Six of the best on business leadership
Authors offer insights found in settings ranging from the White House to the poker table.
Following a year of dizzying news cycles, Twitter flame wars and increasingly deep political divisions, getting engrossed in a meaty book on leadership lessons, in-depth career advice or ideas for improving the way we work may sound pretty tempting.
From high-profile names – former FBI director James Comey is releasing a book on leadership in May – to lesser-known authors whose books sound like worthwhile reads, the list below is a roundup of six titles coming in the first half of the year to consider adding to your business bookshelf.
When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing
By Dan Pink, expected January 9
Pink dives into the research behind not just what makes people good at their jobs or how they do it, but when: The most productive time of day to do the hardest work, the right time of year to start a new project, the best time in life to change jobs. Known for his popular books on motivation and creativity, Pink tackles the science behind how we organise our time and how we should set up the routines of our days.
Powerful: Building a Culture of Freedom and Responsibility
Patty McCord, expected January 9
The former chief talent officer at Netflix, McCord led human resources at the streaming video company when a popular slide deck about its culture went viral years ago. With the title ‘‘Freedom & Responsibility,’’ the slides described how Netflix thinks about retention (‘‘adequate performance gets a generous severance package’’), hiring (no ‘‘brilliant jerks’’) and its efforts to curtail ‘‘rule creep’’ (the company was one of the first to say it had no holiday policy). Now a consultant, McCord promotes the idea of ‘‘radical honesty in the workplace,’’ sharing lessons from her time at Netflix and elsewhere.
Great at Work: How Top Performers Do Less, Work Better, and Achieve More
Morten Hansen, expected January 30
Written by a co-author of famed business guru Jim Collins, Hansen’s book is based on a fiveyear research study of 5,000 managers and employees which resulted in seven practices that the best of them share. The leaders he profiles have more compelling stories than the typical CEO: A principal who turned around a failing high school, a sushi chef in Tokyo who received three Michelin stars and the first explorer to reach the South Pole in 1911.
Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have all the Facts
Annie Duke, expected February 6
This book’s subhead describes exactly what leaders so often have to do: Make decisions before they know everything. And for those interested in getting ideas from diverse fields, Duke’s background certainly offers one: A former World Series of Poker champion, she was earlier awarded a National Science Foundation fellowship to study cognitive psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Duke is now a business consultant who speaks and coaches on decision strategy with corporate clients, the lessons of which are distilled in this book.
Dying for a Paycheck
By Jeffrey Pfeffer, expected March 20
Stanford professor Pfeffer, who has written about power, leadership development ‘‘BS’’ and the need for more evidence-based management practices, takes a frank look at the health risks of modern work life. The book has nothing to do with physically dangerous jobs: Pfeffer examines how the long hours, family conflicts and economic insecurities in professional workplaces can lead to health problems, some life threatening, even while they don’t help corporate bottom lines. He argues that the stresses of the professional workplace, not subject to occupational safety regulation or intervention, must be dealt with by organisations that promote their environmental sustainability records, while doing too little to enhance the sustainability of their own employees.
A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership
By James Comey, expected May 1
The former FBI director – fired by President Donald Trump and now, some say, a Zen-like master of throwing subtle shade on Twitter and Instagram – inked what was reported to be a multimillion-dollar book deal in August. The publisher has said the book by Comey, also a former Justice Department official and lawyer, promises to give readers ‘‘unprecedented entry into the corridors of power, and a remarkable lesson in leadership itself.’’ Comey, who frequently uses social media to share quotations about character, justice, leadership and power, tweeted an image of the Statue of Liberty on December 5, saying he was in New York to meet with his publisher, with the note: ‘‘Hope leadership book will be useful. Reassuring to see Lady Liberty standing tall even in rough weather.’’
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