You're in Charge--Now What? : The 8 Point Plan

Rating:
Summary: Second-hand ideas - buy FIRST 90 DAYS instead
Review: "Writing a book is not that hard. You take the first 11 books on the subject and then you write the 12th". The Danish Philosopher Soren Kierkegaard said this already 150 years ago. And it's apparently still true.

Only in this case, the authors seem to have gotten their inspiration from one key source ... and that is Harvard professor Michael Watkins, who published "THE FIRST 90 DAYS - CRITICAL SUCCESS STRATEGIES FOR NEW LEADERS AT ALL LEVELS" in 2003. In that book, Watkins outlines 10 strategies for all leaders about to take up a new leadership position. By the way, Watkins' book is well written without any academic flavour.

What is Neff and Citrin's 8 POINT PLAN? The fundamental idea is: Get set to learn, listen well, set proper expectations, read the culture, build trust, lead by example, set the appropriate direction, and communicate effectively. These ideas are transformed to become the 8 steps for building your foundation towards great performance as a new manager:
1. Prepare Yourself During the Countdown
2. Align Expectations
3. Shape Your Management Team
4. Craft Your Strategic Agenda
5. Start Transforming Culture
6. Manage Your Board/Boss
7. Communicate
8. Avoid Common Pitfalls

If you read my online review of "The First 90 Days", you'll see that both books focus on exactly the same issues. But Neff and Citrin generously allow 100 days for new managers. Just like Machiavelli suggested for politicians...

I've read this book because I'm very interested in being better at taken on a new leadership position (a situation that I've tried five times in 15 years). Since I enjoyed "First 90 Days" a lot, I thought this book would add further to my knowledge on the subject. Unfortunately, it didn't. However, I do appreciate the concise 10 guidelines for each of the eight steps. And the appendices also offer practical advice. These contributions earned the two stars rating.

By the way, to complete the "cut-and-paste" issue, please take a look at Gerald M. Czarnecki's book from 2003: "You're in charge ... what now? - Seven essential steps for work leader success". Same title. Same topic. Only different authors...

Being a reader, I obviously do not care much about who owns the intellectual rights to the ideas. It's just that I do not like to buy a new book on a favourite topic just to learn that I've read all the ideas before in another book on the subject. At least, I would expect an online reviewer to tell me. Well, that's why I wrote this piece...

Peter Leerskov,
MSc in International Business (Marketing & Management) and Graduate Diploma in E-business

Rating:
Summary: Helpful at any level
Review: Looking back over my own job experience, I can't count how many times this book would have been useful. Its lessons apply to any situation when you're thrust into position of greater responsibility, whether you're moving into a new job or heading up a new project. The chapter on aligning expectations was particularly insightful.
An added bonus: This book is also fun to read. It's packed with plenty of real-life anecdotes from top business leaders who not only talk about what they did right in their first 100 days but even confess what they did wrong.

Rating:
Summary: 8 Steps to success
Review: Neff and Citrin's eight-point plan to great performance in the first 100 days of a new job makes a lot of sense.  The steps won't come as a surprise to anyone who has gone through this process but their logical progression adds up to a big push in the right direction.  The real surprise in this book is how readable it is, thanks to the  many well-known CEOs who candidly confess their ups and downs during their own first 100 days.  

Rating:
Summary: Advice Worth Reading About
Review: TC

The first word that came to me after finising the book was wow! Before reading ths book I have to admit I was sceptical. I had read books before about new leadership positions but they were focused mostly on CEO's, CFO's, etc. Your in Charge Now What? could be read at many different levels from the top spots that I mentioned before to smaller positions. Another high point of this book was that it spoke and gave examples of how real people at real jobs used or didn't use the steps provided and then explained how it ended up working out for them. Overall this book helped me personally in my new managing title and I high highly reccomend it to others


Rating:
Summary: Advice From the Pros!
Review: When you start a new job or take on a new project, you're almost always in what Citrin and Neff call "a temporary state of incompetence." This book offers a welcome source of advice and reassurance. The advisors couldn't be much better, since they're some of the top CEOs in business today: GE's Jeff Immelt, Gap's Paul Pressler, Mattel's Bob Eckert, Gillette's Jim Kilts, AOL/Time Warner's Dick Parsons, etc. They're friendly, forthcoming -- and brutally honest -- about what they did right, what they could have done better and, in some cases, what they did that was dead wrong. Their stories make for readable entertainment as well as providing a helping hand for managers at any level.

Rating:
Summary: The Definitive Guide for How to Start New Leadership Roles
Review: You're in Charge-Now What? is a fun read and the magic elixr for anyone about to start a new job; The are clear and entertaining anecdotes about real business leaders, such as Jeff Imelt CEO of GE, Paul Pressler CEO of the Gap, Bob Nardelli CEO of Home Depot, Patricia Russo CEO of Lucent, Ed Zander CEO of Motorola, and Larry Summers President of Harvard University among many more. The advice is wrapped up in a compelling 8 point plan for the first 100 days culminating with the top traps to avoid in starting a new position. When you need advice on how to hit the ground running, this is the perfect book for you.