Articles & Insights

Welcome to the Ember & Oak Articles & Insights library, where leadership meets action.

Here, you’ll find two types of content: Original Articles and Curated Highlights featuring standout research, industry trends, and thought leadership from across the leadership and feedback landscape. Each piece is selected or written to spark growth, challenge thinking, and equip you to lead with clarity and courage.

Clayton Thompson 6/22/25 Clayton Thompson 6/22/25

Leading from Fire and Root: The Ember & Oak Way

A team gathered in a bright, modern office shares a moment of connection and clarity—an Ember & Oak Leadership visual symbolizing the balance of warmth and competence that defines effective, human-centered leadership.

Clayton Thompson 6/14/25 Clayton Thompson 6/14/25

The Feedback Loop That Actually Works: How Great Leaders Build Cultures of Safety and Growth

Clayton Thompson 6/10/25 Clayton Thompson 6/10/25

The Feedback Divide: How Bridgewater Built Success and Kodak Silenced Itself Into Failure

This side-by-side image contrasts two leadership cultures: Bridgewater Associates thriving through radical feedback and Kodak collapsing under silence. A visual metaphor for how transparency drives innovation—and how suppression leads to decline.

Clayton Thompson 6/2/25 Clayton Thompson 6/2/25

3 Feedback Lessons from David Solomon’s Tenure at Goldman Sachs: What the controversy around internal dissent reveals about leadership in high-performance cultures

Clayton Thompson 5/29/25 Clayton Thompson 5/29/25

The Feedback Habit That Transformed My Leadership—and How You Can Use It to Build a Better Team

Clayton Thompson 5/21/25 Clayton Thompson 5/21/25

Leading Feedback in the Age of AI: Why Your AI Agents Need the RA-RA Model Too

As AI becomes more agentic, leaders must adapt. Here’s how feedback evolves when you’re leading both humans and machines, and why your role is more critical than ever.