In turbulent times, the ability to communicate with power and purpose becomes a crucial leadership competency. Smart executives realize that leadership communication isn't a matter of "making nice," but a strategic necessity. Organized around an original model defining the important communication roles a leader must fill, The Leader as Communicator examines roles as diverse as trust-builder and critic, renewal champion and navigator, learning advocate and provocateur. The book presents case studies of organizations including Cadillac, Emerson, and Saturn, plus dozens of other examples. Packed with strategies and tactics showing how leaders can shape the communications climate of their organizations, the book culminates with assessment exercises that let readers measure their own communication skills. This insightful book demonstrates how to become a stronger, more confident leader--one who can use communication to build alignment, enthusiasm, and productivity.
Grounded in extensive research, this book offers practical guidelines to help professionals think, coach, converse, speak, write, meet, and negotiate strategically to deliver results. --
Make every communication count—with a simple, four-step speaking model Whether it's among colleagues at lunch or an audience of a thousand, a leader's role is to move and inspire others. It's not only the big occasions that test a leader's mettle, but the little ones as well—in a casual conversation in the elevator, in phone calls, or one of many incidental, seemingly "insignificant" interactions in everyday work life. Written by one of the world's leading communications coaches, Speaking as a Leader shows you how to make the most of your daily communications, creating a presence on the job as a genuine and constant leader. In this eye-opening guide, aspiring (and established) leaders can enhance their reputations and influence by following a few simple steps. Speaking as a Leader: Shows how to structure your thoughts and message in any situation using a four-step model Offers tips on listening effectively, in three dimensions Details why you are the best visual and how to avoid "Death by PowerPoint" Offers guidance on taking the "numb" out of numbers Includes tips on moving from subject to message With Speaking as a Leader, you'll learn to tap into your innate leadership skills at every occasion—whether small or large—and earn the sort of respect that creates devoted friends and passionate supporters.
It is hard to overstate the importance of the leader-member exchange relationship. Employees who share a high-quality relationship with their leader are more likely to earn a higher salary, climb the ranks more quickly, and report higher life satisfaction levels than their peers who have a less copasetic leader-member relationship. While Leader-Member Exchange Theory (LMX) research addresses the impact that the leader-member relationship has on the individual employee experience, much of this scholarship overlooks or obscures the vital role that communication plays in the development and maintenance of workgroup relationships. Much of extant literature also glosses over the role that communication plays in workgroup collaboration. Using a communicative lens, this text illustrates the complex theoretical underpinnings of LMX theory, such as the importance of social interaction and relationship building and maintenance necessary to achieve organizational goals. We explore how an employee’s relationship with their leader also shapes their peer relationships and their overall standing within their workgroup. Further, the text examines the potential dark side of LMX theory, such as the tendency towards demographic and trait and state similarity. Employing a communicative perspective emphasizes the extent of position and personal power both leaders and members have in engineering the quality of the relationship they desire. Integrating and applying once disparate lines of academic literature, this book offers employees, students, and teacher-scholars pragmatic yet research-based insights into developing and maintaining successful, healthy workplace relationships.
For more than three decades, award-winning leadership and communication expert David Grossman has helped scores of leaders become great leader communicators who drive impressive results for their organizations. Naturally, the global pandemic and mounting racial unrest of 2020 handed leaders one of their biggest challenges yet, with a level of social and economic tumult not seen in more than a century.Despite the upheaval, many leaders rose to the occasion, and often by drawing not just from experience and wise counsel, but from being human as they led - what Grossman calls Heart First leadership. In Heart First, Grossman explores the many aspects of being more authentic in leadership and how that can profoundly inspire a team and move them to achieve remarkable things, especially in times of change or crisis.Heart First also features interviews with CEOs and guest columns from senior leaders inside a variety of organizations, each of whom share extraordinarily candid insights and unique lessons learned from a year that changed everything.
Is your message getting through? The right communication tactics can motivate your people—and fuel your business. Get more of the ideas you want, from the authors you trust, with HBR's 10 Must Reads on Communication (Vol. 2). We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you get your message across—whether you're speaking face-to-face or connecting with someone across the world. With insights from leading experts including Erin Meyer, Heidi Grant, and Douglas Stone, this book will inspire you to: Power your organization through conversation Unlock value in your organization by asking better questions Improve your ability to give—and receive—advice Achieve better outcomes in cross-cultural negotiations Create smart, effective data visualizations Spark collaboration, learning, and innovation using digital tools This collection of articles includes: "Leadership Is a Conversation," by Boris Groysberg and Michael Slind; "The Surprising Power of Questions," by Alison Wood Brooks and Leslie K. John; "A Second Chance to Make the Right Impression," by Heidi Grant; "The Art of Giving and Receiving Advice," by David A. Garvin and Joshua D. Margolis; "Find the Coaching in Criticism," by Sheila Heen and Douglas Stone; "Visualizations That Really Work," by Scott Berinato; "What Managers Need to Know About Social Tools," by Paul Leonardi and Tsedal Neeley; "Be Yourself, But Carefully," by Lisa Rosh and Lynn Offermann; "How to Preempt Team Conflict," by Ginka Toegel and Jean-Louis Barsoux; "Getting to Si, Ja, Oui, Hai, and Da," by Erin Meyer; and "Cultivating Everyday Courage," by James R. Detert. HBR's 10 Must Reads paperback series is the definitive collection of books for new and experienced leaders alike. Leaders looking for the inspiration that big ideas provide, both to accelerate their own growth and that of their companies, should look no further. HBR's 10 Must Reads series focuses on the core topics that every ambitious manager needs to know: leadership, strategy, change, managing people, and managing yourself. Harvard Business Review has sorted through hundreds of articles and selected only the most essential reading on each topic. Each title includes timeless advice that will be relevant regardless of an ever‐changing business environment.
The most trusted source of leadership wisdom, updated to address today's realities The Leadership Challenge is the gold-standard manual for effective leadership, grounded in research and written by the premier authorities in the field. With deep insight into the complex interpersonal dynamics of the workplace, this book positions leadership both as a skill to be learned, and as a relationship that must be nurtured to reach its full potential. This new seventh edition has been revised to address current challenges, and includes more international examples and a laser focus on business issues; you'll learn how extraordinary leaders accomplish extraordinary things, and how to develop your leadership skills and style to deliver quality results every time. Engaging stories delve into the fundamental roles that great leaders fulfill, and simple frameworks provide a primer for those who seek continuous improvement; by internalizing key insights and putting concepts into action, you'll become a more effective, more impactful leader. A good leader gets things done; a great leader aspires, inspires, and achieves more. This book highlights the differences between good and great, and shows you how to bridge the chasm between getting things done and making things happen. Gain deep insight into leadership's critical role in organizational health Navigate the shift toward team-oriented work relationships Motivate and inspire to break through the pervasive new cynicism Leverage the electronic global village to deliver better results Business is evolving at an increasingly rapid rate, and leaders must keep pace with the changes or risk stagnation. People work differently, are motivated differently, and have different expectations today—business as usual is quickly losing its effectiveness. The Leadership Challenge helps you stay current, relevant, and effective in the modern workplace.
Leadership Communication guides current and potential leaders in developing the communication capabilities needed to be transformational leaders. It brings together managerial communication and concepts of emotional intelligence to create a new model of communication skills and strategies for corporate leaders.
This book is for cybersecurity leaders across all industries and organizations. It is intended to bridge the gap between the data center and the board room. This book examines the multitude of communication challenges that CISOs are faced with every day and provides practical tools to identify your audience, tailor your message and master the art of communicating. Poor communication is one of the top reasons that CISOs fail in their roles. By taking the step to work on your communication and soft skills (the two go hand-in-hand), you will hopefully never join their ranks. This is not a “communication theory” book. It provides just enough practical skills and techniques for security leaders to get the job done. Learn fundamental communication skills and how to apply them to day-to-day challenges like communicating with your peers, your team, business leaders and the board of directors. Learn how to produce meaningful metrics and communicate before, during and after an incident. Regardless of your role in Tech, you will find something of value somewhere along the way in this book.