This is the second of my two-part summer reading list to help you boost your performance.
Last week I recommended three books to help you with your individual performance.
This week three more but the focus this week is at a team or organisational level with lessons from business, sport, the military and government all covered.
Once again, I will keep it simple by:
- providing a one sentence summary of what the book is
- a key quote to bring the book to life
- an example of how this book has helped my own performance
The Art of Captaincy – Mike Brearley
What is it: A beautifully written, guide to leading and motivating a high-performing team through good times and bad. You don’t have to be a cricket fan to learn from this book.
Key quote: “Consultation, on any model of leadership, is required. It may take different forms and be used for different ends. It may merely be the means by which the leader gains technical or practical information on which to base his decisions. But it may also be the occasion for a decision. Or it may be seen, and used, more as an end in itself, a process of sharing and sorting out feelings, antagonistic or otherwise, within the group.”
How it helped me (and could help you): Understanding the motivations of individuals may (and do) fluctuate and how thoughtful man-management can ensure these align with the goals of the wider group.
Team of Teams – General Stanley McChrystal
What is it: A guide of how to lead organisational change that builds powerful, yet dynamic, organisations in our complex modern world.
Key quote: “The primary lesson…is the need to scale the adaptability and cohesiveness of small teams up to the enterprise level. This involves creating a team of teams to foster cross-silo collaboration. That way the insights and actions of many teams and individuals can be harnessed across the organisation. Innovation and problem solving become the products of teamwork, not a single architect.”
How it helped me (and could help you): Seeing the importance of making information something that oils the machine of an organisation through trust and transparency.
Culture Code – Daniel Coyle
What is it: An investigation into the essential elements of successful teams – the factors that create team cohesion, encourage deeper collaboration – as well as examples of where cultures have gone toxic.
Key quote: “Most successful groups end up with a small handful of priorities, and many, not coincidentally, end up placing their in-group relationships – how they treat one another – at the top of the list. This reflects the truth that many successful groups realise: their greatest project is building and sustaining the group itself. If they get their own relationship right, everything else will follow.”
How it helped me (and could help you): Finding new ways to help teams improve what they do.