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Here's a podcast episode that I need to share.

I like the Harvard Business Review, but I'm less thrilled about the HBR Ideacast podcast. Their ideas are rather theoretical and non-specific.

However, I'm catching up on past podcasts and wanted to specifically point out episode 58 "Three Signs of a Miserable Job". The very first sign was if your manager doesn't view you as a person, another form of Horstman's First Law - "Its ALL about people."

This one is worth listening to.

Brian

skwanch's picture

I just started working my way thru those casts too (HBR ideacast). . . makes me appreciate M&M SO much more . . . those Harvard guys are so wooden, there's no real discussion (you can tell they're all reading every question and response), and as you note it's a lot of fluffy theory w/out much in the way of concrete tools.

Still deciding if I wanna plunk down $100 for a HBR subscription . . . the podcast certainly isn't swaying me towards an affirmative.

jhack's picture

The magazine is worth it. The case studies are generally very good, and the overall bent is strategic. That's good.

It's not Manager Tools. It serves a different purpose, typically looking at the big picture rather than the details.

John

RichRuh's picture
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I agree with John- HBR is well worth the subscription price. I almost always get something of value out of every issue.

I believe M&M say this as well, but there is a lot of value in being familiar with the contents:
- if a senior executive starts talking about an article, you can join in the conversation
- referencing an HBR article when making a discussion point is a good way to add weight to what you are saying

I'm also a listener to the HBR cast, and I agree that it isn't that great. However, now that I'm caught up on Manager-Tools, I don't mind spending 20 minutes of my commute time listening to it. The two that caught my ear recently were "Three Signs of a Miserable Job" and "Redefining Global Strategy"

--Rich[/i]

TomW's picture
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I agree, the paid HBR is light years ahead of the podcast version. I look forward to that the same way I look forward to the monthly members-only Manager Tools podcasts.

eagerApprentice's picture

I guess I'll throw in my agreement with everyone else and especially RichRuh about the benefits of the HBR - I look forward to getting my hands on a new one of those each time I get one - the McKinsey Quarterly is also quite good for anyone interested in that - great industry information there

In terms of podcasts, I have to agree that the Harvard cast is disapointing. I started listening to that the same time I started listening to MT for the first time, and the Harvard one is looong gone.

One that I do like but can't find anymore was by Carnegie Melon - they had guest speakers from different companies on each show and spoke about strategy, the marketplace, and industries. It was good stuff.

bflynn's picture

[quote="eagerApprentice"]McKinsey Quarterly is also quite good for anyone interested in that - great industry information there[/quote]

Speaking of McKinsey, they publish another relatively high quality podcast on finance - say a 7 on a 10 point scale. Search McKinsey on iTunes to find it. It comes out less frequently, but what they talk about is the McKinsey view of some aspect of finance - for example, are market prices driven by fundamentals or emotion (or both).

Since finance is pretty much a whole bunch of very simple variables, their generally theoretical approach really does have real-world application.

Brian

eagerApprentice's picture

Hi bflynn - great suggestion - I haven't listened to the first cast yet (downloading now!) but I'm excited to hear their take on Finance - especially these days!

If they approach it in the way you indicated, it should make for a nice cast indeed.