The hottest Management Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
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Top Business Topics

The Counter-Revolution Begins

The Upheaval • 899 implied HN points • 12 Dec 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Management
  1. This moment is a critical chance to change the political landscape and challenge current power structures. If this opportunity is missed, it might not come again for a long time.
  2. There's a strong desire for systemic reform and more democratic control over governance. This enthusiasm needs to be organized and directed to make real changes happen.
  3. Focus, organization, and discipline are essential moving forward. The team needs to be well-prepared to take quick action to fight back against entrenched opposition.

✅ Setting the agenda for 2024

Wadds Inc. newsletter • 339 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Management
  1. The public relations industry needs to keep improving its relationship with management in 2024. Focusing on diversity, training, and better measurement is key.
  2. 2024 will be a big year for elections around the world, which could impact democracy and the economy. It's important to pay attention to these events.
  3. Many teenagers in Britain feel addicted to social media, which raises concerns about mental health. More accountability from tech companies is being requested.

How to Work With Anyone

Perspectives • 5 implied HN points • 20 Feb 26
💼 Business Management
  1. As your career advances you often can't choose who you work with, so learning to cooperate with a wide range of people becomes essential for success.
  2. Start by understanding what others value and how they are measured, and look for even small commonalities to build trust and align incentives.
  3. Make people look good by sharing genuine, specific praise and credit, and take a team posture by framing challenges as shared problems so others join you rather than defend.

The Discipline of Seeing Clearly

Kathy PM • 21 implied HN points • 25 Jan 26
💼 Business Management
  1. Good leadership means noticing and naming what isn’t working instead of smoothing it over; that clarity helps teams move faster and builds trust.
  2. Growth language gets misused when it excuses poor outcomes. True growth requires precise learning and concrete updates based on real results.
  3. Self-deception feels easier but makes leadership harder because people stop sharing real signals. Using your own tools and judgment honestly is a discipline that starts real improvement.
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Decision-making

Lessons • 550 implied HN points • 27 Jun 23
💼 Business Management
  1. Different situations require different styles of decision-making.
  2. Organizations benefit from being methodical in selecting decision-making styles.
  3. Having a structured decision-making system can improve efficiency and clarity.

Manage the What, Not the How

Lessons • 550 implied HN points • 25 Jul 23
💼 Business Management
  1. Focus on managing the 'what' instead of the 'how' when overseeing a team.
  2. Delegating effectively involves defining clear expectations and alignment around goals.
  3. When things go wrong, consider letting situations play out, coaching on the 'how', realigning on the 'what', or coaching preventatively.

Will Elondia Be Like Fordlandia?

Life Since the Baby Boom • 922 implied HN points • 18 Nov 24
🔬 Science Management
  1. Getting to Mars is much harder than reaching Fordlandia in the Amazon. Mars has extreme health risks like radiation that Fordlandia didn't face.
  2. Both places have serious health and management issues. Living conditions and isolation could lead to major problems for people on Mars, just like they did in Fordlandia.
  3. Fordlandia failed to become profitable and faced worker rebellion. Similar issues could arise in Elondia, where people's morale and management will be crucial for survival.

TBM 360: "Wait! I Thought the Team Was Overloaded?!"

The Beautiful Mess • 383 implied HN points • 30 May 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Teams often feel overwhelmed with too much work, but managers might deny there's a problem. It's important to listen to the team on the front lines.
  2. Sometimes, leaders want to cut down on projects, but managers are afraid to suggest it due to fear of losing resources. Clear and honest conversations can help break this cycle.
  3. If there are too many options with no clear priority, it's necessary to focus on one important goal at a time. This helps to reduce confusion and improves team effectiveness.

Moving beyond MVP

Running Lean Mastery • 530 implied HN points • 26 May 23
💼 Business Management
  1. The term MVP has evolved over time and can be confused with other terms like experiment or demo.
  2. Introducing a new term, MDVFP, to emphasize the smallest desirable, viable, feasible product.
  3. The MDVFP is not a landing page, prototype, or just an experiment - it's a distinct concept.

When Change Outruns Us

Fish Food for Thought • 42 implied HN points • 24 Dec 25
💼 Business Management
  1. When companies change faster than people can adapt, employees get exhausted and stop learning. That creates compliance without conviction and a culture that frays.
  2. Growth needs time to absorb change—quiet intervals for people to make sense, rebuild habits, and consolidate learning. Slack and recovery are not inefficiencies but necessary infrastructure for durable capability.
  3. Leaders should value direction and readiness over raw speed and watch for signs of saturation, slowing the tempo to let changes take root. Measure progress by clarity and strengthened capabilities, not by how many initiatives are launched.

Frameworks for Managing Up as a Software Engineer

High Growth Engineer • 624 implied HN points • 09 Feb 25
🕹 Technology Management
  1. Building trust with your manager is essential. Focus on being sincere, reliable, caring, and competent in your work.
  2. You need to speak your manager's language. Understand their goals and priorities to communicate effectively and prevent misunderstandings.
  3. Regular updates matter. Create a system for updates that keeps your manager informed without overwhelming them, ensuring that every communication is valuable.

Why are corporations cutting managers?

In My Tribe • 698 implied HN points • 02 Jan 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Many companies are reducing their number of middle managers to trim costs and cut bureaucracy. This means fewer people are overseeing employees, which can simplify decision-making.
  2. Firms are focusing on their core business and letting go of complex managerial structures that don’t add immediate value. They might be cutting back on certain initiatives to streamline operations.
  3. Cost-cutting has become a priority for many senior executives, especially when revenue growth slows. This focus on reducing expenses can lead to a significant reshaping of company structures.

Management Section Intro: Tidy Together Chapter

Software Design: Tidy First? • 243 implied HN points • 18 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Management
  1. Tidyings are small design changes you can make on your own. It's important to find a good rhythm for when to start and stop these changes.
  2. The next step in design management is more complex than just tidying up. It involves big refactoring challenges that need teamwork.
  3. Managing tidying design changes can improve overall software quality, but it requires balancing between making improvements and delivering new features.

Stockholders vs Stakeholders

David Friedman’s Substack • 278 implied HN points • 05 Jul 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Corporations are supposed to benefit stockholders but often face challenges in making sure that happens. Stockholders can vote out management if they're unhappy, but individual votes often feel insignificant to them.
  2. Stakeholders like customers and employees are already protected by market forces. If they don't like the products or the job conditions, they can easily switch to alternatives without needing special voting rights.
  3. Stockholders face unique risks because their investments can be tied up even if the company isn't performing well. Strengthening stockholder control and removing barriers to takeover bids could help ensure companies focus more on maximizing stockholder value.

Companies Do Not Transform. People Do.

The Future Does Not Fit In The Containers Of The Past • 60 implied HN points • 23 Nov 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Change in companies happens through people, not just technology. It’s important to focus on growing and developing the individuals within an organization.
  2. To transform a company, you can either help current employees change or bring in new ones with fresh perspectives. Success often comes from a mix of both.
  3. Six key skills are important in today's work: Think critically, be creative, stay curious, collaborate well, communicate clearly, and convince others. These are essential for thriving in a fast-changing environment.

This is a time publishers ought to be investing and exploring new territory vs. laying people off and hunkering down. So why are so few of the big companies doing that?

How to Glow in the Dark • 559 implied HN points • 06 Oct 23
💼 Business Management
  1. This is a challenging time for publishers to invest and innovate, yet many big companies are not doing so.
  2. Major publishing companies are facing reduced earnings despite increased sales, leading to layoffs and cost-cutting measures.
  3. The industry's response to financial challenges has mainly involved squeezing employees and authors, rather than focusing on long-term growth and support.

TBM 316: Ultra Founder Mode

The Beautiful Mess • 925 implied HN points • 17 Oct 24
💼 Business Management
  1. Ultra Founder Mode is all about taking raw honesty and owning up to your weaknesses. It's crucial to be really self-aware and willing to face hard truths about yourself and your work.
  2. In this mindset, you take full responsibility for everything—successes and failures. There’s no blaming others; you say 'I' messed up, and you own that weight fully.
  3. Being a leader means being deeply involved in your team's day-to-day struggles. You need to feel their pressures and grind alongside them, absorbing all the chaos without immediately trying to fix everything.

Meet more of the Clipboard Sales team

Creating Value from Nothing • 53 implied HN points • 26 Nov 25
💼 Business Management
  1. The Clipboard team values real connections, giving employees a lot of freedom and support to build relationships with clients. Strong leadership is present in the field, not just behind a desk.
  2. Employees at Clipboard experience fast growth and ownership in their roles, allowing them to take on responsibilities quickly. This makes their work exciting and fulfilling, creating strong team bonds.
  3. There’s a positive company culture focused on learning and impact, where feedback is welcomed. This environment helps employees tackle bigger challenges and feel proud of the difference they make in people's lives.

My Journey into Personal Computer Software Development in 1983

Farrs’s Substack • 125 HN points • 20 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Management
  1. Personal Computers were gaining popularity in 1983, despite being considered toys by some programmers, and had promising applications developed for them.
  2. Taking a risk to work in Personal Computer Software Development led to a successful job offer and opportunity to solve a challenging memory limitation issue.
  3. Facing skepticism and disrespect at the company, the individual showcased exceptional bug-solving abilities, but ultimately chose to leave due to being labeled unfairly.

TBM 332: The Last Strategy Framework You'll Ever Need

The Beautiful Mess • 674 implied HN points • 09 Jan 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Strategy frameworks help teams figure out what questions to ask and how to answer them. They provide tools to organize and visualize ideas for better clarity.
  2. Different strategy frameworks focus on various aspects of a business. Some are good for visual thinkers, while others suit goal-oriented people or those who prefer simpler approaches.
  3. Understanding and applying strategy is challenging because it's about real-life situations. Successful strategy involves collaboration, adaptability, and accepting uncertainty rather than relying on perfect plans.

The Mr. Beast Memo

Tech Ramblings • 2 HN points • 22 Sep 24
💼 Business Management
  1. Avoid hiring average workers. Focus on finding top talent since they help raise the team's quality and culture.
  2. Always learn from your work and the feedback you get. Analyze what works and what doesn't to keep improving.
  3. Don't settle for anything less than your best work. It's important to ensure that everything you share meets high standards.

The Few Who Move the Many: Standout & Straggler Firms in Leading-Country Industrial Productivity

Brad DeLong's Grasping Reality • 230 implied HN points • 03 Jul 25
💼 Business Management
  1. A few standout companies drive most of the economic growth in leading countries. These companies often make significant advancements that push their industries forward.
  2. It's important to support these successful firms because they create innovations that benefit the whole economy. By helping them grow, we can spread their positive impact more widely.
  3. The U.S. has more standout firms and does a better job reallocating resources from weaker companies. This flexibility fosters growth and encourages risk-taking, which other countries can learn from.

Accountability and Authority

In My Tribe • 683 implied HN points • 25 Nov 24
💼 Business Management
  1. Clear job descriptions should state the authority and the accountability of a role. This helps everyone know who is responsible for what.
  2. Bureaucracy tends to make it hard to point fingers when something goes wrong. In businesses, leaders try to keep accountability clear, unlike in government.
  3. When people have less authority in their jobs, it's harder to hold them accountable for results. Finding the right balance is crucial for effectiveness.

Apologies for Nihar Malaviya

SHuSH, by Kenneth Whyte • 216 implied HN points • 02 Feb 24
💼 Business Management
  1. Penguin Random House introduced a new CEO, Nihar Malaviya, following a detailed PR strategy.
  2. CEO transitions in big companies involve carefully managed public introductions and media appearances.
  3. Nihar Malaviya's atypical appearance and background challenged typical CEO stereotypes within Penguin Random House.

How to make millions selling PDFs

Net Income • 412 implied HN points • 22 Jun 23
💼 Business Management
  1. Selling digital products with no marginal cost can be a great business.
  2. Twinkl's success illustrates the power of recurring revenue and strategic growth expansion.
  3. High asset turnover and strong margins have contributed to Twinkl's financial success.

TBM 329: Deep vs. Broad Context Traps

The Beautiful Mess • 608 implied HN points • 26 Dec 24
💼 Business Management
  1. Having deep knowledge in one area can make people think their ideas will work everywhere. But different situations need different approaches.
  2. People with broad, but shallow knowledge might see patterns everywhere but miss the unique details that influence outcomes.
  3. It's good to mix deep and broad experiences. Reflecting on your past can help you understand where your beliefs come from and how they fit into different contexts.

One bottleneck at a time

The Engineering Manager • 21 implied HN points • 14 Jan 26
💼 Business Management
  1. Every system has one primary bottleneck at a time; improving other parts just creates more work waiting, so focus on the single constraint that limits throughput.
  2. Put your best people and attention on the ugly but critical work and subordinate everything else to fixing the bottleneck, even if it hurts short-term optics—this requires courage but yields real impact.
  3. Find where work piles up, take actionable steps to remove that constraint, measure progress, and then repeat the cycle at team, department, and company levels.

The Intensity Dial: Knowing When to Escalate and When to Back Off

The Caring Techie Newsletter • 12 implied HN points • 28 Jan 26
💼 Business Management
  1. Treat communication like an intensity dial — shift between gentle support and direct urgency depending on the situation instead of always being soft or always being blunt.
  2. Being too soft lets problems fester and breeds passive-aggressive resentments, while being too intense too early embarrasses people and shuts down trust.
  3. Escalate deliberately in small steps: make the impact and stakes clear, give the other person a fair chance to fix things, and set deadlines or escalation paths using simple diagnostic questions to choose the right level.

Time is finite

Respectful Leadership • 54 implied HN points • 15 Nov 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Time is limited, so it's important to recognize that we don't have endless chances to succeed. We need to make the most of our time and decisions.
  2. Entrepreneurs often believe that things will always improve with just one more attempt. However, sometimes, those extra tries can lead to setbacks.
  3. Looking back, certain choices may seem small but can have significant impacts on success. What seems minor at the time might slow down progress enough to be detrimental later.

The Most Important Meeting of Your Year

DruGroup • 79 implied HN points • 14 May 24
💼 Business Management
  1. The nominating committee is super important because it decides who will lead in the future. The people you choose will shape the agenda and priorities for your group.
  2. Having a diverse group of nominees is crucial. It helps ensure that the leadership reflects different backgrounds and perspectives, making the organization stronger.
  3. Leading a nominating committee well can make a big impact. If you prepare properly and focus on the right issues, you'll set your organization up for success for a long time.

industrial decisions

Dan Davies - "Back of Mind" • 393 implied HN points • 19 Apr 23
💼 Business Management
  1. Industrial decisions involve standardization and division of labor to optimize efficiency.
  2. Industrializing decision-making processes can lead to increased efficiency but also create templates for fraud.
  3. Not all decision processes should be industrialized; monitoring and flexibility are crucial for long-term success.

Markets Do the Good Things That Sound Bad

Bet On It • 246 implied HN points • 10 Jun 25
💼 Business Management
  1. Markets often get criticized for being cost-conscious and risk-aware, but these qualities can actually lead to better outcomes for society. It's important to remember that ignoring costs can create bad decisions.
  2. People think businesses focusing on profits are bad, but profit-seeking can sometimes lead to positive results. It's about balancing risks for larger gains rather than taking reckless risks.
  3. Many popular arguments against markets don't see the bigger picture. When looking at overall success and safety, richer countries with fewer regulations often fare better than poorer, heavily regulated ones.