Books

BOOKS for Work Exciting New Releases

Find 40 interesting new releases and six unique interviews for fresh ideas on HR and business trends.

Frank J. Pietrucha

Supercommunicator [AMACOM, 272pp, 17.95] This guide will help anyone to deliver clear, persuasive messages that win hearts, minds and budgets. Supercommunicator explains how to: distill details and data into big ideas; deliver meaning to audiences; use storytelling to captivate and educate; humanize content to make complicated ideas more tangible; layer harder ideas on top of easier ideas; and strip away complex language.

Ted Coine & Mark Babbitt

A World Gone Social [AMACOM, 256 pp, 24.95] The Social Revolution’s impact on the business world cannot be overestimated. Like the meteor that likely precipitated the end of the dinosaurs, Social is the catalyst in an extinction event and business as we know it has changed forever. A World Gone Social offers an eye-opening look at fundamental and powerful changes the social collaboration era has set in motion.

Morgen Witzerl Management from the Masters

[Bloomsbury, 192 pp, 29,40] The belief that everything is changing led to the disasters of the dotcom era. This book reminds us that some fundamental rules do still apply by taking readers through 20 imperatives derived from the thinking of great leaders and management theorists. This entertaining run-down is complemented by case studies that document the consequences of ignoring these key laws.

Mark van Rijmenam

Think Bigger [AMACOM, 288 pp, 27,95] Think Bigger covers the most important big data trends affecting organizations, as well as key technologies like Hadoop and MapReduce, and several crucial types of analysis. In addition, the book offers guidance on how to ensure security and respect the privacy rights of consumers. It also examines in detail how big data is impacting specific industries and where opportunities can be found.

Alice Muir

Power up your Confidence [Pearson Business, 240 pp, 17,95] It’s the single skill that matters most – whatever the situation. From meetings and presentations to negotiating, selling and managing staff, better confidence will give you better results. It’ll make you more capable and convincing, it’ll raise your performance and prospects, and it’ll give you the courage and determination you need to succeed.

ws Why did you write this book?

am My book brings together key features of today’s workplace and picks up on these common concerns, offering straightforward and practical hints and tips.

ws What is confidence? And why is it important for employees at any level?

am Confidence is one of those things you don’t think about until it’s not there. Since change is almost a constant feature one needs the ability to extend one's comfort zone for personal well-being and success at work.

ws How do you think you can make a difference with your text?

am Providing well-tried techniques and recommendations garnered from decades of experience helping people build their self-confidence. When these are put into effect, personal well-being and confidence will improve, and this can rub off on those around you. Company productivity and quality of service can pick up too.

ws Who is your book for?

am This book is for everyone faced with these kinds of situations in the workplace. Though the workplace is the main focus of the book, most of the material can side step quite easily into everyday life too.

ws How important are soft skills in business?

am In the workplace, confidence has been called a "soft skill", one of those personal attributes that make you a more effective person and enhance your "employability". I see confidence as the ultimate business skill.

ws How can confidence be grown?

am Confidence is grown by learning effective techniques and strategies that will help you perform better in those activities where you currently feel less assured. Putting these new ideas into action will enhance and energize your performance, and so build and maintain selfconfidence.•

Paul B. Brown with Charles F. Kiefer & Leonard A. Schlesinger

Own your Future [AMACOM, 224 pp, 22,00] When it comes to dealing with uncertainty, nobody handles it better than successful entrepreneurs. That’s why you want to take the same approach they do! Based on extensive research and interviews, Own Your Future shows how to apply the simple model they use − Act. Learn. Build. Repeat to reinvent the way you manoeuvre in an unpredictable job market.

Paul Gustavson and Stewart Liff

A Team of Leaders [AMACOM, 240 pp, 26,95] Now imagine having a team where everyone steps up and performs all of the leadership tasks. Imagine a team that is constantly sharing knowledge and pushing the envelope − one that does long-term planning and produces outstanding performance. A Team of Leaders shows readers how to design systems that nurture the leadership potential of every employee − the key to creating high-performance teams.

Koen Pauwels It’s not the Size of the Data, it’s how

you Use it [AMACOM, 240 pp, 29,95] Mounds of marketing metrics are generated across touchpoints and channels. It can be information overload – too much, too scattered. But locked in the vast quantity of information are accurate, data-driven answers to every marketing question. Analytic dashboards are transformative web-based tools that gather and display essential data connecting marketing with performance.

Patricia Bossons, Jeremy Kourdi & Denis Sartain

Coaching Essentials [Bloomsbury, 288 pp, 27,75] This accessible guide offers clear explanations of key coaching theories before putting that theory into context with a comprehensive selection of practical tools and techniques. Benefits and uses of each technique are explained and then followed with advice on how to apply the technique and make it work for you − allowing readers to achieve optimum results.

Heidi Hanna

Stressaholic: 5 Steps to Transform Your Relationship with Stress [Wiley, 208 pp, 21,80] The solution to stress addiction is to build in and prioritize optimal rest and relaxation on a holistic level − body, mind, and spirit − in order to consistently recharge and create a more resilient operating system. Stressaholic shows you how to win the war on stress without limiting progress by creating an optimal performance pulse of stress and recovery for life.

ws Why did you write this book?

hh I saw that people struggle with feeling the need to be “on” all the time. When you’re not used to it, taking it easy can be one of the hardest things to do – a bit like detoxing from any other stimulating substance such as drugs, sugar or caffeine.

ws What is stress? How can stress affect body and mind in the long run?

hh It’s important to understand that stress in itself is not bad, but simply a stimulus for change. Live experiences bring with them the need for an energy investment in order to adapt to a new set of guidelines, and while the outcome should be positive, if we’re running on empty even good stress can cause negative consequences such as fatigue, depression, anxiety, inflammation and exhaustion.

ws How do you think you can make a difference with your text?

hh It is my hope that it will help people become more aware of the pandemic we are facing with regards to unmanaged stress. It is my hope that readers will see stress in a new light and begin to develop a self-care strategy for building greater resilience.

ws Who is your book for?

hh For everyone, but especially for people who know they should slow down and find it difficult to make time to do it. I hope that recognizing the addictive nature of stress will be helpful.

ws What can we do to release stress and charge batteries every day?

hh Mini-meditations, or what I like to call Recharge Breaks, focus on bringing awareness to the breath and relaxing the body while you quiet the mind. It’s easier said that done, since we’ve trained our brains to be on high alert and do mental gymnastics throughout the day. This is why it’s important to focus on shorter training sessions at first, and as you practise you will be more able to sustain this calm state for longer periods of time and tap into it when you need it most during the day.• Illustrations by Hanna Melin, London, UK

BOOKS for work

Sona Sherratt & Roger Delves The Top 50 Management Dilemmas

[FT Press, 256 pp, 34,99] The Top 50 Management Dilemmas provides help on the most common hurdles that managers face. It will help you understand every situation better so you know exactly what to do, fast.

Russ Unger & Samantha Starmer

Speaker Camp: A Self-paced Workshop for Planning, Pitching, Preparing, and Presenting at Conferences [New Riders, 144pp, 19,99] This book provides value for those who want to explore presenting at events and conferences. It provides a clear and concise approach to brainstorming ideas, creating an abstract, crafting a biography, organizing and structuring content, preparing to present to an audience, the mechanics of presenting material on a stage, and how to handle Q&A sessions.

Heather Townsend & Jon Baker

The Go-To Expert: How to Grow Your Reputation, Differentiate Yourself From the Competition and Win New Business [FT Press, 304 pp, 29,99] The Go-To Expert provides no-nonsense advice on managing your transition into a well-known and trusted name within your industry. Discover: - Simple steps to build your profile - How to market and sell yourself with ease and confidence - Techniques to make your clients come to you.

Marc Van Eck, Ellen Leenhouts & Judith Tielen

The One Page Business Strategy [FT Publishing International, 144 pp, 17,95] Most business strategies are so long and complex that many are never referred to again after their initial creation. This book offers managers and entrepreneurs a new way to structure their plans that will make them tangible and accessible to anyone. The volume is based on a well-known planning tool called OGSM, widely used by companies such as P&G, Mars and Coca-Cola.

Rob Jolles

How to Change Minds [BerrettKoehler, 240 pp, 17,95] Rob Jolles knows this scenario all too well − as a salesman, father, friend and colleague, he’s seen it repeatedly in business and in life. In this book, he draws on his highly successful sales background to lay out a simple, repeatable, measurable process for changing someone’s mind. It begins with understanding how people make decisions − what Jolles calls the decision cycle.

ws Why did you write this book?

rj I wanted to write a book to demonstrate how taking someone through a process that may very well upset them may be one of the most sincere acts of kindness we can extend to another. I wanted to write a book that demystified influence and drew a clear line between influence and manipulation.

ws Do you think that the ability to change minds is a talent one has in their DNA or can it be taught and trained, and hence improved?

rj I believe that anyone is capable of learning how to change the mind of another person.

ws How do you think you can make a difference with your text?

rj By writing a book that allows anyone to acquire the skills to ethically influence the actions of others we can literally save lives. The fact is, most people do not naturally fix small problems; they fix big problems.

ws Who is your book for?

rj Who doesn’t need to learn how to ethically influence the action of others? The workshops I conduct are now filling with parents, managers, doctors, lawyers, chiropractors, dentists, police officers, NASA scientists... the list goes on and on. Quite frankly, I’m not sure who wouldn't benefit from learning these skills.

ws What is, in your opinion, the difference between influencing and manipulating?

rj It all comes down to who the action of influence benefits. If it only benefits the person who is using the process, it is manipulation. If it clearly benefits the person we are looking to persuade, it’s influence. Strangely enough, in the end, it all comes down to intent.•

Bruce Hoverd

Powering Through Pressure [Pearson, 240 pp, 21,22] Empowering and inspirational, Powering Through Pressure shows readers how they can take control of their stress and make pressure at work work for them. Stress management specialist Bruce Hoverd expertly takes readers through the primary techniques that can be used to fight back against pressure in the workplace.

Jim McGrath The Little Book of Big Management

Questions [Pearson, 216pp, 21,22] The Little Book of Big Management Questions cuts straight through all the noise to give managers the very best, most up-to-date and proven-to-work insider knowledge. Every question is quick and easy to read and the answers are practical, understandable and will resonate with aspiring, new and experienced managers. The volume gives managers insights and ideas that they can apply in an instant, and can be used as a reference book whenever needed.

Amy C. Edmondson

Teaming to Innovate [Wiley, 136 pp, 15,26] This little book is a roadmap for teaming to innovate. We describe five necessary steps along that road: Aim High, Team Up, Fail Well, Learn Fast, and Repeat. This path is not smooth. To illustrate each critical step, we look at real-life scenarios that show how teaming to innovate provides the spark that can fertilize creativity, clarify goals, and redefine the meaning of leadership.

Julian Birkinshaw

Becoming a Better Boss: Why Good Management is So Difficult [Wiley, 176 pp, 31,00] The author stresses the importance of taking management seriously, reveals where management practice often goes wrong, and dives deeply into the worldview of employees. He then explores the common personal biases and frailties of managers and discusses the vital importance of experimentation to overcome the limitations and idiosyncrasies of a particular organization.

Palle Ellemann

Does it Make Sense? (Self-published, 115 pp, 15,00]. This book looks at the how and goes much deeper than the benefits and practices in order to understand what has driven the development of seven recognized great workplaces and how the workplace has impacted their business. The analysis will bring out learning points for leadership, branding and the business of great workplaces. And it will give actionable advice for what you can do to create your own great workplace and great business.

ws Many say, “It is easy to be a great workplace if you’re a millionaire multinational.” Is it true?

pe Sure, money helps, but at the end of the day it is all about trust and creating a meaningful workplace. Trust and meaningfulness can be developed under all circumstances and cost nothing, but make people stay and give their best.

ws What distinguishes a good workplace from a bad workplace?

pe In bad workplaces, people are disengaged and just waste too much time and energy on non-productive things. In a good workplace, relationships are based on trust and people find meaningfulness in what they do.

ws How do you think you can make a difference with your text?

pe I hope that many people will be inspired by the exceptional practices of these seven organizations and not least understand how values, vision and mission fit together with strategies, goals and actions.

ws In your book you bring some real cases like Admiral, TORFS, Telefonica Latin America. Why?

pe These cases are hand-picked from working ten years with the best workplaces in the world. Writers tend to focus on the “usual suspects” and it is somewhat diverting the focus and making people suspicious, because these companies are some of the most well-known brands with the biggest advertising budgets.

ws Is being a great workplace wanting to do good or purely a branding move?

pe I think most people feel that it is the right thing to do, but now the ethical reasoning for doing the right thing is almost playing against people’s case for building great workplaces, because it can be opposed in the business world as going soft. This is a pity, because “doing the right thing” is actually an incredibly strong driver.•

BOOKS for work

Jason Thibeault & Kirby Wadsworth

Recommend This!: Delivering Digital Experiences that People Want to Share [Wiley, 272 pp, 27,30] Digital marketers and communicators seeking to harness this newfound power are finding challenges in engaging digital audiences. Recommend This! is an exploration into the digital consumer and how their expectations are forcing marketers to rethink the way they interact and engage with audiences.

Mark Pastin

Make an Ethical Difference [BerrettKoehler, 216 pp, 24,95] The book shows how to apply tools using actual ethical dilemmas drawn from Pastin’s decades of experience as an advisor to governments, corporations and NGOs. The point is to show how a tool that can be applied to any situation is used in one particular instance. And once you’ve reached a decision he offers strategies for building consensus with those who might disagree with you.

Ram Nidumolu

Two Birds in a Tree [Berrett-Koehler, 192 pp, 18,95] Two Birds in a Tree takes its title from a parable in the Upanishads. The bird at the top sees everything and understands it is part of a larger whole. The higher bird is in touch with and symbolizes what the Upanishads call Being, the fundamental reality that underlies the very essence of existence.

Judith H. Katz & Frederick A. Miller Opening Doors to Teamwork and

Collaboration [Berrett-Koehler, 168 pp, 18,95] This book is for any individual or team, from the shop floor to the executive suite, in search of higher performance, greater collaboration and game-changing leaps forward in speed and quality of decision making, problem solving and the ability to create breakthroughs.

Harry Paul, John Britt , Ed Jent

Who Kidnapped Excellence: What Stops Us from Giving and Being Our Best [Berrett-Koehler, 168 pp, 22,95] Drawing on years of study and decades of experience, authors Harry Paul, John Britt and Ed Jent have zeroed in on five core qualities of excellence. In this entertaining and enlightening book, they tell how to give and be your best in each of these five critical dimensions and foster excellence in your organization and in your life.

ws Why did you write this book?

hp I began a journey to understand excellence but soon found that a significant barrier existed. Excellence did not have a generally accepted definition. In short, a common working definition of excellence must be derived. It was in this spirit of inquiry that my coauthors and I wrote this text.

ws What is excellence?

hp First, we must "get a handle" on what is true excellence? I first looked at what makes up excellence and found that there are many traits. But ultimately I found all the traits fit into five core qualities of excellence: Passion, Competency, Flexibility, Communication and Ownership. A self-evaluation tool in the back helps you see where you are on your journey towards excellence.

ws What prevents great talents being excellent?

hp We get so caught up in the day-to-day demands of work and family and start to look at accomplishment as quantity, not quality. We get focused on what is right in front of us and forget that what we are doing is part of something much larger and involving so many, and we stop paying attention to what is important. Stop focusing on any one of the five pillars of excellence and average starts its insidious creep into your life.

ws How can obstacles be overcome?

hp A good way to maintain a focus on excellence is having a clear understanding of the vision, mission and values of the organization. Implementing the five pillars of excellence. Looking within for your excellence, do not measure your excellence against others but do, be and give your best and know that excellence is your best.•

Edgar H. Schein

Humble Inquiry [Berrett-Koehler, 192 pp, 16,95] In today’s world, a free flow of information is crucial. Anybody anywhere could have that vital idea or insight that could mean the difference between success and disaster − or worse. Humble Inquiry was inspired by Schein’s twenty years of work on safety in highhazard industries and the healthcare system, where honest communication can literally mean the difference between life and death.

Michale Kallett

Think Smarter: Critical Thinking to Improve Problem-Solving and DecisionMaking Skills [Wiley, 240 pp, 28,50] The book is the comprehensive guide to training your brain to do more for you. It is filled with real-world examples that demonstrate how the tools work in action, in addition to dozens of practice exercises applicable across industries and functions. Think Smarter is a versatile resource for individuals, managers, students and corporate training programs.

Carol S. Pearson

The Transforming Leader [BerrettKoehler, 294 pp, 39,95] Overall, The Transforming Leader reframes the challenge of leading in today’s interdependent, unpredictable world. Its message is that if we update our thinking, enhance the quality of our being, deepen our sense of relatedness with the ecology of our natural and social worlds, and practice transformational communication, things no longer have to be so hard.

Josh Linkner

The Road to Reinvention [Wiley, 256 pp, 31,75] Throughout the book, Linkner explores the history − the great rise, unprecedented fall, and now rebirth − of Detroit. Linkner brings an insider's view of this incredible story of grit, determination and creativity, sharing his perspective on Detroit's successes and setbacks as a profound example of large-scale organizational and personal transformation.

David L. Dotlich, Peter C. Cairo, Cade Cowan

The Unfinished Leader: Balancing Contradictory Answers to Unsolvable Problems [Wiley, 288 pp, 31,75] The book provides the mindsets and tools to recognize contradictory requirements, understand competing demands, and still be able to take action helping leaders understand and excel at their true task: guiding themselves and their teams through ongoing paradoxes, reconciling competing outcomes, continually changing and adapting, and thereby building lasting success.

ws Why did you write this book?

mk It was 2003. I was an executive at a big company. We were 20 people in a meeting discussing what we wanted to be in the future. Most people seemed to hone in on just being “bigger”. There was little discussion about quality, customer satisfaction, services to our customers, or growth for our employees. There wasn’t even much discussion on how to get bigger. At one point, I asked myself if anyone in the room was actually doing any “thinking”. The answer was no.

ws Your book means that intelligence can be increased and trained? How?

mk Actually that’s not quite right. I do not claim, and it’s very controversial, that intelligence can be increased or trained. What can be increased and trained is the ability to use your intelligence in a better way.

ws How do you think you can make a difference with your text?

mk In this highly competitive, fast-changing and more and more complex world we live in, people need better thinking skills. Thinking is the foundation of everything that everybody does. We all make so many unnecessary errors, and many of these can be prevented with just a little more thinking.

ws What does "critical thinking" mean?

mk To me it means taking yourself (your brain) out of “Automatic” mode and putting it into “Manual” mode. Automatic is your everyday thinking, often not thinking, just doing. Manual mode is stopping and being cognizant of what’s going on.

ws Thinking requires a lot of energy. How can people invest even more energy after their full days at work?

mk Ah, yes, thinking actually does require a lot of energy… one of the reasons why we don’t do too much of it! Nevertheless, much of Critical Thinking actually can be accomplished in just minutes and save a tremendous amount of time afterwards. •

BOOKS for work

Henry Evans, Colm Foster, Marshall Goldsmith

Step Up: Lead in Six Moments that Matter [Jossey – Bass, 224 pp, 31,75] Based on their extensive experience, the authors help you understand how to act wisely and decisively when those moments arise, showing how to get angry, not stupid; decide already; act when you are the problem and leverage pessimism, among other things.

Jeremy Eden, Terri Long

Low-Hanging Fruit: 77 Eye-Opening Ways to Improve Productivity and Profits [Wiley, 224 pp, 25,00] Every day thousands of hidden and ignored problems frustrate workers and customers and, in turn, reduce profits. This book provides rules that, if followed, will allow employees to harvest all the low-hanging fruit – and some that is not so low hanging – that will grow earnings, make customers happier, and increase morale.

Beverly Kaye, Sharon Jordan-Evans

Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay [Berrett - Koehler, 336 pp, 28,50] This best-selling guide provides 26 strategies to keep talented employees happy and productive. Citing research and experience with dozens of organizations, the authors present many examples of how today's companies have applied their retention strategies and increased their retention rates.

Mila Baker

Peer-to-Peer Leadership: Why the Network Is the Leader [Berrett - Koehler, 240 pp, 28,50] Baker still advocates the need for toplevel executives and senior leaders, but advises them to give up traditional notions of power and become focused on the health of the network rather than achieving personal leadership goals.

D.A. Benton

The CEO Difference: How to Climb, Crawl, and Leap Your Way to the Next Level of Your Career [McGraw - Hill, 256 pp, 28,50] In The CEO Difference, Benton gives you the insight and tools to make subtle changes in your presentation, attitude and leadership style that will dramatically increase your leadership effectiveness − and, consequently help you enjoy work and life. Learn how to differentiate yourself with tangible steps to get where you want to go.

Ekaterina Walter, Jessica Gioglio

The Power of Visual Storytelling: How to Use Visuals, Videos, and Social Media to Market Your Brand [McGraw - Hill, 256 pp, 31,75] The Power of Visual Storytelling explains how companies and brands can develop a strategic visual marketing strategy as an extension of their overall marketing and social media plans. It explains how to define goals and create, curate and promote highly visual content and stories that engage audiences across a range of social media platforms.

Faisal Hoque, Drake Baer

Everything Connects: How to Transform and Lead in the Age of Creativity, Innovation and Sustainability [McGraw – Hill, 288 pp, 33,50] The book provides a process view for understanding the problem at hand, initiating the preparatory actions required to jumpstart positive change with the use of access to enabling technologies combined with innovative economic models, and reaping the rewards of creativity, innovation and sustainability.

Harrison Monarth

Breakthrough Communication: A Powerful 4-Step Process for Overcoming Resistance and Getting Results [McGraw – Hill, 256 pp, 22,00] The book presents concepts to help professionals at all levels maximize the chances of success after a communication process has taken place. That "process" may be seen in an instant or it may develop over the course of a long time, as is often the case in product development, policy implementation, or the improvement of an important interpersonal business relationship.