5 Overrated Books

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5 Overrated Books by Geoffrey James

MANAGEMENT CONSULTING
1. “Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business Revolution” by Michael Hammer and James Champy (Collins, 2003)
Publisher’s blurb: “This book leads readers through the radical redesign of a company’s processes, organization, and culture to achieve a quantum leap in performance.”

Excerpt: “Corporations do not perform badly because, as some critics have claimed, workers are lazy and managements are inept. Our record of industrial and technological accomplishment in the last century is proof enough that managements are not inept and workers do work. Ironically, the explanation for why companies perform badly is the identical explanation for why they used to perform so well.”

Why it’s overrated: The tautological reasoning (see excerpt) inherent in the reengineering concept immediately became weasel-speak for the downsizing craze, eviscerating companies while producing no lasting value.

Read this instead: “The March of Folly: From Troy to Vietnam” by Barbara Tuchman (Knopf, 1984)

Why: It gives a great explanation of “cognitive dissonance” — the reason that management fads always fail.

Excerpt: “For the ruler it is easier, once he has entered a policy box, to stay inside. For the lesser official it is better, for the sake of his position, not to make waves, not to press evidence that the chief will find painful to accept.”

2. “In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best-Run Companies” by Tom Peters and Robert H. Waterman (Harpercollins, 1982)
Publisher’s blurb: “Based on a study of forty-three of America’s best-run companies from a diverse array of business sectors, describes eight basic principles of management — action-stimulating, people-oriented, profit-maximizing practices — that made these organizations successful.”

Excerpt: “But primarily the ferment is around another stream of thoughts that follows from some startling ideas about the limited capacity of decision makers to handle information and reach what we usually think of as ‘rational’ decisions, and the even lesser likelihood that large collectives (i.e. organizations) will automatically execute the complex strategic design of the rationalists.”

Why it’s overrated: The “excellent” companies mostly went smack down the toilet.

Read this instead: “The Dilbert Principle” by Scott Adams (Harper Business, 1996)

Why: You’ll know exactly why “excellent” companies go smack down the toilet.

Excerpt: “Employees like to feel that their contributions are being valued. That’s why managers try to avoid that sort of thing. With value comes self-esteem and with self-esteem comes unreasonable requests for money.”

MANAGEMENT ROLE MODELS
3. “Leadership Secrets of Attila the Hun” by Wess Roberts (Grand Central Publishing, 1989)
Publisher’s blurb: “In a uniquely creative and entertaining approach to a most serious task, ‘Attila’ reveals his principles for successful morale building, decision making, delegating and negotiating, and gives advice on overcoming setbacks and achieving goals.”

Excerpt: “The mere presence of the horde often instilled sufficient terror in the people of a region that they abandoned their villages without either resistance or subsequent reprisal. Out of this perplexing and barbaric past rose one of the most formidable leaders the world has known: Attila, King of Huns.”

Why it’s overrated: While most managers would love to behead disobedient employees, such behavior reads poorly in the annual report.

Read this instead: “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu (various editions)

Why: If you’re going to bloviate about business and warfare, you may as well quote the classic source.

Excerpt: “There are five dangerous faults which may affect a general: (1) recklessness, which leads to destruction; (2) cowardice, which leads to capture; (3) a hasty temper, which can be provoked by insults; (4) a delicacy of honor, which is sensitive to shame; (5) over-solicitude for his men, which exposes him to worry and trouble.”

4. “Jack Welch & the G.E. Way: Management Insights and Leadership Secrets of the Legendary CEO” by Robert Slater (McGraw-Hill, 1998)
Publisher’s blurb: “The legendary maverick discusses the traits that led BusinessWeek to anoint Welch, ‘ the gold standard against which other CEOs are measured.’”

Excerpt: “In order to make General Electric truly competitive, he would have to put it through more dramatic and far-reaching changes that any major American business enterprise had ever undertaken.”

Why it’s overrated: GE is an entirely unique organization and Jack Welch was an idiosyncratic leader. What worked for him (there) won’t likely work for you (here).

Read this instead: “Crazy Bosses” by Stanley Bing (Collins, 2007)

Why: These are the managers that you’re actually going to run into, so you’d better be prepared for them.

Excerpt: “There are two ways to look at it. Either (a) the business world is a sane place dominated by a couple of crazy people who ruin everything or (b) the organizations we serve are basically crazy, and you need to be crazy to manage them. After years of studying the subject, I’m weighing in on (b).”

5. “Jesus CEO” by Laurie Beth Jones (Hyperion, 1995)
Publisher’s blurb: “By harnessing three categories of strength behind Jesus’ leadership techniques (the strength of self-mastery, the strength of action, and the strength of relationships), each of us can become the empowered leaders that the next millennium will require.”

Excerpt: “I believe that Jesus had to go into the wilderness to find out who he was — that a wilderness experience was as much a part of his shaping and destiny as it is yours and mine.”

Why it’s overrated: While many managers think they’re God and manage accordingly, the historical Jesus espoused a communal lifestyle in direct opposition to (Roman) capitalism.

Read this instead: “The Book of Proverbs” (in the Bible)

Why: A collection of wisdom that completely transcends religion.

Excerpt: “Better a dry crust and with it peace than a house where feast and dispute go together.”

5 Overrated Books