The Strategy Skills Podcast: Management Consulting | Strategy, Operations & Implementation | Critical Thinking

In this wide-ranging and direct conversation, Bill George, former Medtronic CEO and Harvard Business School professor, offers a disciplined framework for leading in conditions of persistent volatility. Drawing from decades of leadership experience and research, George emphasizes that leadership today is no longer about managing processes, it is about confronting ambiguity, enabling experimentation, and sustaining purpose across shifting conditions.   Five themes stand out: Opportunity Must Be Created, Not Awaited. George argues that emerging leaders should not wait for promotions or formal permission. Instead, they should identify unaddressed problems, volunteer to lead, and deliver results without demanding titles. Career growth, he suggests, is a function of action, not seniority. Innovation Begins at the Front Lines. Whether referencing his early decision to cancel a Medtronic pacemaker program that lacked patient benefit, or urging leaders to spend less time in conference rooms and more with customer