www.firmsconsulting.com/promo [http://www.firmsconsulting.com/promo]