This year’s three best business books on leadership are fresh, persuasive, and arresting. Rooted in experience and rigorous data, new work by Sam Walker, Chris Fussell and Susan David supports a timeless and intuitive truth: that excellence is defined by the human values of flexibility, humility, and the courage.
Leadership Skills
Helping Women Leaders Plot their Next Career Move
In the fall of 2017, twenty senior women gathered for a weekend retreat in Manhattan to discuss their upcoming career transitions. Several had worked for the government, others were from the private sector. All had just retired or were planning to do so. Eager to put their lifetime of skills to work, they had come together for a program called Mission: Getting to Next (MGTN).
Best Business Books 2016: Talent & Leadership
This year’s best business books help to answer the question, “Is leadership an art or science?” While more studies and data improve our understanding of leaders and leadership, has it improved leadership quality? These three books offer answers to these questions and provide insights that are relevant to our everyday lives.
What Hiring Committees Can Learn from the NFL Draft
Professor Steven Whiting of the University of Florida and Professor Timothy Maynes of the University of Buffalo wanted to know if organizational citizenship correlates with performance. And if so, should it be a factor when considering a job applicant?
Younger and Wiser
When Paul Smurl left his job as Attorney and Management Consultant to become president and COO of Some Spider, he knew he’d need to acquire new skills and a new way to look at things. A mentor about half his age seemed like the answer. Here he describes his successful and fulfilling experience finding and building a relationship with Kareem Rahma.
Say it Loud
Are women hindered in advancing up the career ladder because they don’t articulate their desire and expectations for promotion? “There are guys here who have been saying ‘I’m awesome’ ever since they got here, so people start believing it’s true.”
What Gets You Up in the Morning?
Optimism and an eagerness to seize opportunities can be a far more useful source of executive inspiration than fear. “If jobs don’t give people the opportunity to fulfill these basic needs, many employees will leave — and the best are often the first to go.”
Buzzwords We Can Believe In
Popular buzz words and buzz phrases of the day can tell us a lot about workplace conditions. Often, they are brought to fore by the realities of the times. What do today’s buzz words of empathy and mindfulness tell us about our own working conditions?
We Don’t Need Another Hero CEO
What is the most important factor contributing to an organization’s ability to thrive? Is it the risk-taking Hero CEO or collaborative teams? Financial Times columnist Herminia Ibarra traces the divide between manager and leader to Abraham Zaleznik.
Role Model Behavior
Role models are particularly important to women. For those who aspire to leadership positions, role models demonstrate that such aspirations are possible. Yet when women are routinely criticized for poor work-life balance decisions, this can compound the guilt they are already likely to feel.