Rating: 
Summary: Another biography, but a different style.
Review: As a longtime fan of Churchill, and in a position of leadership in a commercial environment, the book appeared to be excellant vacation reading. Well it was but only from the 'fan' position. The author sets out with good intentions and early in the book he relates Churchill ways back into the context of today's executive's environment. But, by the middle, and then thereafter, he's lost his way and it becomes a bit idol worshipping with no real relevance to application to today's leadership 'student'. At times Mr Hayward really is squeezing the pips to show Winston as a model to follow - I've suggested dictation from my bathtub but so far my secretary hasn't picked up on the idea. If you want to understand Churchill it's a good read. If it's leadership you want you'll have to browse further.
Rating: 
Summary: worth your time and money
Review: As we all know too well, in the flow of flotsam from academe, there is seldom material that is both readable and edifying. Often neither quality is present. This book, Churchill on Leadership, scores high in both categories. Hayward's obvious in depth knowledge of Churchill and his times enabled him to organize the vast storehouse of material available into a useful and unique way of teaching the leadership principles Churchill personified. God knows the lak of leadership today evidences the extreme need for what Hayward has wrought.
Rating: 
Summary: A new perspective brings Churchill to life
Review: Churchill's leadership and perseverance carry this book. The lessons mentioned at the end of each chapter seem trivial - as if summing up Churchills achievements can be encapsulated in a few managerial maxims. What Mr Hayward has achieved is to display a man very much like us (women included). I learned his eloquence was not a gift but the result of hard work (I too can work on my short-comings); he had many failures, some fatal for a politician, but continued to soldier on (I too can persevere); he stuck with his own sense of self-worth when every one else proclaimed him as finished (I too can maintain confidence against adversity). The maxims, Mr Hayward, are not needed. But thank you for bringing such a powerful figure down to earth, where we can all learn from his extraordinary life.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but not that useful for aspiring leaders
Review: I am a Churchill buff, and REALLY wanted to like this book. I did enjoy many of the anecdotes and situations discussed. Unfortunately, I didn't feel that the book offered much useful advice to those who want to lead. The author offers brief bullet points at the end of each chapter that summarize key lessons, but most of them are fairly self-evident, and they are not well-developed.This type of book seems to be popular lately. People looking for historical lessons based on real figures would do better to read "Lincoln on Leadership" or the old Attila the Hun books by Wess Roberts
Rating:
Summary: A manager's opinion
Review: I have been a manager for over 10 years, and have worked in different industries and different countries. And I gladly admit I still have a lot to learn concerning management. This book talks about concepts we know we should all be applying, such as learning from mistakes, responsibility and organization, attention to details as well as to a master plan, communication, etc. However understanding how Churchill put these concepts to work is fascinating. I did not know that much about Churchill in the first place, perhaps that is why I enjoyed the book so much. It is a nice change from CEOs' biographies. And yes, I am putting some of what I read to work, so it was worth my time and money !
Rating:
Summary: A manager's opinion
Review: I have been a manager for over 10 years, and have worked in different industries and different countries. And I gladly admit I still have a lot to learn concerning management. This book talks about concepts we know we should all be applying, such as learning from mistakes, responsibility and organization, attention to details as well as to a master plan, communication, etc. However understanding how Churchill put these concepts to work is fascinating. I did not know that much about Churchill in the first place, perhaps that is why I enjoyed the book so much. It is a nice change from CEOs' biographies. And yes, I am putting some of what I read to work, so it was worth my time and money !
Rating: 
Summary: A little silly
Review: I just completed this book yesterday and I must confess if it was any longer I might not have. While it was mildly entertaining, it contains little that is new or particularly informative. The book generally repackages concepts that are written elsewhere and ties them to passages in Churchill's life. Many of the comparisons seem strained. In fact, comparing Churchill's almost single-handed stand aginst tyranny with normal business competition, seems inappropriate and a little silly. It's probably fair to say that the book contains a few kernals of wisdom which would be helpful to anyone in business, or otherwise. These kernals are relatively simple and (it seems to me) obvious. It begs the question, Why, exactly, do we need a book such as this? The people most apt to pick-up the book in the first place are those who already have a more than passing affinity for Churchill. If so, those people will likely have read books which are more informative, historically significant, insightful and generally worthwhile. If this is your first introduction to Churchill, do not let it be your last. Overall, I think there are much better uses for all of our valuable time.
Rating:
Summary: The First Step in the Huge Churchill Lexicon
Review: I read this book without having known anything about Chruchill, as a lesson on leadership under stress. I learned a lot, but I also became very interested in the man. He is fasinating and very brave. I'm very gald I read this book.The main idea is to study how Churchill made his leadership decicions, and what the reason for that decision was. It's an informative study of the man, and even funny at times. It's always entertaining, but somewhat short of a great story (so 4 stars). By all means read this book. It's a great way to begin to learn about Churchill, aside from the 3 or 6 volume works available at the bookstore. It's also a good study on decision making based on principles and honest living, strength, and forward thinking. There are good lessons here as well a good reading. I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: Not Great
Review: I'm going to say something that might sound odd: this is not a leadership book. It deals pretty well with the everyday tasks and details of Churchill's style, but strangely not his "executive success in the face of adversity." And Hayward's assertion that Churchill's style is like that of an executive seems a little red-faced: Hayward spends a lot of time defending against Churchill's critics that Churchill was disorganized and a bad judge of character. In all likelihood, he is forcing Churchill into a category that he does not belong: indeed, Churchill may have been disorganized, but he was a darn good prime minister. My opinion is that Churchill deserves more than this. In place of this book, I would recommend Lincoln On Leadership.
Rating: 
Summary: Curious and entertainig, otherwise superficial and arbitrary
Review: Positives: the book is light, easy to read, and contains a few amuzing historical anecdotes from Churchill's life. That's it. Negatives: it is not a good biography of Churchill, nor a good book on leadership. The author isn't anyone who'd known Churchill closely enough for his "analysis" to be of any value. Neither is he a manager. The author is a writer who must sell books in order to make a living. Please proceed with that in mind. The book is not wholly bad and would qualify as decent airplane reading, but no more than that.
|
