Mind Your Own Business : A Maverick's Guide to Business, Leadership and Life

Rating:
Summary: Highly Disappointing
Review: This book is full of bravado and it reads like a one written by a megalomaniac. In the book, it sounds as if Sidney is attempting to address his own regrets in life. I don't mean to discount Sidney's success in business, but he does not share much of that insight in his book. He emphasizes a lot on ethics and integrity, but he doesn't seem to fully embrace that at work or demonstrate that in his family and personal life. He also emphasizes hard work, but who doesn't already know that. To put this book at the level of a classic is highly unfortunate, and to categorize it in the same league as "My Years With General Motors," as Tom Peters has done, is to do Alfred P. Sloan gross injustice.

Rating:
Summary: From a former employee
Review: Working for Sidney for almost four years was an enlightening experience. I can honestly say that the way he portrays himself and his company bears literally no resemblance to how either exists in reality. I found Sidney to be a megalomaniac and quite divorced from the day-to-day goings on in Harman International. The company culture is abusive, and back-stabbing is not only the norm but is rewarded. I found senior management there to be "ethically malleable," to say the least, and financial results were reported that were less than honest. You'd never get this from reading this book. So.... if you're looking for good fiction this might be your ticket. If you want an accurate representation of how HI exists, this ain't it.