You Don't Have to Do It Alone: How to Involve Others to Get Things Done. Richard Axelrod, Emily Axelrod, Julie Beedon, and Robert Jacobs. (2004) A very good book written by people who are masters at getting people involved. An easy read and highly recommended.
The Empowered Manager: Positive Political Skills at Work. Peter Block. (1987) I still love this book. It is especially valuable if you work in a bureaucratic culture. He nails the dilemma for managers working in those large rigid hierarchical institutions
Open Book Management: the Coming Business Revolution. (1995) or, The Open-Book Experience (1998) Both by John Case. He writes about a grassroots movement called Open Book Management. By now there are many companies using this approach. Basically, you open the books, show people the threats and opportunities, provide clear targets, and people will rise to the challenge and make good business decisions. As you will see in The Open Book Experience there is no one-size-fits-all approach. People develop ways to employ these principles that fit their unique cultures. I highly recommend both of these books.
Good to Great. Jim Collins. (2001). This book is solid. There is one critically important point that could easily get overlooked as you read Collins' book and it relates specifically to making a compelling case. Companies that did a great job of keeping people informed didn't think much about managing change. In those companies change was evolutionary and people could see why they needed to reorganize or install a new software system. No banners or catchy slogans were needed to try to motivate people. These companies embody what's best about making a compelling case – its part of the air they breathe.
Managing at the Speed of Change. Daryl Connor. (1992) This is another classic. Connor was the first author to take resistance seriously. He's got very good stuff to say.
Peace is Every Step. Thich Nhat Hanh (1991). This is a wonderful little book. Not your typical corporate read and all the better for it. If you can stay calm while life is trying to pull you off center, you can probably handle the resistance directed personally at you that can come with getting back on track. Hanh gives many practical tips on what to do. It is based on simple meditative practices. I highly recommend it.
Leading Change. John Kotter. (1996) This book is a classic and it deserves to be. Kotter identifies critical steps in the life of a change. This is a good book to read as you get started.
Beyond the Wall of Resistance. Rick Maurer (1996) This is an overview of my thinking on change. I've fine-tuned my thinking and made some shifts here and there, but it is still the best quick overview of my approach. Click here >>
Building Capacity for Change Sourcebook. Rick Maurer.(2000) This is our book of practical tools. It shows you how to build support for change, avoid resistance to change in organizations, how to sustain commitment, and how to get things back on track. It includes tools to build change readiness and tools to manage organizational change. In addition to the three-ring binder, you get the entire contents on CD as well. And you can copy anything in the book for personal use. Click here >>
Making a Compelling Case for Change. Rick Maurer. 2004 This is our short book that shows you a step-by-step process that will enable you to make a compelling case for change – and avoid the pitfalls you could encounter along the way. And surprise, surprise, we recommend the book. Click here >>
Why Don't You Want What I Want? Rick Maurer. (2002) This is a personal guide to avoiding resistance and working with it once it rears its head. Of course I like it. Click here >>
Feedback Toolkit. Rick Maurer. (1994) This book has sold consistently since its publication over ten years ago. It is short and gives you practical tools for giving and receiving feedback effectively. Click here >>
Caught in the Middle. Rick Maurer.(1992) This is a guidebook for managers on ways to increase commitment to quality and service. Although Rick wrote the book when the quality movement was in full bloom, the ideas still stand. It is filledwith practical advice as well assessment tools. Click here >>
The Great Game of Business. Jack Stack. (1994) Stack and a couple of colleagues bought Springfield Remanufacturing Corporation. They had very little money, so they opened the books and made everyone a leader. He claims that commitment to giving people information and creating a single business target for everyone to shoot for was the key to their success. It's a great read. Based on their success, he created The Great Game of Business, a consulting firm dedicated to helping companies open their books. I have great respect for their work.
Difficult Conversations. Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, And Sheila Heen. This is written by people from the Harvard Negotiating Project. (You remember Getting to Yes.) Very practical situations with good strategies for gaining agreements.
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Here is a list of organizations and consulting firms that we believe provide helpful services.
If you find a resource that looks interesting, we urge you to explore it more deeply. Talk with them. Where appropriate, check references. We do not receive compensation from these organizations for these listings. The listings do not imply a guarantee of their work. You need to find out if there is a good fit for you.
Affordable Business and Executive Coaching
Zenith Coaching, Inc. is a global network of experienced business and executive coaches. We're making coaching affordable and accessible to everyone.
AthenaOnline.com
AthenaOnline.com is a premier publisher of multimedia training, education and career development products. Athena was founded as a sister company to the Institute for Management Studies (IMS), with a mission to leverage technology to deliver business E-Knowledge when and where individuals need it. Athena's online SmartByte system delivers short, just-in-time answers to business questions from industry experts. Athena has consistently delivered award-winning programs over the Internet, internal networks and on CD-Rom.
BornToMotivate.com
Free online personality test, motivational & inspirational quotes, success tips, self help articles and more.
The Business Knowledge Network
The Business Knowledge Network gives your employees global access to just-in-time business advice right from their computer desktops. Whether employees are half a world away or just down the hall, the Athena Knowledge Network will help them make better and faster decisions.
CEO Graduate School
I am affiliated with the CEOGS. We offer training and guidance for leaders of emerging companies. If you fit in that category, please take a look at what the “graduate school” offers.
Change Management Learning Center
The Change Management Learning Center is one of the most complete resources on the web for managing change, including a directory of books, articles, tutorials, benchmarking reports, training and more.
Six Sigma
Six Sigma training and lean process improvement resources for all organizations.
Enterprise Management Ltd.
Our firm provides training and assessment services help leaders produce results by focusing on results. Using our practical framework leaders improve their direction setting, decision making, communication, coaching, and change management. With our award winning Leadership Spectrum Profile® your leaders learn how to target six vital business priorities that support your organization's™ lifecycle and produce breakthrough results (www.leadershipspectrum.com). Along with targeting results, we can help your leaders sustain success by aligning organizational systems, establishing a climate of trust, enhancing creativity, and motivating followers.
Executive Edge, Inc.
Team Building, Teamwork, & Management Training. Leading corporate team building and teamwork consulting firm providing fun leadership skills development, management training, and teambuilding programs.
Future Search Network
Future Search is an effective planning tool that gets management, accounting, IT, marketing and HR talking to each other. I describe the Future Search process in Beyond the Wall of Resistance.
Motivation Point
Your source for seminars and events in motivation, personal development, and self-improvement, as well as, industry news and related topics.
Gold Medal Speakers
Representing the top motivation speakers in the country
Growth Dynamics, Inc
Architects of Leadership TechnologySM
Growth Dynamics, Inc. supports leaders, helping them to define and align
their vision for organizational priorities, policy and direction. GDI provides leaders at all levels with a set of powerful, customized tools to: (1) clarify and achieve leadership goals; and (2) build healthy and effective organizations.
Visit GDI's web page at: www.growthdynamics.com
Human Resource Development
We teach individuals how to position for a constantly changing professional environment and help organizations to attract and retain critical talent. Earl Hipp, President of HRD, delivers customized, high impact keynotes and seminars to corporations, local and national associations and government agencies across the United States. Earl's clients refer to his programs as helpful, practical, motivational, challenging, entertaining, a little weird and eye-opening. Primary Topics include: The Power of Professional Resilience, Blending Organizational Cultures, The Heart of Collaboration and Mastering The Change Cycle
Improv Solutions
As today's business world continues to rapidly evolve within the ' Knowledge era' so do the challenges of survival and maintaining your competitive edge.
A key part of this evolution needs to be people focused, developing areas such as their emotional intelligence to work in conjunction with technical competencies for the success of an organisation.
It is therefore essential that training methods also evolve to help companies to survive and grow.
With this in mind, Improv Solutions develop highly effective experiential programmes for organisations using the art of improvisation combined with the study of multiple intelligence in the following areas:
- Innovation
- Communication
- Team Development
- Leadership
- Creativity
- Presentation
- Motivation
- Orientation
Leadertalk
What business leaders are doing tomorrow, we are talking about today. Leadertalk airs 9 am EDT, and again at 9 pm, Wednesdays with Co-hosts Eric Dent and Linda Smith.
Rick Maurer interview on LeaderTalk - May 15th.
Life Skills International (LSI)
Developing positive human relationships is at the heart of Life Skills International (LSI) and its services. Dr. Hooks and her associates accomplish this in numerous ways. For example, Dr. Hooks currently coaches more than 30 leaders, conducts team building sessions, develops customized programs and uses an appreciative approach to assessing organizational needs.
Medical Bridges
A physician-run company that offers solutions to your healthcare problems. We offer a bridge between the healthcare you want and the healthcare you're getting. Vicki Rackner MD, author of Chicken Soup for the Soul Healthy Living Series: Heart Disease.
Motivation123.com
WANT TO GET MOTIVATED?
Get your free Motivation123 Idea-Kit, free motivation newsletter, and hundreds of quick and easy tips to help you reach your goals and improve your attitude.
The Motivational and Inspirational Corner
Description: Your motivational headquarters where you'll find motivational and inspirational quotes and stories. Home of the inspirational Power Up Passage of the Day and the motivational Power Performance Program. We trade links.
Ross Roxburgh Consulting
Strategic planning, leadership coaching, change and organization effectiveness.
Teambuildinginc.com...The Team Building Supersite
Team building services, products, events, news, articles, speakers, seminars, adventure outings, Team Problem Solver(TM), discussion, and more.
Work/Life Balance
Nonprofit work life balance organization providing employee motivation tools and work life balance training information that enable employers and employees to work together to optimize work life balance and improve employee motivation through the use of employee surveys and work life balance training material.
Teambuilding Scavenger Hunts/Treasure Hunts for Team Communication
Dr. Clue's business-focused teambuilding exercises use a fun treasure hunt model to explore substantive organizational issues. Challenging clues, tricky puzzles and big teambuilding lessons -- on the streets of America's most interesting neighborhoods.
WORDpower™ For Success and Change teaches you to speak and respond proactively. Every time you speak, your words send powerful images and verbal commands to the entire mind-body system. WORDpower™ saves you valuable time and energy while increasing your performance. It teaches you to communicate accurately, enables you to build relationships of trust and improves the quality of your life.
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