How Remarkable Women Lead: The Breakthrough Model for Work and Life [Hardcover]

Joanna Barsh (Author), Susie Cranston (Author), Geoffrey Lewis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 29, 2009

The Remarkable discoveries about what drives and sustains successful women leaders.

Based on five years of proprietary research, How Remarkable Women Lead speaks to you as no other book has, with its hopeful outlook and unique ideas about success. It's the new "right stuff" of leadership, raising provocative issues such as whether feminine leadership traits (for women and men) are better suited for our fast-changing, hyper-competitive, and increasingly complex world.

The authors, McKinsey & Company consultants Joanna Barsh and Susie Cranston, establish the links between joy, happiness, and distinctive performance with the groundbreaking model of Centered Leadership.

The book's personal stories and related insights show you the magic that happens when you put the five elements of Centered Leadership–meaning, framing, connecting, engaging, and energizing–to work. They include:

• How Alondra de la Parra built on her strengths and passions to infuse her life with meaning and make her way in the male-dominated world of orchestra conducting
• How Andrea Jung, the CEO of Avon, avoided a downward spiral when the company turned down by "firing herself" on Friday and re-emerging on Monday as the "new" turnaround CEO
• How Ruth Porat's sponsors at Morgan Stanley not only helped her grow but were also her ballast for coping with difficult personal and professional times
•How Eileen Naughton recovered after losing her dream job, landing on her feet at Google and open to a new leadership opportunity
• How Julie Coates of Woolworth's Australia makes energy key to her professional success, with reserves for her "second shift" as wife and mother

How Remarkable Women Lead is both profoundly moving and actionable. Woman or man, you'll find yourself in its pages and emerge with a practical plan for breaking through at both work and in life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"How Remarkable Women Lead offers some interesting ideas, such as learning to frame events in a positive light and to adapt to setbacks with optimism rather than self-doubt and pessimism. But some of the book's interviews with top executives—like Avon's Andrea Jung, Xerox's Anne Mulcahy and former Qantas chairman Margaret Jackson—are long on platitudes and short on the details of how these business leaders handled various challenges."--The Wall Street Journal


"We are always looking for new perspectives on growing great women leaders. How Remarkable Women Lead is a great read, with real insights and actionable ideas! The inspiring stories give an intimate look at how remarkable women really get things done, providing a development model valuable to both women and men. This refreshing and action-oriented book stands out!"
—Susan P. Peters, vice president, executive development and chief learning officer, General Electric

"What makes this book singular and valuable is its wide-lens focus on the personal qualities that lead to exemplary leadership. Don't be taken in by the title: men have as much to learn from this book as women."
—Warren Bennis, distinguished professor of Business Administration and university professor, University of Southern California, and author of On Becoming a Leader

"Here are the stories of amazing women leaders in the context of an imaginative and pragmatic framework that rests on a rich fact base. It puts to rest stereotypes we have about who leaders are and how to lead. The seeds for our future are in here. The new CEO is a woman or a man who is not afraid to drop the John Wayne costume."
—Gary Hamel, author of The Future of Management and Leading the Revolution

"How Remarkable Women Lead is a book that will truly resonate with all women. It is personal, powerful, and revealing and thereby true to how we women live and lead. The storytelling makes this unlike any business book I know; these are people who have faced every challenge imaginable and still made their mark. So truthful, so revealing, it's a book at once inspirational and practical–a unique duality."
—Elizabeth Smith, president, Avon Products, Inc.

"Over the years, I have worked with many remarkable women leaders. I know from personal experience that the talent is there, waiting to be tapped and developed. Investing in women leaders is not only the right thing to do, it makes clear business sense. Developing top talent for high performance is both an art and a science. Joanna Barsh and Susie Cranston provide the vision and the practical ideas to make this competitive opportunity a reality."
—Terry Lundgren, chairman, president, and CEO, Macy's, Inc.

"Today's business environment demands fresh ideas–and this book delivers them. It is a great reading experience, with inspiration on every page. How Remarkable Women Lead has lessons for both men and women and tells them through powerful intimate stories. Is it possible to fall in love with a business book about leadership? Yes!"
—Gerald Storch, chairman and CEO, Toys "R" Us, Inc.

About the Author

JOANNA BARSH joined McKinsey & Company in 1981 and is a senior partner. Along with her consulting work, she leads the McKinsey Centered Leadership Project, whose goal is to help develop women leaders. Joanna is a New York City Commissioner of Women’s Issues and received the Girl Scouts Council Woman of Distinction Award and the National Council of Research on Women Award. Joanna is also a trustee of Sesame Workshop. She was a Baker Scholar at Harvard Business School.

SUSIE CRANSTON is an organization consultant at McKinsey & Company’s San Francisco office. As part of the McKinsey Centered Leadership Project, Susie led a team that completed the research for the Centered Leadership model. She received a B.A. and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: Crown Business; 1 edition (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307461696
• ISBN-13: 978-0307461698
• Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1.4 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #214,050 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

JOANNA BARSH joined McKinsey & Company in 1981 and is a senior partner. Along with her consulting work, she leads the McKinsey Centered Leadership Project, whose goal is to help develop women leaders. Joanna is a New York City Commissioner of Women's Issues and received the Girl Scouts Council Woman of Distinction Award and the National Council of Research on Women Award. Joanna is also a trustee of Sesame Workshop. She was a Baker Scholar at Harvard Business School.SUSIE CRANSTON is an organization consultant at McKinsey & Company's San Francisco office. As part of the McKinsey Centered Leadership Project, Susie led a team that completed the research for the Centered Leadership model. She received a B.A. and an M.B.A. from Stanford University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ALL WOMEN ARE REMARKABLE AND SHOULD READ THIS BOOKK, October 8, 2009

By 

Susan A. Bailey (San Francisco) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Remarkable Women Lead: The Breakthrough Model for Work and Life (Hardcover)

Given that I am a vascular surgeon, I was not sure if this book would apply to my life or resonate with me personally, but after reading it on the insistence of a friend, I found it to be an amazing lesson on how to authentically structure one's work life so that it can be productive and rewarding even if you are not "leading" in the traditional sense. Follow the leads in this book and you will be a leader by example if nothing else. I couldn't put the book down, the stories of the women in this book were gripping and inspiring....every woman should read this book.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How Remarkable Women Lead, October 30, 2009

By 

Janelle Shubert - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Remarkable Women Lead: The Breakthrough Model for Work and Life (Hardcover)

Let's make this easy: just buy it! You won't be sorry!
As the director of a women's leadership program at a college, I get an opportunity to read (and review) dozens of books on women's leadership. I also get the pleasure of hosting some of the authors. While there are some good (even very good) books and some good (even very good) authors-as-presenters, rarely do these two dimensions come togther in ways that are intellectually intriguiging, inspiring and just plain enormous fun and engaging. How Remarkable Women Lead, accomplishes all of this as a book. But if you get a chance to actually hear the author, Joanna Barsh present, run, don't walk. She's magic.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring AND Practical, October 3, 2009

By 

Nancy S. Mckay (NY, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: How Remarkable Women Lead: The Breakthrough Model for Work and Life (Hardcover)

I have throroughly enjoyed this book. It is real, yet inspiring on many levels. Joanna gives you a very real view of women leaders and helps to frame how they make it through tough times-which is what I need now-and I think many leaders need. Her concept of Centered Leadership is a strong life model and I found myself making lots of notes in the margins with "to do's" in my own work life. Like many leaders, this is a particularly tough time to lead and this book helped me to reframe what I have to offer my team and my colleagues. I am buying copies for all of my direct reports with the intent that they will share many of the concepts with their teams.