What We're Reading Now

3 March 2011

Allison read Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best . . . and Learn from the Worst by Robert I. Sutton, PhD. We read just about everything we can find on the topic of bosses.

Tags: allison read, management and supervision

I'm currently working with a client who has fallen into a pretty common trap - promote your best talent into management positions and then assume that they'll be good managers even though no one has showed them how. The good news is that learning to be a great boss is actually a more reasonable goal than you might think if you take a little time to learn and practice a few new things. You can read a lot of books about how to do it, or do what this client did, and ask us to synthesize all that information and customize a training program that's just right for you.

One of the many people considered among the experts is Robert Sutton, best known for his first book The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn't. As you might imagine, that title grabbed a lot of attention and paved the way for Sutton to write his follow-up with research and suggestions for the bosses out there. (It seems that most people - or at least those who contacted Sutton in response to No Asshole - have had a bad boss at some point in their working lives.)

Generally speaking, I agree with many of the principles in Good Boss, Bad Boss. Sutton does a great job of explaining why bosses matter and has compelling stories that will help convince you that the principles he outlines really matter. On the other hand, I have to disagree with a few of Sutton's suggestions, especially his advice that bosses can "try a little flash of anger now and then" and "crank up your people's fears and hopes to get their juices flowing." While I've certainly worked with individuals who have such mastery of their communication and interpersonal skills that they can appropriately modulate their tone, my experience is that it's just too hard for most of us to dial the emotion up and down like this. 

If you only have time to read one book, this probably isn't the one I'd recommend, but if you're looking for some food for thought that might spark some healthy discussion about what works and what doesn't, add this to your list. Better yet, if you're in Charlottesvile, you can join Rachel at the Chamber of Commerce tomorrow (March 4th) to read and discuss a synopsis and get all the juicy bits without having to read the 252 pages. 

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