In 1997, the U.S. unemployment rate had fallen to a 27 year low of 4.9% and McKinsey’s coined term of “War for Talent” described the challenges that organizations were expected to have over the next 20 years  with attracting and retaining staff. Fast forward to 2010’s global unemployment situation and many wonder if the “War for Talent” is still relevant.

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Toyota has long been the gold standard among business world thought-leaders for how it has managed to exemplify a seemingly impossible collection of achievements: optimal efficiency, optimal quality, and optimal profit. As it turns out, Toyota's seemingly impossible success may be turning out to have been actually impossible. Without commenting too deeply on the issue, because I don't know enough about it to come to any reasonable conclusions, it appears as though something in their famously regimented production and control systems fell by the wayside. With Toyota's image terribly tarnished for years and years to come, what companies do you think might take up the place at head of the line for quality and accomplishment? What do you think are the likely lessons to be learned from this experience?

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I just stumbled upon a really interesting article published in the Online Journal of Issues of Nursing (under the auspices of the American Nurses Association), and wanted to share it on this forum. The authors (three nurses and one MPH/MBA) set out to discuss how process innovation is crucial to health care practice. It is always invigorating to know that these conversations are happening around the country. The article highlights several specific examples of how innovative practices are being constructed and implemented. There seem to be concentrations of innovative energy in the Boston area, already a hotbed of medical, scientific and health-related activity, as well as within the Kaiser Permanente system. Related, also worth reading is a recent article in the NY Times Magazine about the fascinating work going on at Intermountain Health.

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So reports the Kauffman Entrepreneurial Index, which found that Philadelphia trailed the other 15 largest metropolitan areas in individuals starting new businesses. The Index results, cited in this April, 2009 article by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, include the following alarming conclusions:

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