CEO MATERIAL -
How to Be a Leader in Any Organization
By D. A. Benton
New York Times bestselling author of How to Think Like a CEO.
ISBN: 978-007-160545-8
Hardcover, $24.95
|
For interviews, artwork, excerpts, or more information, contact:
Ann Pryor, Senior Publicity Manager
212.904.4078
Ann_Pryor@mcgraw-hill.com
|
"You do not need to be the company's record-producing individual performer to be talked about in a glowing manner. You do not have to be an alumnus of a blue chip company, a graduate from a top B-school, or have the highest IQ.
You can come from any walk in life. You can be tall, short, attractive, not so attractive. Even if your current job is being the person who gets the coffee for the person who makes the coffee, you can take on the ownership of your career the minute you start reading this book."
— From the Introduction
|
"Chief executive officer" is not just a role restricted to corporate America. In academia, the public sector, the nonprofit world, and elsewhere, the need for top-tier leadership is greater than you think, especially in today's climate of economic uncertainty.
What does it take to be part of the new spirit of integrity, following in the footsteps of Amazon's Jeff Bezos or Google's Eric Schmidt, who have built inspiring profiles and continue to command great respect? Renowned executive coach Debra Benton reveals the surprising answers in CEO Material: How to Be a Leader in Any Organization.
Building on the powerful lessons she has culled during her thirty-year career, Benton reminds readers that they are their own career managers-and gives them the tools to take the helm of their own lives, not relying on their boss, their boss's boss, the HR department, or headhunters to steer them in the best direction.
CEO Material draws on candid, real-world observations from more than one hundred top leaders in a variety of fields, who agree that having a perfect record on paper is hardly the key to moving ahead. Taking readers behind the scenes, Benton reveals what board members and directors really talk about when evaluating new talent.
Benton firmly believes that it's never too early to start fostering advancement in rank. "What are you waiting for?" she asks, reminding readers that "where you are today is a product of your past decisions. Where you will be in the future is a product of today's decisions." Putting her inspiring words to work, CEO Material reads like a series of personal conversations with those who have thrived at the top, giving future CEOs from all walks of life a chance to learn from the best of the best.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Featured widely in the media, D. A. (Debra) Benton is a speaker and executive coach in high demand. A "Who's Who" of success stories, her client roster ranges from Campbell's Soup and Dell Computer to Time Warner and McDonald's. She has written for such publications as the Harvard Business Review and the Wall Street Journal, and her bestselling books, which include Executive Charisma and How to Act Like a CEO, have been translated into fourteen languages. Debra makes her home in Colorado.
|
"I learned through tough experience the lessons of leadership.
Sharing those lessons with others, and learning how much the same it is for all leaders, is invaluable."
Kate Dargan, California State Fire Chief
"CEO Material is a practical, engaging, and people-savvy instruction manual on how to dial up your leadership effectiveness and enhance your career. Debra profiles what it takes by getting inside the head of current CEOs and highlighting a broad range of to do's for those on their way to the top."
Jim Goldman, CEO & President, Godiva Chocolatier
|
With CEO Material, readers can at last tap their true potential, receiving frank, honest advice on:
• Discovering the advantages of being a leader. Intimidated by the responsibility? Benton breaks through the nay-saying that keeps workers muddled in middle management, with inspiring insight on the rewards-beyond the sizeable financial ones-of becoming someone who can transform lives.
• Overcoming self-doubt. Readers who struggle with the belief that they don't know enough or aren't charismatic enough to step into the shoes of a supervisor will be inspired by the wealth of wisdom shared in CEO Material. All CEOs experience a learning curve, and the transition to executive-level power calls for a variety of deeply human, universal traits.
• Mastering the leadership foursome of craftsmanship, confidence, constant communication, and collaboration. Relying on your technical brilliance is the worst mistake an aspiring leader can make. The "foursome," however, represents the fundamental components of exceptional leadership in all fields, from firefighting to financial advising.
• What it takes to get noticed. Ever wonder what top managers are saying about you behind closed doors? It's possible that they aren't saying anything about you . but Benton's advice will make you one of the company's most talked-about individuals, for all the right reasons.
• The key ingredients admired by top executives, with vivid chapters on developing an impeccable reputation for integrity and honesty; getting people to follow you even though they don't have to; being decisive; managing downturns well; and other important attributes.
|
"A great book for pausing, taking stock and asking: Am I developing all the qualities of character that will allow me to lead and achieve great things?"
Rick O'Donnell, CEO Acton Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership
"Benton's clarity on the critical attributes of top-notch leaders offers aspiring executives a roadmap to success."
Stephen B. Bonner, President and CEO, Cancer Treatment Centers of America
"When life calls for an upgrade - to first class - Benton's charming wisdom is your ticket. She will help you beyond belief."
Matthew J. Bennett, CEO, First Class Flyer, Inc.
"Whether you are already part way up the organizational ladder or just on the first rung, if you only have time to read one book this year... this one is a must!"
Gordon Peters, Founding Chairman, CEO, The Institute for Management Studies
"Excellent book. It is very useful for anyone interested in succeeding at work or at home. Debra Benton is the best at distilling useful information"
Curt Carter, CEO, America, Inc.
"One effective way to learn how to become a CEO is to spend years learning from the best. But, if you don't have that much time, you can simply read CEO Material. Benton spent the time for you and in a few hours you can learn what would have normally taken several years. I suggest you start quickly. Millions of people are going to read this book and immediately enhance their career. The only question is where you will be in the line. It would be too bad if the other person vying to be the CEO studied this book before you did."
Rulon F. Stacey, Ph.D., CEO & President, Poudre Valley Health System
(Winner of the 2009 Malcom Baldridge Award)
"I wish I had this roadmap earlier in my life. I might have been more successful sooner! You have nailed it. Very, very good advice from the front row seat of what does and does not work."
Ted Wright, CEO & President, Setai Hotels and Resorts, LLC.
"Debra Benton has found a way to expose what lies below the surface of the murky waters of leadership development. The CEO Material is a great book for everyone regardless of the stage of their career. It will definitely be on my gift list for this year's college graduates."
Christi Pedra, CEO Siemens Hearing Instruments
"I've always had this notion that entrepreneurs bred entrepreneurs. You can learn this stuff, people! This book is a must read if you are serious about making an impact on your life, the company you work for and on the world for that matter. Even if you're already sitting at the top, listening to advice from so many other CEOs is pretty powerful stuff. Read it twice."
Robbin Phillips, Courageous President, Brains on Fire
"Debra is the leadership Peter Drucker of the 21st Century."
John Bianchi, CEO, Frontier Gunleather
"I classify CEO Material as a business bible and not just a book sold on the shelf. This information is reality and this is how you change."
Laurence Salmon, CEO, Mazrui Holdings in United Arab Emirates
"Love [for what you do], education, attitude, determination, enthusiasm, responsibility, spirituality, humor, integrity, perception = leadership -- this book has it all."
Richard Rush, CEO and president, State Chamber of Oklahoma
"Benton's clarity on the critical attributes of top-notch leaders offers aspiring executives a roadmap to success."
Stephen B. Bonner, CEO and president, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, Inc.
|
| |
|
