Leadership Exchange - Spring 2008

WHO’S READING WHAT
Executives Share Must Reading

BY NANCY GRUND

U.S. News & World Report polled a number of leaders from all walks of life about books they consider indispensable

reading for managers. The responses ranged far and wide and the vast majority of books selected were more than

five years old. A sampling of executive responses follows:

The Tipping Point: How Little Things

Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm

Gladwell (Back Bay Books, 2000) Gladwell examines the spread of ideas from teenage smoking to crime to tennis-shoe fads. Why

It’s a Must-Read: “The best books on the economics of popular culture—the world we actually live in—are written not by economists but by writers like Gladwell. I suspect academia punishes economists who dabble in things like shoes and jeans and drug dealers—that’s probably no way to get tenure. But it’s superimportant, and it’s a great tool kit to understand the world.”

—Chris Anderson, editor-in-chief, Wired magazine.

Influence: How and Why People

Agree to Things by Robert Cialdini

(Quill, 1984) Cialdini, a professor of social psychology, spent three years “undercover,” applying for jobs as a telemarketer or car dealer, observing how managers went about persuading employees to do things. He condensed his findings into a list of six

“weapons of influence.” Why It’s a Must-Read: “Management is about getting people to do things you want them to do. This is a very readable, scientifically grounded, accessible overview of several techniques of interpersonal relations—how you can use commitment or reciprocation to get people to do things. Influencing other people is the job of management. This book tells you how to do it a nice, accessible way.”

—Jeffrey Pfeffer, professional of organizational behavior,

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor
Frankl (Beacon Press, Reprinted 2006) Frankl,
a psychiatrist who survived five years in Nazi
concentration camps, where his parents,
brother, and wife were all killed, wrote this
book when the war ended. In it, he argued
that meaning—not pleasure—is the purpose
of life. Why It’s a Must-Read: “As the baby
boomers face mortality, there are a lot of people who have

made a lot of money and have figured out that the correlation between money and happiness is not very high. They’re looking for something else; they’re looking for a legacy, for meaning in their lives. Frankl examines how we make sense out of our lives, how we as human beings are going to relate to the world—one that doesn’t come filled with roses.”

—Jeffrey Pfeffer, professional of organizational behavior,

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Leadership Is an Art by Max DePree

(Dell, 1989) The longtime CEO of Herman

Miller Inc., a manufacturer of office furniture, offers a passionate appeal for humanitarian leadership. Why It’s a Must Read: “This book always reminds me that the way you select leaders is important: That frontline supervisor is far more important to most of our crew members than I am. They can affect their daily life. If I do my job reasonably well, I can help. But if there are 10 people working on a phone unit, their most important person is that supervisor, and if she shares our values and treats people with respect, then our company will be successful.”

—Jack Brennan, CEO, The Vanguard Group

Execution: The Discipline of Getting

Things Done by Larry Bossidy and Ram

Charan (Crown, 2002) Bossidy, the former

CEO and now chairman of Honeywell, and his co-author tackle “the missing link between aspirations and results.” Why It’s a Must-

Read: “It’s not rocket science, but on the other hand a lot of business isn’t rocket science. This book is a very down-to-earth, timely reminder that in the end business is about results and the only way you produce results is by executing. While I think strategic vision is incredibly important, unless you’re focused on execution, vision is just a PowerPoint presentation.”