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Executive Thinking
Book

Executive Thinking

The Dream, The Vision, The Mission Achieved

Davies-Black Publishing, 1999 more...

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Editorial Rating

5

Qualities

  • For Beginners
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Remember the old Broadway song, “You gotta have a dream, or how you gonna have a dream come true?” This is the executive version. Author Leslie L. Kossoff maintains that executives must have – and must clearly and enthusiastically articulate – a dream of what a company can be in order to get everyone else in the company excited, aligned and active. As an executive (or as a climber of that ladder), you may find this a pretty reasonable introduction to leadership, though it could also sound fairly simplistic. Kossoff offers a few non-specific examples, either citing news stories or alluding to individual executives, but primarily she tells us how she thinks successful executives should behave. Like the content, the book’s tone also is a little reminiscent of a show tune – not too challenging and enjoyable to hum – but its attitude is sincere. getAbstract recommends this refresher as a philosophical pep talk that reminds executives how their approach to their jobs affects the realization of their dreams.

Take-Aways

  • Executives must have a clear dream of what their organization is and should be.
  • Even if you encounter obstacles and frustrations, if you believe very strongly in your dream, you will make it a reality.
  • A vision is not the same thing as making a vision statement.

About the Author

Leslie L. Kossoff is the principal of Kossoff Management Consulting, an international consulting firm based in San Francisco. She was an associate of Dr. W. Edwards Deming and director of the Institute for Quality and Productivity Improvement at California State University at Long Beach. She is the author of Managing for Quality: How to Implement and Manage a Business Strategy for Continuous Improvement.