The most trusted resource on becoming a leader is now updated and revised for a new generation.
This leadership classic continues to be a bestseller after three editions and twenty years in print. It is the gold standard for research-based leadership, and the premier resource on becoming a leader. This new edition, with streamlined text, more international and business examples, and a graphic redesign, is more readable and accessible than ever before. The Leadership Challenge, Fourth Edition, has been extensively updated with the latest research and case studies, and offers inspiring new stories of real people achieving extraordinary results. The authors' central theme remains the same and is more relevant today than ever: "Leadership is Everyones Business." Their "five practices" and "ten commitments" have been proven by hundreds of thousands of dedicated, successful leaders. This edition, with almost one-third new material, emphasizes the global community and refocuses on business leaders.
In the 1980s and again in the '90s, James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner published The Leadership Challenge to address issues they uncovered in research on ordinary people achieving "individual leadership standards of excellence." The keys they identified--model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act, encourage the heart--have now been reexamined in the context of the post-millennium world and updated in a third edition. "What we have discovered, and rediscovered, is that leadership is not the private reserve of a few charismatic men and women," write Kouzes, chairman emeritus of the Tom Peters Company, and Posner, dean of the Leavey School of Business at Santa Clara University. "People make extraordinary things happen by liberating the leader within everyone." After explaining their concept and methodology, the authors detail the five essentials noted above in a pair of chapters apiece that bring clarity to their theories with case studies and recommended actions. The specificity of each (motivating through "the meaningfulness of the challenge, not the material rewards of success," for example, and being able to "accept the mistakes that result from experimentation") is enhanced by advice on sustaining the commitment and making leadership skills accessible to all. The results remain as relevant as when they were first published. --Howard Rothman
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Good text on leadership:
We've used this text in a graduate school class I'm completing, and it has been very helpful in crystallizing my thoughts about leadership. The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership presented here are backed by solid research and would help just about anyone become a better leader. I give it four stars only because it is unnecessarily long. There's a good 300 page book in the 400 pages I read - a sure sign the authors are in love with their own writing. Still, very solid overall.
Use It to Change Your Life:
I've been using this book for years to help graduate students in Communication and Leadership to analyze and change their leadership behaviors. The five principles are based on probably the most extensive research in leadership.
Model the way.
Inspire a shared vision.
Challenge the process.
Enable other to act.
Encourage the heart. Not a stuffy academic book, this readable work will give you an array of ideas you can employ in work, home, and community contexts. This... more info
Great Leadership Book:
My coworker recommended this book to me, and it's one of the best leadership/management books I've ever read. There's great practical advice and teaches you how to treat your staff, coworkers, managers like human beings while still being an effective leader. I highly recommend this book for people entering the work force and first-time managers or managers who need a new perspective.
Leadership in Business:
I gave this book four stars because it is well written and very readable, but it is really designed for people interested in business and working in corporations; something I did not realize before I started. I feel like the chapters were a little wordy, but the "summaries" at the end of the chapter are nice.
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