From Publishers Weekly
Book, a business journalist who has written for Forbes and Working Woman, believes that today's most successful female corporate executives succeed for three reasonsA"they are extremely self-confident, they possess a keen sense of customer demands, and they tap into their feminine side to lead." To support her thesis, Book profiles the working styles of 14 executive women, including eBay's Meg Whitman, Ogilvy & Mather's Shelly Lazarus, Ingram Industries' Martha Ingram and Bain & Company's chairman, Orit Gadiesh. Among the most interesting is Gadiesh, an Israeli-born woman who stayed with Bain after the founder had nearly bankrupted the consulting firm. Gadiesh puts in long hours with her employees, seeing herself as a team member, always building toward her vision of the company. Once, she even gave a presentation with her face bandaged, arriving at a meeting immediately after being in a car accident. While this book's contention that successful women employ uniquely female qualities might generate some publicity, it also invites skepticism. Book's volume may not withstand the scrutiny, principally because the "female qualities" of these executives are never clearly defined: being a team player, managing people well and working toward a vision are traits of successful women and men. The author's claim that her subjects don't try to act like men, which according to Book, successful women of the recent past did, feels forced. The profiles are engaging, but the volume never fully delivers on the promise of its title. Agent, Jane Dystel. 25-city NPR morning drive radio tour; 15-city NPR radio tour. (Aug.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Fourteen successful female business leaders are profiled here, and several of the best and brightest detail their paths and approaches to leadership in the new economy. The characteristics these women share include having a high level of self-confidence, being risk takers, instinctively anticipating change, capitalizing on understanding customer service, and using their femininity to manage employees and attract customers. Book, a seasoned journalist, identifies as embodying the essence of this new paradigm of leadership such women as Ellen Gordon of Tootsie Roll Industries, Meg Whitman of eBay, Inc., and Darla Moore of Rainwater, Inc. The stories of these pioneers show how women are reinventing management rules and redefining the meaning of power in today's corporate world. All business collections would benefit from owning this unique aggregate of case studies, as would women's studies collections.DSusan C. Awe, Univ. of New Mexico Lib., Albuquerque
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
