Comments on: 100 Best Business Books of All Time?

By: Mark Graban

Mark Graban — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 22:23:00 +0000

Brian – thanks for the tip. Just started reading What Would Google Do? Also had it recommended by someone else.

Also read Seth Godin’s “Tribes”. Not on the Best 100 list, but really interesting and inspiring stuff.

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By: Gary

Gary — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 13:57:00 +0000

I was very intrigued by the book “Flow”. I read it years ago before I really knew anything about lean. I recently re-read it and I think it is an excellent study in why people would want to work in a true lean system vs. batch-and-queue. This even though the book is not at all about lean.

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By: Brian

Brian — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 14:56:00 +0000

A new one for the list — What Would Google Do? Much of it is radically lean.

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By: Walter

Walter — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 17:02:00 +0000

How to Be a Star at Work is a piece of trash . . . serious and deliberate misuse of statistics . . . completely bogus claims.

Here’s my amazon.com review.

http://www.amazon.com/review/R2NC8DV6YFCORE/

Walter Reade (from Wisconsin)

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By: Peter Risager

Peter Risager — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 10:53:00 +0000

Leading Change by Kotter is a very useful book and very quickly read. It has the largest type I have ever seen in a book. A bit simple, but solid advice and refreshing to read as there is not too much bulls*** in it.

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By: curiouscat

curiouscat — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 18:33:00 +0000

The Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton M. Christensen is great (though I would suggest his Innovator’s Solution). Team Handbook is excellent though I think the Leader’s Handbook (also by Peter Scholtes) is actually the single best management book).

Add at least one book by Ackoff to the list. See Curious Cat recommended management books:

http://curiouscat.com/management/essentialmanagementbooks.cfm

Knowing-Doing Gap is very good as is the Effective Executive. When Genius Failed is a nice read (nice focus on financial markets). Emotional Intelligence is also decent. As is Flow.

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By: mike

mike — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:42:00 +0000

I assiduously avoid anything by Stephen Covey (or his kids or his pets). Friedman’s Flat Earth book was too “gee whiz” naive for me so I never read any of his others. Nice to see Charles Handy and Gordon MacKenzie on the list. My recommendation for anyone new in a leadership position is Ram Charan’s “What the CEO Wants You to Know.”

So what’s with the lean thinkers and Philly these days? Must be the water or something. After a lifetime in the frozen auto wastes of Michigan I now live only an hour from downtown Philadelphia.

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By: James Considine

James Considine — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 13:08:00 +0000

+1000 for Orbiting the Giant Hairball – essential for those of us working in larger firms.

Another favorite of mine:
Throwing The Elephant: Zen and the Art of Managing Up Stanley Bing

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By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 04:58:00 +0000

Lean Thinking doesn’t even belong on a list of best lean books, let alone this list.

Missing might be Henry Ford’s Today and Tomorrow.

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By: Mark Graban

Mark Graban — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 02:23:00 +0000

Ah, Rearden and his Taylor love. We’ll continue to disagree on this. Taylor made some contributions, to be sure, but I still don’t like his whole vibe (not having met the man myself, it may be an unfair assessment, I’ll admit).

I can attest to the warmth in Philadelphia, being physically here in the City of Brotherly Love through Wednesday.

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