Harvard Business Review HBR's 10 Must Reads 2025

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Welcome to my ‘Reading Insights‘ series. Here, is where I share simple takeaways and personal thoughts from articles, papers, and other readings that called my attention.

Together, we’ll explore ideas beyond the “Book Notes” series that help us to improve how we think about management, leadership, and personal growth.

So grab a cup of coffee, and let’s dive into some interesting insights!

And what are we reading today?

Today we will talk about the publication from Harvard Business Review, HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025.

The Harvard Business Review Must Reads series is like a “greatest hits” album for business and leadership ideas.

Each publication in the series organize the best and most impactful articles from HBR, handpicked by experts with a special touch of the moment we are living and the challenges facing leaders and managers.

Each edition brings the most impactful HBR articles, like the HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025, is offering insights on topics like strategy, innovation, and self-management—all curated to help us to navigate the year’s biggest challenges.

Reskilling in the Age of AI – Jorge Tamayo, Leila Doumi, Sagar Goel, Orsolya Kovács-Ondrejkovic & Raffaella Sadun
How Fast Should Your Company Really Grow? – Gary P. Pisano
How to Sustain Your Empathy in Difficult Times – Jamil Zaki
The New-Collar Workforce – Colleen Ammerman, Boris Groysberg & Ginni Rometty
Rid Your Organization of Obstacles That Infuriate Everyone – Robert I. Sutton & Huggy Rao
Where Does DEI Go from Here? – Laura Morgan Roberts
What Today’s Rainmakers Do Differently – Matthew Dixon, Ted McKenna, Rory Channer & Karen Freeman
The New Era of Industrial Policy Is Here – Willy C. Shih
How to Market Sustainable Products – Frédéric Dalsace & Goutam Challagalla
What Does “Stakeholder Capitalism” Mean to You? – Lynn S. Paine
Use Strategic Thinking to Create the Life You Want – Rainer Strack, Susanne Dyrchs & Allison Bailey

What are the key takeaways from HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025?

Reskilling is urgent: Future-ready leaders invest in their team’s learning and align it with business strategy.

Growth isn’t everything: Fast doesn’t always mean good; smart, deliberate growth creates stronger organizations.

Empathy needs boundaries: Help others without losing yourself—balance emotional connection with personal resilience.

Degrees are optional; skills are essential: A skills-first hiring mindset opens doors to untapped talent pools.

Simplify, simplify, simplify: Too many rules or tools? Toss what’s unnecessary and free your team to thrive.

DEI thrives on psychological safety: Freedom to fail, rest, and grow is essential for inclusion and innovation.

Business development is collaborative now: Rainmakers succeed by connecting and creating value, not working solo.

Policy matters: Adapting to industrial regulations isn’t just smart—it’s a strategic advantage.

Sustainability needs performance: A great product must work first and solve problems.

Life is a strategy game: Treat your time like a portfolio—prioritize what aligns with your long-term vision.

Reskilling in the Age of AI

By Jorge Tamayo, Leila Doumi, Sagar Goel, Orsolya Kovács-Ondrejkovic, and Raffaella Sadun – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Reskilling is no longer optional—companies need to make it a core strategy to help employees adapt to AI-driven changes.

📌 The Summary: AI is reshaping the workforce, automating not just repetitive tasks but also knowledge-based jobs like coding and research. This means reskilling must go beyond being an HR initiative—it requires leadership at all levels to build a culture that supports continuous learning.

Companies like Amazon and Vodafone are showing employees a clear path forward, offering real career growth alongside reskilling programs. The key? Hope—people are more likely to embrace learning if they see tangible benefits in their future.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Reskilling should be a company-wide strategic priority.
✔ Leaders at all levels must actively support reskilling efforts.
✔ It’s not just about skills—it’s about fostering a culture of adaptability.
✔ Make reskilling attractive by offering real career paths.
✔ Partner with nonprofits and educators to scale reskilling programs effectively.

How Fast Should Your Company Really Grow?

By Gary P. Pisano – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Growth should be intentional, not just a reaction to demand. Companies must carefully balance speed, direction, and resources.

📌 The Summary: Many companies expand too quickly without considering long-term sustainability. The rate-direction-method (RDM) framework helps leaders assess not just where to grow but whether they can handle it.

A great example is Pal’s Sudden Service, which only opens a new location when a fully trained manager is ready—ensuring consistent quality and performance. The lesson? Sustainable growth is about planning, not chasing short-term gains.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Growth should be a strategic decision, not a reaction to demand.
✔ Use the RDM framework: How fast? Where? How?
✔ Know your company’s financial, operational, and human resource limits.
✔ Sometimes saying no to fast expansion is the smartest move.
✔ Invest in training, processes, and culture to sustain long-term growth.

How to Sustain Your Empathy in Difficult Times

By Jamil Zaki – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Empathy is essential for leadership but can be exhausting. Leaders need strategies to sustain it without burnout.

📌 The Summary: Empathy isn’t just a soft skill—it’s a leadership superpower. However, constantly carrying others’ burdens can lead to emotional exhaustion. The solution? Sustainable empathy through self-care, focusing on what truly helps, and refining emotional boundaries.

The article introduces three strategies:
1. Take care of yourself first—self-compassion helps you stay strong for others.
2. Tune your empathy—focus on problem-solving rather than just absorbing emotions.
3. Develop empathy as a skill—it can be refined and strengthened over time.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Empathy is powerful but must be managed to avoid burnout.
✔ Self-care is essential—leaders can’t pour from an empty cup.
✔ Focus on empathic concern (helping) rather than empathic distress (absorbing emotions).
✔ Empathy is a skill that can be practiced and improved.
✔ Sustainable empathy means balancing care for others with self-care.

The New-Collar Workforce

By Colleen Ammerman, Boris Groysberg, and Ginni Rometty – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Companies should focus on skills-first hiring, not degrees, to unlock talent, improve diversity, and fill critical roles.

📌 The Summary: The traditional emphasis on college degrees excludes millions of skilled workers from good jobs. The article makes a case for “new-collar” hiring, where companies prioritize skills over credentials.

IBM has led this shift by removing degree requirements for many roles and investing in apprenticeships. This approach not only broadens the talent pool but also fosters workplace diversity and agility.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Degree requirements often block talented candidates from jobs they’re qualified for.
✔ Skills-first hiring expands access to more diverse and capable talent.
✔ Apprenticeships and training programs help companies grow their own skilled workforce.
✔ HR and hiring managers should rewrite job descriptions to prioritize skills.
✔ A culture that values competence over credentials benefits businesses and employees alike.

Rid Your Organization of Obstacles That Infuriate Everyone

By Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Companies often create unnecessary rules and processes that frustrate employees and slow productivity. Leaders should actively remove these roadblocks.

📌 The Summary: Many organizations suffer from “addition sickness”—constantly adding policies, meetings, and tools without questioning their value. The solution? A “good-riddance review” that eliminates outdated or redundant processes.

Hawaii Pacific Health’s “Getting Rid of Stupid Stuff” initiative empowered employees to identify and remove unnecessary work, saving thousands of hours. The takeaway? Simplification can drive massive productivity and morale gains.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Conduct “good-riddance reviews” to remove unnecessary rules.
✔ Encourage a culture of subtraction, not just addition.
✔ Some processes require complexity, but unnecessary friction should be avoided.
✔ Involve employees in identifying bureaucratic obstacles.
✔ Reward efficiency improvements, not just new initiatives.

Where Does DEI Go from Here?

By Laura Morgan Roberts – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: DEI efforts need to move beyond policy statements and create a work environment where everyone can flourish.

📌 The Summary: Many organizations have embraced diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, but progress has stalled due to economic pressures and resistance. The key to real impact? The Four Freedoms:

Freedom to be – Feeling safe to be authentic at work.
Freedom to become – Access to growth opportunities.
Freedom to fade – The ability to step back when needed.
Freedom to fail – Psychological safety to take risks and learn.

DEI isn’t just about policies—it’s about workplace culture. Companies that integrate these freedoms will create an environment where everyone, regardless of background, can thrive.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ DEI needs to be embedded in daily workplace culture, not just policies.
✔ Ensure employees have the freedom to be, become, fade, and fail.
✔ Promote psychological safety and career growth for all employees.
✔ Support authenticity through anti-bias training and allyship.
✔ Encourage flexible policies that adapt to employees’ diverse needs.

What Today’s Rainmakers Do Differently

By Matthew Dixon, Ted McKenna, Rory Channer, and Karen Freeman – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Top-performing professionals don’t just wait for business opportunities—they proactively create demand, build strong networks, and collaborate effectively.

📌 The Summary: In professional services, doing great work isn’t enough anymore. Clients are less loyal, and rainmakers—the best business developers—know how to actively generate opportunities rather than waiting for referrals.

The article introduces five business development profiles, but only one stands out: The Activator. These professionals:
1. Prioritize business development—committing time every week.
2. Build connected networks—including colleagues and prospects.
3. Collaborate across the firm—bringing additional value to clients.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Good work alone won’t bring in clients—you have to proactively create demand.
✔ The best business developers balance time between new and existing clients.
✔ Networking is a long-term investment, not a one-time effort.
✔ Collaboration within the firm leads to bigger opportunities and deeper client relationships.
✔ Allocating time and using technology strategically can sustain consistent business development.

The New Era of Industrial Policy Is Here

By Willy C. Shih – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Governments are increasingly using industrial policy to shape economies, meaning businesses must adapt to new rules, incentives, and competitive dynamics.

📌 The Summary: Industrial policy—where governments directly intervene in private markets—is making a comeback in sectors like energy, semiconductors, and manufacturing. Companies must navigate these policies by understanding government incentives, engaging with policymakers, and forming strategic partnerships.

The key challenge? Balancing the benefits of subsidies with the risks of regulatory constraints. Companies that adapt early will gain a competitive advantage in a changing global landscape.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Industrial policies are reshaping industries worldwide.
✔ Businesses must understand how policies impact their markets.
✔ Engage with policymakers to influence and navigate regulations.
✔ Government incentives can be beneficial—but come with conditions.
✔ Long-term success requires adapting to changing policies and supply chain shifts.

How to Market Sustainable Products

By Frédéric Dalsace and Goutam Challagalla – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Sustainability alone isn’t enough to sell a product—companies must integrate sustainability into traditional marketing strategies while addressing different customer segments.

📌 The Summary: Many companies overestimate how much consumers prioritize sustainability. While some buyers value eco-friendliness, most care more about price, convenience, and quality.

The authors introduce a framework to classify how sustainability interacts with product benefits:
1. Resonance – Sustainability enhances core benefits (e.g., electric cars with superior performance).
2. Independence – Sustainability is neutral (e.g., organic products that taste the same).
3. Dissonance – Sustainability reduces appeal (e.g., eco-friendly detergent that cleans less effectively).

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Understand if sustainability enhances, is neutral, or creates trade-offs for your product.
✔ Segment customers into Greens (sustainability-first), Blues (interested but hesitant), and Grays (skeptical buyers).
✔ Tailor marketing messages based on what your target audience prioritizes.
✔ Highlight sustainability only if it adds value to the core product benefits.
✔ The best strategy is aligning sustainability with customer needs to maximize appeal.

What Does “Stakeholder Capitalism” Mean to You?

By Lynn S. Paine – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Companies embrace stakeholder capitalism in different ways—leaders must be clear on their approach to avoid conflicts and unmet expectations.

📌 The Summary: Stakeholder capitalism suggests that businesses should serve employees, customers, communities, and shareholders alike. However, the term is vague, leading to different interpretations and implementation challenges.

The article categorizes stakeholder capitalism into four models:
Instrumental – Focuses on long-term shareholder value while considering stakeholder concerns.
Classic – Respects stakeholder rights but prioritizes shareholder value.
Beneficial – Aims to improve outcomes for all stakeholders, even at some cost to shareholders.
Structural – Gives stakeholders formal power, such as board representation.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Companies must define their stakeholder approach clearly.
✔ The Instrumental model focuses on long-term shareholder value through stakeholder inclusion.
✔ The Classic model considers stakeholder interests while prioritizing profits.
✔ The Beneficial model actively improves stakeholder outcomes, even at some cost.
✔ The Structural model gives stakeholders formal decision-making power.

Use Strategic Thinking to Create the Life You Want

By Rainer Strack, Susanne Dyrchs, and Allison Bailey – full HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 article

👉 The Big Idea: Strategic thinking isn’t just for businesses—it can help individuals define their ideal life, align goals, and make more intentional choices.

📌 The Summary: The authors use the same strategic thinking typically applied in business to help individuals build a personal life strategy. It’s all about being proactive rather than letting life just happen. The process involves seven steps, starting with defining what a great life means to you, then outlining your purpose, and creating a vision for the future. It includes assessing how you currently spend your time, comparing yourself to benchmarks, and making informed choices for change.

The message here is that strategic thinking isn’t just for companies—it’s for anyone who wants to lead a more intentional life. The key is treating your own life as a project worth strategizing for, helping you navigate challenges and create a path that aligns with your values and goals.

Define a Great Life
- PERMA-V Framework: Use the suggested PERMA-V model to identify the elements of a great life for you (Positive emotions, Engagement, Relationships, Meaning, Achievement, Vitality).
- Reflection Exercise: Rate each element on its importance to you and assess how satisfied you currently feel in each area.
Create Your Life Purpose
- Purpose Statement Exercise: Ask yourself key questions—What are you good at? What are your core values? What activities excite you? What needs can you help address?
- Belief Audit: Get input from friends or family to better understand your strengths, values, and what purpose you could serve.
- Draft and Refine: Create a draft purpose statement and seek feedback to refine it.
Set a Life Vision
- Visioning Questions: Use questions like, “What story would I like people to tell about me five years from now?” or “What would the 80-year-old me not want to have missed in life?” to craft a vision.
- Mood Board Exercise: Select images that represent your desired personal and professional future to help visualize your vision concretely.
Assess Your Time
- 168-Hour Time Analysis: Calculate how you spend each of the 168 hours in a week across different areas (relationships, work, personal care, etc.).
- Strategic Life Portfolio: Create a 2×2 matrix that maps the importance of each activity vs. the satisfaction it gives you. This helps identify areas of high importance but low satisfaction that need more attention.
Learn from Benchmarks
- Role Model Analysis: Identify people you admire and analyze what makes them admirable, then consider what lessons from their lives could apply to yours.
- Life Satisfaction Research: Look at research studies (e.g., German Socio-Economic Panel) to learn what factors tend to contribute to life satisfaction (e.g., health, relationships, purposeful work).
Make Specific Choices
- Change Action Plan: Based on your assessments, decide on specific changes you want to make in your routine, such as allocating more time to areas needing improvement.
- Bundle Activities: Where possible, combine activities (e.g., jogging with your partner) to maximize efficiency and fulfillment.
- Set Priorities: Outline a few high-level priorities rather than a detailed plan to make progress more achievable.
Set Goals & Check-Ins
- OKRs (Objectives and Key Results): For each change, define a broad objective and a few key results, along with deadlines to track progress.
- Accountability Mechanism: Anchor your goals by sharing them with someone or rewarding yourself for success.
- Regular Reviews: Schedule weekly check-ins and longer biannual reviews to keep track of your progress and adjust your strategy.

💡 Key Takeaways:
✔ Define what a fulfilling life means based on personal values, not external expectations.
✔ Create a clear life purpose statement to guide decisions.
✔ Assess how you currently spend time to identify misalignment.
✔ Learn from role models and research on happiness and success.
✔ Set clear goals with regular check-ins to stay on track.

HBR’s 10 Must Reads 2025 reminds us that being a great leader doesn’t mean knowing everything (thankfully!).

It’s about asking the right questions and staying flexible enough to adapt when the game changes.

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