It's the Manager: Moving From Boss to Coach Hardcover – May 7, 2019

“Setting aside just 15 minutes a day will enable you to read up to two dozen books in a year. Keep it up and you will have read 1,000 books in your lifetime. That’s the equivalent of going through college five times.” I found this motivating quotation in “Books Are Tremendous” by Charlie “Tremendous” Jones.But…here’s a crazy idea (whether you’re back at the office or still in your bunker): every Monday morning, before you look at your email—invest 15 minutes in reading.Option #1: I’m not asking you to do this every day—just every Monday. So here is a “Thank God It’s Monday” book with 52 mini-chapters.Option #2: Or, delegate your reading and ask team members (on a rotation basis) to give a five-minute chapter summary of this book at your weekly staff meeting.Don’t allow the mini-chapters (four pages or less each) to delude you into thinking this is light-weight content. The 52 short chapters are readable, to-the-point, and packed with promise for thoughtful implementers.Starting next Monday, what if…you invested 15 minutes to read and think about Chapter 1, “What Exactly Should CEOs and CHROs Change?” Even if you’re not the CEO or the Chief HR Officer, you will learn (and remember) the six changes recommended by Gallup, including #3, “Millennials and Generation Z don’t want bosses—they want coaches.” Sneak peek: it’s time to retire the old-style boss who leads by command and control.With your 15-minutes-every-Monday discipline, look at what awaits you for the next 52 weeks:2) Why Organizational Change Is So Hard3) Two Non-Negotiable Traits for Leaders10) Hiring Star Employees21) The Five Coaching Conversations25) Make “My Development” the Reason Employees Stay30) The Five Traits of Great Managers47) Gig Work: The New Employer-Employee RelationshipBased on roundtable interviews with CHROs from 300 of the world’s largest organizations, the content covers Strategy, Culture, Employment Brand, Boss to Coach, and the Future of Work.The robust appendix (pages 189-378) includes major sections on: “Leading With Your Strengths: A Guide to the 34 Clifton Strengths Themes,” (including one unique code to take the online assessment), “Q12: The 12 Elements of Great Management,” and “The Relationship Between Engagement at Work and Organizational Outcomes,” plus more.“The Future of Work” section, Chapters 32 to 41, addresses diversity and inclusion topics—and the critical “lever” of the manager, a discussion of the gender gap, women in the workplace (work-life flexibility, etc.) and for us old guys, “Are Boomers a Burden?” Breaking News: “74% of Americans plan to work past age 65.”You have my permission to start with Chapter 26, “Moneyball for Workplaces: 12 Elements of Team Success.” Here are three:• I know what is expected of me at work.• In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.• There is someone at work who encourages my development.Why this book? Gallup’s extensive research (extensive!) has concluded this:“Of all the codes Gallup has been asked to crack dating back 80 years to our founder, George Gallup, the single most profound, distinct and clarifying finding—ever—is probably this one: 70% of the variance in team engagement is determined solely by the manager.”They add, “Usually, there isn’t a single lever to create change. In this case, there is: It’s the manager.”

I actually attended a seminar with one of the authors. The seminar was great and I had a hard time keeping up with my notes while taking photos of the slides. This book was the entire presentation plus more. It is broken down into small 2-4 page chapters. Easy to read.

Very easy to read and very informative. I had to get it for an MBA class.

This book has a lot of really good information in a format that’s easy to reference. However it’s a bit dry to read cover to cover. Which it does say specifically it’s not designed for that. Having almost half the book be appendix’s and references is a bit excessive though even if it’s cool that so much research was put into it.

Our organization recently switched to Gallup for our employee opinion survey. This book was very helpful in finding solutions for those problems, and for being the best manager I can be. I’ve been lending it around the office, too! It’s a very easy read, too.

I bought this to improve myself as a new Area Manager. I love it; it has great advice on people skills.

Just an outstanding book that I've gifted to everyone on my team. An easy read filled with practical knowledge on how to manage different personalities. My favorite part of this book is the chapters on asking the right questions in 1:1 meetings. A must read!

Oaky read