IESE Insight. Issue 15. Fourth Quarter 2012

Claus Rerup (Richard Ivey School of Business) presents a framework for companies to improve their capability to pick up on signals that impending crises give off before they happen. The corporate communications consultant Alfonso González-Herrero looks at the key issues that companies must address, with forecasting and planning, in order to safeguard their reputations. IESE's José R. Pin provides a guide to help managers lead and communicate, so as to prevent uncertainty from crippling the organization. Mark S. Schwartz, Wesley Cragg (both of York University) and W. Michael Hoffman (Bentley University) use the 2010 BP oil spill as a cautionary example of what happens when a company fails to make decisions based on ethical values. IESE's Kandarp Mehta discusses why creative offers and counteroffers play such a vital role in the negotiating process, and proposes strategies to help you improve your own negotiating skills. IESE's Marco Tortoriello maps the informal networks that employees form across functions and divisions; understanding them may facilitate innovation. Carlos Ghosn, Chairman and CEO of Renault-Nissan, shares the lessons he learned from leading one of the most dramatic turnarounds in corporate history. Three experts recommend how the airport management company, Aena, should deal with an air traffic controller strike that closes airspace and strands passengers. And the story of a Mexican kidnapping offers valuable lessons for overcoming your own worst fears and taking control of your life when you find yourself a hostage to fate.