INSEAD Knowledge Podcast

Two words appear in entertainment headlines more than almost any other excuse, but are they doing more harm than good? When a director exits a film "due to creative differences", everyone reads it the same way: something happened, and we're not meant to know what.  Spencer Harrison , Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD, calls it the "aloha" of Hollywood, a phrase flexible enough to mea...

Passion and drive helped Rishi Naleendra achieve initial culinary success, but it was only when he learnt to trust his team and change himself that his restaurant climbed to the next level –Michelin recognition. In this episode of the INSEAD Knowledge Podcast , Professors Michael Jarrett and Andy Yap chat with Sri Lankan restaurateur Naleendra. Growing up in war-torn Sri Lanka, he went from a chil...

In the new edition of “The INSEAD Perspective: Spotlight on Asia” podcast series, Sameer Hasija, Dean of Asia at INSEAD, speaks with Winnie Jiang, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour, about how organisations and individuals in Asia are changing the way they think about work, training and careers. In particular, Jiang identifies a fundamental shift from "institutionalised" to "uninstitu...

In the latest episode of “The INSEAD Perspective: Spotlight on Asia” podcast series, Sameer Hasija, Dean of Asia at INSEAD, sat down with Pushan Dutt, Professor of Economics and Political Science, to discuss how the new world order is creating a complex economic environment, where traditional business strategies are being upended by unpredictable political and technological shocks.   As an expert...

In this era of "permacrisis" and constant disruption, adaptability and resilience are vital traits that require collaboration and an increasing focus on human-centric skills. That’s the messaging to come out of the 2025 Global Talent Competitive Index (GTCI), an annual report that highlights the latest talent trends and offers insights into the current global talent landscape. For this episode of...

Family-owned enterprises are the cornerstone of Asia’s economy, contributing roughly 70 percent of GDP and employing over 60 percent of the workforce in some markets. Much more than just commercial entities, these firms are deeply embedded into the social fabric and are typically driven by long-term vision and  entrepreneurial stewardship . In this edition of “The INSEAD Perspective: Spotlight on...

You’ve just been promoted to a manager. Now what? The truth is that new managers hardly receive formal training before taking on their roles. Instead of hitting the ground running, most of them try to figure out how to lead as they go along, says Vibha Gaba, The Berghmans Lhoist Chaired Professor of Entrepreneurial Leadership and Professor of Entrepreneurship at INSEAD. In this podcast, Gaba takes...

In this episode, Ben Charoenwong, Associate Professor of Finance at INSEAD and former pod shop veteran, discusses his case on Millennium Partners, and looks at how their adoption of the “pod shop” model has allowed the firm to become one of the most successful hedge funds in the world. As well as exploring the strengths of this plug-and-play approach, Charoenwong highlights the fact that this mode...

Does artificial intelligence enable organisations to do things differently, or to do different things? In the first episode of the new podcast series “The INSEAD Perspective: Spotlight on Asia”, Sameer Hasija, Dean of Asia at INSEAD, speaks to Hyunjin Kim, INSEAD's Assistant Professor of Strategy,  about arguably the most pressing topic affecting business and society today: The impact of AI on bus...

In a special episode of the INSEAD Knowledge podcast, we shine a spotlight on a sister podcast series,  The Age of Intelligence .  Hosted by Theodoros Evgeniou, Professor of Technology and Business at INSEAD, and Tim Gordon, co-founder of Best Practice AI, the series features insightful conversations with notable guests from a range of different fields. Its aim is to look at how AI is rebalancing...

The " kill zone " refers to the space near a tech giant’s core business where start-ups risk being copied or crushed simply for getting too close. But what if survival were possible? In this episode, Associate Professor of Strategy Michaël Bikard walks us through a  case that begins with a promising partnership between Airbnb and Sofar Sounds, but ends with the two companies going head to head. Lo...

In this podcast, Andy Yap, Associate Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD, discusses how leaders can inspire and empower others through communicatiion that appeals to both the head and the heart. It starts with listening.  In today’s globalised workplace, leaders must communicate effectively with diverse groups. Doing this well starts with understanding the context and culture of your a...

“People who eat healthily don’t have that much more willpower. They have just engineered their environment to avoid having to resist temptation.” Pierre Chandon, Professor of Marketing at INSEAD, challenges the idea that healthy eating is a matter of self-control. On the INSEAD Knowledge podcast, he explains how our surroundings – what we see, where we are and how food is framed – play a far great...

Companies looking to succeed in emerging markets must listen to local needs and tailor their proposition accordingly. That’s the message from Affiliate Professor of Strategy Lite Nartey and digital financial services expert Bruno Akpaka in this INSEAD Knowledge podcast, which examines how mobile payments system Mobile Money was successfully introduced in Ghana. Akpaka, who oversaw the launch of Mo...

What’s common across the Boeing 737 MAX debacle, the 1MDB financial scandal and America’s opioid crisis? They are all illustrations of how business leaders, in pursuit of performance, neglected and undermined progress – specifically fairness, well-being and sustainability. With each such scandal, trust in business frays. While one may blame specific firms and leaders, too much is amiss in modern b...

Can dreaming really help solve waking problems? And could a specific form of dream analysis help an organisation better achieve shared goals and objectives? In this INSEAD Knowledge podcast, Susan Long, Emeritus Professor at the National Institute of Organization Dynamics Australia and Michael Jarrett, Professor of Management at INSEAD offer their perspective on the value of social dreaming for fi...

For the longest time, businesses have embraced a “product selling” playbook. Typically, this means having a supplier with a product to sell and a customer to persuade to purchase that product based on the price and perceived value. However, in an increasingly challenging business environment where disruption is the norm, such a transactional approach is no longer fit for purpose. In this INSEAD Kn...

In a dynamic business environment, leaders often need to implement new strategic initiatives – from new business models to new technologies or workflows. But change is never easy. The success of new initiatives depends on whether leaders win the support of actors within the organisation. In other words, it is a matter of influence. In this podcast with Vibha Gaba , the Berghmans Lhoist Chaired Pro...

Despite millions retiring annually, the topic remains taboo for many employers and employees. Every year, millions leave the workforce, yet discussions about this common rite of passage are often avoided. This INSEAD Knowledge podcast features Graham Ward, Adjunct Professor of Organisational Behaviour and Isabel Lebbe, Partner in the Investment Management practice of Arendt & Medernach, discus...

Rigid hierarchical team designs seem to have fallen out of favour with many contemporary organisations. But making the switch to a decentralised approach, where authority is more evenly distributed between team members instead of concentrated among a few senior leaders, is by no means easy. In this podcast, Michael Y. Lee, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD, explains the dif...

Everyone loves a good story. But storytelling is way more powerful when leaders employ it effectively, according to Manfred Kets de Vries, Distinguished Clinical Professor of Leadership Development and Organisational Change at INSEAD and the Raoul de Vitry d'Avaucourt Chaired Professor of Leadership Development, Emeritus. In this podcast, Kets de Vries, who authored the book Storytelling for Leade...

The world is becoming more interconnected. Digital platforms and social media are giving us a greater “voice” and more ways to group, which can increase the chances of disagreeing with one another. Unsurprisingly, we are seeing great polarisation and conflicts in many parts of the world. In this podcast, INSEAD professors and the co-founders of INSEAD’s Negotiation and Conflict Management Collabor...

Today’s uncertain and disrupted world has had a major impact on how firms do business. It has led to a gradual strategic shift from the era of “bigger is better” and a narrow fixation on increased sales growth to a more nuanced, broader vision of corporate value growth. In this podcast, Jean-Claude Larreche , an Emeritus Professor of Marketing and the Alfred H. Heineken Chaired Professor of Market...

The concept of coaching has been a hot topic in business circles for a number of years. It now almost seems a given that top executives employ the services of a coach to help them become better leaders and advance their careers. But the rise in popularity of coaching has also thrown up a number of questions: What really makes a good coach? What can and should you expect from your coach? How can yo...

Finding meaning in your work isn't just about loving what you do. The reality is there are many ways to experience fulfillment, even in what might seem like a mundane job. In this episode, Winnie Jiang, an Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour at INSEAD, explains how financial security, connections with colleagues and even the satisfaction of doing a good job can all contribute to a sens...