The Corporate Shaman: A Business Fable (Hardcover)

~ Richard Whiteley (Author) "Leon King, the CEO of PRIMETEC, Inc., pointedly surveyed the faces that circled the boardroom table that August morning..." (more)
Key Phrases: corporate shaman, ancestral healer, power animal retrieval, Leon King, Jason Hand, Wall Street (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Richard Whiteley believes the mystical healing power of a shaman can be harnessed for use in the business world, and in The Corporate Shaman he explains his philosophy--along with ways these traditional seers might actually function in such an environment. Whiteley, an entrepreneur, speaker, and author involved in the practice himself for the past decade, describes a shaman as "one who enters an altered state of mind, at will, and journeys to other worlds and uses the power, wisdom, and energies of those worlds to create positive change in people and the environments in which they live." Recognizing that this concept will be alien to many in his intended audience, Whiteley couches it in the currently popular form of a business fable. Using a composite of common situations and easily recognizable people that, in this case, populate a fictional company missing its numbers and threatening to pull everyone into a downward spiral, he introduces the basics and shows how they could be employed in the workplace. An addendum offers additional details for those who wish to test the ideas themselves. Readers open to new routes for personal and professional growth should find this intriguing and potentially useful. --Howard Rothman

Review

A stimulating and creative application of shamanism to modern life. -- Michael Harner, PhD., author of The Way of the Shaman

An engaging and important read for anyone in business…no matter what level in the organization. -- Connie Duckworth, advisory director, Goldman Sachs

An engaging illustration of how the wisdom gained throughout the ages has powerful relevance to modern business dilemmas. -- Deepak Chopra, author of The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success and The Way of the Wizard

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: HarperBusiness; 1 edition (February 19, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060008393
• ISBN-13: 978-0060008390
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #736,232 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save Your Money, March 20, 2006

By	William Corsair "Will" (Leavenworth County, KS USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

There's precious little in this book about the application of shamanism in the workplace. The "fable" borders on the preposterous. The basic story line: a shaman guides the COO and the CEO on discovery journeys and, poof, their company's problems begin to dissolve.

While I think that shamanism may have a future in the workplace, this simplistic story does little to promote that future. Substitute the phrase "spirituality in the workplace" or "emotional healing in the workplace" and you understand just how difficult it will be to have these kinds of alternatives accepted and implemented.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Find the Fire Within, March 3, 2002

By	Catherine Luchini Gerson (Newton, MA) - See all my reviews

It has been said that the most glowing successes are but a reflection of an inner fire. Richard Whiteley's fable magically awakens us to the fire within each one of us and rekindles our spirit for living a life of wholeness. The characters and situations he describes in PRIMETEC are all too familiar to anyone who has worked in an organization going through hard times.

The book is a page turner...I couldn't put it down.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Tool for Dealing With On-going Business Dilemmas, March 6, 2002

By	Michela Larson (Boston, Ms) - See all my reviews

This is not a straightforward business how-to book, but it is one that could be immensely useful for those willing to take a leap into some unknown territory. Richard Whiteley has written the story of what is undoubtedly a very common business issue where the corporate structure has been shaken by a slow-down in top-line business and leadership, rather than looking at the business as a whole, has begun to manage solely by the numbers. Consequently, the company is on the verge of losing it's heart and soul, and ultimately it's place in the market. Enter Jason Hand, a corporate shaman, who begins to work with various members of the company's executive staff and teach them how to access and employ animal spirits to help them solve conventional problems in unconventional ways. This is not a heavy-handed treatise and Richard Whiteley manages to introduce us to some pretty off-the-wall new ways of thinking about commom problems in very unthreatening and even common sense ways. It is also not a book that pretends to create problem-solving miracles. It acknowledges that some problems have such deep roots that it may take time to turn the situation around, but if one relies on more than the conventional, just maybe the turnaround may even have more lasting power. I found it inspirational and look forward to learning more about how these unconventional means can help to create stronger business.