I’m honored to have this guest post from Peter Cook, renowned author of five books on business leadership and creativity. In his latest book “The Music of Business”, he draws parallel lessons from the world of music and relates them to his MBA and his work as a business consultant. I asked him some questions about some of my favorite musical artists at the end. Here’s what he had to say about the book. What can you learn about creativity and innovation from The Beatles and David Bowie? What can Lady Gaga teach you about Business Strategy and using Social Media positively? Can a study of Jazz help you beat the competition? What can Spinal Tap, Deep Purple and Led... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – I love that quote from Rainer Maria Rilke.  Every spring, as new life blooms, I think about how all cultures honor rebirth and regeneration.  Christians celebrate Easter about resurrection and new hope; Jews celebrate Passover about liberation and renewal; Muslims celebrate Mawlid al-Nabi honoring the Prophet Muhammad’s birth; Buddhists celebrate Purnima, the birth of Budha; Hindus celebrate Baisakhi, the start of their new year.  This spring what are you doing that is a new blossoming for you?  I rejoice in the new experiences life continues to offer me.  I gave a TEDx talk in Geneva “Adversaries to Allies” and you can click to watch it now. My guests on a Trust Across America program... more

by beCause CEO Nadine Hack – As this year draws to a close, I think about what’s been most important to me. WORK: I’ve had tremendous fulfillment from my work with beCause clients and with executive education participants at IMD, recently in Advanced Strategic Management (ASM) and Strategies for Leadership (SL). PRAY: as I’ve dealt with major family health crises, I’ve come to deeply appreciate the power of intentional, supportive energy friends and family – of every conceivable faith-based tradition – have shared with me. LOVE: is what makes all things worthwhile; the passion that sparks me to keep on keeping on.  Whether we have worked together or shared special (or simple) moments in life, that love is what makes life magic and... more

As our consulting engagements always have been international, our clients – Fortune 500 companies, global NGOs, governments – agree it does not matter whether I base from Lausanne or New York.  I am delighted that my fascinating work with them is boundary-less.  While beCause Global Consulting continues to provide a spectrum of services – design strategic action plans; create multi-sector alliances; provide executive coaching; integrate corporate social responsibility; improve organizational and governance structures; etc. – our particularly unique specialty is to help clients develop and execute effective stakeholder engagement processes that directly impact achieving their goals.  You can hear my most recent interview on Radio Frontier, Geneva, about our pioneering work on Strategic Relational Engagement (SRE).  See what clients say about... more

On a recent weekend, I went hiking in the Swiss Alps at Rochers-de-Naye with my husband and one of our nieces.  When I looked out at the breathtakingly beautiful horizon, I thought about all that stretches out in front of me as I start yet another new chapter of my life.  I was honored to hold the post of Executive-in-Residence at IMD Business School in Lausanne, Switzerland for the past two years (Sept 2010 – Aug 2012). I found it deeply satisfying to work in executive education programs with IMD faculty and participants from around the world.  While I will continue some work at IMD, my clients are happy that I again will have more time to work on other projects and I... more

My recent interview with CSR Leaders, Master Bridge Builder Nadine Hack Is In The Lead, focuses on the importance of strategic relational engagement (SRE).   I’ve distilled the essence of SRE from four decades during which I’ve helped clients, taught executive education participants and worked with leaders globally on how to most effectively sustain relationships with all types of stakeholders.  This past month, as I visited with four generations of my family members, I was reminded that the essence of how we initially relate comes from how we were raised.  But, I also observed in my behavior and others that each of us has the freedom to expand our personal narrative and learn how to relate in broader – sometimes healthier – ways. ... more

For decades I have worked with leaders from every sector helping them develop and execute strategies to better engage myriad stakeholders in order to achieve goals.  In the past decade, the explosion of social media has increased everyone’s inter-dependence and thus this work only has become more important.  So, now I’m asking you to engage in a different way: on social media platforms.  Please post comments on and/or links to my on-line articles, including two published by Huffington Post: Improving Stakeholder Engagement Increases Productivity, Profit and Sustainability (SRE); Engagement Leadership and Enhanced Relationships Fundamental to Sustaining Effective Business (EL); one published on THAP, The New Rules of Social Engagement and a series published on ReWiring Business.  I’m interested in your thoughts... more

This past month I’ve dedicated several hours each week to become more engaged on social media platforms.  For decades I’ve guided clients on how to engage with a broad spectrum of stakeholders.  Since Sept 2010, as Executive-in-Residence at IMD, I’ve taught participants in executive education programs comparable skills and written articles about it.  As I’ve always focused on the importance of connectedness and how to achieve it, I felt the need to spread my wings in this time of social networks and, as with all else of value, learning is in doing.  Just as I’ve “met” and now actively engage with interesting people since I’ve been on Twitter, I am discovering a whole new community on XeeMe and I am... more

When I was about 20 years old I spent a contemplative day with a friend who told me later that the entire day I’d said three words, “life, death, friend.”  Four decades later the significance of those words still sticks with me.  I shared them recently with the same friend who had just emerged from a coma after a serious bicycle accident and went through a remarkable recovery resuming his teaching.   I now add one word: family.  I think those four words pretty much sum up everything of importance, perhaps with “empathy” thrown in for good measure.  Just last week, another friend, John Payton, President of NAACP Legal Defense Fund and a giant in human rights law, died unexpectedly.  With... more