What's Holding You Back: 10 Bold Steps That Define Gutsy Leaders
"A must read for both emerging and established executives! Bob Herbold provides ten clear guidelines that will enable managers to become strong, proactive leaders." -John C. Lechleiter, Former Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer, Eli Lilly and Company
"Bob Herbold's book gives good insights as to why managers often fail to make tough decisions. His ten actionable steps are a useful template for becoming a strong, courageous leader and achieving significant impact." -Wee Ee Cheong, Deputy Chairman and CEO, United Overseas Bank Ltd
"A terrific book : Herbold's principles are a ready-to-use guidelines for strong leadership. A great tool for training your best and brightest leaders to steer through the world of fast change and severe competition. I highly recommend it." -Shin-Bae Kim, Vice Chairman & CEO, SK C&C, Korea
"The first and most important responsibility of leadership is to make clear decisions - about strategy, talent, resources and other critical issues. Often, these decisions must be made in volatile, uncertain, chaotic and ambiguous conditions, which requires instinct and courage. Bob Herbold's excellent book equips leaders with the insights and tools needed to make clear and courageous decisions. I recommend it highly." -Robert A. McDonald, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer, Procter & Gamble Company
Quit hiding from tough decisions and learn to confront them head-on
Why do managers at all levels sacrifice corporate success by shying away from making the tough decisions? What's Holding You Back? reveals exactly why managers often hesitate to confront difficult issues-whether it's the absence of a perfect solution, the knowledge that no decision will please everyone, etc. and, most importantly, how they can overcome these common managerial obstacles to maximize their company's success. What's Holding You Back? elucidates the ten core principles of confident leadership, outlining proven tactics by which managers can confront their inner wimp and highlight their inner courage.
Features dynamic real-world examples from Apple, Microsoft, Porsche, IBM, Merck, Canon, Sony, Whirlpool, IDEO, Tesco, P&G, Target, 3M, and more
Pinpoints the corporate failures that can result from hesitant or self-conscious organizations, and what managers can do to avoid them
Clearly delineates how managers can cultivate and deliver accountable and decisive leadership, even during the toughest dilemmas
What's Holding You Back? proves that practicing gutsy leadership is the key to operational and innovative excellence in the workplace
Seduced By Success: How the Best Companies Survive the 9 Traps of Winning
"Bob Herbold gets to the heart of why successful organizations and individuals often go into a tail-spin, and how this can be avoided. His thorough reviews of specific companies we all know make this a very useful book, and I highly recommend it." -Indra K. Nooyi, Former President & CEO, PepsiCo, Inc.
"This book rings painfully true. Bob Herbold demonstrates with clinical precision that a company's precipitate fall from grace can frequently be traced back to its time of greatest achievement. Before you get too depressed, however, take heart - he also gives you all the tools you need to avoid that ignominious fate. Anyone interested in sustained success should study it closely." -Sir Marttn Sorrell, Chief Executive Officer, WPP Group PLC
"Seldom do you find a book with as many powerful, useful reminders that help you face up to reality and deal with problems. It becomes very clear why so many organizations fall behind and lose their way. I strongly urge you to read it." -Grant L. Kelley, Principal & CEO, Colony Capital Asia
"Seduced by Success is a great book and should be compulsory reading for all managers. It's very instructive to read the detailed case studies showing how some successful companies lose their way, while others remain successful. Through these rich examples Bob Herbold shows how to sustain success." -Koh Boon Hwee, Chairman, DBS Group Holdings/DBS Bank, Asia
Don't let success put your company on the road to ruin.
In Seduced by Success, Robert J. Herbold, the former Chief Operating Officer of Microsoft, shows you how to avoid the nine traps of success-the "legacy practices" that almost felled such giants as General Motors, Kodak and Sony. Herbold, a 26-year-veteran of Procter & Gamble who lived through each trap, gives you proven tactics for preventing arrogance, bloat, and neglect while capitalizing on your accomplishments, sustaining your momentum, and retaining your position in the marketplace.
The nine traps every successful organization must avoid are:
Neglect: Sticking with Yesterday's Business Model
Pride: Allowing Your Products to Become Outdated
Boredom: Clinging to Your Once-Successful Branding
Complexity: Ignoring Your Business Processes
Bloat: Rationalizing Your Loss of Speed and Agility
Mediocrity: Letting Your Star Employees Languish
Lethargy: Getting Lulled into a Culture of Comfort
Timidity: Not Confronting Turf Wars and Obstructionists
Confusion: Unwittingly Conducting Schizophrenic Communications
These mistakes cut your business legs off at the knees, destroying your ability to recognize and meet the need for change.
Herbold shows you how to avoid these landmines by
Continually revitalizing your brands and products
Demanding new approaches to "proven" practices
Maintaining speed and agility through strong leadership
Making sure employees are empowered to achieve and not handicapped by bureaucracy
Using an exciting new product to overhaul your culture
For each success trap, Herbold provides illuminating examples of top companies that were seduced by their success-as well as others that managed to maintain and even broaden their achievements. Seduced by Success is the best way to ensure your company sustains its success for the long term.
The Fiefdom Syndrome: The Turf Battles That Undermine Careers and Companies - And How to Overcome Them
"Turf wars and bureaucracy can undermine even the strongest corporate strategies. Drawing on lessons learned throughout his distinguished career, Bob describes innovative and practical ways to tackle this pervasive problem - and beat The Fiefdom Syndrome." -Bill Gates, Chairman and Chief Software Architect, Microsoft Corporation
"Fiefdoms are the enemy of collaboration and external focus. They turn organizations inward, and distract companies from customer needs and competitive realities. Bob Herbold gets to the heart of why fiefdoms exist and what leaders can do to overcome them. This is an important book for any leader who is responsible for sustained business growth." -A.G. Lafley, Chairman, Chief Executive and President, The Procter & Gamble Co.
"Bob Herbold takes on the bureaucracy and turf battles that can undercut any company's agility - the kind of problems Sam Walton fought his whole life to overcome. I strongly recommend it." -Rob Walton, Chairman of the Board, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
"The foundation of a successful organization is a team focused on common goals. With its thorough analysis and practical insights, this book will help you recognize, eliminate and prevent the cancer of individual agendas." -Michael Dell, Chairman, Dell Inc.
This book, published in 2004 by Bob Herbold, tackles the following issue which, if not dealt with, can lead a company to bureaucratic paralysis:
There is a simmering and potentially infectious condition inside virtually all organizations and it can lead to massive operational inefficiencies and strategic mediocrity. The problem begins when individuals, groups or divisions try to protect their turf and reshape their environment to gain as much control over it as possible. They become fixated on their own activities, their own careers, and their own territory or turf to the detriment of those around them.
People who create such fiefdoms become dangerously insular, losing perspective and awareness of what is happening in the world outside of their own control. They also tend to hoard resources and are determined to do things their own way, often duplicating or complicating what should be done company-wide.
The book tackles this problem; outlining the causes and providing numerous approaches designed to eliminate the problem or to prevent it from ever happening.
