Article
IESE Insight

Leadership Tips for Today to Stay in the Game Tomorrow: The Ambidextrous Leader

Format:Print

Abstract

This article summarizes research by the author into why some organizations fail in the face of "punctuated change," while others are reborn, adapt and survive. The key, he finds, involves embracing paradox. Continuing to exploit current business success is a must, but so is taking a plunge into the future through exploration. Carrying out both of these activities simultaneously calls for ambidexterity. The article highlights the defining features and characteristics of ambidexterity, and the keys that underpin putting it into action. While these skills need to reside in the leader at the top, senior management teams and heads of business units have to be just as adept at grasping the cognitive complexity and making the tradeoffs required for future success.