Customer Reviews

Teaching an Anthill to Fetch: Developing Collaborative Intelligence @ Work

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book reads as if a really engaging, curious and bright gentleman took a look around his bookshelves; pulled out the full range of quotes, tips, models, favorite stories; and then jammed them all into a big old shining aluminum can and painted "Collaborative Intelligence" on the front.

To be clear: "Collaborative Intelligence" is a GREAT way to market the stale old cliches of teambuilding. And no one who does leadership or organizational development should EVER get points taken off for writing the obligatory book to accompany the lucretive consulting gigs. But try as I might---I really couldn't find anything really new here. NOT that Joyce is putting anything out there as new. He is very respectful of citing his sources. And he does add value making the work of Senge or Sharmer perhaps a bit more accessible (although I always found the Senge "Field Books" to be extremely accessible. And "Presence" is a book I'd call brilliant.)

As it appears this book will sell---perhaps he can now afford a ghost writer or even an editor. There is a conceptual muddiness that runs through the book. One quick example: Joyce cites "Perception" as being one of the 5 elements of Perception. (page 30). On page 129 he introduces a question (and it is an important one) that he tells us "runs through the whole book." Mr. Joyce---why did you wait till the middle of the book for that?

That's the frustration---the guy really is good. The book really has a core sense of having a message that is vitally important on all sorts of levels. But the book itself is full of half formed, cliches (see the chapter on "Communication")and platitudes that get in the way of his message.

Look for his NEXT book. I'm betting that should he decide to partner with some of the folks he's read---he'll have something important to say. Maybe even something new and conceptually sound.


Roger Wright
Leadership and OD Consultant

I read a lot of business books. I mean a LOT. I even write one occasionally. What Stephen Joyce has done with this book is quite extraordinary. It's rare that we discover a TRULY new way of looking at how the world works. That's exactly what this book does. Joyce practically compels you see and act on new solutions and opportunities. I really think that this is one of the best and most useful books that I've read in a very long time. I highly recommend it.

Collaborative Intelligence is a fresh new way to understand how individuals and teams working toward a common goal can achieve amazing results Joyce is outstanding in showing the connection between personal and group resilience. This is a breakthrough book!

This GEM of a book is "fetchingly" elegant, brilliant and useful.
Mr. Joyce is a superb tactician and artist in how he superbly,
succinctly and simply, uses his wise words of the everyday in the workplace to create useful knowledge for the day-to-day practitioner of organizational and relational leadership. His book is well-crafted and offers realistic lessons for anyone interested in becoming a "catalytic companion" at work and play. All the "white" space he uses in the page layout allows the reader to comfortably insert themselves into his message and get the meaning of the book from within. And, it's internet interactive too. Great job, Mr. Joyce, I've already ordered ten copies
to give to my friends, work-mates and clients. Thank you for an original breath of organizational fresh air!

[...]

Teaching an Anthill to Fetch" provides a valuable path to strengthen the emergent survival skill - collaboration. With novel features like ""Go Deeper" and practical "Tools", this is a new road map to make Collaborative Intelligence really work @ Work!

Roger Gullickson

President/CEO
MVP Collaborative

CQ is for the office and beyond, as in all aspects of life we need to be reminded that CQ is important. Being a team player speaks to how we interact with our colleagues, our friends and our families. I highly recommend this book. Stephen Joyce provides an easy to understand road map to a better way to work, AND live!

"In developing organizations 'Collaborative Intelligence' is an invaluable tool, and Stephen's book is a great introduction to the subject. It is also a practical handbook with very specific suggestions and exercises to help us to improve our team's `Collaborative Intelligence'. This book is a great addition to the canon of Leadership literature."

Peter McNab, author of "Towards An Integral Vision: Using NLP & Ken Wilber's AQAL Model To Enhance Communication"

Steve Joyce shares a valuable and powerful story to get us hooked on the value of Collaborative Intelligence (CQ). Teaching an anthill to fetch reveals that CQ comes from reciprocal service -- to a greater good and from the greater good to us. CQ is an aptitude we possess without realizing it. We already know most of what we need to know in order to become a human anthill -- a team that serves life by adapting to life conditions no matter what the challenge might be. What I like about this book is that, like the closest friend, Steve walks beside us telling us stories, drawing images, cracking jokes and pointing out the evidence that human intelligence can deliver so much more than we allow it. For someone like me, who believes that individual human intelligence can be meshed into global intelligence Steve's observations are a welcome guide to the learning journey.

Marilyn Hamilton PhD CGA, Founder of Integral City, [...]

This book is about `collective space' - its promise and its potential. It tells us about ourselves, as human beings, and our capacity to operate collectively to address the very pressing, complex issues that face us all today at work, at home, and in our communities. We can wander through this space with awareness and intent or we can remain blind to what profound potential awaits us. Steve Joyce wants us to imagine this space differently - not as something that is ubiquitous (like water for a fish) and therefore unnoticeable but as something rich and powerful if only we could approach it with more deliberate awareness and intention. He accomplishes this end through his considerable talent as a natural storyteller by weaving and integrating everyday concepts, rich anecdotes and personal experience. He delights in prodding us to bring us to a richer realization, a more complete picture and fuller understanding of our collective intelligence. The final product is, above all else, a practical book that points out the skills that need to be mastered to make us masters of our collective space.





J. Brian Woodward, Ph.D.

Leadership Learning Lab

The Banff Centre

Banff, Alberta, Canada

A solid overview of the emerging field of collaborative and shared leadership. Joyce provides insight in a book that is thick on content and coverage while being economical with words. I have found other peices helpful, like the audiobook and website which includes practical skill building tools and helpful links.