THE LIST: A SHORT LIST OF BOOKS THAT EVERYONE INVOLVED IN BUSINESS SHOULD READ
By:  P. Gerard Shaw, Ph.D.

Books are back! I’m not sure where they went, but for a while it seemed that people stopped reading. Now, over the past couple of years, people have rediscovered the joy – and benefit – of reading. The DaVinci Code has spurred many people to read and think about what they read. The Harry Potter series has sparked the desire to read in people of all ages and has sparked some wonderful conversations relating good and evil.

I can remember in years past reading lists of books that various individuals thought should be read. Over the years, I have been asked by various business people what I think they should read. With this in mind, I developed my own list of books that I believe should be read by everyone with any interest in the world of business.

The books on this list are eclectic. Some will not be found in the business section of the local bookstore. But, I believe they will all benefit those working in business and those studying business. They cover a host of different subjects but all impact business in various ways.

 I was a business major a long time ago. We read a lot of books and articles, all of which were required. We learned and many of those with whom I studied have gone on to make major impacts in business. But, the world in which I studied has changed.

Today’s business world is a global one. It is a world that seems to be much smaller than it was then. We study and do business with others from around the world. We learn their cultures and they learn ours. Hopefully, we learn and appreciate the differences between the cultures.

Today’s world is a faster world. I can remember working to meet deadlines so we could get a document in the mail. Then, it was shortened when overnighting the work became an option. Now, emailing work has become the norm and it has made shipping documents instantaneous.

It is a confused world. As the first group of books is assembled for this list (that’s right – this is the first group; as the world constantly changes, The List will change annually), the business sections of the newspapers and other media update us on court proceedings for the former leaders of Enron, the sentencing hearings of other business leaders, and the status of businesses found to be led by CEO’s with false credentials or shady financial dealings.

The List deals with all of these topics. I have developed a list that will hopefully provide guidance for business leaders, education for all involved in business, and a broad, eclectic fountain of information that will help us develop better and stronger business leaders.

Some of the books are not easy to read. They will need to be read slowly and carefully. Others will be easier and may even be read on the beach (which is why The List is being released now as summer fast approaches). Some are not easy to find – one (On Being Human) is out of print but should be available in many libraries. Most others should be found easily enough and should even be in paperback. All will provide enlightenment and growth to the reader whoever he or she is and wherever he or she is in the business world.

I am providing each listing with a brief commentary of each book so you will understand my rationale for including it on The List. After reading the work, each reader is free to agree or disagree with the book’s inclusion on The List. Hopefully, you will develop your own list and share it with your colleagues.

Finally, The List is not put together in any prioritized manner. Therefore, you do not have to read the books in any order. You do not have to read all of them. But, my hope is that everyone involved in business today will continue to read and develop him/herself so that our world is better served.

THE LIST

The Bible – Everyone is worried about the lack of ethics in today’s business world. The Bible is the source for the Judeo-Christian code of ethics that has influenced the business world. Regardless of whether or not a person is a believer, all should read the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. In reading these Scriptures one will find the basis for how to treat one another, develop relationships, act honestly, and show respect for everyone. A good commentary can be helpful in fully understanding what is written but it is not necessary to gain an understanding and foundation for a personal code of ethics. Take some time to read and understand this influential work.

On Being Human – Was Darwin right? Ashley Montagu presents a case that says that it may not be true that the strongest survive. Darwin’s theory is based on winning conflicts and that the strongest always won. Montagu agrees that conflicts take place. But, he states that co-operation, not competition, is the winning strategy. All humans are social beings and we do better when we interact with others. “A creature apart from a social group is nothing but an organic being,” he says. While this book reads more like a philosophical work, it provides the reader with the soundest rationale for working in teams that I have ever read. Today’s business world has come to realize the value of working in teams. Managers are trained to facilitate their teams. And, we are realizing the value of success brought to us by teamwork. Written in 1950 (and a bit difficult to find today), Montagu pleads a case for a new society based on a world working together to grow and advance and working to defeat each other. You may not agree with where he ends up, but the case he makes for co-operation is sound and helpful to every manager today.

The World Is Flat – The hot topic in business texts and business models is “global business.” It is a topic that has changed the way business is being done today. What caused this? Thomas L. Friedman tells us that the world, which has always seemed so big and round has now been flattened. This smaller world allows businesses everywhere to connect in ways they could never have imagined fifty years ago. It has created whole new business models. Friedman names ten flatteners explaining how they have impacted how business gets done. These flatteners include Open-Sourcing, Outsourcing, and Offshoring, to name a few. He also makes the best distinction between outsourcing and offshoring I have seen to date. This book is a must read for everyone doing business today.

First, Break All the Rules – Did you know that more than 80% of employees report that they leave a particular position because of their manager? How do people become good managers?  Should managers treat all employees the same? Marcus Buckingham answered these and many other issues in this book written in 1999. Based on research conducted by the Gallup Organization with over 80,000 managers, Buckingham and Curt Coffman, his co-author, offer many very practical “how-to” ideas about managing people. Twelve questions are listed that every organization should answer. The answers they give serve as guides to improving the performance of the organization’s workers. They also help lead to better retention of workers. Schools teach the science of management but here is a book that gives good, solid advice about how to put this theory into action.

Leadership and the New Science – Quantum physics is a daunting subject. Anthropology, biology, and systems can also be challenging to learn. Understanding them and how they influence business seemed like an impossible task. Margaret Wheatley did an excellent job of helping us grasp the subjects in 1994 when she released this book. Reading this book not only makes the “new science” understandable, but teaches you why you need to know this and how this knowledge can help you and your business. Learning about the “new science” helps us improve the way we manage and the way we treat our customers. This book gives us background on how to organize our workplace and communicate with our employees effectively. The result is better customer service that is provided by better employees. 

Manging the Dream – Everyone who owns or manages a business has to be a leader. One of the best writers in the field of leadership has been, and continues to be, Warren Bennis. He writes not only from knowledge of theory and research, but from experience. He has been there. And, he has been there for a long time. Released in 2000, this book is a collection of his essays about leadership and change. He states that leading a group is more an art than a science and provides the background to help managers learn how to lead their organizations in newer and better ways.

Millennials Rising – One of the keys to managing well is knowing the people you manage. Who are they? Where did they come from? What is important to them? Neil Howe and William Strauss answer these questions and many more in their book about the generation presently in our schools and entering the workforce. The Millennial Generation includes those individuals born after 1982.  They share a number of traits including: they consider themselves special, they have been sheltered all their lives, they are confident, team-oriented, conventional, pressured, and achieving. This is the work that popularized the phrase “helicopter parents” and offered tips on how to work and lead this group of students and workers. This book is invaluable in gaining a better understanding of these employees and helping them become better employees. It also serves to guide us in becoming better managers.

Emotional Intelligence – How well do you know yourself? What is your EQ? In 1995, Daniel Goleman released this book and it has become a standard with many professionals, especially those in Human Resources. Every manager should read this book to see how he/she measures in the key factors of self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. Many studies have been performed since this book was written and most show it is an invaluable tool in hiring and managing employees. It is well known that having the right people in the right positions ensures success for the organization. The subtitle of the book is, “Why it can matter more than IQ” and it goes on to show that being smarter is not always better. Goleman helps you learn more about yourself as you discover your EQ and helps you use this self-knowledge to improve your own as well as your organization’s performance.

The Experience Economy – What do your customers/clients think about doing business with you? Is it a pleasant experience? Or, is it something they have to put up with because you are simply more convenient or less expensive? Joseph Pine and James Gilmore released this book in 1999 stressing that one of the keys to retaining customers is engaging them. This involves ensuring that the area where the customer is met is enticing and draws them to you. The authors use a couple of benchmarks that most people are familiar with – Disney World and Jordan’s Furniture. Both provide experiences for customers that draw them in, engage them, and bring them back. Providing experiences that are pleasant and welcoming make it easier for clients to do business with you. The fact that they enjoy working/shopping with you gets them to remember you and want to be with you again. The great experience also helps turn your customer/client into one of your best marketing instruments. This book helps improve the way you conduct your business and helps in many ways.

The Balanced Scorecard – For too long, businesses concerned themselves with only the bottom line. Board members of most organizations were shown financial statements and made decisions accordingly. But, every business leader knows there is more to it than that. In 1996, Robert Kaplan and David Norton released this book helping all business leaders develop a tool that gives them a more complete picture of the business. It is a more holistic approach to managing a business. The tool calls us to measure not only financial information, but also customer satisfaction, business process information, and how well we develop our employees. This approach gives us much better control of the business and identifies many possible approaches to improve the performance of the organization. I have seen this tool implemented and its impact on planning and delivery of customer service is outstanding. Employee retention improves, also, since the organization is now measuring how it performs in this area. All managers should read and implement this book.

Authentic Leadership – There is a crisis in leadership today. As we open newspapers and magazines, we read not of great accomplishments by business leaders but of proceedings in courtrooms where these leaders are being prosecuted for various charges. Bill George, former CEO of Medtronic, writes that there is a crisis in leadership. Today’s leaders are more concerned with the bottom line, he writes. What leaders must be is authentic - they must know themselves, their strengths and weaknesses, their core values. They put their customers first and then work hard to empower their employees to serve the customers. When leaders do this, the bottom line will follow and the organization will be successful. Know yourself, be true to yourself, and you will be the leader people want to follow.

This is The List for 2006. I truly hope that reading all, or only a few of them, will help you in improving your management knowledge and skills. All of the books on the list are available at the Dean College Bookstore. If you come on campus to make a purchase, please stop in to see us in Business Department. Happy Reading!!!

Dr. P. Gerard Shaw is Associate Professor of Business and Business Technology at Dean College in Franklin, MA.

THE  LIST

The Holy Bible

Bennis, Warren. Managing the Dream: Reflections on Leadership and Change. Cambridge: Perseus Publishing, 2000.

Buckingham, Marcus and Curt Coffman. First, Break All The Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently.  New York: Simon & Schuster, 1999.

Friedman, Thomas L.  The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005.

George, Bill. Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2003.

Goleman, Daniel. Emotional Intelligence: Why it can matter more that IQ. New York: Bantam Books, 1995.

Howe, Neil and William Strauss. Millennials Rising: The Next Great Generation. New York: Vintage Books, 2000.

Kaplan, Robert S. and David P. Norton. The Balanced Scorecard: Translating Strategy into Action. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1996.

Montagu, Ashley.   On Being Human.  New York: Henry Shuman, 1950.

Pine, B. Joseph and James H. Gilmore.  The Experience Economy: Work is Theatre & Every Business a Stage. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1999.

Wheatley, Margaret J.  Leadership and the New Science: Learning about Organization from an Orderly Universe.  San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler, 1994.