Whenever asked to recommend business books, I immediately inquire, “What is the single greatest challenge that you and your organization now face?” Of course, responses vary but over time, these seem to be the ten challenges most frequently cited, followed by the book(s) I think will be most helpful. Obviously, “one man’s opinions”….

 

 

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

• Joseph Michelli’s The New Gold Standard: 5 Leadership Principles for Creating a Legendary Customer Experience Courtesy of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company

 

INNOVATION

• Tom Kelley’s The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO’s Strategies for Defeating the Devil’s Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization

 

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

• Roger Nierenberg’s Maestro: A Surprising Story About Leading by Listening OR James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner’s The Leadership Challenge (4th Edition)

 

MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT

• Rodd Wagner and James K. Harter’s 12: The Elements of Great Managing

NEW HIRE TRANSITION AND ORIENTATION

• George B. Bradt and Mary Vonnegut ‘s Onboarding: How to Get Your New Employees Up to Speed in Half the Time

 

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE

• Jeanne Ross’s Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution

 

PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT

• Dean Spitzer’s Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure and Drive Organizational Success

PERSUASION & INFLUENCE

• Robert B. Cialdini’s Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion OR Carmine Gallo’s The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Office

 

TALENT EVALUATION & MANAGEMENT

• George Anders’ The Rare Find: Spotting Exceptional Talent Before Everyone Does OR Bill Conaty and Ram Charan’s The Talent Masters: Why Smart Leaders Put People Before Numbers

TEAMWORK

• Patrick Lencioni’s The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable