Rating: 
Summary: The Manager You Wish You Had
Review: I'm a business coach, and this book and "Now, Discover Your Strengths," by Buckingham and Clifton, are two of my Bibles. The theory that Marcus and Curt propose in this book is very simple ... but it is not easy -- or else you'd see it in the work world, and you rarely do. They say to do four things differently: (1) Hire for talent, not experience; (2) Define the goals; (3) Focus on strengths; and (4) Find the right fit. Based on the usual huge sampling of interviews from the Gallup organization, this book will challenge you (as a manager) to quit doing what hasn't worked, and try something different. It's another version of the "Don't try and teach a pig to sing. You'll frustrate yourself and annoy the pig," but we can't seem to hear this enough. Read it for the new paradigm!
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Summary: Best book on Management I have ever seen
Review: This book crystallizes what is critical to the discipline of managing people, and summarizes clearly and succinctly the key objectives of great managers and the steps they take in pursuit of excellence for their employees. Ignore the "grabber" title, I'm not sure that it really applies, and go straight to the meat of the text -- you will be well-rewarded!It is extremely well organized and presented, with enough examples to make the point but not so many that you lose the thread of what they are trying to say... And what they are trying to say will either revolutionize the way you manage, or will affirm what you were already doing instinctively, and show you how to do it better. I was first given the book-on-tape version, and then ordered the hard copy so I could mark it up, make my own notes, etc. It is truly terrific!
Rating: 
Summary: Break all the rules - and get fired!
Review: This book is fundamentally flawed. It criticizes conventional wisdom, and describes it as "comfortingly, seductively easy."
"It is easier to believe that each employee possesses unlimited potential." Untrue. No one in their right mind has ever believed this.
"It is easier to 'do unto others as you would be done unto'." Untrue. It's very difficult to put this into practice as anyone who has tried knows.
One wonders how the authors identified "great managers".
'First Break All the Rules' - would anyone in their right mind make it their first priority to break all the rules?
Stick with reputable sources such as Harvard business books unless you like [bad].
Rating:
Summary: Icononclastic, challenging, articulate, & innovative
Review: Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman are consultants for the Gallup organization and, based on 80,000 interviews offer sound and persuasive conclusions about what makes for great managers in First, Break All The Rules: What The World's Greatest Managers Do Differently. They expose the fallacies of standard management thinking and in seven chapters, debunk some dearly held notions about management, such as "treat people as you like to be treated"; "people are capable of almost anything"; and "a manager's role is diminishing in today's economy." Icononclastic, challenging, articulate, innovative, and at times inspiring, First, Break All The Rules is enthusiastically recommended reading for business students, entrpreneurs, managers, corporate officers, and CEOs. It is also available in paperback, and in an abridged Audio Cassete and Audio CD format.
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Summary: Management guidelines based on facts!
Review: Unlike many management books whose findings are based on anecdotal evidence, Buckingham and Coffman write this book based on the results of a massive Gallup poll. Their results are interesting and provoking - even more so because it is backed by empirical data. Others reviewers have summarised their findings, so I won't repeat them here. They do not put forth a theory of management, of things to do, attitudes to adopt, and declare that as a silver bullet. This is not a motivational book. Instead, the authors describe certain key principles in providing an environment which employees can flourish and put in their best at work. I believe this work will be a major contributor to the theory of management in the years to come.
Rating:
Summary: PLUSES AND MINUSES
Review: OVERALL
I like the key concepts, e.g. the 12 questions, talents are potential strengths, focus on strengths and management by outcomes. These aren't new by any means, but the research results show how really important just a few key things are. The research base differentiates this book from a lot of other management books. It makes a compelling, research-fact-based argument for just a few key principles. I think the concepts have great promise to any organization -- but only with a more specific implementation program to build on the organization's talents/strengths and develop the necessary management skills and experiences to infuse the approach into the organization. PLUSES AND MINUSES
The book is well organized, although many people will have a hard time getting past the dissertation-like research discussions and on to the results. It seemed to take a long time to get to the results. It wasn't until the middle of the book that you start getting a feeling of what it is about. It does get across that the results have a strong research validity, although overstated and somewhat repetitious. It could have been stated very succinctly up front and then left to the appendix to elaborate on the research approach. It does communicate the key research findings, but the key thought-provoking concepts left me wanting much more in the way of specifics. This was very distracting to my progressing through the book. I kept saying to myself "this is great, although not new, but how do I put it to work." I kept skimming ahead looking for the specifics. The book is good in answering the "what" but fuzzy and incomplete in answering the "how." The title of the book gets your attention, but it is a little misleading. For example, the key principles presented are also rules, so you can't break them ALL. It just focuses on breaking one of the traditional rules of developing people by focussing on their weaknesses. RECOMMENDATION
I highly recommend the book but the reader needs to be patient in getting through the first parts of the book and should also purchase the sequel -- "Now, Discover Your Strengths." This "Now ... " book was the key for me to understand the "talent as a potential strength" concept of the "First ... " book. Particularly helpful was the web-based StrengthsFinder assessment instrument that buyers of the book can use to find out their top-five talents (potential strengths). The sequel satisfied much of my need for the "how" but like any good novel writer, the authors left me yearning for more -- probably the subject of another sequel.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: I really enjoyed this book. As a businessman, I found it both insightful and educational. I plan to put the ideas in this book to good use. They are not radical ideas. Rather, they are just well thought out principals that can, and should, be brought into the workplace. Good stuff!
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Summary: This Book Will Make You a Better Manager
Review: REVIEW: I loved this book and I'm sure that it is one that I will read more than once. The book is excellent at debunking common managment myths and assumptions. How do you become a great manager? Well, since management is a practice and a discipline, and not personality, it can be learned and taught. Thus, the concept of this book which is: If you want to become a great manager, study them, learn what they do that makes them great, then emulate them. The authors found out by surveys and research what makes great managers and put the results in here. This book will make you a better manager and help you increase the effectiveness of those whose performance you are responsible for. It may even help you learn more about yourself. This is not just a book to be read, but studied and put into effect. Many serious managers will want to read it more than once. STRENGTHS: The content - this is not just a theoritical book, it is very practical for helping you to become a better manager. The concepts are simple, but powerful and the book is easy to read. Could become a management classic. WEAKNESSES: I hate it when books, like this one, don't include an index. Another gripe is that the authors should have given credit to Peter Drucker for a number of the key concepts. For example, "focus on strengths" and "management by outcomes" are classic Drucker. Lastly, I found the repeated references to the surveying techniques and statistics a little annoying. I just didn't care about the techniques, just give me the results. WHO SHOULD READ: Anyone responsible for the performance of others including business managers and supervisors and non-profit managers/administrators. ALSO CONSIDER: Peter F. Drucker - The Effective Executive; Andrew Grove - High Output Management
Rating: 
Summary: Great Statistical Validation, but no REAL solution...
Review: Buckingham and Coffman provide, perhaps for the first time, statistical validation for what managers and executives need to know. They stress the use of an organizational measuring stick, a way to measure the strength of "Human Capital", and provide reasoning and validation, however offer no stick. So, now that we realize the importance of having quantifiable methods of managing, hiring, focusing, etc. our employees, what is the most simple and accurate way to achieve the data? I know of an organization that does just that, and preaches he results of this Gallup study.
Rating:
Summary: First, Read the Book
Review: There is a race for talent in today's job market. Organizations are realizing more and more that their competitive advantage lies within those individuals interfacing with customers and other employees. A businesses' greatest asset is indeed the individuals of the organization. We, in training and development, have known this for a long time. Now, there is bottom line business language that helps others acknowledge and quantify the human asset. In my consulting practice I see more and more emphasis and investment in the developing and cultivation or leadership. In order for organizations to capitalize on their human assets, they must invest in the leadership teams who are managing talent. Recently facilitating a project for Innovative Training Strategies I was introduced to this book First, Break All the Rules. This book is rich with analogies, case studies, and practical information for any one who has more than one employee. Buckingham and Coffman present a business case for leadership development that is based on a Gallup survey of over a million employees and 80,000 managers from a vast range of companies and industries. I feel so strongly about this book for you as a business leader and in your organizations' success that I recommend it be a required reading for you and members of your leadership team. That said, my intent here is to share just a couple of the many learnings the book has to offer in order to peak your curiosity and hopefully intrigue you into making the time investment to experience this resource first hand. Today's companies are having a team of people look at benefit packaging and creating a company profile that is attractive to prospective employees-especially talented employees. One of the things that Buckingham and Coffman warn about is that many companies do things that are effective for all employees. From their research they were able to extract information that was especially true for talented employees. They determined "talented" employees as those who seemed to be the most productive in terms of productivity measures and customer feedback. (There is an intense appendix for those who require supporting facts and data.) What they found was this : talented employees need great managers. "The talented employee may join a company because of its charismatic leaders, its generous benefits, and its world-class training programs, but how long that employee stays and how productive he is while he is there is determined by his relationship with his immediate supervisor."
So, while your company is spending a lot of resources on employee retention and recruitment, for a return on investment your company would be wise to concurrently develop the leadership team to be talent savvy. Employee Satisfaction is now on everyone's radar. Organizations want satisfied employees because satisfied employees = satisfied customers. Now that that is understood, how does an organization gage employee satisfaction? There is much offered by Buckingham and Coffman to support this critical question. Through their research they have been able to extract the 12 most effective questions to gear how satisfied your talent pool is:
1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?
2. Do I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right?
3. At work, do I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day?
4. In the last seven days, have I received recognition or praise for good work?
5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to care about me as a person?
6. Is there someone at work who encourages my development?
7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?
8. Does the mission/purpose of my company make me feel like my work is important?
9. Are my co-workers committed to doing quality work?
10. Do I have a best friend at work?
11. In the last six months, have I talked with someone about my progress?
12. At work, have I had opportunities to learn and grow. At first glance, I was surprised the first time I saw this list. Yet, when I thought about what is meaningful to myself as an employee, I nodded my head in agreement. Buckingham and Coffman explain what they learned from the process of gathering data from employees and how they determined these questions as being most effective for evaluating talent satisfaction. So, First get the book and take advantage of the research and learning provided by Buckingham and Coffman in First Break All the Rules. If time is an issue, the book is also available on audio cassette. Enjoy making positive impact on your employees and co-workers.
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