Each month, through our partnership with Harvard Business Review, we refresh our resource library with five new HBR articles we believe CIOs and IT leaders will value highly. Check out the curated pieces below, available to readers through the end of the month.

Purposeful business the agile way 

Alongside record numbers of people quitting their jobs, we’ve also seen employees demonstrating their dissatisfaction with their work/life balance as of late. Life is too short to waste on demoralizing work. Employees are still facing social inequities and the environment is suffering – minimal efforts have been made by executives to impact change. Many large companies worry what will happen to their businesses if they become purpose-driven versus profit-maximizing. Agile is here to help. Download this article to learn how to approach tough decisions about corporate purpose. Authors and consultants Darrell Rigby, Sarah Elk, and Steve Berez share recommendations for real actions and results.

Download: Purposeful business the agile way

Managers can’t do it all 

The past decades have brought sweeping changes to engineering, digital and agile initiatives. Not to mention the pandemic that has overhauled the way we work – most of us remotely. This has transformed managerial roles in three dimensions: power, skills, and structure. Managers are tasked with ensuring their teams are successful rather than being served by their teams. They must coach performance and lead in fluctuating environments. These shifts have created more responsibility for managers than ever before and require a demonstration of new capabilities that is difficult to keep pace with. Read this report to learn how large corporations like IBM are helping managers to reinvent their roles for the new world of work. Developing new skills, rewiring systems and processes to support their job better, and redefining responsibilities are some ways managers can keep up. 

Download: Managers can’t do it all

Democratizing transformation 

Why do some companies struggle to reap the benefits of digital transformation while others see enormous success? Digital transformation requires that executives, managers, and frontline employees work together to rethink how every aspect of the business should operate. In this article, Microsoft advisor Marco Iansiti and Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella describe five stages of digital transformation that companies typically progress through. Download this report to learn the imperative for leaders to help their workforces become innovators. 

Download: Democratizing transformation

The real secret to retaining talent 

People with unique skills can have a profound impact on an organization. So how can you retain these valuable employees? Managers know that compensation works to an extent, as evidenced by the huge sums of money upper echelon employees earn and keep coming back for more, but talented people aren’t motivated (solely) by money. Feeling special is crucial; individual recognition of talent is key. Just because you’ve celebrated or praised the value a group brings doesn’t mean that the individuals within that group – even an elite one – will feel extraordinary. If you don’t recognize individual contributions, your employees will become resentful and look for validation elsewhere. Download this report to find out what three things you should never do if you want to retain talent … It’s the subtle art of making people feel special.

Download: The real secret to retaining talent

Digital transformation changes how companies create value 

Digital transformation is about changing where value is created, and how your business model is structured. Some parts of digital transformation are straightforward and easy to implement, while other aspects completely change how companies work. More often these days, value creation is occurring on the outside rather than the inside, and from external partners instead of internal employees. Labeled an “inverted firm,” this change in organizational structure affects the technology but also the people who manage that technology. Executives must understand and undertake partner relationship management, partner data management, partner product management, platform governance, and platform strategy. They must learn how to motivate people they don’t know to share ideas they don’t have. Read on to learn how to run an inverted firm and uncover the new rules for creating value, according to professors from Boston University and Dartmouth College. 

Download: Digital transformation changes how companies create value

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Maintaining momentum on digital transformation 

CIOs have led the acceleration of digital transformation at a pace that was unthinkable pre-pandemic. Now, IT leaders have a powerful role to play in rethinking the nature of work, enabling hybrid teams to thrive, and setting a new precedent for digital innovation across their organizations. This new research from Harvard Business Review Analytic Services identifies four focus areas for CIOs and IT leaders as they work toward enabling greater flexibility, resilience, and momentum for digital transformation. From reimagining work to building digital acumen across the enterprise to creating more agile operating models, discover what leading CIOs say they’re prioritizing. Download this report to learn what’s required for leading IT in the year ahead. 

Download: Maintaining momentum on digital transformation