Product Description

Let's face it. In this chaotic world of teams, matrix management, and horizontal organizations, it's tougher than ever to get things done. How do you lead when you're not the one in charge? How can you be effective when joint action is needed? You need an edge in order to reach solutions and effectively work with others.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #79074 in Books
• Published on: 1999-06-01
• Released on: 1999-05-05
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Amazon.com
Does it seem that good ideas go nowhere at your company? That meetings are often a waste of time? That nobody seems to be in charge? Roger Fisher (the coauthor of the bestselling book Getting to Yes) and Alan Sharp tackle, in their book Getting It Done, the inertia that afflicts many groups. The authors advance the idea of lateral leadership as a means of breaking apart the logjams that inhibit effective collaboration in organizations. Lateral leadership consists of five elements: clarifying the purpose of what you're trying to accomplish; understanding how to harness the power of organized thought; learning how to integrate thinking with doing; getting yourself and your team engaged; and, finally, learning how to give feedback on what's been accomplished. This is a practical guide to solving common workplace woes that will relieve the frustrations that many of us experience everyday and at the same time help us to stand out as leaders.

From AudioFile
The general theme here is that old-fashioned military leadership has given way to collaborative methods that require clarity of purpose, continuous learning, personal engagement, and open communication. All well and good, but the exaggerated emotionality of the professional reader, along with the wordiness of the writing and some confusing illustrations, may get in the way of comprehension. All of this, and a package that tells us nothing about the authors or the program's organization will make this a hard program for many listeners to get their arms around. T.W. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

-- Ronald A. Heifetz, author of Leadership Without Easy Answers
"Profound lessons made simple by one of the world's great teachers."

Customer Reviews

Great book on leadership
I recently bought this book from Amazon and really liked it. The book breaks down the leadership process and helps the reader to achieve the goals individually and then 'laterally' lead his/her team to achieve the same. Simple advice coupled with relevant examples make it easy to read and implement. Highly recommended for anyone working in a team environment.

The Goal Setting Chapter is worth the price of admission
Overall this book covers a topic we all understand, but maybe dont implement or think too much about. So - from that standpoint, its a good book to review basic team "best practises".

Specifically though, I found the chapter on Goal setting to be excellent. Being someone who is heavily into goal setting and mission statements, I still found information that was new to me. I would recommend this book, just based on that chapter.

In Conclusion - if this is the only Negotiation/Team Building book you'll read this year, then I would pass for something like "Getting to Yes" by the same Author. This is a great polish book once you've delved into other team building books.

Good Information... Nothing New...
This is a good book if you've never read a book about leadership. However, it's nothing new... the 'lateral leadership' concept discussed in this book are no different than any other leadership book.