Systems Leadership: Creating Positive Organisations

This is a very readable and pragmatic book for anyone interested in understanding how people contribute to the organization's ability to act intelligently, learn, and produce results. The book exemplifies "knowledge for action" in the sense that Chris Agyris used that term. The reader will pick up insights that are immediately useable and lay the groundwork for a powerful gestalt. The authors focus on how all the puzzle pieces of the organization not only fit together but interrelate. The book is organized so the reader can focus on a particular area of interest, find just enough theory to prepare for a more practical examination, and read about real-world examples. The reader is not bogged down in theoretical details, and does not follow a recipe. Instead, he or she is given enough guidance and freedom to build up knowledge from a personal perspective. Using a background of Elliott Jaques' stratification theory, the book examines how people interact with situations to accomplish work and produce results, why they succeed or fail, and how and why individual and organizational learning occur (or not). The book is richly cross-referenced so the individual can examine a concept across topics, and it has an excellent index. I highly recommend this book for any manager or student of management who is interested in learning organizations, strategy, personnel management, and knowledge management.

Excellent read. Good balance between theory and practicality. The management approach proffered has successfully underpinned Rio Tinto's management system for more than a quarter century. Whilst the book is based on Elliott Jaques' studies and theories, it is well tempered by the managerial experience of its authors. The book is annoted with numerous stories of Rio's implementation challenges, and the benefits so derived. Not necessarily a "How To" book, but full of good management sense backed by conceptual frameworks.