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Must read' business books

Leadership books

1. BUDDHA HUNTERS - Secrets of How Irresistible Leaders Liberate the Human Spirit at Work by Bruce Holland. For more details.

2. LITTLE BOOK FOR BIG THINKERS by Kris Coppieters, Allan Frazor and Bruce Holland. Thought Pieces and Perspectives On Business and Management. For more details...

3. THE CREATIVE BRAIN by Ned Herrmann. There are 4 different types of people living on Earth. If you don't know which is which there's no way you can communicate or work with them successfully. For more details.

4. THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE by Stephen Covey. An international best-seller that's just as fresh as when it was published.

5. A SIMPLER WAY by Margaret Wheatley and Myron Kellner-Rogers. This is certainly the most beautiful books on management and leadership that I have read, and one of the most useful. For more details.

6. GUNG HO! Turn On the People in Any Organization by Ken Blanchard. A simple story that pack some real strong messages. For more details.

7. The GO-GIVER - A little Story About A Powerful Business Idea by Bob Burg & John Mann. Full of wisdom. Not to be missed. For more details.

8. THE SEVEN DAY WEEKEND by Ricardo Semler. A wonderful book first recommended to us by Stephen Benson, Pawprintz Garment Graphics, Auckland. Also see MAVERICK by Ricardo Semler.

9. LEADERSHIP AND THE NEW SCIENCE. By Margaret Wheatley. All three are essential reading especially for managers who see their organisation like a machine. For more details.

10. SYNCHRONICITY - The Inner Path of Leadership, by Joseph Jaworski. Our institutions and leadership are grounded in a way of thinking about the world that is increasingly obsolete and counterproductive. This book will help put you onto a better path. For more details.

11. YOUR BRAIN AT WORK, by David Rock. This is a wonderful summary of how the emerging field of neuroleadership is challenging many current leadership practices based on the machine model.

12. HOW FULL IS YOUR BUCKET? by Donald O Clifton. Each of us has an invisible bucket, it is constantly emptied or filled, depending on what others say or do to us. When our bucket is full, we feel great. When it?s empty, we feel awful. When we use our dipper to fill a other?s buckets we also fill out bucket. When the use our dipper to dip from others buckets we diminish ourselves. For more details.

Strategy books

1. THE DISCIPLINE OF MARKET LEADERS by Fred Wierseman. To be world class, an organisation needs to be world class in one (and only one) of three possible | Value Propositions: 1. Operational excellence, 2. Product leadership or 3. Customer focused . Not choosing is being not strategic. |For more details.

2. THE MANAGER'S GUIDE TO SYSTEMS THINKING & LEARNING by Stephen G Haines. For more details.

3. THE FIFTH DISCIPLINE - The Art & Practice of the Learning Organization (Paperback) by Peter Senge. For more details.

4. FROM GOOD TO GREAT by Jim Collins

5. MARKETING WAREFARE by Al Ries and Jack Trout.

6. RE-IMAGINE by Tom Peters. Find out why at least 80% of white-collar jobs will disappear. The difference between men and women. 25 ways to improve your sales. 50 leadership points. And so much more. For more details.

7. THE TIPPING POINT, How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell. A very interesting book looking at what moves people. How the little things we all can do and look out for can make a big difference and how the capability to connect emotionally and understand emotions can make a big difference. A wonderful little book that will change the way you think about business and the world. For more details.

8. BEYOND BUDGETING by Jeremy Hope

9. PURPLE COW by Seth Godin. A Purple Cow is a product or service that is worth making a remark about. Just like if you saw a purple cow you'd go home and tell someone, if you saw a 'purple cow' product or service you'd go home and tell someone. You should build your organisation like this. For more details.

10. TRUST THE PROCESS BY SHAUN MCNIFF. Don't be put off by the book's sub-title: An Artist's Guide to Letting Go. This book is for anyone who feels they may be a little stuck and want inspiration about how to become more open, accepting and free-spirited. For more details.

11. A NEW EARTH - Awakening to Your Life's Purpose by Eckhart Tolle. Although this is not strictly a business book, it will show you how to run your business with more consciousness and presence. A truly influential book. For more details.

12. COMPLEXITY - the emerging science at the edge of order and chaos, by Michael Waldrop. Once you have read this book, you will never see the world in quite the same way. For more details.

Systems Thinking

1. SYSTEMS THINKING IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR by John Seddon. This book describes loads of case studies from the British public service but has direct implications for New Zealand also. It is required reading for anyone working in or for the public sector.

2. SYSTEMS THINKING AND LEARNING by Stephen G Haines. One of the best and simplest books on systems that I've come across.