Gary Hamel Quotes

Tomorrow always arrives. It is always different. And even the mightiest company is in trouble if it has not worked on the future. Being surprised by what happens is a risk that even the largest and richest company cannot afford, and even the smallest business need not run.

Any company designed for success in the 20th century is doomed to failure in the 21st.

Leaders must encourage their organizations to dance to forms of music yet to be heard.

Moving with the times is an important idea for strategy today.

Adaptability and constant innovation is key to the survival of any company operating in a competitive market.

We need to make sure we are constantly staying ahead, thinking about what is coming.

I think we operate in a very dynamic marketplace, and as such, we need to constantly innovate.

You have to seed internal disruptors. You need sources of internal disruption. They don't guarantee your survival, but you have got to try.

There are different ways to lead throughout a practice or a year. Whatever that moment needs is something I've always tried to be ready to do.

Instead of focusing the traditional planning cycles where companies benchmark their businesses against existing competition, teams need to be developed to foster internal change and disruption. Self-disruption is akin to undergoing major surgery, but you are the one holding the scalpel.

The people who succeed are those who are aware of the rules; they respect the rules. But they make up their own rules. They create for creative sake.

I know that with most companies that have a lot of success, it tends to throw you off, and you can become more conservative. One of our questions is, How do we keep from being pulled into conservatism because we're afraid of not being successful again?

Great companies need to reinvent themselves. We can do that: we can stay relevant, we can grow, and we can stay successful. It takes courage, but it's a path we've been preparing for carefully.

The Internet won't skip a beat, and neither will I. Technology is constantly changing and evolving.

We need to be able to answer not yesterday's challenges but to tomorrow's challenges.

It's definitely important to have a vision, to have kind of a sense of what might be possible, but not to be dogmatic about your beliefs about the way something has to be done.

Every organization has to prepare for the abandonment of everything it does.

Keeping a little ahead of conditions is one of the secrets of business; the trailer seldom goes far.

I've always been someone that sets achievable short-term goals. I've never been someone that's had a five-year plan, or a three-year plan. That just seems to lead to a lot of disappointment, and doesn't give you the chance to be flexible. So I've just always been someone that's sort of reassessed where I'm at, and set goals that are realistic. And luckily, I've had plenty of chances to recalibrate and adjust, and good fortune's come my way.

All innovation begins with vision. It’s what happens next that is critical.

An ability to embrace new ideas, routinely challenge old ones, and live with paradox will be the effective leader's premier trait.

You must be on top of change or change will be on top of you.

In framing a system, which we wish to last for ages, we should not lose sight of the changes which ages will produce.

The leader is the organization's top strategist... systematically envisioning the future and specifically mapping out how to get there.

We are on the right track to the 21st century. We are on the right track, but our work is not finished. What should we do? First, let us consider how to proceed. I say the question is no longer, "Who's to blame?" but "What to do?"