Media
The Insightful Leader Live: Why People Resist New Ideas—and How to Innovate Anyway
If you are trying to introduce change as an executive, innovator, marketer, or activist, you’re probably focusing on selling the idea itself. After all, it makes intuitive sense that if we make our idea sound sufficiently attractive, we will finally hear “yes.” But according to Kellogg professors Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal, attracting others is only half the battle. In this session, as in their forthcoming book, The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas, Nordgren and Schonthal team up to explain the forces that slow or even derail change. They’ll share how to identify those forces—and how to overcome them.
If you are trying to introduce change as an executive, innovator, marketer, or activist, you’re probably focusing on selling the idea itself. After all, it makes intuitive sense that if we make our idea sound sufficiently attractive, we will finally hear “yes.” But according to Kellogg professors Loran Nordgren and David Schonthal, attracting others is only half the battle. In this session, as in their forthcoming book, The Human Element: Overcoming the Resistance That Awaits New Ideas, Nordgren and Schonthal team up to explain the forces that slow or even derail change. They’ll share how to identify those forces—and how to overcome them.
Listen to the webinar here:
https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/webinars/the-insightful-leader-live-why-people-resist-new-ideas-and-how-to-innovate-anyway
Where Stars Fall Short: The Positivity Problem With Online Ratings
Recent estimates suggest a full 85% of the global population has shopped online, taking advantage of an unprecedented volume of information available on products, prices, and quality. In this context, many of us “look to the stars” for guidance on product quality — the ubiquitous user ratings present on retail platforms. Should I buy this hairdryer? Go on this luxury cruise? Stream this movie?
By Derek Rucker
Recent estimates suggest a full 85% of the global population has shopped online, taking advantage of an unprecedented volume of information available on products, prices, and quality. In this context, many of us “look to the stars” for guidance on product quality — the ubiquitous user ratings present on retail platforms. Should I buy this hair dryer? Go on this luxury cruise? Stream this movie?
Read more here:
https://www.forbes.com/sites/derekrucker/2021/04/20/where-stars-fall-short-the-positivity-problem-with-online-ratings/?sh=1154d2829c1f
Your Best Ideas Are Often Your Last Ideas
Research has clearly shown that people’s creativity tends to increase or stay constant over the course of an ideation session. Nevertheless, most of us consistently underestimate the value of persistence in the creative process — a fallacy the authors refer to as the “creative cliff illusion.”
by Loran Nordgren and Brian Lucas
Research has clearly shown that people’s creativity tends to increase or stay constant over the course of an ideation session. Nevertheless, most of us consistently underestimate the value of persistence in the creative process — a fallacy the authors refer to as the “creative cliff illusion.” While it is true that we tend to produce fewer ideas the longer we brainstorm, we inaccurately assume that that decline in productivity correlates with a decline in the creativity of the ideas we come up with. And this misperception can lead us to stop brainstorming too early, before we’ve reached our best ideas. Luckily, the authors’ research also suggests that increased awareness of this phenomenon — either through prior experience with the reality of creative work, or through explicit education — can reduce its potency. Based on these findings, the authors propose several tactical strategies for managers looking to foster creativity in their teams, including explaining and reminding people about the counterintuitive nature of the creative process, setting aside extra time for ideation, and constant experimentation and iteration to improve how teams come up with new ideas.
Read the full article here:
https://hbr.org/2021/01/your-best-ideas-are-often-your-last-ideas
What Companies Can Do to Encourage Compliance with COVID Safety Measures
A lot of effort goes into safely reopening offices, daycares, and other public spaces. Furniture has to be reorganized, ventilation reconsidered, touch-free devices installed, and signage added to reduce occupancy and encourage social distancing—among many other measures. But ultimately, the effectiveness of any measure hinges largely on people’s willingness to comply with it. In order to stay safe in public spaces during a global pandemic, individuals need to fundamentally change how they behave.
By Jessica Love
A lot of effort goes into safely reopening offices, daycares, and other public spaces. Furniture has to be reorganized, ventilation reconsidered, touch-free devices installed, and signage added to reduce occupancy and encourage social distancing—among many other measures.
But ultimately, the effectiveness of any measure hinges largely on people’s willingness to comply with it. In order to stay safe in public spaces during a global pandemic, individuals need to fundamentally change how they behave.
Read more here:
https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/what-companies-can-do-to-encourage-compliance-with-covid-safety-measures
Why Warmth Is the Underappreciated Skill Leaders Need.
When it comes to success in leadership, there has never been just one playbook. Some leaders are extroverts, natural mentors, and charismatic speakers; others prefer to lead by example and take a more hands-off approach. There is, however, one simple fact that leaders ignore at their peril: those who demonstrate high levels of “interpersonal warmth” have a better chance at long-term success.
By Drew Calvert
When it comes to success in leadership, there has never been just one playbook. Some leaders are extroverts, natural mentors, and charismatic speakers; others prefer to lead by example and take a more hands-off approach.
There is, however, one simple fact that leaders ignore at their peril: those who demonstrate high levels of “interpersonal warmth” have a better chance at long-term success.
“Warmth is the differentiating factor,” says Loran Nordgren, an associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School. He cites a Zenger Folkman study that looked at 50,000 managers and found that a leader’s overall effectiveness is predicted more by warmth than competence. “If you’re seen as low-warmth, you have something like a 1-in-2000 chance to make the top quartile of effectiveness as a leader.
Read more here:
https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/why-warmth-is-the-underappreciated-skill-leaders-need
Best 40 Under 40 Professors
You could call Nordgren a man for all seasons, a cross-curricular cognoscente whose expertise spans psychology, programming, economics, leadership, biology, and the arts. His goal, ultimately, is to understand human behavior — how to influence actions and elevate performance.
Loran Nordgren | Associate Professor of Management and Organizations @ Kellogg School of Management
What was the biggest compliment that Loran Nordgren ever received? One of his students recommended an app called Candor to him…not knowing that he’d developed it!
You could call Nordgren a man for all seasons, a cross curricular cognoscente whose expertise spans psychology, programming, economics, leadership, biology, and the arts. His goal, ultimately, is to understand human behavior — how to influence actions and elevate performance. In the past decade alone, two of his papers, which examine unconscious thought and decision-making, have been cited by more than 2,000 scholars. That doesn’t count lengthy discussions of his work in the pages of Inc. and the Wall Street Journal.
Read more here:
https://poetsandquants.com/2017/03/26/2017-best-40-40-professors-loran-nordgren-northwestern-university-kellogg/
Four Tips to Persuade Others Your Idea Is a Winner
Sometimes the biggest and best ideas are the toughest to sell. Human beings are hardwired to protect what is familiar, a concept psychologists often refer to as “status quo bias.”
“People just aren’t naturally oriented towards innovation or change,” says Loran Nordgren, an associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School. “If you were dealing with totally rational agents, you could sell your innovation on the grounds of its functionality—in other words, why it’s a good idea. But you are almost never dealing with totally rational agents.”
Thankfully, if you are convinced that a certain new product, fresh strategy, or overseas expansion is exactly what your organization needs, there are things you can do to improve your chances of persuading key decision-makers to go along with it.
By Drew Calvert
Sometimes the biggest and best ideas are the toughest to sell.
Human beings are hardwired to protect what is familiar, a concept psychologists often refer to as “status quo bias.”
“People just aren’t naturally oriented towards innovation or change,” says Loran Nordgren, an associate professor of management and organizations at the Kellogg School. “If you were dealing with totally rational agents, you could sell your innovation on the grounds of its functionality—in other words, why it’s a good idea. But you are almost never dealing with totally rational agents.”
Thankfully, if you are convinced that a certain new product, fresh strategy, or overseas expansion is exactly what your organization needs, there are things you can do to improve your chances of persuading key decision makers to go along with it.
Read more here:
https://insight.kellogg.northwestern.edu/article/four-tips-for-persuading-others-that-your-idea-is-a-winner
Giving Up Is the Enemy of Creativity
What determines whether the ideas we generate are truly creative? Recent research of ours finds that one common factor often gets in the way: we tend to undervalue the benefits of persistence.
by Brian J. Lucas and Loran Nordgren
What determines whether the ideas we generate are truly creative? Recent research of ours finds that one common factor often gets in the way: we tend to undervalue the benefits of persistence.
In a series of experiments we observed that people consistently underestimated the number of ideas they could generate while solving a creative challenge. In one, we brought 24 university students into the laboratory during the week leading up to Thanksgiving and asked them to spend ten minutes coming up with as many ideas of dishes to serve at Thanksgiving dinner as they could. Then we had them predict how many more ideas they could generate if they persisted on the task for an additional ten minutes. After that, they actually persisted for ten minutes.
Read more here:
https://hbr.org/2015/12/giving-up-is-the-enemy-of-creativity
Wintrust Business Lunch: Chicago Inno, Loran Nordgren, Maz Jobrani, Jon Hansen, Craig “CJ” Jensen
Steve Bertrand is in to host the Wintrust Business Lunch, and he kicks things off by sitting down with Will Flanagan and Jim Dallke from Chicago Inno to talk about local technology news. Then DNA Info’s Jon Hansen is back to talk about recent openings and closings around town. Comedian Maz Jobrani talks about his Middle Eastern heritage and his refusal to play a terrorist in television and movies. Loran Nordgren talks about what it takes to hold on to millennial employees. Then the Money Guy, Craig “CJ” Jensen is back to talk about what it takes to plan your retirement.
Steve Bertrand is in to host the Wintrust Business Lunch, and he kicks things off by sitting down with Will Flanagan and Jim Dallke from Chicago Inno to talk about local technology news. Then DNA Info’s Jon Hansen is back to talk about recent openings and closings around town. Comedian Maz Jobrani talks about his Middle Eastern heritage and his refusal to play a terrorist in television and movies. Loran Nordgren talks about what it takes to hold on to millennial employees. Then the Money Guy, Craig “CJ” Jensen is back to talk about what it takes to plan your retirement.
Find the podcast here:
https://wgnradio.com/wintrust-business-lunch/wintrust-business-lunch-53015-chicago-inno-loren-nordgren-maz-jobrani-john-hansen-craig-cj-jensen/
Why your company might want to rethink the way it generates ideas
If you're still putting people together in a room to gather ideas for a brainstorm or to make big decisions, you're doing it wrong. So says Loran Nordgren, associate professor of management and organizations at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. He teaches a technique called "private data collection" to first gather ideas privately, then discuss their merits as a group. To facilitate the process, he built a free app called Candor, which launched in October. Nordgren, whose areas of expertise include psychology and behavioral economics, explains the science behind better group decisions.
By Kate MacArthur
If you're still putting people together in a room to gather ideas for a brainstorm or to make big decisions, you're doing it wrong. So says Loran Nordgren, associate professor of management and organizations at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. He teaches a technique called "private data collection" to first gather ideas privately, then discuss their merits as a group. To facilitate the process, he built a free app called Candor, which launched in October. Nordgren, whose areas of expertise include psychology and behavioral economics, explains the science behind better group decisions.
Read more here:
https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/blue-sky/chi-loran-nordgren-northwestern-candor-bsi-20150114-story.html
Study Says to Pump Up the Music at Work
If you sit at your cubicle making nary a sound, you may be doing yourself a disservice, according to a new study. The study, conducted at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, suggested that listening to certain kinds of music in the office actually makes people want to work harder and take more control.
By ABC NEWS
If you sit at your cubicle making nary a sound, you may be doing yourself a disservice, according to a new study. The study, conducted at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management, suggested that listening to certain kinds of music in the office actually makes people want to work harder and take more control.
Read more here:
https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/study-pump-music-work/story?id=26505646
Brainstorming Doesn’t Work; Try This Technique Instead
Ever been in a meeting where one loudmouth’s mediocre idea dominates? Then you know brainstorming needs an overhaul.
Early ideas tend to have a disproportionate influence over the rest of the conversation.
Sharing ideas in groups isn’t the problem, it’s the “out-loud” part that, ironically, leads to groupthink, instead of unique ideas. “As sexy as brainstorming is, with people popping like champagne with ideas, what actually happens is when one person is talking you’re not thinking of your own ideas,” Leigh Thompson, a management professor at the Kellogg School, told Fast Company. “Sub-consciously you’re already assimilating to my ideas.”
By Rebecca Greenfield
Ever been in a meeting where one loudmouth’s mediocre idea dominates? Then you know brainstorming needs an overhaul.
Early ideas tend to have disproportionate influence over the rest of the conversation.
Sharing ideas in groups isn’t the problem, it’s the “out-loud” part that, ironically, leads to groupthink, instead of unique ideas. “As sexy as brainstorming is, with people popping like champagne with ideas, what actually happens is when one person is talking you’re not thinking of your own ideas,” Leigh Thompson, a management professor at the Kellogg School, told Fast Company. “Sub-consciously you’re already assimilating to my ideas.”
Read more here:
https://www.fastcompany.com/3033567/brainstorming-doesnt-work-try-this-technique-instead
Waterboarding isn’t torture? Try it
Republican presidential candidates Herman Cain and Michele Bachmann said at Saturday’s foreign policy debate that they would renew the use of waterboarding, the controversial practice banned by President Barack Obama. “I don’t see it as torture. I see it as an enhanced interrogation technique,” Cain said. His comments were met with loud cheers of support from the debate audience. Bachmann, meanwhile, called the practice “very effective” and said Obama “is allowing the ACLU to run the CIA.” After the debate, Romney aides told CNN that he does not believe waterboarding is torture.
By Loran Nordgren and Special to CNN
Republican presidential candidates Herman Cain and Michele Bachmann said at Saturday’s foreign policy debate that they would renew the use of waterboarding, the controversial practice banned by President Barack Obama. “I don’t see it as torture. I see it as an enhanced interrogation technique,” Cain said. His comments were met with loud cheers of support from the debate audience. Bachmann, meanwhile, called the practice “very effective” and said Obama “is allowing the ACLU to run the CIA.” After the debate, Romney aides told CNN that he does not believe waterboarding is torture.
Read more here:
https://www.cnn.com/2011/11/16/opinion/nordgren-waterboarding/