Book Title and Edition: Beneath the Armor: How Business Leaders Stand Tall in a Turbulent Global Economy
Author: Ole Carlson
Condensed Review/Thesis: Executives don't have time to waste; Carlson cuts the rhetoric and gets right to the heart of effective leadership.
Author's Background: As a well-respected author, speaker, leadership consultant, and corporate trainer, Ole Carlson has mastered the art of "Influencing those who influence many."
Intended Audience: Business leaders and executives, especially within small businesses, looking to take their leadership to the next level.
Larry's Two Cents:Ole Carlson is a friend and former Vistage chair. Like me, he has spent thousands of hours behind closed doors with CEOs and small business owners. And like me, he leverages his own experiences to help others develop and grow. Beneath the Armor is a culmination of Ole's expertise, ideas, and learning throughout the years. He's managed to pack a wealth of information on running a small to midsize company into an easily accessible, compact package. What will you find when you open it?
A wonderful surprise: this book is heavy on sound advice and clear guidance and blessedly light on theory. Beneath the Armor stands out from other management books in another fundamental way: it is geared towards smaller businesses. Finally, here's a book for you, one that fully acknowledges the unique challenges you face and delineates strategies with which you can grow your organization.
Beneath the Armor cuts through the noise and rhetoric and explores seven strategies that will enable you to develop your leadership skills and produce superb results. Ole walks you through each strategy, provides real-life examples and relatable stories, and offers specific actions steps to help you put the concepts to work. You don't just read this book; you do it.
When You Should Read This Book:When you are serious about hearing how many others have grown great businesses. This book, in a sense, allows you into the room of a CEO peer group.