Summary Handy’s book is a groundbreaking philosophical and practical guide to the inevitable changing ways of organizing work and the workforce. Handy starts from the viewpoint that radical change is not only desirable but essential, if economics and society are not to be irreversibly damaged. The book focuses on the necessity of becoming more creative
Summary Management consultant Bob Garratt told us that he wrote his latest book as ‘a counterblast to myopic thinking’ among senior managers in the quest for company efficiency. Garratt shifts the focus away from the current vogue for downsizing and cost cutting, towards a value-system that preserves and encourages employees at all levels. Get employees doing
Summary In 1979 journalist Keith Waterhouse was commissioned by his editor at UK national tabloid the Daily Mirror to write an instruction manual for the newspaper’s new recruits. The result was a booklet that became an instant success, with half the hacks in Fleet Street trying to beg, borrow or photocopy what had started as
Summary Jack Welch Speaks is precisely what its title suggests: a collection of quotations from the chairman of General Electric Corporation (GE), one of the biggest companies in the world. These quotations are arranged by subject and deal partly with his own life, but mainly with his competitive, ruthless style of management, making it a
Summary The academic and consultant Andrew Brown has selected six key elements of leadership that, he believes, illuminate the secrets of great leaders. Illustrated with countless examples of leaders from history and today, The Six Dimensions of Leadership, first published in 1999, tackles in 200 racy pages the six qualities in turn: heroism, acting
Working on the twin principles that we are all obliged to lead, and that leadership can be learned, the author of the best selling The Tao of Coaching argues people are not led by plans and analysis, but by a trinity of vision, inspiration and momentum. This is more a book for aspiring leaders than
Summary In the introduction, the authors admit that this book was turned down by countless publishing houses with the objection: ‘Who cares? Who wants to read about techies pissed off at their jobs?’ Co-author Bill Lessard says he is a ‘living testament to the fact that most Internet careers are nasty, brutish and short’. So,
Summary Goffee and Jones – the BBC director of human resources – reject the assumption of some business books that the character of a corporation is a uniform, single concept. They see it as complex and multiple-faceted. Every firm is composed of several cultures, they explain. These are fluid, liable to change, and are sometimes
Email etiquette – or ‘Netiquette’ – is causing traditional letters writers to scratch their heads in consternation. For in less than five years, the advent of electronic mail has thrown many writing conventions out of the virtual window. Even Debrett’s has recognised the dilemma and addressed the problem it in its 1996 Guide to
International rowing won’t be the same without Steve Redgrave – five-times Olympic gold medallist and national hero. But will Redgrave be the same without rowing? The commitment demanded by the sport is no less than a lifestyle – on the water seven days a week, 49 weeks a year. When that is gone, what remains?
You are the youngest British prime minister this century, so it is difficult to criticise the way you have planned your career. Anyone who captures the number one job in the country certainly knows how to scale the careers ladder. In order to reach your post you first had to become leader of the Labour
Fallen hero When South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje was accused of involvement with Indian bookmakers in April 2000, he said the allegations were completely without substance. Yet it took less than 90 hours for Cronje’s statement of wounded integrity to become a guilt-wracked confession of dishonesty. Six months on the situation has only got
What is it that causes the mighty to fall? Why do so many of the ultra successful perish as a result of their own misjudgment? We take a look at some of the sufferers of this phenomenon of success You will not be surprised to hear that Sigmund Freud had a theory about this. In
Most people settle for one or two significant career changes over the whole of their working life. But you are becoming a post-modern icon by going from one career to three – all within a single year. Pop star and television personality; now you have become the queen of the catwalk. Only Barbie has had
If you fancy riding the waves of power, but do not want to be at the helm, one of the most high profile jobs you can do is that of a spin doctor. We assess the opportunities and risks of being a modern day king maker
This year’s Olympic Games will put Sydney on the map for many people who have never thought seriously about working here. So what has it got to offer today’s job seekers? Richard Willsher reports from the major Australian city
‘It is people with the imagination, the drive, the willingness to think big and take risks…who will make the economy grow and themselves rich.’ Lee Kuan Yew, the ‘father of modern Singapore’, spoke these words at a Chinese New Year celebration in February 2000. Could this be you? Our correspondent Richard Willsher reports from Singapore.
Redundancy is becoming much more prevalent in the working society and it is now more likely that you will be the victim of a round of redundancies in your working life. But how you deal with a redundancy is extremely important; it can provide a wonderful opportunity or it could be devastating.
Award-winning writer Adeline Iziren teaches you how to woo a potential employer over the phoneSo you’ve identified the job you want and your potential employer? Great. No doubt you’ll be trawling through the web to find out as much as you can about the company. That’s great too. But to get the edge over
You’ve laughed about their idiosyncrasies and their spelling mistakes. But now those favoured clients in Japan are coming to the UK and it’s your job to keep their business. So how do you make a great impression – and more importantly, steer clear of any fatal faux pas?
