Power and Influence

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The leadership challenge in complex organizations - Rated
John Kotter is a well-known Professor of Organizational Behavior at Harvard Business School. He has written numerous management books and articles. This book was originally published in 1985 and is split up in four parts.

The first part - The Changing Nature of Managerial and Professional Work - discusses the fact that most managerial, technical, and professional jobs have become significantly more complex due to a number of very fundamental economic and social trends over several decades. In order to emphasize the impact o the complex social milieu, Kotter uses a perspective which empoys two basis concepts: (1) Diversity, which "refers to the differences among people with respect to goals, values, stakes, assumptions, and perceptions." (2) Interdependence which "refers to a state in which two or more parties have power over each other because they are, to some degree, dependent on each other." Excellent companies are successful in managing these two concepts, which, according to Kotter, needs strong leadership throughout organizations. He continues to discuss the requirements at personal, organizational, and societal level.

Parts two and three are closely related and detail the leadership challenge for high-level executive positions and lower-level professional and technical jobs. Part II - The Relational Context of Work describes the day-to-day issues associated with the three basic kinds of organizational relationships: (1) Relations outside the chain of command, (2) relations with subordinates, and (3) relations with superiors.
The third part - The Life Cycle of Leadership - describes the leadership challenge at the various stages in a career inside a typical complex organization.

The final part of the book - Implications - summarizes recommendations on improving one's personal effectiveness at work. It also discusses the requirements to increase the supply of people who are capable of handling difficult leadership jobs. In addition, there is an acknowledgement which describes the roots of this book - it is based on seven different projects conducted during the 1970s and 1980s at Harvard Business School.

Yes, this is certainly a good book on this subject. It is based on strong academic research from one of the best business schools in the world. Main criticism that I have is that the books feels somewhat outdates since it was published in 1985. However, I feel that a little revision from the author would do wonders. There are some great checklists in this book, which are very realistic and can be used in real life. It is written in a very well organized manner and can be used as a handbook. I especially recommended it to all people new to management.