mikelally.net

I wanted to capture this series of articles by Don Sull of the Financial Times. I can’t share via Twitter from the office so I am opting to compile here.

The series looks at The First Jesuits by John W. O’Malley. Sull and O’Malley hold up the Jesuits as a group that practices strategic agility.

Sull says:

The Jesuits grew in size and influence by identifying and seizing opportunities to fulfill their mission of saving souls.

Sull focuses on HR practices. Readers will know I tend to break out in hives when discussing anything HR. But I admire the Jesuits. I am a product of a Catholic school education and have been influenced by the Jesuits. One of my all-time favorite professors in college was a former Jesuit.

Sull’s second post on this subject: Agility through people: Five lessons…speaks to Jesuit hiring practices that ultimately lead them to success outcomes.

For a good definition of operational agility – take a look at Sull’s post on Toyota. Sull says:

Operational agility is a company’s capacity, within a focused business model, to consistently identify and exploit opportunities to create economic value, and do so more quickly than rivals.

I just added Sull to my RSS feed. He’s my kind of guy.