The Leadership Challenge. How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations

From one of the most respected names in business and leadership, a rare look at the specifics of how great leaders achieve «common purpose» and success within their organizations. What is common purpose? It is that rare, almost-palpable experience that happens when a leader coalesces a group, team or community into a creative, dynamic, brave and nearly invincible we. It happens the moment the organization's values, tools, objectives and hopes are internalized in a way that enables people to work tirelessly toward a goal. Common purpose is rarely achieved. But Kurtzman has observed that when a leader is able to bring it about, the results are outsized, measurable and inspiring. Based on Kurtzman's all-new interviews with more than 50 leaders, including Ron Sargent, Ilene Lang, Micky Arison, Simon Cooper, Joel Klein, Janet Field, Steve Wynn, Shivan Subramaniam, Michael Dell, Richard Boyatzis, Tom Kelley, Michael Milken, and Warren Bennis Contains research on leadership Kurtzman has conducted during his years at The New York Times, the Harvard Business Review, Booz & Company, as well as with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Mercer, and Korn/Ferry Based on all new interviews with some of the most dynamic, successful, and enduring leaders, Common Purpose sheds new light on the meaning of leadership, the crucial qualities of leaders, and most importantly, how to lead.

Elevate your leadership to achieve the extraordinary Inspired Leadership is the essential guide to performing at the highest level every day. As CEO of Porsche, author Kevin Gaskell led the company from near-bankruptcy to the most profitable car company. During his four years at BMW, the company saw 80% growth in sales and 500% increase in profitability. Good leaders get results and great leaders get great results—but Inspired Leaders get extraordinary results, turn around companies, ensure people development and turn brands into household names. This book shows you how to become an Inspired Leader. Workable strategies, practical frameworks, and real-world essential skills give you a concrete curriculum for success, while anecdotes and examples drawn from the author's experiences illustrate important concepts in action. Inspirational, aspirational, and deeply instructional, this guide will become your go-to resource for navigating the leader's role. From tricky situations to everyday interactions, you'll learn the skills and outlook you need to take your leadership to the next level. Learn what Inspired Leadership looks like in terms of results Discover the key factors that separate Inspired leaders from the merely «great» Adopt the tools and processes that get extraordinary results in the real world Understand the essential core of high performance, and incorporate it into your day-to-day Quality leadership is the difference between success and failure, but Inspired Leadership is the difference between success and world-class performance. It requires 360-degree attention, laser focus, authentic relationships, and a rock-solid understanding of the leader's role. When you're ready to achieve the extraordinary, Inspired Leadership is the resource to keep within arm's reach.

The Student Leadership Challenge: Student Workbook and Personal Leadership Journal is based on Kouzes and Posner's Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® as outlined in their best-selling book The Student Leadership Challenge . Each module delves into the leadership practices and behaviors that will help students go deeper into the actual work of leadership. It includes: An overview of The Five Practices and thirty leadership behaviors that make up the model Experiential, reflective, and film activities to bring the leadership practices to life Guidance for getting the most from the Student Leadership Practices Inventory A personal leadership journal to help students continually practice and reflect Praise for The Student Leadership Challenge: Student Workbook and Personal Leadership Journal «As a Student Leadership Challenge Certified Facilitator I am excited about using these books to further aid me in developing curriculum and giving our students a tool to acknowledge and reflect on the concepts as they pertain to their own capacity to lead effectively.» —Deborah Mann , Student Leadership Challenge Certified Facilitator, BOLD Leadership Program, Cornell University «In our public service leadership programs and courses we will be able to easily use the many relevant and engaging activities and reflection exercises provided in this workbook. It will enable our students to better engage with and benefit from The Student Leadership Challenge , and will also help foster their personal leadership development journeys.» —Jon McConnell , associate director, Haas Center for Public Service, Stanford University «Every young person dreams of doing something extraordinary. The Student Leadership Challenge provides everything this generation needs to turn a dream into reality.» —Brian C. Warren Jr. , executive director, Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity

Based on Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner's classic book The Leadership Challenge, this Workbook will be your hands-on guide for improving your ability to put into action the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® model and become a leader who Models the Way, Inspires a Shared Vision, Challenges the Process, Enables Others to Act, and Encourages the Heart. The Workbook's easy-to-use worksheets make efficient planning simple and practical and supports your success in three ways: Reflection: Think about your approach to leadership and become more conscious about how well you engage in each of the Practices. Application: Apply the Practices and commitments to all your projects. Implications: Record what you've learned about yourself, your team, your organization, and your project. Develop your leadership potential with The Leadership Challenge Workbook!

Real-world leadership training for real-world students The Student Leadership Challenge tailors one of the world’s most respected leadership models to students’ unique needs, and provides a proven pathway to success. Based on The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership, this book merges solid research with personal stories from real-world student leaders to help students develop the critical skills they need to lead both now and after graduation. Useful from high school to graduate school and beyond, these lessons are reinforced by reflective and critical thinking activities to help students internalize important concepts while honestly assessing their own practices. Updated and expanded, this new third edition includes four extra chapters to allow deeper investigation, while broader, deeper, and more vivid examples from real-life students illustrate what student leadership looks like around the world. New discussion delves into the research behind the model, as well as the usefulness of leadership in the transition to post-graduate life. What does leadership mean to you? Although it may be difficult to put into words, we all know it when we see it. Effective leaders tend to exhibit a specific set of traits, possess certain skills, and practice particular habits. This book helps you hone your natural talents and shape your path to success as the leader you want to become. Learn The Five Practices of Leadership, and how they help you succeed beyond school Discover how students around the world are exhibiting the best in modern leadership Practice critical leadership techniques and engage in thought-provoking discussion Assess your own potential with the Student Leadership Practices Inventory Great leadership is more important than ever before, and students are in a prime position to develop these critical skills. The Student Leadership Challenge provides a comprehensive framework with real-world application to help students become their very best.

Essential, practical tools for implementing evidence-based leadership development The Leadership Challenge Workbook offers practical tools for applying The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® in real-life business situations. As the companion to The Leadership Challenge, this workbook provides essential hands-on guidance for planning, implementation, people-management, and more. This new revised third edition has been updated to match The Leadership Challenge Sixth Edition text. It includes easy-to-use worksheets to simplify planning and collectively assemble into a clear blueprint for moving forward. By focusing on the notion of leadership development as a journey rather than an event, this interactive guide provides critical insight through a proven, systematic process. Implementing big ideas requires skillful change leadership—and any successful, sustainable change begins with thorough, practical planning. This workbook helps you map out a plan and put it into action, with tools that help clarify your thinking and translate your big ideas into concrete strategies. Streamline planning with practical, efficient worksheets Assemble a blueprint for effectively implementing your ideas Improve communication, strengthen commitment, and build trust Adopt a systematic approach to leadership to continue producing exemplary results The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership is a proven model backed by decades of research and data from over 4 million individuals. It is proven, practical, and evidence-based, and has helped leaders from around the globe improve their organizations' performance. With the need for quality leadership development at an all-time high, real-world application of proven models becomes critical; The Leadership Challenge Workbook gives you the hands-on tools you need to more effectively implement a robust, systematic approach.

The new edition of the classic change leader's workbook A blend of leadership development, project management, and execution, this perfect companion to the bestselling The Leadership Challenge has been refreshed in time for the 25th Anniversary of this trusted leadership development program. Updated with a new global perspective and new research, it is the ultimate change leader's workbook. Based on Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner's classic book The Leadership Challenge, this workbook is a hands-on guide for improving your ability to put into action the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® model and become a leader who Models the Way, Inspires a Shared Vision, Challenges the Process, Enables Others to Act, and Encourages the Heart. Significantly updated, with a new global focus Features the latest research and refer to new case studies, including international examples Can be used as a project-planning, change-creating, and personal-best-making tool More relevant and effective than ever the Third Edition of The Leadership Challenge Workbook will help leaders in every organization improve their ability to communicate a vision, strengthen co-worker commitment, build trust among fellow employees, maintain employee satisfaction, and much more.

Drawing on her own long-term research and extensive work experience, Janice Klein reveals how the power of people (insiders who are able to see problems from outsider's perspective), approach («pulling change»), and system (support infrastructure) combine to turn new ideas and concepts into institutionalized practices. In particular, certain people inside organizations «outsiders on the inside» are key to driving innovation, adaptation, and real change. Using examples from leading companies in MIT's Leaders for Manufacturing (LFM) and System Design and Management (SDM) Partnership – such as Boeing, Intel, Motorola, Alcoa, Ford, Kodak, and others – she shows how employees at all levels can learn how to become «an outsider on the inside,» and be in the right place at the right time to discover opportunities to «pull» into their organization. Throughout, we grow to understand the perspectives of numerous «outsiders on the inside,» by hearing their voices and observing their actions. The strategy Klein provides is relevant for any company that hopes to build a change capability, rather than attempt only to manage change.

A different way of discovering and developing the best business ideas Jack Welch once said, «Someone, somewhere has a better idea.» In this myth-busting book, the authors reveal that great business ideas do not spring from innate creativity, or necessarily from the brilliant minds of people. Rather, great ideas come to those who are in the habit of looking for great ideas all around them, all the time. Too often, people fall into the trap of thinking that the only worthwhile idea is a thoroughly original one. Idea Hunters know better. They understand that valuable ideas are already out there, waiting to be found – and not just in the usual places. Shows how to expand your capacity to find and develop winning business ideas Explains why ideas are a critical asset for every manager and professional, not just for those who do «creative» Reveals how to seek out and select the ideas that best serve your purposes and goals and define who you are, as a professional Offers practical tips on how to master the everyday habits of an Idea Hunter, which include cultivating great conversations The book is filled with illustrative accounts of successful Idea Hunters and stories from thriving «idea» companies. Warren Buffet, Walt Disney, Thomas Edison, Mary Kay Ash, Twitter, and Pixar Animation Studios are among the many profiled.

What does it take to do more with less? How can you do better than before, or better than others? How do you turn losses into wins, or near-bankruptcy into strong profitability, or abject failure into stellar success? The power of uplift enables any organization to do more with less, beat the competition, and perform better than ever. Leaders who uplift their employees' passions, intellects, and commitments produce remarkable results. Based on original research from a seven-year global study, Uplifting Leadership reveals how leaders from diverse organizations inspired and uplifted their teams' performance. Distilling the six common characteristics of leaders at high-performing organizations across business, sports, and education, authors Andy Hargreaves, Alan Boyle, and Alma Harris explore the nature of uplift, its impact on performance, and the ways to achieve it within and beyond an organization's walls, revealing how leaders: Identify and articulate an inspiring dream that is coherently connected to the best of what the organization has been before Pursue that dream at a sustainable pace without squandering resources, incurring excessive debt, or burning people out Forge paths of innovation and improvement that others have overlooked or rejected Monitor progress by using metrics and indicators in a mindful and meaningful way Build teams that naturally pull people into change rather than pushing them through it Featuring case studies of organizations as diverse as Shoebuy.com, Fiat, Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, Marks & Spencer, Cricket Australia, Burnley Football Club, and the Vancouver Giants, as well as world-leading educational systems, Uplifting Leadership provides tools for leaders to incorporate these performance-driving strategies into their own. For leaders who want their people to try harder, transform what they do, reach for a higher purpose, and stay resolute and resilient when opposing forces threaten to defeat them, Uplifting Leadership provides a path to better performance across any organization.