Organisation, Leadership & Talent
Carrying direction with the broad virtue of Kun: leadership teams, structure, talent, incentives, team dynamics and change.
Leadership & the top team
Useful tools: Leadership Pipeline; 360° feedback; Level 5 leadership (Collins); Top-team effectiveness reviewA new CEO's first 100 days
Hesitation; steadfastness and appointing helpers further. Spend the first 100 days listening and appointing; defer major strategic shifts until trust exists.
初九：磐桓，利居贞，利建侯。
Hesitation and hindrance; it furthers to remain steadfast and to appoint helpers. Lay foundations and assemble the core team first.An over-centralising CEO
A flight of dragons without a head: good fortune. Measure leadership by how many decisions are made well without you.
用九：见群龙无首，吉。
A flight of dragons without a head—good fortune. Distributed leadership: many capable leaders, none dominating.A divided executive team
The spokes burst from the wheel; man and wife quarrel: internal discord stalls progress. Address trust first—otherwise strategy debates are proxy wars.
九三：舆说辐，夫妻反目。
The spokes burst out of the wagon wheels; man and wife roll their eyes. Internal discord stalls progress.Full reading Open hexagram: 小畜 The Taming Power of the Small
Humility and authority in a leader
A noble person of merit and modesty carries things through: humility means crediting the team and keeping the accountability.
九三：劳谦君子，有终吉。
A noble person of modesty and merit carries things to conclusion: good fortune. Achievement without claiming it lasts.A leader slipping into hubris
A grand house, the family screened off, no one in sight: isolation at the top. Test—who last disagreed with you to your face? If no one, the warning is here.
上六：丰其屋，蔀其家，窥其户，阒其无人，三岁不觌，凶。
His house is in a state of abundance. He screens off his family. He peers through the gate and no longer perceives anyone. For three years he sees nothing. Misfortune. Over-expansion with an empty core, isolation and decline.Facing public criticism
Contemplating my own life: no blame. Before responding publicly, separate fact, misunderstanding and malice in the criticism—answer only the first two.
九五：观我生，君子无咎。
Contemplation of my life: the noble person is without blame. Leaders set the standard by their own conduct.The role of the number two
Hidden excellence; serving the larger cause without claiming credit, yet completing it. The number two's value is making number one succeed while keeping independent judgement.
六三：含章可贞。或从王事，无成有终。
Hidden excellence, able to persevere. Serving a larger cause, claim no credit—but carry it to completion.Leader burnout
Pushing upward in darkness: endless ascent needs constant renewal. Scheduling your own recovery is as important as budgeting the company.
上六：冥升，利于不息之贞。
Pushing upward in darkness. It furthers one to be unremittingly persevering. Endless ascent needs constant cultivation, or it becomes dangerous.Executive succession planning
The cauldron: make positions correct to consolidate the mission. Start succession three years ahead—define the role's mission before assessing candidates.
鼎：元吉，亨。
Supreme good fortune. Success. The cauldron—vessel of cooking and sacrifice—symbolises establishing a new order and consolidating a mission.When to bring in outside executives
A dry poplar sprouts at the root: new blood renews an ageing system. Give newcomers a grafting mechanism—sponsor and transition period.
九二：枯杨生稊，老夫得其女妻，无不利。
A dry poplar sprouts at the root; an older man takes a young wife. Everything furthers. Inject new blood into an ageing system.
How long could this team run without me?
When did someone last change my mind?
Organisation design & decision rights
Useful tools: RAPID decision roles (Bain); Star Model (Galbraith); Spans & layers; RACICentralise or decentralise?
Let the eldest lead; if the younger interfere, defeat. With a clear mission, command must be single. Allocate authority by decision type, not by department.
六五：田有禽，利执言，无咎。长子帅师，弟子舆尸，贞凶。
There is game in the field; it furthers to seize it—no blame. Let the eldest lead the army; if the younger ones interfere, corpses in the wagon. Clear mission, single command.A matrix where nobody owns anything
The army carries corpses: divided command fails. Give every key outcome a single decider; other roles advise.
六三：师或舆尸，凶。
Perchance the army carries corpses in the wagon: misfortune. Divided command, amateurs overruling experts.Departmental silos
Fellowship only within the clan: humiliation. Create shared cross-functional metrics so collaboration makes sense in everyone's interest.
六二：同人于宗，吝。
Fellowship with people in the clan: humiliation. The limits of cliques and factionalism.Too many layers, too slow
Decreasing one's faults brings quick joy. Start delayering with the three approval chains that take longest—results show fastest.
六四：损其疾，使遄有喜，无咎。
If a man decreases his faults, it makes the other hasten to come and rejoice. No blame. First cut what drains you most.Losing control after delegating
Wise approach befits a great prince. Delegation isn't abdication: agree decision boundaries, reporting rhythm and escalation rules.
六五：知临，大君之宜，吉。
Wise approach—this is right for a great prince: good fortune. Know people, delegate without losing control.Headquarters and subsidiaries
The king hunts on three sides and lets the game escape: cohesion by attraction. HQ should offer services subsidiaries want to come to, not just orders.
九五：显比，王用三驱，失前禽，邑人不诫，吉。
Manifestation of holding together: the king hunts on three sides only and lets the game ahead escape; citizens need no warning—good fortune. Attract, don't coerce: partners stay free to come and go.Decisions take too long
No skin on the thighs, walking comes hard: hesitation plus stubbornness. Give each decision type a deadline and a default that applies if no one decides.
九四：臀无肤，其行次且。牵羊悔亡，闻言不信。
There is no skin on his thighs, and walking comes hard. If a man were to let himself be led like a sheep, remorse would disappear. But if these words are heard they will not be believed. Hesitation and stubbornness together.When to reorganise
Three days before the start, three after: diagnose root causes before reorganising and schedule reviews after—avoid reorganising for its own sake.
蛊：元亨，利涉大川。先甲三日，后甲三日。
Supreme success. It furthers one to cross the great water. Before the starting point, three days; after the starting point, three days. Change needs foresight and review.Building a shared-services centre
The well is being lined: no blame. A shared-services centre is first about lining the well—standard processes and data—savings come after.
六四：井甃，无咎。
The well is being lined. No blame. A time to repair infrastructure, rules and processes.Flatten or keep hierarchy?
Treading: distinguish high and low to settle people's minds. Flat structures require clear roles; ambiguous flatness costs more than clear hierarchy.
履：履虎尾，不咥人，亨。
Treading on the tail of the tiger. It does not bite. Success—through propriety and measure in dangerous company.
Who holds the final decision—and does everyone know it?
Does the structure serve strategy, or history and personalities?
Talent acquisition & development
Useful tools: 9-box grid; 70-20-10 learning; Employer value proposition; Competency modelCritical roles we cannot fill
Influence: receive others with openness. Audit the employer brand—what candidates see from outside—before raising salaries.
咸：亨，利贞，取女吉。
Success. Perseverance furthers. To take a maiden to wife brings good fortune. Mutual resonance and attraction.Buried talent inside the company
The well is cleaned but no one drinks: my heart's sorrow. Run talent reviews and internal mobility so clear springs are found and used.
九三：井渫不食，为我心恻，可用汲，王明，并受其福。
The well is cleaned, but no one drinks from it. This is my heart's sorrow, for one might draw from it. If the king were clear-minded, good fortune might be enjoyed in common. Excellent talent or assets unseen and unused.Losing high-potential people
Splitting apart: those above secure their house by giving generously below. Exit interviews come too late—hold stay interviews to learn why they remain.
剥：不利有攸往。
It does not further one to go anywhere. Erosion rises from below; this is a time to protect, not to attack.Onboarding new hires
The goose nears the shore; the young one is in danger, there is talk—no blame. Early unease is normal: design a gradual 90-day path with a buddy.
初六：鸿渐于干，小子厉，有言，无咎。
The wild goose gradually draws near the shore. The young son is in danger. There is talk. No blame. Unease and talk at the start are normal.Is training spend worth it?
It furthers one to accomplish great deeds: tie training to concrete business problems and measure return through action learning.
初九：利用为大作，元吉，无咎。
It furthers one to accomplish great deeds. Supreme good fortune. No blame. Use new resources for truly significant work.Setting up mentoring
Bearing with the inexperienced in kindness brings good fortune. Mentoring succeeds on matching and protected time, not on programme branding.
九二：包蒙吉；纳妇吉；子克家。
To bear with fools in kindness brings good fortune. Including learners of every level builds the house.A star hire who doesn't fit the culture
Seeing a man of gold, she loses herself: nothing furthers. Make cultural fit a veto criterion in hiring, not a bonus point.
六三：勿用取女，见金夫，不有躬，无攸利。
Do not take the one who, seeing a man of gold, loses herself. Don't be seduced by surface glitter—salary, status, brands.Generational differences at work
Joint approach: good fortune, everything furthers. Use reverse mentoring—younger staff coaching seniors—so both sides feel respected.
九二：咸临，吉无不利。
Joint approach: good fortune, everything furthers. Mutual resonance, aligned top and bottom.Promotion criteria
All are in accord: remorse disappears. Include peer input in promotion criteria to reduce promotions that answer only upward.
六三：众允，悔亡。
All are in accord. Remorse disappears. Promotion endorsed by the team is the most stable.Layoffs and restructuring
Decrease combined with sincerity: supreme good fortune. Do it once, transparently, with dignity for those leaving—it is a promise to those who stay.
损：有孚，元吉，无咎，可贞，利有攸往。曷之用？二簋可用享。
Decrease combined with sincerity brings supreme good fortune without blame. One may be persevering; it furthers to undertake something. How is this to be carried out? One may use two small bowls for the sacrifice. Simplifying does not mean losing value.
Why do our best people stay?
Are we growing people or using them up?
Performance, incentives & reward
Useful tools: OKR; Balanced Scorecard; Total rewards; Self-determination theoryToo many KPIs, too much short-termism
Galling limitation: persistence brings misfortune. Cut KPIs to no more than five per person, with at least one measuring long-term value.
上六：苦节，贞凶，悔亡。
Galling limitation. Perseverance brings misfortune. Remorse disappears. Over-strict control provokes backlash.Bonus allocation causing resentment
Modesty: reduce what is too much, augment what is too little, weigh and distribute fairly. Publishing the principles (not individual amounts) defuses resentment more than the sums.
谦：亨，君子有终。
Success. The noble person carries things through. The only hexagram in which all six lines are favourable.Who should receive equity?
A sincere and kind heart needs no asking: supreme good fortune. Grant equity to those who shape long-term value and share the mission—not merely to the senior.
九五：有孚惠心，勿问元吉。有孚惠我德。
If in truth you have a kind heart, ask not. Supreme good fortune. Truly kindness will be recognised as your virtue. Benefit stakeholders sincerely and returns follow.Long-serving underperformers
No game in the field: persisting in the wrong place yields nothing. The problem may be the role, not the person—try redeployment before exit.
九四：田无禽。
No game in the field. Persisting in the wrong place yields nothing, however long.High performer, wrong values
When rewarding, inferior people must not be given power. Reward results with money if you must—but never promote them to lead others.
上六：大君有命，开国承家，小人勿用。
The great prince issues commands, founds states, vests families with fiefs. Inferior people should not be employed. When rewarding, never hand power to those without integrity.From appraisal to development dialogue
Contemplating my life decides advance or retreat. Let employees self-assess first; managers add perspective—shift from scoring to growth.
六三：观我生，进退。
Contemplation of my life decides advance or retreat. Self-reflection precedes decisions.Intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation
Not counting on the harvest while ploughing: focus on process. Excessive external rewards crowd out intrinsic interest—protect autonomy, mastery and belonging.
六二：不耕获，不菑畬，则利有攸往。
If one does not count on the harvest while ploughing, nor on the use of the ground while clearing it, it furthers to undertake something. Focus on process, not on expected returns.Team rewards or individual rewards?
Fellowship at the gate: no blame. Where work is highly interdependent, weight team rewards more, while still recognising individual contribution.
初九：同人于门，无咎。
Fellowship with people at the gate: no blame. An open start without barriers.Is pay really the problem?
Oppressed at meat and drink: materially provided, yet unfulfilled. People often leave for meaning, growth or their manager—investigate before raising pay.
九二：困于酒食，朱绂方来，利用享祀，征凶，无咎。
One is oppressed while at meat and drink. The man with the scarlet knee bands is just coming. It furthers one to offer sacrifice. To set forth brings misfortune. No blame. Materially comfortable yet unfulfilled—wait for the opening.Building a culture of recognition
Progress: received three times in a single day. Frequency of recognition matters more than size—timely, specific and visible works best.
晋：康侯用锡马蕃庶，昼日三接。
The powerful prince is honoured with horses in large numbers; in a single day he is received three times. A time of promotion, recognition, rapid progress.
Are we rewarding the behaviour we actually want?
What motivation can't money buy here?
Team dynamics & conflict
Useful tools: Tuckman stages; Five Dysfunctions (Lencioni); Thomas–Kilmann modes; Psychological safety (Edmondson)Open conflict between team members
Unable to win, one turns back and changes attitude: peace in perseverance. Give both sides a face-saving path so changing position is dignified.
九四：不克讼，复即命，渝，安贞，吉。
One cannot engage in conflict; one turns back and submits to fate, changes one's attitude, and finds peace in perseverance. Changing position is not defeat.A team where nobody speaks up
Standstill: heaven and earth do not communicate. Leaders go first—admit one mistake publicly to show that candour is safe.
否：否之匪人，不利君子贞，大往小来。
Standstill: evil people do not further the perseverance of the noble. The great departs, the small approaches. Heaven and earth do not communicate.Cliques and covert opposition
Weapons hidden in the thicket; for three years no rising: suspicion exhausts both sides. Surface the hidden agenda in a facilitated, structured conversation.
九三：伏戎于莽，升其高陵，三岁不兴。
He hides weapons in the thicket and climbs the high hill in front of it; for three years he does not rise up. Suspicion and covert opposition exhaust both sides.Low team morale
The source of enthusiasm achieves great things; friends gather like hair in a clasp. Morale often starts with one sincerely committed person—find and back them.
九四：由豫，大有得。勿疑。朋盍簪。
The source of enthusiasm: he achieves great things. Doubt not; you gather friends around you as a hair clasp gathers the hair. The sincere leader becomes the rallying point.Misunderstandings in a cross-cultural team
Meeting one's lord in a narrow street: no blame. Informal channels—a meal, a walk—often resolve misunderstandings better than meetings.
九二：遇主于巷，无咎。
One meets his lord in a narrow street. No blame. Informal channels can resolve differences.Cohesion in a remote team
Gathering together: the king approaches his temple. Give remote teams fixed rituals—weekly openings, quarterly gatherings, shared celebrations.
萃：亨。王假有庙，利见大人，亨，利贞。用大牲吉，利有攸往。
Success. The king approaches his temple. It furthers one to see the great person. Perseverance furthers. To bring great offerings creates good fortune. Cohesion needs shared belief, ritual and leadership.A star performer and the team
He makes a difference between himself and his neighbour: no blame. Help the star convert influence into lifting others rather than monopolising the light.
九四：匪其彭，无咎。
He makes a difference between himself and his neighbour: no blame. Modesty protects the wealthy.Repairing relationships after conflict
Deliverance: the noble person pardons mistakes. Repair needs an explicit closure ritual so everyone knows the page has turned.
解：利西南，无所往，其来复吉。有攸往，夙吉。
The southwest furthers. If there is no longer anything where one has to go, return brings good fortune. If there is still something where one has to go, hastening brings good fortune. After a crisis, restore order quickly.A team that is too large
When three travel, one goes: too many causes friction. Coordination costs rise sharply beyond about eight people—split into small squads with clear interfaces.
六三：三人行，则损一人；一人行，则得其友。
When three people journey together, their number decreases by one. When one man journeys alone, he finds a companion. Right-size the team; too many creates friction.Misaligned team goals
Fellowship in the open: success. Find a goal higher than each unit's targets and have every member state their part in it.
同人：同人于野，亨。利涉大川，利君子贞。
Fellowship with people in the open: success. It furthers one to cross the great water; it furthers the perseverance of the noble person. Open, public solidarity.
What is the hardest thing to say in this team?
Is the conflict about the task or the relationship?
Change management & transformation
Useful tools: Kotter's 8 steps; ADKAR; Lewin unfreeze–change–refreeze; Change curveWhen the time for change is not yet ripe
Wrapped in the hide of a yellow cow: not yet ripe—hold steady. Use the time to gather evidence and allies rather than announcing early.
初九：巩用黄牛之革。
Wrapped in the hide of a yellow cow. The time is not yet ripe: hold steady.Middle-management resistance
When talk of change has gone round three times, people believe. Involve middle managers in design—their objections often point to real execution risks.
九三：征凶，贞厉，革言三就，有孚。
Starting brings misfortune. Perseverance brings danger. When talk of revolution has gone the rounds three times, one may commit oneself, and people will believe. Build consensus through repeated dialogue.Leaders changing first
The great person changes like a tiger and is believed before any oracle. Transformation starts with visible change in top leaders' own behaviour.
九五：大人虎变，未占有孚。
The great person changes like a tiger. Even before he questions the oracle he is believed. The leader's visible, wholehearted transformation.Change fatigue
Restlessness as a permanent state: misfortune. Freeze new initiatives, finish and celebrate those under way, then start again.
上六：振恒，凶。
Restlessness as an enduring condition brings misfortune. 'Persistence' that keeps changing direction is the most dangerous.Consolidating after change
The noble person changes like a panther; now stop churning. Embed the new ways in policies, budgets and promotion criteria to refreeze them.
上六：君子豹变，小人革面，征凶，居贞吉。
The noble person changes like a panther. The inferior person molts in the face. Starting brings misfortune. To remain persevering brings good fortune. After change, consolidate—stop churning.Legacy baggage blocking culture change
Tolerating what the father spoiled: going on brings humiliation. Set a firm deadline and an owner for each legacy issue.
六四：裕父之蛊，往见吝。
Tolerating what has been spoiled by the father: continuing, one sees humiliation. Delayed reform worsens the problem.Communicating during change
Three days before the change, three after: announce, execute, review. Communicate several times more than you think necessary.
九五：贞吉悔亡，无不利。无初有终，先庚三日，后庚三日，吉。
Perseverance brings good fortune. Remorse vanishes. Nothing that does not further. No beginning, but an end. Before the change, three days; after the change, three days. Good fortune. The full protocol for changing orders: announce, execute, review.Building momentum with quick wins
Small taming: dense clouds, no rain yet. Choose three small wins achievable within 90 days, and make them visible.
小畜：亨。密云不雨，自我西郊。
Success. Dense clouds, no rain from our western region. Conditions are not yet ripe: accumulate in small ways.Full reading Open hexagram: 小畜 The Taming Power of the Small
Restarting after a failed change
Repeated return: danger, no blame. Publicly own why the last attempt failed, then restart—credibility grows rather than shrinks.
六三：频复，厉无咎。
Repeated return: danger, no blame. Trial and error is acceptable as long as you keep coming back.The last mile of a transformation
Before completion: the little fox nearly across wets its tail. The final stretch invites complacency—keep governance cadence until new processes run on their own.
未济：亨，小狐汔济，濡其尾，无攸利。
Success. But if the little fox, after nearly completing the crossing, gets his tail in the water, there is nothing that would further. The last step is the most dangerous. The Book of Changes ends here: change never ends; everything is in process.
What do people fear losing most in this change?
Do we have enough quick wins to prove the direction?