It’s easy for businesses or entire industries to stagnate, upending people’s lives and undermining economies. As Nadya Zhexembayevanotes in The Chief Reinvention Officer Handbook, only 60 of the Fortune 500 companies from 1955 have maintained their standing—“a sinking rate of 88%.” In these Indieland favorites, authors offer their visions for the long game, whether that’s creating an ethical startup that’s positioned to thrive; saving a plant that employs hundreds by bringing people and government together; or using chaos to a business’s advantage.
Karim Abouelnaga, a former Forbes columnist, writes about creating a socially conscious startup in The Purpose-Driven Social Entrepreneur. Abouelnaga “examines the difference between passion, which initiates a goal, and purpose, which, for him, entails a sense of moral obligation,” notes our reviewer. The author places significant emphasis on “whether one’s idea will have a broad impact on society.” Overall, a cleareyed manual on becoming an ethical, dynamic entrepreneur.
One Day Stronger: How One Union Local Saved a Mill and Changed an Industry—And What It Means for American Manufacturing covers how a fight to save a Wisconsin paper mill energized labor politics in the state, which had lured FoxConn with billions in subsidies as it ignored its own local paper industry. The author, Thomas M. Nelson, was the county executive where the mill was located and instrumental in saving it. (He’s currently running for Sen. Ron Johnson’s seat.) “Nelson’s narrative offers an incisive insider’s view of industrial policy, pairing lucid analysis of the economics and practicalities of running a paper mill with bread-and-butter local politics,” says our reviewer.
In The Chief Reinvention Officer Handbook: How To Thrive in Chaos, Nadya Zhexembayeva makes the case that a smart business doesn’t merely endure marketplace turbulence. The author notes: “The challenge we face isn’t about trying to survive until things stabilize, but rather about learning to thrive in constant chaos. That happens only when we accept that change is no longer a project and build a well-thought-out reinvention system that works.” Zhexembayeva provides“outstanding business insights in a work brimming with energy and vitality.”
Karen Schechner is the vice president of Kirkus Indie.
