The summer is heating up with reminders that the first anniversary of the launch of the 2030 agenda is not far — and when it comes to implementing sustainable development worldwide, time passes rather quickly. The High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development is convening in New York, the first since the adoption of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals. It comes hot on the heels of businesses getting a reminder from Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, at the UN Global Compact Leaders Summit in New York on June 22, who told those assembled that, “All businesses, everywhere, can and should play a role in improving our world.” He also added, “That starts with integrity — doing business right.”

Most management writing focuses on startups or large companies, but if recent performance is any indicator, midcap companies are the place to be. U.S. organizations with $10 million–$1 billion in revenue make up the fourth largest global economy in the world, with $3.8 trillion in private sector GDP. Over 200,000 midcap businesses collectively employ 34 percent of the U.S. workforce. During the 2008 recession, midcap companies proved surprisingly tough: Fully 82 percent of them survived to see the recovery (only 57 percent of small businesses made it through), and midcap companies added an average of 20 jobs each while big businesses were shedding thousands of jobs.

It’s been nearly 20 years since Clayton Christensen explained why so many industry-leading companies miss the potential of new technologies and are supplanted by competitors that seemingly emerge from nowhere. Since then, corporate strategists have realized that avoiding what Christensen called the innovator’s dilemma requires that companies simultaneously compete in their mature businesses and pursue the opportunities that arise from new technologies and business models. Of course, that’s easier said than done.

Many organizations are experimenting with new ways to design their physical space. While this is a great trend to see, these same organizations are forgetting that changes related to physical space also require changes to management. A traditional office environment typically has cubicles, some conference rooms and offices for managers. In this type of a setting employees typically work 9-to-5, managers can see everyone to know they are working, there is plenty of “focus” time and communication and collaboration isn’t all that common. More modern office environments are more open with multiple floor plans and they oftentimes enable flexible work arrangements. In this type of a setting, managers don’t usually have offices, employees aren’t always seen so managers can’t tell if they’re working, communication and collaboration happens all the time, and in general the entire organizational structure seems to be much flatter.

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Successful companies are built with strong talent. Employees who have been with you since Day One are valuable because they’re often entrepreneurial, and people who have an impressive resume as a result of working for high-profile brands can give your company a different kind of boost.

The term “organizational culture” can obscure an important truth: An organization often contains many cultures. This is true even if your organization is located entirely in one country, or even at one site.

Because each business unit or team may have their own subculture, working effectively across the organization requires skill in working across cultures.

Doing this requires three steps: understanding what culture is and how it works, identifying the cultures of your team and the teams you work with, and designing how you and the other teams will work together.