Recommended Readings

Our partner, the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL), offers numerous publications directly related to the lessons learned in our programs.  Please visit CCL's publication site to view their extensive library.  Online reviews and purchasing are also available.

The Lessons of Experience: How Successful Executives Develop on the Job

McCall, Lombardo & Morrison; Simon & Schuster Trade, 1988.

From the Publisher:
Where do successful business leaders come from? How do they learn the skills that propel them to the top of their companies? It has been estimated that corporations invest almost $40 billion dollars each year in management development. An impressive number, to be sure, but as the authors of The Lessons of Experience show, most development takes place on the job, and not in seminars, classrooms, and MBA programs.

High Flyers: Developing the Next Generation of Leaders<

McCall, Morgan W.; Harvard Business School Publishing, 1997.

From the Publisher:
This book challenges conventional wisdom about how to groom executives for the top positions in your firm. It presents a strategic framework for identifying and developing future executives that senior managers can use to find the "hidden" talents in their midst. The key is to look for the people with the capabilities to run the business tomorrow - not today. Full of vivid real-life examples, High Flyers explains how senior managers can create an environment that supports the development of talent and link the firm's business strategy with the kinds of experiences people need if they are to lead a company in fulfilling its mission. The book also shows how individuals can take charge of their own development and avoid common pitfalls that lead to falling off the executive track.

What the CEO Wants You to Know

Charan, Ram; Crown Publishing, 2001.

Synopsis:
The best CEOs have a knack for bringing the most complex business down to the fundamentals-the same fundamentals of the family shoe shop. They have business acumen-the ability to focus on the basics and make money for the company. What the CEO Wants You to Know captures these insights and explains in clear, simple language how to do what great CEOs do instinctively and persistently:

• Understand the basic building blocks of a business and use them to figure out how your company makes money and operates as a total business.
• Decide what to do, despite the clutter of day-to-day business and the complexity of the real world.

Getting Past No:  Negotiating Your Way From Confrontation to Cooperation

Ury, William; Bantam Books, 1991.

Annotation:
From the co-author of the 2-million copy bestseller Getting To Yes, a state-of-the-art book on negotiation in the 21st century.  Featuring an all-new chapter to familiarize readers with the main concepts of Getting To Yes and other negotiation strategies, Getting Past No reveals how to turn adversaries into negotiating partners.

For more resources, great articles, and cutting-edge research, visitwww.workingknowledge.hbs.edu