An Invented Life: Reflections On Leadership And Change [Paperback]

Warren Bennis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 21, 1994

This collection brings together the best of Warren Bennis--essays spanning three decades and covering such revolutions as the information explosion, Watergate, the emergence of Japan, and the collapse of the Soviet Union. A retrospective on the life and work of one of America's most respected authorities on business leadership.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bennis ( Leaders ), a former president of the Univeristy of Cincinnati and currently a business professor at the University of Southern California, analyzes leadership and change in these superb essays. He maintains that America has a shortage of leaders ("people who do the right thing") and an abundance of managers ("people who do things right"), which results in "underled and overmanaged" American business and educational organizations. Bennis blames America's management schools. "We teach people how to be good technicians . . . but we just don't train people for leadership." In studying 90 leaders, Bennis discovered that their only common characteristic was "a guiding purpose, an overarching vision." His thoughts on corporate boards, ethics and information overload are perceptive, as is his essay on "Searching for the Perfect University President." This book should appeal to the business, educational administration and trade markets.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Bennis, a well-known name in management literature, has written many books, including On Becoming a Leader ( LJ 8/89). This work is a collection of articles written over a 30-year time frame--none of which is outdated. Many focus on the nature of leadership and incorporate Bennis's own reflections on serving as a university president. Included are essays on democracy and trust in the workplace, followership, the role of corporate boards, and ethical issues in organizations. Highly recommended for all business collections.
- Jane M. Kathman, Coll. of St. Benedict Lib., St. Joseph, Minn.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 16 and up
  
• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (March 21, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201627140
• ISBN-13: 978-0201627145
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #894,070 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Warren Bennis (Los Angeles, CA), born in 1925, is an American scholar, organizational consultant and author, who is widely regarded as the pioneer of the contemporary field of leadership. He is University Professor and Distinguished Professor of Business Administration at the University of Southern California. In the past decade, he served as chairman of the Advisory Board of the Center for Public Leadership at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, working with David Gergen.
Bennis has consulted for many Fortune 500 companies and served as adviser to four U.S. presidents. He has served on the faculty of MIT's Sloan School of Management and was Chairman of the Organizational Studies Department. He is a former faculty member of Boston University, former Provost and Executive Vice President of State University of New York at Buffalo and President of the University of Cincinnati. His global experience includes teaching at the Indian Institute of Management-Calcutta, INSEAD, the London Business School, and IMEDE (now IMD). In 2007, Business Week called him one of ten business school professors who have had the greatest influence on business thinking. He has received 20 honorary degrees and has served on numerous boards of advisors.
Bennis has written or edited 30 books, which have been translated into 21 languages, and many articles on three of his passions-leadership, organizational change, and creative collaboration. The Financial Times recently named Leaders as one of the top 50 business books of all time.
Bennis is proud of the four years he served in the U.S. Army, 1943-1947. At the age of 19 he was one of the youngest infantry commanders in Germany and was awarded the Purple Heart and Bronze Star. His dream remains: to write a terrific one-act play.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Reflections on Life, November 13, 2003

By 

Dr. W. G. Covington, Jr. (Edinboro, Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Invented Life: Reflections on Leadership and Change (Hardcover)

Bennis calls this a "brief intellectual autobiography" in the first chapter, but adds quickly that in looking back it seemed more biographical in that he seemed to be writing of someone other than himself. For an educator he has a surprising confession, "I didn't much like school, and barely remember most of my teachers" he tells us.

He describes his college days, followed by graduate school. After obtaining his own education he entered academe on the other side of the desk and eventually got into administration, becoming a college president.

At this point in the book he segues from personal reflection to his thoughts on larger issues. We've all been victims of bureaucracy at some point. Hopefully he is right in predicting this dysfunctional managerial system is coming to an end.

In the next couple of chapters he hones in on two of his areas of expertise, leadership competencies and managing the dream. He continues on with his thoughts on various other matters. Overall it is interesting to see his perception on his own life and his thoughts on broader matters.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The leadership Author Looks Within, February 19, 2007

By 

therosen "therosen" (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: An Invented Life: Reflections On Leadership And Change (Paperback)

Warren Bennis is a prolific writer on leadership, having penned Leaders and On Becoming a Leader amongst other books. In this books, he turns inward reflecting on the lessons involved in analyzing his own life. He willingly covers the negative experiences in his life, including an experience where he offered a partial resignation in protest of administrative policy.

This is not a good first book on either the author, or leadership, but is very valuable for someone already familiar with Warren's work. It'll add context to his ideas, and show how he tried to apply them throughout his life. Certainly worth the time to read it.