Zeroing in on the specific skills that make great managers stand out from the pack, this comprehensive guide is both an essential primer for new managers and a valuable resource for seasoned executives. From hiring and retaining good people to motivating and developing team members, from understanding key financial statements to delegating work effectively, and from setting goals for others to managing your own career, this actionable guide walks readers through every aspect of managing in a complex business world. Filled with practical tools and tips, this essential toolkit helps managers to stay at the top of their game.
FREE Two-Day Shipping for Students. Learn more |
| |||||||||||||||
Book Description
Special Offers and Product Promotions
- Buy $50 in qualifying physical textbooks, get $5 in Amazon MP3 Credit. Here's how (restrictions apply)
Frequently Bought Together
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Since 1984, Harvard Business School Press has been dedicated to publishing the most contemporary management thinking, written by authors and practitioners who are leading the way. Whether readers are seeking big-picture strategic thinking or tactical problem solving, advice in managing global corporations or for developing personal careers, HBS Press helps fuel the fire of innovative thought. HBS Press has earned a reputation as the springboard of thought for both established and emerging business leaders.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perhaps the most valuable volume in the series....,
By
This review is from: Manager's Toolkit: The 13 Skills Managers Need to Succeed (Harvard Business Essentials) (Paperback)
This is one of the volumes in the new Harvard Business Essentials Series. Each offers authoritative answers to the most important questions concerning its specific subject. The material in this book is drawn from a variety of sources which include the Harvard Business School Press and the Harvard Business Review as well as Harvard ManageMentor®, an online service. I strongly recommend the official Harvard Business Essentials Web site (www.elearning.hbsp.org/businesstools) which offers free interactive versions of tools, checklists, and worksheets cited in this book and other books in the Essentials series. Each volume is indeed "a highly practical resource for readers with all levels of experience." And each is by intent and in execution solution-oriented. Although I think those who have only recently embarked on a business career will derive the greatest benefit, the material is well-worth a periodic review by senior-level executives.
Credit Richard Luecke with pulling together a wealth of information and counsel from various sources. He is also the author of several other books in the Essentials series. In this instance, he was assisted by a subject advisor, Christopher Bartlett, the Thomas D. Casserly, Jr. Professor of Business Administration at the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration. Together, they have carefully organized the material as follows. Part I "addresses five basic but essential skills needed to build the the foundation of a powerful and high-performing manager" (e.g. setting goals that others will pursue). Part II moves on to more challenging skills (e.g. creating and supervising effective team-based initiatives). Then in Part III, Luecke and Bartlett focus on the specific financial tools that every mid- to higher-level manager should understand and learn to apply (e.g. budgeting, the ability to read and interpret financial statements, net present analysis and internal rate of return). I also urge readers to pay close attention to the "For Further Reading" section which can be found at the end of this book. In it, they are provided with references to recent books and articles -- many of them "classics" -- which offer additional material and unique insights into the various topics covered in the previous 16 chapters. I especially appreciate the "Key Topics Covered in This Chapter" and "Summing Up" sections which precede and follow each of the chapters. Luecke and Bartlett are to be commended for covering such a wide range of subjects and for doing so in depth. For most executives as well as for those now embarked on preparation for a career in business, this may well prove to be the single most valuable volume in the Harvard Business Essentials Series.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Review of Essentials Manager's Toolkit: 13 Skills Managers Need to Succeed,
This review is from: Manager's Toolkit: The 13 Skills Managers Need to Succeed (Harvard Business Essentials) (Paperback)
The Manager's Toolkit, was an appropriate title for this book. This is not the kind of book that you sit down and read cover to cover over a couple of evenings and pass along to a friend. I conceptualize it more like a file cabinet that sits on my bookshelf containing files on best practices and resources for managers.
The file cabinet is organized into three drawers- (1.) Learning the Basics (2.) Reaching the Next Level and (3.) Mastering the Financial Tools. As things come up in my business, I reach into the appropriate file drawer and pull out the applicable files to review on the subject. [...] The book has been useful to me in running my business in several ways over the past couple of months. In the first file drawer, Learning The Basics, I pulled out the file on Characteristics of Effective Goals to help me facilitate groups of stakeholders involved in setting goals for their organizations. I also pulled the file on Defining Job Requirements which had helpful questions to help me write a job description for a new position in my company. In the second file drawer on Reaching the Next Level the file on Managing Teams was helpful for me to better understand how managing a team requires a different management strategies than those needed for more traditional hierarchal forms of management. I also pulled the file on What is Strategy? to help me in coaching a new manager in my organization on how to develop her first strategic plan for her branch of the company. In the third file drawer, Mastering The Financial Tools, I found the Tips for Setting Assumptions on pg. 229 to be helpful in coaching a manager on how to create financial projections. In the future I will probably pull different files depending on what types of management challenges I encounter. The book is laid out in a logical way with descriptive chapter titles making it easy to find what you are looking for. It is nice to know I have all of these resources at my fingertips. Senior managers may want to consider getting a copy of this book for new managers they oversee to give them a quick overview of best practices on a wide variety of topics they are likely to encounter in their new positions. The book is well worth the space it will occupy on your bookshelf in your office.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very good guide to basic management,
By
This review is from: Manager's Toolkit: The 13 Skills Managers Need to Succeed (Harvard Business Essentials) (Hardcover)
If you are a new manager fresh from being an individual contributor, this is the book for you. It takes you through the key skills you will need to become an effective manager and how to move up the ranks. No, it is not a Machiavellian approach to leadership, it is a practical guide for the real world.
The chapters teach you about setting goals for your team with their input. The idea is to get the team moving, but in a way aligned with the enterprise. The next two chapters are on the importance of hiring right (very, very important) and retention. Here the advice in looking for quality rather than quantity rings very true. Also, even though you do want to be careful to retain the right talent, you really do NOT want to keep everyone. Let the slackers go. Encourage them to go! The chapters on learning to delegate and time management are also good for the young manager who is likely to want to do everything him or herself (you know, as they did when they were an individual contributor) and to take on too many task because they don't want to say no. Of course, learning to delegate can really help the overbooking problem. Part II talks about managing teams (and when they are best used), appraisals & coaching, and handling problem employees. The advice on how to terminate employees is very good. That is, get familiar and square will all relevant employment laws, involve HR, and realize that if you miss anything it is likely to blow up in your face. The chapters on developing your career (remember mentor), becoming a leader, and thinking strategically are all important as your career develops. The book's emphasis on knowing yourself and what it is you really want rather than what you think others think you should want is very good advice. The last four chapters form Part III and are about the basic financial skills you will need as a manager. The book takes you through the generic outline of a budgeting process, about understanding the basics of the balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. This is a NECESSARY skill. The next chapters on Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Breakeven Analysis, and Operating Leverage are very good introductions. Also, you will need to understand the Time Value of Money. It's on your business calculator. Really. A VERY good and handy guide to basic management. Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
|
|
