Customer Reviews

Ignited: Managers! Light Up Your Company and Career for More Power More Purpose and More Success

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I wish this book were around sooner, I wouldn't have struggled near as much as I progressed through my career. Vince Thompson has provided some very practical ideas for everyone who may be struggling with different corporate cultures. As a CEO of a midsize company I will recommend this book to all managers in our company, it will help them and the company to be more successful.

Middle management is one of the toughest positions in corporate America. You're expected to run things successfully, while often not having enough sway and power to implement your plans. A book that aims to remedy that is Ignited: Managers! Light Up Your Company and Career for More Power More Purpose and More Success by Vince Thompson. An excellent book that should be on the shelf of every manager...

Contents:
Introduction - Living in Quake Country; Base Camp - The Ignited Quiz
Part 1 - Get More Power: Action with Traction; The Manager's Universe; Leadership in Limited Space; Managing Your Emotions; The Deadly Lack of Empowerment Trap
Part 2 - Get More Purpose: Ignition Point 1 - The Process; Ignition Point 2 - The People; Ignition Point 3 - The Message; Ignition Point 4 - The Landscape; Ignition Point 5 - The Strategy; Ignition Point 6 - The Story; Ignition Point 7 - The Spirit
Part 3 - Get More Success: Selling From The Fulcrum; Your Own Sense of Balance
Index

The reason why people put themselves into "the middle" is to make a difference in the lives of their coworkers and the company in general. But it's not an easy road. Ignited starts with a quick quiz that will give you a general idea as to how your attitude plays out in relation to your job. Then the three parts of the book help you find your path to a more effective role in the company. Part 1 talks about general principles of management that might sound like common sense, but that often get lost in the midst of the battles. I really was struck by the effectiveness of the "universe mapping" exercise. It shows you who you are linked to in terms of your success. Following that up with an attempt at mapping your boss's universe can then give you the insight as to what you need to do to make them successful (and yourself in the process). Part 2 then gives you the tools you need to effectively run the areas that are uniquely yours as a manager... your people, your message, and so forth. The final part of the book then sums up the newfound power and opportunities you have as an ignited manager, and gives you the roadmap on how that new position and knowledge can be leveraged for your success and balance in life. By the time you've worked through the book and focused on the changes outlined, you should be infinitely more involved and effective in your position.

Rather than read yet another book on how a CEO leads, focus instead on reading something targeted to your specific situation and circumstances. This is that book.

Vince Thompson's Ignited will ignite managers at all levels if they will read it and take its lessons seriously. Most business books are aimed at CEOs, and too often deal in cutely phrased and fuzzy theories. Thompson's book is hard-core practical and gives case study examples of how managers can have a significant impact on a company's direction and their own careers. If you feel stuck, read Ignited.

What a wonderfully insightful and useful tool to support what is often times considered the backbone of corporate North America! Mr. Thompson adroitly points out the common issues that plague organizations and deftly navigates readers through the morass, identifying opportunities and avoiding common pitfalls. Mr. Thompson's approach is refreshing in the way it encourages Managers to be proactive in taking responsibility and through their accountability, 'ignite' themselves and the professionals around them. As an entrepreneur, coach, and consultant; I can confidently refer this book to managers and the executives that manage them.

Author Vince Thompson presently serves as a consultant helping Internet companies build sales and online marketing solutions. He has spent 15 years as a middle manager and it is his own experiences that were one of the inspirations of Ignited. This book is dedicated to those hearty souls known in the modern world as middle managers. Thompson refers to "The Middle - perhaps the most crucial location in the world of business." He calls the world that middle managers survive in as "quake country", where the environment is always shifting, eroding and being constantly squeezed.

The research for this book included an online survey of over 100 in-depth interviews with middle managers from a variety of organizations including Gateway, ABC, Rawlings, Intel, Bank of America and others. The surveys revealed an underlying disconnect between many middle managers and the corporate goals and vision of the organizations they work for.

Ignited is written to motivate and inspire middle managers to realize that they can make a significant contribution to their organizations, careers and personal lives. Ignited is intended to offer a better solution to managers who struggle to perform well in the complexity of our modern business world. Thompson defines Ignition as "the coming rebirth of purpose and power that managers in The Middle can experience if they choose to make it happen."

This inspirational book is divided into three parts. Within these divisions are 14 chapters. Part 1 is entitled "Get More Power" and it offers some sound pointers for improving the personal perspective and basic thinking of managers. This of course leads to an improvement in behavior and decision-making. Experienced managers will find many of these tools to be common experience, but younger managers will glean much from this part of the book. Part 2 is "Get More Purpose" and is the heart and core of Ignited. This section includes seven keys that emphasize the unique value that managers offer in the middle. Thompson refers to these keys as "Ignition Points" that make changes happen when clearly understood.

Part 3 is entitled "Get More Success" and it is dedicated to help the reader develop a balance between the daily pressures of a management career and making your personal life happy and successful. In this part of the book the author offers a five-step program to restore balance to a stressed out manager. This chapter alone is worth the price of admission!

Ignited is a book that anyone who has ever been in a management position can appreciate and relate to. It is easy to read and offers practical information based on research, common sense and experience. If you are in a middle management position, or have a friend who is, you will find this book a way to ignite your career to another level.

Ignited is a treasure chest overfilled and brimming with insights, tips, techniques, motivations, and inspiration for the people who are the backbone of organizations-- middle managers.

Ignited is an eminently practical book that lends itself to immediate use from word one. I recommend when you sit down to read the book that you have a highlighter pen, a number of bookmarks and some note paper-- this may not be formatted as a workbook, but you'll end up treating it as one and applying its advice as you progress through it.

The author, Vince Thompson, has many years in management and so writes from personal experience as well as education and research. His analyses, explanations, and suggestions all give you a sense of his having "been there" and confidence in his advice.

Thompson gives you a solid grounding in all the essentials of managing both up and down the organization and then shows how to leverage those essentials into formidable skills that ignite your management style, your organization, and your career. The essentials include understanding and applying the principles of networks and networking, team-building, access-gaining, self empowerment and leadership-- all from an uncommon perspective. He helps you learn to become a key (and highly effective) manager by harnessing the power of knowledge of organizational processes (what is done, when, why, how, and by whom) and people in or related to the organization (who does what, knows what, has what connections, has what power, etc.). He tells you why. He tells you exactly how. And, he provides clear and interesting examples and anecdotes to illustrate his points.

His own enthusiasm and excitement, paired with his knowledge-packed narrative, will ignite you.

Who would have thought that there was a way to take the thankless, joyless and "between a rock, a hard place and the bottom line" position of manager and fuel it -- better yet, IGNITE it -- so that you can fuel everyone around you without resorting to harranging, threats or guilt trips? "Ignited" is a catalytic converter for any manager who wants to bring the enjoyment back to work and do a 360 energy infusion.
-Mark Goulston, M.D.
FAST COMPANY columnist and author, "Get Out of Your Own Way at Work...and Help Others Do the Same" (Perigee, 2006)

As CEO of my company, and the primary catalyst of its success, I must be intimately familiar with the "big picture" of our day to day actions.As such, I have daily interaction with middle managers, nationwide. By reading Vince Thompson's book "Ignited," I have gained new insight into the world of my middle managers. Vince gives a clear visual picture of what middle managers deal with daily, and how their actions effect both the individuals they manage, as well as influence those above them. This book has reinforced the importance of the 'middle manager' in a corporate hierarchy and, from the outside looking in, helped me refine my leadership tact in regards to how I can work with these managers. Too often neglected or forgotten as just another brick in the wall, middle managers who are properly informed, networked and guided, should be the life blood of an organization. Vince clearly illustrates this through his use of case studies, real world experiences in the middle, and assessments presented to middle managers. His ability to relate and empathize with middle managers is equally balanced by his able teachings and suggested "plans-of-action". Although the book is clearly designed and structured for the middle manager, I would also endorse this book for executive leadership and ownership as an outstanding reference tool for understanding the heart of their organizations. As the captain of the ship, you do your best to plot a steady course of business success, and expect the crew to follow through. Middle managers who experience and apply the lessons in "Ignited" can help drive the ship and assure clear waters ahead!

I've been in The Middle for a year and a half now and have been looking for a piece of guidance and education since the beginning. Ignited identified the skills I needed to fine tune, and the importance of clarity, consistency and honesty when working with my sales team. Walking the fine line between my sales team and the company is an everyday struggle. After reading Ignited it gave me the tools to manuever and become a better Online Ad Sales Director.

Ignited is a must read for anyone in The Middle. What's "The Middle" you ask? It's anyone not reporting to the CEO, has direct reports and their success depends on you and your success depends on them.

Ignited is the type of book you read once a year to stay on top of your A game.

A excellent and well-written book, which at the same time is surprisingly thought provoking. Business people seem to overlook the obvious and the fundamental priniciples of management every day. Vince Thompson explains the fundamental secrets and other methodologies in a very engaging and thoughtful way. I recommend this book to everybody, and of course especially managers. This is not just another management book, the principles and content of the book apply to things in our everyday lives.