I often get asked, “How are you always so happy?” As I self reflect on the question, I usually come up with a variety of answers: maybe my strong faith, possibly my desire to approach life generally with a positive attitude, maybe my gratitude to so many people in my life (family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances) that have been so
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By now, most of you know what led me to start teaching at Kellogg: After stepping down as Chairman and CEO of Baxter International in 2004 after 23 years with the company, I was unsure what my next “adventure” would be. I am forever indebted to former Dean Don Jacobs who encouraged me to join the Kellogg faculty as a
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Ever since I was a young child, people have frequently asked me how I manage to always stay positive and smiling most of the time. In grade school I was often called “Happy Harry.” As I got older, attended college, and moved into stressful jobs, I continued to get asked, “How do you stay so positive, Harry? Don’t you ever
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As I mentioned in my last blog post regarding the “return to work debate,” my opinion is that no matter how difficult, how emotional, or how political an issue is, the key is to truly take the time to listen to multiple perspectives and understand all sides of the issue. The more people can listen to one another, and
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I want to wish everyone a fantastic July 4th!!!!!! I truly feel blessed to be an American and have the good fortune to live in the United States of America. Yes, it is very obvious that we are facing many issues and challenges as a nation…with people having very different views and beliefs on immigration, gun control (the topic of
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My challenge to everyone: Take the time to develop a BALANCED PERSPECTIVE on all topics. For today, I will apply it to the debate raging around whether and how employees should return to their offices (RTO) after the pandemic, and in my next post, I will tackle the gun control debate. Yes, I’m in a feisty mood! 😀 My
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Elon Musk’s $44 billion deal to acquire Twitter is creating a stir, from European regulators concerned about less moderation on the platform to employees of the social media giant voicing concerns about their compensation and culture. The real question to consider, though, is who will run Twitter after the transaction closes. It appears all but certain that Twitter’s current CEO
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The last four days have been truly tragic. Ukraine, an independent country, was invaded by Russi a in a manner that violated all laws and signed agreements. It is not a stretch to compare this to what Germany did in the 1930s that led to World War II. The Ukrainian President and citizens have exhibited remarkable leadership and courage
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Unless you are alone on a deserted island or hiding under a rock, you probably hear about DE&I at least several times a day and quite possibly more often than that! DE&I, which stands for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, is a topic that I want to really understand. As such, I take the time to listen to as many different
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Normally by this time I would have written a blog post wishing everyone a “Happy New Year.” This year, however, given what has happened in our country over the past several months, I decided that I needed to wait. No, the cause of my waiting is not the COVID pandemic. As terrible as the impact of the virus has been
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Harry Kraemer on Leadership 