Hot-Button Topics for Managers in 2007

Much of success in business comes from listening to your customers, and the same is true for those of us writing for a management audience. Your insights shape the conversation, inspiring us all to question what defines strong leadership, what motivates employees to go the extra mile, and what propels an organization ahead of the competition. Harvard Business has inspired us to put some thought into what we've learned from you this year. Until we get our thoughts down, take a peak at what their management bloggers took away from reader feedback:

• Bill Taylor: How Feedback Changed the Game for Me

"The most urgent, most important, and most controversial questions about business are also the most fundamental and timeless. Times change, technologies evolve, and the global economy rises and falls. But through it all, what both senior executives and rank-and-file employees wonder and worry about are basic matters of meaning and purpose: Am I proud to be part of this company?"

• Gill Corkindale: Put People First

"People skills will be more important than ever as we head into the uncertainties of 2008. The threat of recession, global credit squeezes, and political uncertainty will magnify the challenges all businesses will face in the coming. But without emotional intelligence, clear communication, delegation, feedback, giving recognition and celebrating success, companies will fail their employees, their customers, their shareholders and all their other stakeholders. Ultimately, they will probably fail completely."

• Tony Mayo: The Value of Leaders Learning from History

"An appreciation for history and an appreciation for the present do not have to be mutually exclusive. Though this balancing act can be difficult, leaders who make the effort to learn from the past and understand the present context will make better decisions."

• Pankaj Ghemawat: Globalization's Many Voices

"Continued belief in complete cross-border integration is generally underpinned by a technological determinism that overlooks the cultural and administrative (or political) barriers between countries. If you ignore cultural and political factors, it is feasible to believe that borders soon won't matter; if you don't, though, I think it is impossible."

• John Quelch: Customers Demand and Deserve Respect

"Respect for your customers is essential to marketing success. Respect requires listening and it requires humility. One of the New York window washers who founded Snapple put it like this: "We never thought of ourselves as any better than our customers." Sam Walton lived to this same standard his whole life. But how many successful entrepreneurs move on to lavish lifestyles, try to drag their brands to higher price points to improve their respectability, and in the process lose touch with the customers that brought them to the dance?"

• Tammy Erickson: Thanks to Gen Xers for the Reality Check

"... at the end of the day, I think we need to accept that a reasonable number of people falling into critically important age groups are disenfranchised from corporate life and discouraged by the prospects it has presented. And, blame aside, we do face some daunting challenges."

• Tom Davenport: Don't Believe the (Technology) Hype

"A related implication of my comment counts is that technology gets more attention than it deserves. I got roughly five times as many comments on my recent Facebook and LinkedIn posts as I did on my "information about sustainability" post. Which is more important in the grand scheme of things? I'd say sustainability, by a large margin."