# 1. Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez
Recommend by: Andrew Ferguson, Technology Transformation Practice Consultant
A brief synopsis of the book: Data is fundamental to much of our modern world, but embedded in that data are assumptions. Invisible Women discusses how much of the data we consume fails to take gender into account by treating men as default and women as atypical, and how that basic assumption means women pay tremendous costs in time, money, and health.
Why I picked it up: It won the Royal Society Science book prize, as well as the Financial Times and McKinsey Book of the Year.
Why it’s engaging: It is an accessible book written with deep research and sparkling wit that will change the way you look at the world forever.
Why Andrew recommends it: It is to date the most comprehensive book I’ve read showing the power assumptions can have in decision-making.
# 2. Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance? Leading a Great Enterprise Through Dramatic Change by Louis V. Gerstner, Jr.
Recommended by: John Mullen, Director
A brief synopsis of the book: Lou Gerstner shares how he turned around IBM in the early 90s — starting with his decision to take on the role of CEO.
Why I picked it up: It was assigned to me to read in a business school capstone course focused on leadership.
Why it’s engaging: The story is very well-structured and easy to digest. It includes business strategy elements with his decision-making approach and process for shaping and leading IBM’s strategy, but he also opens up about moments of self-doubt and his emotions which helped humanize corporate leadership and kept me wanting to turn the page.
Why John recommends it: Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance is a quick read with tons of lessons from identifying when to take a principled stand to how to enact culture change to managing skepticism around your decisions as a leader — all while applying an analytic approach and keeping a level head. It’s especially useful to anyone interfacing with the C-suite because it humanized senior corporate leadership for me, making it more approachable and helping me understand C-suite considerations in modern corporate America.
# 3. AI Superpowers: China, Silicon Valley and the New World Order by Kai-Fu Lee
Recommended by: Kristopher Jordan, Consultant
A brief synopsis of the book: This book delineates the relevant cases for and against China or the US achieving AI dominance. While discussing the impact of AI on blue-collar jobs, Lee also makes the case for why AI will affect white-collar jobs, how some jobs can be enhanced with AI, and most importantly, how it can provide solutions to some of the most profound changes in human history that are coming.
Why I picked it up: I read this book a few years ago to learn more about AI, and as a long-term resident of China, I wanted to gain more insight into the advances made in technology broadly and in AI particularly.
Why it’s engaging: Lee’s writing is both conversational and technical. He talks about complex concepts and structures in plain, everyday language. He also uses a variety of stories to explain why the Chinese and American systems are the way they are.
Why Kris recommends it: In addition to being engaging and informative, I found this book to be a wonderful time capsule. As it was written before COVID-19, the perspective was based on China ramping up out of the 13th National People’s Congress. The world today is different and so are China and the United States. That said, Lee’s matrix of the types of jobs that will be affected and by how much is exceptionally insightful.
# 4. Humble Consulting: How to Provide Real Help Faster by Edgar H. Schein
Recommended by: Jenny Niec, People & Change Practice Consultant
A brief synopsis of the book: Organizations today face challenges too complex for simple fixes. Schein shares how consultants need to pivot from the past idea of keeping a professional distance and instead work with clients in a more personal, empathetic, and curious way.
Why I picked it up: I’m in an Organization Development book club that meets quarterly and this was a book chosen earlier this year.
Why it’s engaging: Schein uses a lot of examples from his personal experience in consulting. He writes it in a conversational, story-forward tone, that makes it useful and interesting. It reminds me so much of the way we do work at Propeller. And there are lots of case studies!
Why Jenny recommends it: It builds on a lot of the foundational consulting principles and skills and enhances them for the modern landscape. Schein has been writing about consulting and organizational culture for decades and makes fresh and relevant recommendations for how we can best serve today.
# 5. Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam Grant
Recommended by: Trace Wallace, Senior Director of Brand & Experience
A brief synopsis of the book: Originals evaluates how becoming “original” or having non-conforming values, ideas, and thoughts can change the world and challenge paradigms. Across several stories and studies in business, politics, and more, Grant explores everything from what makes an idea good to how to be heard in difficult environments and situations.
Why I picked it up: I respect how Adam Grant pushes thoughtful dialogue on leadership in a modern enterprise, and the contrarian viewpoint often resonates with me.
Why it’s engaging: The overlap with human-centered design principles made the reading engaging (quantity of ideas).
Why Trace recommends it: I’d recommend this title for leaders in search of practices to persuade, garner allies, and further their cause.
# 6. Getting Naked: A Business Fable About Shedding the Three Fears That Sabotage Client Loyalty by Patrick Lencioni
Recommended by: Juan Pablo Quintero, Consultant
A brief synopsis of the book: Through a fictional story, Lencioni tells the story of a large Bay Area consulting firm that acquires a boutique firm that consistently beat out larger competitors for top clients. Through the acquisition process, you learn the three fears that sabotage client loyalty and how this boutique firm turned that into a competitive advantage.
Why I picked it up: A friend recommend this book, sharing how it helped him better approach relationships professionally and personally. Without knowing it, this book subconsciously led me to become a consultant in the Bay Area — just like the plot of the story.
Why it’s engaging: It’s not your typical business development book where you have someone telling you the keys to success. In Getting Naked, the story is told from the perspective of the protagonist, and you get to see how these fears are addressed through examples in the plot. They also added a human element that made it relatable.
Why Juan Pablo recommends it: It is a quick and enjoyable read. Moreover, it gives you amazing tools for how to approach any relationship, which I’ve personally applied in my life and experienced positive results. I don’t want to spoil the story, but I will share that being genuine, honest, vulnerable, and transparent can take you to new heights.
# 7. Extreme Ownership: How US Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
Recommended by: Jena Adkins, Principal Consultant
A brief synopsis of the book: Extreme Ownership is an incredible distillation of the lessons learned in the intense armed combat environment. Willink and Babin turn the principles and frameworks that they learned as SEALs into a comprehensive, modern leadership system that helps leaders of all types and levels to focus on the goal of leading and winning.
Why I picked it up: I enjoy reading non-fiction, biographies, and autobiographies, particularly related to the United States Armed Forces. I gravitated toward several books about Navy SEALs and was intrigued by how they are trained to continue pushing their physical, mental, and emotional limits.
Why it’s engaging: Navy SEALs' training and their capacity to push themselves is inspiring. Jocko provides parallels that he learned as a Navy SEAL to business and life. I was leading a team during a challenging project, working long hours, and was on call 24/7. His combat stories during deployment allowed me to gain perspective on the unimaginable challenges his team faced. I drew on some of the tips, striving to be a better leader and continue making progress throughout the project.
Why Jena recommends it:
Reading Extreme Ownership and other books related to combat are a great way to learn about strategy from a different perspective of those who risk their lives every day.
# Do you struggle to make time to read (and finish) a book? Here are three articles to read.
Recommended by: Annie Lyons, Principal Consultant
My theme in 2022 was distracted and with that came the consequence of finding it hard to finish a single book from cover to cover. So, I embraced the distraction and doubled down on digital thought leadership.
- Article #1: The Neuroscience of Customer Experience, MIT Sloan Review, Summer 2022
Why this article made me think: It further demonstrated the importance of engaging a human-centered approach to design that truly seeks to understand the feelings and needs of the customer. - Article #2: Leading with Humility, Leadership Now Blog, October 2022
Why this article made me think: A refreshingly simple reminder that humility is not found in the absence of self-confidence or pride, but in the presence of balance, noting that “we are at our best selves when we understand we are ‘not nothing’ but rather that we are ‘not everything.’” - Article #3: Global Retail Innovations 2022, Retail Doctor Group, November 2022
Why this article made me think: It helped to further define three key trends that will likely carry into 2023. First, the beauty industries (including health and wellness) will continue to dominate the competitive landscape. Second, retailers need to consider investments that equally pace their customer and employee engagement experiences with their operational efficiency gains. Third, retail remains incredibly dynamic with the continued expansion of the circular economy and rising customer expectations for speed and reliability.
Related Content: Top Business Strategy Books to Read in 2022
