Resources
Below are some books that we have found interesting.
Why Work is Weird (Lee Sears and Jerry Connor, Bridge)
Why Work Is Weird examines how the ways that modern organisations are run can find and exploit our individual Achilles’ heels and insecurities in ways that are bad for us, and often bad for the organisation itself. The authors propose powerful ways of getting on at work without having to pay the costs and make the compromises that so many people seem to make.
A Theory of Everything (Ken Wilber)
Wilber presents complex, cutting edge theories and models that integrate the realms of body, mind, soul and spirit and then applies these models to real world problems such as business, education and the environment.
The New Leaders (Daniel Goleman)
Goleman explores the transformational impact of leadership and culture in organisations. The book has a strong emphasis on the scientific evidence that links organisational success to leadership.
The Fifth Discipline (Peter Senge)
Senge sets out a coherent body of theory and practice and proposes a means to create the ‘learning organisation’, where collective aspiration is set free and where people are continually learning together.
Good to Great (Jim Collins)
Jim Collins asks the question, "Can a good company become a great company, and if so, how?" He concludes that it is possible, but finds that there are no silver bullets to greatness. Collins and his team of researchers researched 1,435 companies, looking for those that made substantial improvements in their performance over time. They finally settled on 11 and discovered common traits that challenged many of the conventional notions of corporate success.
Action Inquiry – The Secret of Timely and Transforming Leadership (Bill Torbert and Associates)
“Action Inquiry” is a fresh approach to learning leadership in the midst of action. The book proposes how to exercise transforming power at key moments and more timely action in general.
What’s Next? 21 Ideas for 21st Century Learning (Charles Leadbetter, The Innovation Unit)
Leadbetter presents 21 radical recommendations for transforming education (with many references to how these innovative practices have performed.) The recommendations embrace family, community and workplace, as well as the school as centres for learning.
In Over Our Heads (Robert Kegan)
Kegan proposes a theory that looks at adult development much as how child development is viewed, as an open-ended process born of the dynamic interaction of cultural demands and emerging mental capabilities.
The Leadership Pipeline: How to Build the Leadership Powered Company (Ram Charan, Stephen Drotter, James Noel)
The authors propose how to create a pipeline of talent that will continuously fill the leadership needs – needs that may not have even been realised. The Leadership Pipeline delivers a framework for priming future leaders by planning for their development, coaching them, and measuring the results of those efforts.