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Leadership Is an Art (Paperback)

~ (Author) "My father is ninety-six years old..." (more)
Key Phrases: servant leadership, roving leadership, covenantal relationships, Herman Miller, Charles Eames, New York (more...)

4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)

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Hardcover Available from these sellers. Published August 24, 1989	Hardcover, August 24, 1989	--	$3.80	$0.01
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Rather than offering a how-to manual on running a business, DePree, CEO of Herman Miller Inc., a manufacturer of office furniture, details, in deceptively simple but imaginative language, a humanitarian approach to leadership. The artful leader, he argues, should recognize human diversity and make full use of his or her employees' gifts. Further, he believes, a leader is responsible not just for the health of a company's financial assets, but for its ethics. Advocating management through persuasion, and the exercise of democratic participation rather than concentrated power, he favors covenantal relationships with employees that rest on shared purpose, dignity and choice. The author stresses the need for communication, but his only direct guidance concerns the need for job performance reviews and self-evaluation.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

?This is a wonderful book. It captures Max?s spirit?and he?s a truly exceptional person. But it also says more about leadership in clearer, more elegant, and more convincing language than many of the much longer books that have been published on the subject.??Peter F. Drucker

?His opus is as worthy as scripture.??New York Times Book Review

?Like the elegant furniture his company makes, De Pree?s book provides a valuable lesson in grace, style, and the elements of success.??Time

?Leadership Is an Art is one of the best books I have ever read in my life on the subject of leadership and business management philosophy.??Sam Walton

?Perhaps we should banish all of our management books except Max De Pree?s recent gem, Leadership Is an Art. The successful Herman Miller, Inc., chairman . . . . writes only about trust, grace, spirit, and love . . . . such concerns are the essence of organizations, small or large.??Inc. magazine

-- Review

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Product Details

Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Broadway Business (May 18, 2004)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385512465
ISBN-13: 978-0385512466
Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #18,003 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
My father is ninety-six years old. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
servant leadership, roving leadership, covenantal relationships

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Herman Miller, Charles Eames, New York, Pep Nagelkirk, George Nelson, English Channel, Pink Ice

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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Citations (learn more)

This book cites 3 books:

Leadership Is an Art by MAX DE PREE in Front Matter (1), Front Matter (2), and Front Matter (3)
Leadership Jazz by Max Depree in Front Matter, and Back Matter
A World Split Apart: Commencement Address Delivered at Harvard University, June 8, 1978 by Aleksandr Isaevich Solzhenitsyn on page 60

100 books cite this book:

The Fifth Discipline: The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization by Peter M. Senge on 5 pages
Organization Behavior And Change: Managing Human Resources For Organizational Effectiveness by Thomas C. Head on page 229, page 234, and page 236
Finding Your Voice: Learning to Lead . . . Anywhere You Want to Make a Difference by Larraine R. Matusak in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
Scapegoats at Work: Taking the Bull's-Eye Off Your Back by John M. Dyckman in Back Matter (1), Back Matter (2), and Back Matter (3)
Great Session Openers, Closers, and Energizers: Quick Activities for Warming Up Your Audience and Ending on a High Note by Marlene Caroselli on page 69, page 94, and page 285

See all 100 books citing this book

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	95% buy the item featured on this page: Leadership Is an Art 4.3 out of 5 stars (39) $10.85
	2% buy Leadership Jazz - Revised Edition: The Essential Elements of a Great Leader 5.0 out of 5 stars (1) $10.88
	1% buy The Leadership Challenge, 4th Edition 4.4 out of 5 stars (92) $15.72
	1% buy The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You 4.7 out of 5 stars (27) $16.49

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Customer Reviews

39 Reviews

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(6)
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4.3 out of 5 stars (39 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Leadership Is About Liberating People, December 17, 2005

By	Lightman (New York) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

On page one of Leadership Is an Art Max Depree writes, "The book is about the art of leadership: liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible". This is a theme that runs throughout this very wise and in every way excellent work. The following quotes provide some of the flavor of Depree's enlightened and inspiring thinking:

* The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between the two, the leader must become a servant and a debtor.

* In addition to all of the ratios and goals and parameters and bottom lines, it is fundamental that leaders endorse a concept of persons. This begins with an understanding of the diversity of people's gifts and talents and skills.

* Understanding and accepting diversity enables us to see that each of us is needed. It also enables us to begin to think about being abandoned to the strengths of others, of admitting that we cannot know or do everything.

* Leaders don't inflict pain; they bear pain.

* First, as a Christian I believe that each person is made in the image of God. For those of us who have received the gift of leadership from the people we lead, this belief has enormous implications.

* Leaders owe people space, space in the sense of freedom. Freedom in the sense of enabling our gifts to be exercised.

* Participative management is not democratic. Having a say differs from having a vote.

* Interestingly, though in organizations like ours we need a lot of freedom, there is no room for license. Discipline is what it takes to do the job.

* One of the important things leaders need to learn is to recognize the signals of impending deterioration.

* Without forgiveness, there can be no real freedom to act...

Depree has given us an abiding philosophy of leadership. Actually operating in alignment with these principles demands a very high level of integrity - one that few leaders ever do attain. Those that do so unleash forces of transformation resulting in high performance high involvement organizations.

This book characterizes a commercial arena filled with vocational potential. I give it the highest recommendation.

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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Artful & Philosophical Leadership, October 26, 2004

By	Matthew Dodd (Virginia, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Leadership is an Art (Paperback)

Thoughtful and thought-provoking, Max DePree's easy-to-read classic, "Leadership is an Art," was one of the best leadership books I have read. I recommend it to brand-new leaders to help lay a solid leadership foundation upon which to build, and to seasoned leaders and managers interested in sharpening their leadership skills and refining their approach to leadership.

This book is a series of interdependent philosophical essays that are part of a holistic view of effective leadership. DePree defines the art of leadership as "liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible," and that definition is a theme that runs throughout the book. Another closely related common theme in these non-sequential yet complementary essays is that leaders must abandon themselves to the strengths of others in order to serve them and allow them to realize their full potential.

DePree put a lot of emphasis on people and fostering leadership environments in which trusting, respectful, and effective relationships flourish. His ideas and beliefs about leadership, some that I have never really read anywhere else, were refreshing and stimulating. One largely ignored insight that particularly stood out to me was that "much of a leader's performance cannot be reviewed until `after' the fact." In today's common short-term focus/instant gratification world, such insights deserve our uncommon attention.

Although originally published in 1989, DePree's thoughts, ideas, and approach to leadership are timeless. While some people may argue that DePree's writings are idealistic, I found them to be realistic given the nature of people and the frenetic pace of our hyper-competitive professional environments. Every leader owes it to him- or herself, and to those who allow themselves to be led, to read and reflect on the leadership wisdom contained in this small and powerful book.

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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for Some, good for others, February 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Leadership is an Art (Paperback)

This book has been an incredible resource for me personally in my leadership development. Every time I feel I need a "refresher" on leadership or what I'm doing in my leadership positions, I pick it up and learn something new. However, it is not for everyone. This is a philosophical, "touchy-feely" book. For someone who tends to be more of a hands-on leader who leads with caring and compassion, it is great! Others who are looking for more of a formula approach to leadership won't find it helpful. It doesn't have lists of do's or don'ts. It isn't the 7 traits that make a leader (like you could ever nail it down to any given number...).

I loved this book, and it has truly helped me in my leadership development. I recommend it to anyone that is looking for something out of the norm of leadership and management books.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Superb description of the art of leadership
Max DePree was the Chairman of the Board of furniture giant Herman Miller Inc. The book describes the style of management that he used in making Herman Miller one of the most... Read more

Published 3 months ago by rowley32256

5.0 out of 5 stars Max De Pree is encouraging, thoughtful & inspiring
This book discussed topics such as all people have important values, experience, and ideas and should be the owners of their job and place of employment and corporations should... Read more

Published 3 months ago by Daniel White

5.0 out of 5 stars The best leadership book ever written
20 year retired Navy Command Master Chief and several more in the exec ranks in corporate America. No finer book on leadership, period. Read more

Published 9 months ago by John G. Vincent

1.0 out of 5 stars Avoid this book
"Leadership is an Art" is double-spaced, large type and only 148 pages long and yet it is so thin on content that it still feels like the author is struggling to fill the pages... Read more

Published 15 months ago by Phil A.

5.0 out of 5 stars Learning From The Master
As CEO Coach, Poet and author of a leadership book that helps leaders learn how to unleash the genius of teams and corporations, I feel this book is a must read. Read more

Published 20 months ago by Paul Walker

5.0 out of 5 stars Leadership is an Art
This book was purchased as a birthday (May) gift for a family member who has subordinates reporting to her. Read more

Published 21 months ago by Marilyn Cole

5.0 out of 5 stars Leadership Is an Art - a great book
I enjoyed the book. It was an easy read and the concept was one I believe all of Corporate America should embrace.

Published 22 months ago by C. L. Warren

5.0 out of 5 stars The Tendency to Deteriorate
Not everything that is old is wise. But this book, written 20 years ago, is jam-packed with wisdom. Read more

Published 23 months ago by John W. Pearson

5.0 out of 5 stars Leadership Is An Art
Max Depree has captured the essence of leadership in plain language. His clarity is unmatched in a world filled with leadership related noise. Read more

Published on October 30, 2007 by James F. Mccann

5.0 out of 5 stars Changed my Life
This book caused a "phase shift" for me. By that I mean, once I read this book, my whole fundamental attitude towards being a manager changed. Read more

Published on March 27, 2007 by Scott Stratton

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