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  • November–December 2022
  • Article
  • Harvard Business Review

To See the Way Forward, Look Back

By: Ranjay Gulati
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:5
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Abstract

Most business leaders focus on the future much more than on the past, believing that their job is to embrace disruption and innovation, transform their organizations, and explore new frontiers. But decades of research on companies worldwide shows that most successful ones are also guided by core values and a clear purpose. These can often be uncovered by conducting a thorough audit of a company’s history, original value statements, and purpose. Then leaders can decide what to preserve and what to let go—celebrating and collaborating around the good while acknowledging and moving on from the bad.

Keywords

Values and Beliefs; Transformation; Mission and Purpose; Leadership

Citation

Gulati, Ranjay. "To See the Way Forward, Look Back." Harvard Business Review (November–December 2022): 53–57.
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About The Author

Ranjay Gulati

Organizational Behavior
→More Publications

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More from the Author
  • Outcome and Process Frames: Strategic Renewal and Capability Reprioritization at the Federal Bureau of Investigation By: Ryan Raffaelli, Tiona Zuzul, Ranjay Gulati and Jan Rivkin
  • Sarojini Naidu: Courage of the Nightingale By: Ranjay Gulati, Malini Sen and Anjali Raina
  • Sona Comstar and Blackstone: Unlocking Value Through Business Transformation By: Ranjay Gulati and Kanika Jain
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