With Christmas being upon us, we often scramble to find some small, last minute gifts that can be used as stocking stuffers. This year, try something different. Why not give someone something old fashioned, like a book? I mean an actual book in print and not a digital version of the book. Something they can hold in their hands. I know, a quaint idea…. A book is a perfect stocking stuffer.
So, If you are actively involved in management of any kind of organization, whether it is for profit, not for profit, or governmental, here is my reading list and ideas for last minute stocking stuffers. They are listed in alphabetical order and not in suggested priority.
The Beekeeper: Pollinating Your Organization for Transformative Growth by Katie Desiderio and Michael Frino. This is a wonderful and easy to read book describing how successful managers should run their organizations and treat their employees and colleagues. The book is narrated by Catherine, the young founder of a business. A magical vacation experience transforms the way she leads her organization. Any manager will find this to be a thought provoking book.
Move: How Decisive Leaders Execute Strategy Despite Obstacles, Setbacks, and Stalls by Patty Azzarello. Discerning the proper strategy for an organization can be hard enough. Executing that strategy can be a whole different story. Patty Azzarello, a successful consultant and business executive presents her ideas on how to get your organization moving forward. To be sure, this is not a book written for academics. Rather, It is written for the manager in the trenches who is trying to execute strategy. This book is a practical guide on implementing the organization’s mission and vision.
Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgement by Daniel Kahneman, Oliver Sibony, and Cass Sunstein. The authors of this book don’t need any introduction. They are the Dream Team of Management Theorists. Noise can be thought of as a sequel to Thinking Fast and Slow, Kahneman’s previous book on decision making. Kahneman et. al. distinguish between bias and noise. Bias receives all the attention, but noise can cause just as much variability in decision making. This is a well-written book that explains some difficult concepts in an understandable and accessible way.
The Voltage Effect: How to Make Good Ideas Great and Great Ideas Scale by John List. Scalability has become a buzzword in the management community. The author, a renowned academic and chief economist at Lyft and Uber, takes us on a tour of how to ramp up a small operation and make it larger. List describes both the successful strategies for scaling and the pitfalls in trying to scale your organization. It is a delightful book with many great ideas.
All work and no play is not good for anyone. So, if you are looking for pure pleasure reading on an offbeat topic, I would suggest American Cosmic and Encounters, both written by Diana Walsh Pasulka. These books discuss the UAP phenomena from a fresh and interesting perspective.
So everyone, good luck on beating the crowds in the shopping malls. From someone who has always hated that, these books all have one advantage: you can order them from Amazon!
Have a great holiday season.
Mark Koscinski CPA D.Litt. 