October 2020’s Top Reads

In partnership with getAbstract, Training brings you October’s top three business books recommended to our readers.

 

 

 

More than 12,000 business books are published every year—an overwhelming choice for busy professionals. Therefore, in partnership with getAbstract, Training brings you October’s top three business books recommended to our readers.

“Think Outside the Building. How Advanced Leaders Can Change the World One Smart Innovation at a Time” by Rosabeth Moss Kanter (PublicAffairs, 2020, 320 pages, ISBN: 9781541742710; $15.54)

Harvard Business School professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter argues that solving today’s complex social problems requires a new kind of leadership: “advanced leadership.” An advanced leader understands that established social institutions, such as big companies, nonprofits, or governmental agencies, can become barriers to progress if they focus on defending their turf rather than embracing innovative reforms. Advanced leaders prioritize seeking new ideas, soliciting input from people who usually don’t have a voice in social issues, and drawing on expertise from a range of business, scientific, and cultural fields. This book was nominated for the 2020 getAbstract International Book Award.

Rating (out of 10): 9

“Cracking the Leadership Code. Three Secrets to Building Strong Leaders” by Alain Hunkins (Wiley, 2020, 288 pages, ISBN: 9781119675549; $22.81)

Corporate coach Alain Hunkins draws on three critical elements—“connection, communication and collaboration”—to help you become a leader. Connection, which is based on trust, comes first. People will feel that you care if you connect personally. Communication helps make other people feel comfortable collaborating with you. Hunkins discusses the vital role of empathy in motivating employees, the factors that impede leaders from practicing empathy, and how to become a more effective communicator. His entertaining, instructive book will help anyone interested in becoming a leader or in becoming a better one.

Rating (out of 10): 8

Subtle Acts of Exclusion. How to Understand, Identify, and Stop Microaggressions” by Tiffany Jana and Michael Baran(Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., 2020, 200 pages, ISBN: 9781523087051; $12.17)

Everyone has unconscious biases. Though most “subtle acts of exclusion” are not malicious, if people commit them unchecked, their effects can demoralize a workforce. Leaders seeking a more inclusive culture must discuss sensitive subjects such as racism or sexism, even at the risk of getting the words wrong. Dr. Tiffany Jana and Dr. Michael Baran explain how your organization can put inclusive policies into place while never sugarcoating potential difficulties. They suggest activities for building awareness and inclusion, both important values that foster resilient teams of engaged employees. This book was nominated for the 2020 getAbstract International Book Award.

Rating (out of 10): 9

For five-page summaries of these and more than 15,000 other titles, visit http://www.getabstract.com/affiliate/trainingmagazine