Leadership
Gordon Bethune. From Worst to First: Behind the Scene’s of Continental’s Remarkable Comeback. An excellent narrative on how one of the worst airlines was transformed into one of the best in a few years. Bethune’s advice is common-sense leadership, with a focus on the customer, not the internal costs and finances of operating a business. Worthwhile reading for anyone trying to change the culture of their business into one focused on the ultimate barometer of success: creating loyal customers.
Stephen R. Covey. The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. In this follow-up to his classic The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Covey provides a framework relevant to knowledge workers, even if a bit dense and convoluted. Though Baker remains unconvinced by some of his arguments, such as his “5 ages of civilization”––from hunter/gatherer, agricultural, industrial, information/knowledge worker, to wisdom––which makes it sounds as if there was no wisdom prior to modern times (what about Aristotle, Adam Smith, etc.?). That said, Covey does a wonderful job focusing on doing the right things (effectiveness) rather than doing things right (efficiency).