Foundational management principles for leaders in any profession.

Great for fans of William Gentry’s Be the Boss Everyone Wants to Work For, Scott Mautz’s Leading from the Middle.

BUSINESS & PERSONAL FINANCE Enlightened Management: Insights on Creating a Respectful, Dignified, and Successful Work Environment Alejandro Diaz 82p, trade paper, $15, ASIN B0CN5XFMHH

Drawing from his own professional experience, Diaz breaks managerial styles down into two main styles—“enlightened” and “unenlightened”—in this smart debut. From both an employee and management perspective, he focuses on “how respect, dignity, empathy, and humanity will always make for a better work world,” beginning with one simple, but thought-provoking, question: “If one of your employees suddenly passed away, would that person’s family welcome you to the funeral as someone who’d had a positive impact on their loved one’s life?” From there, Diaz takes on every facet of the workforce, from hiring and training managers to desirable leadership assets to building trust within professional teams.

That trust is the key, Diaz claims, as a team built on trust will be more cohesive, productive, and will quash the need for “difficult conversations”: “If changes need to be made or issues arise, these will merely be conversations among human beings’’ he writes. With firsthand anecdotes from his own experience, and that of former colleagues, Diaz outlines what separates the bad from the great in leadership. “Real leaders don’t get bogged down and stuck on minute details,” he claims, opining that “you can hold all the team building and professional training events in the world, but if your managers are not decent people, this will just be a huge waste of time and money.”

Of particular note, Diaz is adamant that everyone, managers included, must be held accountable, citing that immense amounts of time, energy, and morale are wasted when inadequate managers are given a free pass. Though some of the concepts may feel basic to experienced managers, Diaz offers foundational building blocks that will make life more productive—inside the office and out. That, combined with the light, engaging tone, makes this compact guide a valuable tool for leaders in any profession.

Cover: B+ | Design & typography: A | Illustrations: – Editing: A | Marketing copy: A