Rating: 
Summary: Too Often Unsung Quiet Leadership
Review: In Leading Quietly, Joseph L. Badaracco observes that society tends to think about leadership primarily in terms of heroic figures. His readers have been taught from their childhood to show respect for the efforts and sacrifices of great men and women. Often, his readers are not properly informed about the fact that most sung heroes like Winston Churchill or Mother Teresa worked, quietly and patiently, for years or decades, before their key contribution to society was widely acknowledged. To his credit, Badaracco celebrates modest, unassuming men and women with their mixed and complicated motives. Like most of his audience, those men and women will probably never be in the limelight but make the world a better place through countless, small, often unseen efforts. Badaracco convincingly demonstrates that it is given to almost all his audience to learn and practice the simple virtues of quiet leadership, e.g.: Restraint, modesty, and tenacity. Contrary to some wisdom, quiet leaders
1) Buy time.
2) Drill down into the political and technical elements of the problems they face.
3) Invest their political capital wisely.
4) Nudge, test, and escalate gradually.
5) Find ways, when necessary, to bend the rules.
6) View compromise as a high form of leadership and creativity. In his recently published Good To Great, Jim Collins interestingly comes to the conclusion that the CEOs of great companies turning around good companies successfully are usually humble, modest, and tenacious. Is quiet leadership from top to bottom within any organization the future? In a second edition of Leading Quietly, Badaracco could perhaps use both success stories and failures to illustrate each guideline for practicing quiet leadership. Often, failures are more valuable learning experiences than successes. Furthermore, Badaracco could perhaps further elaborate on white-collar criminality that can have an impact on quiet leaders as well. Quiet leaders at companies like Enron and Andersen could have been pressurized to violate the law and could eventually not simply walk away from their organizations because of their sense of duty and/or their responsibilities towards their family, especially in a downturn economy.
Rating: 
Summary: Not a Leadership Book, But Still Insightful
Review: Instead of Leading Quietly, this book should have been titled "Manuevering Quietly." It discusses the nuts and bolts of approaching problems without falling on your sword, but I failed to find real leadership principles applied. For one thing, leaders have followers and many of the case studies involved (roughly half) depicted people who had to solve an ethical problem, yet they did not have anyone following them. The protagonists navigated their way through murky waters, but there weren't taking anyone anywhere. That's why I think "Manuevering Quietly" would have been more appropriate. And yet, it's an intriguing concept. Who has not stood up for an ethical principle and been punched in the nose, ultimately thwarting any potential influence to be applied down the line? Like Jim Collins and Jerry Porras' Built To Last, Badaracco advises us to not always think in black and white, right and wrong terms, that the sooner we realize every situation has infinite shades of gray, the better off we are to handle the conplexities of our problems. Many critique this book because they feel it reduced ethics to a worldview of pragmatism, but I think Badaracco emphasizes the importance of character and caring enough to where he's not preaching a nihilistic approach to problem solving. The bottom line is if you're often in a rock and a hard place and the most likely thing to get smushed is you, Leading Quietly can help you get out of the way without compromising your principles. And that's applaudable.
Rating:
Summary: Not a Leadership Book, But Still Insightful
Review: Instead of Leading Quietly, this book should have been titled "Manuevering Quietly." It discusses the nuts and bolts of approaching problems without falling on your sword, but I failed to find real leadership principles applied. For one thing, leaders have followers and many of the case studies involved (roughly half) depicted people who had to solve an ethical problem, yet they did not have anyone following them. The protagonists navigated their way through murky waters, but there weren't taking anyone anywhere. That's why I think "Manuevering Quietly" would have been more appropriate. And yet, it's an intriguing concept. Who has not stood up for an ethical principle and been punched in the nose, ultimately thwarting any potential influence to be applied down the line? Like Jim Collins and Jerry Porras' Built To Last, Badaracco advises us to not always think in black and white, right and wrong terms, that the sooner we realize every situation has infinite shades of gray, the better off we are to handle the conplexities of our problems. Many critique this book because they feel it reduced ethics to a worldview of pragmatism, but I think Badaracco emphasizes the importance of character and caring enough to where he's not preaching a nihilistic approach to problem solving. The bottom line is if you're often in a rock and a hard place and the most likely thing to get smushed is you, Leading Quietly can help you get out of the way without compromising your principles. And that's applaudable.
Rating:
Summary: Not a Leadership Book, But Still Insightful
Review: Instead of Leading Quietly, this book should have been titled "Manuevering Quietly." It discusses the nuts and bolts of approaching problems without falling on your sword, but I failed to find real leadership principles applied. For one thing, leaders have followers and many of the case studies involved (roughly half) depicted people who had to solve an ethical problem, yet they did not have anyone following them. The protagonists navigated their way through murky waters, but there weren't taking anyone anywhere. That's why I think "Manuevering Quietly" would have been more appropriate. And yet, it's an intriguing concept. Who has not stood up for an ethical principle and been punched in the nose, ultimately thwarting any potential influence to be applied down the line? Like Jim Collins and Jerry Porras' Built To Last, Badaracco advises us to not always think in black and white, right and wrong terms, that the sooner we realize every situation has infinite shades of gray, the better off we are to handle the conplexities of our problems. Many critique this book because they feel it reduced ethics to a worldview of pragmatism, but I think Badaracco emphasizes the importance of character and caring enough to where he's not preaching a nihilistic approach to problem solving. The bottom line is if you're often in a rock and a hard place and the most likely thing to get smushed is you, Leading Quietly can help you get out of the way without compromising your principles. And that's applaudable.
Rating: 
Summary: Leading Quietly
Review: It intially grabs you and provides great insight but I found that as the book went along it lost it's nuggets.If you're looking at this book to provide the core skills in leadership then I would recommend searching further.
Rating:
Summary: The Importance of "Small and Obscure Deeds"
Review: Jim Collins and his 21 associates committed more than 15,000 hours to rigorous research on the 15-year performance record of 1,435 companies (that had appeared on the Fortune 500 list) as candidates for designation as "good-to-great." They then shared what they learned in a book. One of the revelations which surprised me most was that what they call "Level 5 Leadership" invalidates conventional wisdom concerning the so-called "charismatic" CEO. (Please see pages 17-40 as well as pages 72-73 in Good to Great.) After four years of his own rigorous research, Badaracco seems to have arrived at many of the same conclusions that Collins and his associates did. For example, that the most effective leaders are passionate about the organizations they lead but not about their own careers; that they are relentless in the pursuit of what Collins calls Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs) but, meanwhile, manifest impeccable personal as well as professional integrity; that they are (in Badaracco's words) "quiet leaders because their modesty and restraint are in large measure responsible for their impressive achievements." Badaracco goes on to note that because many big problems can only be resolved by a long series of small efforts, "quiet leadership, despite its seemingly slow pace, often turns out to be the quickest way to make an organization -- and the world -- a better place." Invoking metaphors, I presume to suggest that the so-called "charismatic leader" resembles a Roman candle or perhaps a single sparkler whereas the "Level 5 Leader," the Quiet Leader," resembles a Bunsen burner. Navy fliers training for duty aboard aircraft carriers are told, "There are no old, bold pilots." Badaracco correctly asserts that preparation, caution, care, and attention to detail are usually the best approach to everyday challenges. "What usually matters are careful, thoughtful, practical efforts by people working far from the limelight." How long might it take to achieve a BHAG? Collins suggests ten to 30 years..."or more." The leadership required over such an extended period of time (leadership which includes but is not limited to the CEO) reflects a specific way of thinking about people, organizations, and effective action. "It is a way of understanding the flow of events and discerning the best ways to make a difference." Moreover, Badaracco adds, "...in a small way, quiet leadership is also an act of faith: an expression of confidence in the ultimate force of what [Albert] Schweitzer called 'small and obscure deeds.'" The material in this brilliant book is carefully organized within nine chapters whose titles correctly suggest their respective focal points. For example, in Chapter Eight ("Nudge, Test, and Escalate Gradually"), Badaracco suggests that quiet leaders "prefer more cautious, modest ways of thinking and acting. Instead of hunting confidently for the [in italics] right answer, they concentrate on finding the right ways to to eventually get sound, workable answers." For them, unlike those who are impulsive and flamboyant, "leadership is a process, often a long and oblique one, not a single or courageous event." They are practical but NOT expedient. They focus on what is reasonably attainable rather than on what is ideal and, therefore, almost never attainable. They "buy a little time" (the title of Chapter Three) inorder to drill down deeper to reveal the technical and political elements of the questions to be answered and the problems to be solved. They have a bias for action but only after sufficient (albeit imperfect) preparation. Their core values are non-negotiable even as they view compromise as being essential to consensus. The "eloquence" of such women and men is expressed by what they and their associates accomplish together each day, to be sure, but also year after year. Badaracco includes an especially apt quotation in his Introduction. It is an excerpt from Schweitzer's autobiography, Out of My Life and Thought, and provides what I consider to be an appropriate conclusion to this review: "Of all the will toward the ideal in mankind only a small part can manifest itself in public action. All the rest of this force must be content with small and obscure deeds. The sum of these, however, is a thousand times stronger than the acts of those who receive wide public recognition. The latter, compared to the former, are like the foam on the waves of a deep ocean."
Rating: 
Summary: weLEAD Book Review from the Editor of leadingtoday.org
Review: Leading Quietly is not a book that promotes the pompous prominence of those our culture labels as its leaders. It is not about celebrity, fame or vainglory. It is about the "small and obscure" actions done by ordinary people who make the world work. Badaracco has written this book after four years of research and discovery that the quiet leaders are those whose patience, restraint and modesty are in a great part responsible for impressive achievements. He defines "leading quietly" as those individuals who maintain a low profile, and inconspicuously do what is right for themselves and their organizations without fatalities. Badaracco uses case studies throughout the book to highlight his major points. He also includes special insights from a moral leadership class he teaches at the Harvard Business School. The literature he refers to from this class is particularly perceptive in contrast to the moral bankruptcy we have been reading about in the business pages of our daily newspapers! Here are some of the qualities and guidelines possessed by those who are Leading Quietly: Good leaders are those who are honest with themselves about how well they truly understand a situation and how much control they really possess. They don't kid themselves or deny reality. Effective leaders learn to trust their mixed motives. They accept their motives to be confused and mixed, and they use this ambiguity to solve problems or create compromises. Successful leaders often play games or create stall tactics to gain enough time to ponder difficult situations and think things through. They understand the value of buying a little time when necessary. Wise leaders build "political capital" and use it wisely. They cautiously borrow on this capital when proceeding in an uncertain environment or situation. Quiet leaders gather the details of complex problems. They take the time to "drill down" through the quagmire of bureaucratic, legal or technical details to discover a good solution. The quiet leader also seeks creative compromises as a responsible and practical goal of the responsible leader. This is a book that celebrates the old-fashioned values of hard work and wisdom. Badaracco writes, "Preparation, caution, care and attention to detail are usually the best approach to everyday challenges." The only major weakness of the book is its lack of emphasis on proper ethics. Leading Quietly offers a careful analysis of those unsung leaders who truly make the world work for all of us.
Rating:
Summary: Provocative and clearly argued
Review: Professor Badaracco acknowledges here what conventional wisdom on business ethics might suggest before he presents a well-argued case for why the stock responses that call for black and white behavior are not always the most effective options for individual choices. Badaracco's take that the quiet leader doesn't knee-jerkingly draw a line in the sand and say, "this is right; this is wrong; I will not cross this line" might strike some readers as coping out or compromising at the expense of doing the absolute right thing. But careful readers will discover that Badaracco's notion isn't to cave when right action is called for, but rather to look more broadly at the issues and make more informed decisions. Main strengths: 1) provocative, well-articulated argument; 2) clarity of writing; and 3) clear case studies to support argument of the book.
Rating:
Summary: Good combination of business and ethics
Review: The result of a four-year study, Leading Quietly is based on anecdotal case scenarios compiled by the author. Badaracco (Harvard Business School) dispels the myth that today's most effective leaders are charismatic, larger-than-life individuals whose high-profile risk taking results in significant organizational achievement and personal rewards. Instead, the author maintains that effective organizational leadership and subsequent achievement are attributable to the day-to-day decisions and contributions made by numerous managers and associates. Badaracco introduces the concept of quiet leadership by discussing and providing examples of four fundamental guiding principles and how these principles demonstrate the complexity, uncertainty, and challenges of today's business environment. Chapters that follow provide principles, examples, and resources--a tool kit or user's manual in the words of the author--to demonstrate how quiet leaders positively impact their organizations and the people around them through strength of character and personal humility. The concluding chapter advises would-be quiet leaders that the presented principles, if misused, can serve as an excuse not to act in a responsible and responsive manner, or if employed appropriately, can result in significant organizational outcomes. Faculty and graduate students will find this book an excellent adjunct to business ethics, leadership, and human resource management courses, and practitioners will benefit from its insightful advice.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Way To Lead -- Quietly
Review: This book is intellectually well done, from the way it is written to the supporting arguments used. One does not have to agree with everything to rightly judge this as 5 stars. For a completely different presentation and a more "stoic" philosophical approach, I also recommend reading "West Point" by Norman Thomas Remick (available right here from Amazon.com).
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