Fierce Leadership

From the author of the acclaimed book Fierce Conversations comes the antidote to some of the most wrongheaded practices of business today.
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Hold people accountable."These are all sound, business practices, right? Not so fast, says leadership visionary and best-selling author Susan Scott. In fact, these mantras - despite being long-accepted and adopted by business leaders everywhere - are completely wrongheaded. Worse, they are costing companies billions of dollars, driving away valuable employees and profitable customers, limiting performance, and stalling careers. Yet they are so deeply ingrained in organizational cultures that no one has questioned them. Until now.In Fierce Leadership, Scott teaches us how to spot the worst "best" practices in our organizations using a technique she calls "squid eye" - the ability to see the "tells" or signs that we have fallen prey to disastrous behaviors by knowing what to look for. Only then, she says, can we apply the antidote.Informed by over a decade of conversations with Fortune 500 executives, this book is that antidote. With fierce new approaches to everything from employee feedback to corporate diversity to customer relations, Scott offers fresh and surprising alternatives to six of the so-called "best" practices permeating today's businesses. This refreshingly candid book is a must-read for any manager or leader at any level who is ready to take a long hard look at what trouble might be lurking in their organization - and do something about it.

"Susan's new book has serious style, in its best sense, and is a must-read for anyone even remotely thinking about influencing situations and organizations. It's a jammed-packed compilation of truths and approaches for grounding all those "business how-to's" in real substance that makes them work. Marrying how you are with who you are is ultimately the winning formula, and Fierce Leadership makes that accessible and exciting in its practical suggestions for implementing the powerful principles of making positive change. This is on my very short list of books to digest and assimilate. " (David Allen, author of Getting Things Done and Making it all Work)