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John P. Kotter on What Leaders Really Do by John P. Kotter (Harvard Business School Press)
The need for strong leadership in business, government, and society has never been greater than in today's ever-changing and fast-paced world. But while many believe that a new leadership "style" is called for to compete in such an environment, HBS professor John P. Kotter argues that substance, not style, is the key to effectiveness. In John P. Kotter on What Leaders Really Do, a collection of his most acclaimed Harvard Business Review articles from 1979 to 1997, Kotter shows that a leader's core behavior on the job and how that behavior propels change within the organization are the primary determinants of success.
In his introduction, Kotter discusses the difference between leadership and management, two roles that are often blended or confused in organizations to the detriment of overall effectiveness. Organized in two sections, the book opens with an examination of leadership and change and then looks at how successful managerial work today is less concerned with wielding power over others than it is with coping with dependence on others. Connecting both parts of the book is the notion that the more things change, the more strong leadership is needed and the more complicated the interconnected web of relationships becomes.
While effective leadership and management are both necessary in organizations, Kotter points out, they serve different purposes. Management's role is to keep the current system functioning, while leadership should inspire change. "It is possible to have too much or too little of either," Kotter writes. "Strong leadership with no management risks chaos," while "strong management with no leadership tends to entrench an organization in deadly bureaucracy." Readers of Kotter's latest book will learn to appreciate the difference.
Breaking Through by David A. Thomas and John J. Gabarro (Harvard Business School Press)
On the cusp of a new millennium, the face of corporate power in the United States remains overwhelmingly white. People of color hold less than 1 percent of all senior executive posts. How does one explain, then, the success of Kenneth Chenault, president, COO, and CEO-designate of American Express, or of Ann Fudge (MBA '77), president of Maxwell House Coffee Company and Post Cereals? How have these people of color broken through the glass ceiling that confronts most minority managers in large U.S. companies?
In their new book, Breaking Through: The Making of Minority Executives in Corporate America, HBS associate professor David A. Thomas and professor John J. Gabarro describe how the road to success for such corporate leaders takes them through some difficult twists and turns. Promotions, for instance, are typically much more elusive for minority executives in the early stages of their careers than they are for whites. And once they make the leap into middle and upper management, these minority trailblazers have to put together a stellar record of performance while building a network of mentors to support and advise them.
To uncover the processes that promote the development and advancement of minority executives, Thomas and Gabarro embarked on a six-year study analyzing promotion data and comparing the career experiences of 54 minority and white executives and managers from three companies. These firms represent different industries, products, and cultures, but they share a commitment to diversity and a record of promoting people of color to leadership positions.
"The minority executives we studied did not wait for their work environment to be perfect," Thomas notes. "They managed their careers using the strategies we identified. At the same time, the companies they worked for were also attempting to create a more conducive environment for minority advancement and opportunity. The power of this combination gives new meaning to the term 'equal opportunity.' "
(Adapted from "What It Takes" by Judith A. Ross, Working Knowledge, Winter 1999)
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