THE LEADERSHIP DROUGHT

Two management consultants propose a sensible process to revolutionize organizational leadership.

In this debut, consultants Bicking and McKenzie characterize a lack of effective leadership as a “drought,” because “when the flow of new thinking is shut off or curtailed, the thirst for innovation eventually kills the organization.” The book’s first section explores, in blunt detail, some of the glaring reasons why business and political leaders fail. In the second section, the authors reveal “six distinct leadership principles” that they say “should never be violated.” These, which include a “shared vision of a desired future” and a “team-first mentality,” are described in six separate chapters. This structure enables the authors to provide a significant amount of detail about each principle in short bursts of expertly crafted text, enhanced with specific examples and suggested exercises. They embed several useful tools in the content; for example, there’s a thorough, 10-step protocol for creating a “shared vision,” and the “developmental delegation plan” is equally comprehensive. Many insights are provocative and deserving of consideration. The authors suggest, for instance, that “When trust is breached…the organization moves into a state of decay”; thus, they encourage leaders to “admit mistakes and take responsibility for bad decisions as soon as they come to light.” The book’s valuable third section offers useful suggestions for managing conflict and covers such things as listening skills and asking good questions. The final chapter delivers a detailed leadership case study; some may perceive this as a thinly veiled sales pitch for the authors’ consulting practice, but it does effectively illustrate how one may apply the book’s six principles. The appendices are a welcome addition, as they include decision-making, leadership, and coaching models along with a personal values assessment. Extensive references, organized by chapter, are also provided.

A scathing but reasoned indictment of leadership errors accompanied by a detailed plan to fix them.