What books are you reading right now?

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Permalink Reply by James Hayton on June 24, 2008 at 4:28am

How is the Styhre book? This is an interesting topic - would you recommend? Is it based in some empirical work? best, James

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Permalink Reply by Dariusz Jemielniak on August 6, 2008 at 3:02pm

apologies for my late reply. Yes Styhre is a good read, he is quite provocative in defending th merits of bureaucracy, but it is also quite refreshing

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Permalink Reply by Jerry Manas on June 24, 2008 at 1:41pm

Great thread. I'm currently reading "Speed Lead" by Kevan Hill. It's a brilliant book that operationalizes what needs to be done to reduce meetings, cut out unnecessary work, simpify processes, and increase employee and customer satisfaction in the process. As an organizational architect myself, I'm finding some useful tools that support the practices I encourage to clients, and compliment my current toolset.

I'm also reading (I'm prone to read two and three books at a time), "If Disney Ran Your Hospital," by Fred Lee. Having just read the fascinating book, "The Disney Way" and attended training from the Disney University, I'm looking forward to the practical examples in service, culture, and operations that this book has to offer to the healthcare indsutry (which sorely needs it). So far, I'm impressed.

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Permalink Reply by Howard Berkson on June 26, 2008 at 5:34pm

This same question was asked recently on an all-practitioner board and thought I'd post their list here for contrast. Items are in the order posted, not ranked by any particular criterion.

The Essential Guide to Employment Laws by Lisa Guerin and Amy Delpo
The Employer's Legal Handbook by Fred S. Steingold (from Nolo)
Winning by Jack and Suzy Welch
Jacked Up by Bill Lane who (Jack Welch's speechwriter for many years)
Textbooks for the CEBS certification and PHR/SPHR certifications
The HR Scorecard: Linking People, Strategy, & Performance
Understanding the Federal Wage & Hour Laws
Incentive Compensation and Employee Ownership
The FMLA (Aitchison, LRIS publishers)
John Kotter, "Leading Change"
John Boudreau & Peter Ramstad, Beyond HR: The New Science of Human Capital
Mary Cook, "Complete Do-it Yourself HR Department".

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Permalink Reply by James Hayton on June 27, 2008 at 7:03am

That's an interesting list - I think it provides some insights into popular topics and trends - leadership, law, and accountability (metrics strategy). I remember Deb Cohen at SHRM telling me that the most popular question topic over at the SHRM help desk was consistently legal, and I think followed by comp. These readings reflect this to some degree. cheers, James

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Permalink Reply by Rob Orr on June 27, 2008 at 10:01am

I'm reading Peter Block's latest, "Community: The Structure of Belonging." I have had the great privilege to participate in two of his workshops where he introduced many of the concepts and techniques he discusses from an “business organization” perspective. It is intriguing to me to see the direct applicability of the ideas and tools to community based organizations – and the challenge to reframe the idea of citizenship. I am involved in two community-based groups: a Boy Scout troop and a church-based youth group – I see great potential for improvement in both with the beginning of Block’s “Six Conversations.”

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Permalink Reply by Mahesh Subramony on June 27, 2008 at 7:35pm

Out of my non-HRM list, I would highly recommend:

Thomas Friedman's 'The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century' (a good primer on globalization)

Atul Gawande's 'Complications: A Surgeon's Notes on an Imperfect Science' (a nice insight into decision making)

Alan Greenspan's 'The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World' (the former Fed chair's autobiography)

Louis Menand 's 'The Metaphysical Club: A Story of Ideas in America' (a very well written introduction to the philosophy of pragmatism)

Muhammad Yunus' 'Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty' (a nobel prize winner's account of social change at the grassroots)

'The 9/11 Commission Report' (a tremendously detailed and well written account of the events of 9/11 and its antecedents - great insights into decision making and complexity).

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Permalink Reply by Mino Akhtar on July 21, 2008 at 5:07pm

I have been re-reading some favourites: Learning as Transformation by Jack Mezirow and Bill Isaac's work...but I just ordered "Firms of Endearment"...anyone heard of it? I am curious how well it is known...

Also I would like to know if anyone is familiar with Ralph Kilmann's work, e.g. Quantum Organizations?

Great idea to discuss books/theories!

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Permalink Reply by Anthony L. Onesto on July 26, 2008 at 9:07am

Reading Winners don't Cheat

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Permalink Reply by Mino Akhtar on August 6, 2008 at 3:12pm

Well, I just found another gem - Firms of Endearment by 3 authors:Raj Sisodia, Jag Sheth, David B. Wolfe....i love the beginning, and embrace their views completely! Looking forward to sharing more.

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Permalink Reply by Cam Caldwell on August 6, 2008 at 5:49pm

I am currently reading Beyond HR, which I picked up at the SHRM Conference in Chicago. It addresses the perspective that HR must have to understand how to add value by recognizing the critical linkages that add value in organizations. The insight of the authors is that HR's role must facilitate and create integrated systems that achieve the business purposes of an organization. This book focuses on how HR leaders must understand how their organizations can create the transformational insights that maximize long-term wealth creation. HR professionals must transcend understanding technical and even strategic concepts and must help their organizations learn how to recognize those special opportunities to compete more successfully. Only when HR understands the key elements of strategic competitive advantage and how it is sustained will it be able to earn a seat at the decision-making table.

I am enjoying this book and am struggling to develop the insights and skills that it describes.

Cam Caldwell, PhD & SPHR
MBA Director
McNeese State University

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