Business Books

This book could be a good read for someone involved in team building and development. By using visual tools and methods, the book provides a unique approach to help teams reach high performance in today's work environment. It explores the principles and practices of creative design teams and introduces the Drexler/Sibbet Team Performance Model, offering a comprehensive framework, best practices, and unique visual tools for becoming an innovative, high-performance team. So, if you want to improve your team's communication, collaboration, and effectiveness, this book will guide you through the power of visualization.

If you're looking to shake up your managerial style, "First, Break All the Rules" might be just what you need. It's an iconoclastic guide that shuns conventional wisdom and illuminates how to tap into each employee's unique strengths. This book could change the way you lead your team, by focusing on what truly makes a great manager in the real world. Buckle up for a transformative leadership journey.

In 1990, IBM had its most profitable year ever. By 1993, the computer industry had changed so rapidly the company was on its way to losing $16 billion and IBM was on a watch list for extinction -- victimized by its own lumbering size, an insular corporate culture, and the PC era IBM had itself helped invent. Then Lou Gerstner was brought in to run IBM. Almost everyone watching the rapid demise of this American icon presumed Gerstner had joined IBM to preside over its continued dissolution into a confederation of autonomous business units. This strategy, well underway when he arrived, would have effectively eliminated the corporation that had invented many of the industry's most important technologies. Instead, Gerstner took hold of the company and demanded the managers work together to re-establish IBM's mission as a customer-focused provider of computing solutions. Moving ahead of his critics, Gerstner made the hold decision to keep the company together, slash prices on his core product to keep the company competitive, and almost defiantly announced, "The last thing IBM needs right now is a vision." Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? tells the story of IBM's competitive and cultural transformation. In his own words, Gerstner offers a blow-by-blow account of his arrival at the company and his campaign to rebuild the leadership team and give the workforce a renewed sense of purpose. In the process, Gerstner defined a strategy for the computing giant and remade the ossified culture bred by the company's own success. The first-hand story of an extraordinary turnaround, a unique case study in managing a crisis, and a thoughtful reflection on the computer industry and the principles of leadership, Who Says Elephants Can't Dance? sums up Lou Gerstner's historic business achievement. Taking readers deep into the world of IBM's CEO, Gerstner recounts the high-level meetings and explains the pressure-filled, no-turning-back decisions that had to be made. He also offers his hard-won conclusions about the essence of what makes a great company run. In the history of modern business, many companies have gone from being industry leaders to the verge of extinction. Through the heroic efforts of a new management team, some of those companies have even succeeded in resuscitating themselves and living on in the shadow of their former stature. But only one company has been at the pinnacle of an industry, fallen to near collapse, and then, beyond anyone's expectations, returned to set the agenda. That company is IBM. Lou Gerstener, Jr., served as chairman and chief executive officer of IBM from April 1993 to March 2002, when he retired as CEO. He remained chairman of the board through the end of 2002. Before joining IBM, Mr. Gerstner served for four years as chairman and CEO of RJR Nabisco, Inc. This was preceded by an eleven-year career at the American Express Company, where he was president of the parent company and chairman and CEO of its largest subsidiary. Prior to that, Mr. Gerstner was a director of the management consulting firm of McKinsey & Co., Inc. He received a bachelor's degree in engineering from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Recommendation: - This book is a must-read for business owners and executives looking to establish and maintain trust in today's hyper-connected world. With practical insights and real-life examples, the authors guide you on how to navigate the challenges of transparency and build extreme trust with your customers and stakeholders. By prioritizing proactive honesty and flawless execution, you'll pave the way for long-term profits and a solid brand reputation.

If you're finding team management challenging or you're a keen student of leadership, "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" offers not just a gripping narrative but valuable, actionable lessons. Lencioni masterfully blends storytelling with practical advice to present a model for transforming dysfunctional dynamics into effective teamwork, which could resonate deeply with your experiences and aspirations as a leader.