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Summary: Director Professional Development
Review: As a manager, a coach and consultant to managers worldwide, and as a former researcher/academician in OD and HR, I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to be a better manager. It is required reading for managers at the company for whom I work. It gives managers the essentials of what it takes to be great. Yes, the book covers basic common sense, but, at the risk of being trite, common sense is not so common. I hinge all of my management development, coaching and consulting around the ideas in this book. Furthermore, it is the basis for any good systems thinking - whether it be for performance management or OD work. It fits all levels. This book, along with Competence at Work (Spencer) and Performance Consulting (Robinson) are musts for practitioners and managers no matter what their company or country.
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Summary: The Best
Review: This is the best book on management and leadership that there is. I use the first three questions of the measuring stick with my employees regularly. Because of it they are open and honest with me and we are able to solve real business problems and meet our deadlines regularly.
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Summary: Data-Driven Conclusions
Review: Management books are everywhere. They espouse a great many theories. Often they explain what has worked well for one corporation, industry, or professional field. The books share the secrets of success as understood by that shining example. The data consists of their productivity indicators. But what may work well for one, may not work for another.The book First, Break All the Rules by Buckingham and Coffman has the data. It is a research-based analysis of over 80,000 managers in over 400 companies. Their conclusions are the result of their data analysis rather than the other way around. The essence of the book consists of 12 questions that have a high degree of statistical reliability in predicting organizational productivity and success. Buckingham and Coffman then go on to offer four keys to receiving a high score from employees. The keys break with conventional thinking and rules of operation: talent is more important than qualifications; outcomes are more important than process; treat every employee differently; and throw out the career ladder. I highly recommend this book. It has substantially changed my management style.
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Summary: The New Rules for Revolutionaries
Review: A good manager typically manages to get by: She gets her work done, her team's projects typically come in on time and near budget. Like the stock market, though, she has her ups and downs. While good overall, good is average. But what makes a manager great? How do you become hallowed in the eyes of your colleagues? How do you rise to the level of GE's Jack Welch or FedEx's Fred Smith or Southwest Airline's Herb Kelleher? How do you, like Tiger Woods, consistently shave a few extra strokes from your game to separate you from the rest of the pack and win the really big rewards? Like anything else worthwhile, you use data to improve your game and form your conclusions. And the authors of "First, Break All the Rules" have compiled mountains of it for their thesis: effective management can be boiled down to determining how well your employees answer 12 consistent queries. Presenting the 12 questions as something akin to the attainment of the Holy Grail, Buckingham and Coffman provide a consistent and effective framework of research to back up their assertions. (But rather than give away the plot of including the 12 questions, purchase this book for the context of the questions. It is worthwhile and recommended.) The authors marshaled the mighty resources of the Gallup Organization to find consistencies among 80,000 people who are considered to be great managers. A kind of collaborative filtering, if you will, for management (Successful Manager A tends to have similar qualities of Successful Manager B, who tends to have similar qualities to Successful Manager C). Those consistencies were boiled down to the 12 questions, in which positive answers to all 12 tend to indicate great managers. However, it helps to be at a C-level position in your organization to take full advantage of the premise. Some of the questions reflect the consistency of your company's culture in positive reinforcement rather than punitive action. Also, in large, policy-driven workplaces, the often-reviled Human Resources department may have strong control over culture and performance measurement. However, going around the HR muckety-mucks is what "breaking all the rules" is about. The authors also make strong cases to convince you to: * Spend the most time with your best people, not with your weakest performers * Manage around weaknesses; don't force your people to become "well-rounded" * Focus on talents of your existing and prospective team members, not their skills For many great managers, reading this book will be a confirmation of what you are already doing right in your work. For that, you will find recognition and reward with this book, for your talents and skills are reinforced by the authors. This book can most certainly help the young entrepreneur who believes his brash optimism and overly ambitious focus on employee "passion" will carry his company. Attention Mr. Young Executive: You now and will forever have the need for management science. "First, Break All the Rules" is one of your textbooks.
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Summary: a good read
Review: I was required to read this book for an Organizational Theory and Behavior class at college. I found it to be very insightful. What made the most sense to me was the authors' distinction between talent and skills/knowledge. I would reccomend this to any manager who wants productive employees.
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Summary: How not to be Dilbert's Pointy-Haired Boss
Review: First Break all the Rules is a really timely book. With many companies vying with each other to keep talented employees happy and productive, someone had to write a text to help managers become more effective in managing people as a true resource. Three of the best parts of the book: 1. They interviewed and polled 80,000 managers. That is a HUGE sample. You are bound to find out some plain truths if you do this kind of work. 2. There is a questionnaire for employee satisfaction. Since some of the questionnaires I have seen in the past can actually IRRITATE you (they force you into an answer you'd rather not give or don't ask what you want to tell) this is useful stuff, indeed. 3. The book suggests incentives for people who develop knowledge and expertise. Most companies financially reward the politically savvy who can negotiate the inside-track path to top management. The problem is that the top technical experts often disdain to play this game or dont' know how, and are left lower-paid, disgusted and ripe for the plucking by other firms who value their knowledge. The last point is one that Peter Drucker made years ago; that we have to pay for talent as well as political muscle. (He suggested two tracks, one for people-managers and one for technical experts.) Excellent, excellent book.
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Summary: I agree
Review: I found the book to be a fast read. I was delighted to find that management success can be found by focusing on the strengths instead of building the weakness.
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Summary: HR BOOK ONLY
Review: Don't be misled by the title. This is not a true "magenement" book, but a human resources book only.
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Summary: WORDS OF WISDOM
Review: "First Breal All the Rules" is an adventure in management, and a book I would highly recommend. Being a teacher and counsellor in business management with a lifetime of experience, I can assure you that no matter how much education, training or experience you may have in business, every day is a new learning experience. Or, at least it should be if you want to be successful. The further up the ladder you advance, the tougher the challenge becomes to reach the top. If you are fortunate enough to make the climb, maintaining that position and continuing to grow, requires a whole other set of skills and abilities. The top competitors are always at your heels. This book is an excellent learning tool for both managers and employees. Managers may very well pick up some surprising pointers on how they could improve their management style, and there must always be room for improvement in everyone's life if we are to achieve our full potential. Employees may develop a better understanding of why managers and supervisors expect what they do from you, which could ultimately make you a better employee as you work your way up the corporate ladder. This book definitely contains "food for thought" and words of wisdom from some very interesting perspectives.
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Summary: 4 Keys to a more productive Workforce
Review: This very readable book is based on thousands of interviews and clearly outlines implementable steps to hire and keep a more productive workforce. The Gallup organization has found 12 questions that give you the most information and the most important information about your organization. Their analogy of Mountain Climbing not only prescribes a process to reach success but also explains why some of the other productivity initiatives have not been as successful as hoped. Successful managers have challenged conventional wisdom and the 4 Keys start with Selecting for Talent. From a training perspective, a controversial argument was made for not training people to improve their weaknesses but to focus on their strengths. We are using this book as a foundation to improve our hiring, performance management and retention policies. A must read!
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