Book reviews...

APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY FOR CHANGE MANAGEMENT by Sarah Lewis, Jonathan Passmore and Stefan Cantore (Kogan-Page 2008)
This book adds significantly to the growing library of books devoted to the process and practice of Appreciative Inquiry. The sub-title of ‘Using AI to Facilitate Organizational Development’ is a very clear summary of the book’s content, and it will be particularly valuable to those who know the fundamentals of AI and wish to take their practice to a new level. Read more...

CREATING WE by Judith E. Glaser (Platinum Press 2005)
THE DNA OF LEADERSHIP by Judith E. Glaser (Platinum Press 2005)
Subtitles of books often reveal a lot more than the eye-catching title. This is the case with these two new books by management consultant and executive coach Judith E. Glaser. What we have here are two books with one major theme – leading organisations to be more caring, Read more...

THE CHANGE HANDBOOK (Second Edition) by Peggy Holman, Tom Devane And Steven Cady (Berrett-Koehler 2007)
The Change Handbook is a ‘must-have’ for anyone working in the field of organisation development whether in the public sector, small to multinational business, community and not for profit organisations, education or consulting. It is a major reference text. Read more...


WHAT KIND OF WORLD DO YOU WANT? by Jim Lord with Pam McAllister (Pre-Publication 2007 gifts@whatkindofworld.com)
In this book, Jim Lord sums up his philosophy for advancing society – an activity that he has been dedicated to since writing a series of articles on the quality of life in American cities in 1975. Read more...

X-TEAMS: HOW TO BUILD TEAMS THAT LEAD, INNOVATE, AND SUCCEED by Deborah Ancona & Henrik Bresman (Harvard Business School Press 2007)
The ‘X’ in the title of this book refers to the external focus of the teams studied by Ancona and Bresman. They contrast this external focus with the internal focus that they attribute to most team development activities and writings. Read more...


OFF-RAMPS AND ON-RAMPS by Sylvia Ann Hewlett (Harvard Business School Press 2007)
To anyone in the field of workplace equality, Sylvia Ann Hewlett will be well known as the author of Creating a Life. In this follow up to that bestseller, Hewlett has looked at the current state of women’s careers, Read more...

THE POWER OF APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY by Diana Whiney and Amanda Trosten-Bloom (Berrett-Koehler 2003)
APPRECIATIVE INQUIRY: CHANGE AT THE SPEED OF IMAGINATION by Jane Magruder Watkins and Bernard J Mohr (Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer 2001)
It seemed for a long time that there were few good practical guides on Appreciative Inquiry (AI), then just like buses, two come along at once! Both written by leading practitioners in the field of organisation development, they are equally comprehensive... Read more

FEARLESS CONSULTING by Erik de Haan (John Wiley & Sons 2006)
The director of Ashridge’s Centre for Coaching and TJ columnist, Erik de Haan, is a prolific and thought provoking writer. This is his fourth major contribution to the profession in three years, following on from The Consulting Process as Drama, Learning with Colleagues and Coaching with Colleagues. Read more...

GREAT COMMUNICATION SECRETS OF GREAT LEADERS by John Baldoni (McGraw-Hill 2003)
We are always told to “never judge the book by its cover”. The cover of this book carries the names of the leaders that John Baldoni has selected as being great, which are, not surprisingly given the author’s nationality, predominantly from the USA. But not exclusively: Winston Churchill and Mother Teresa make the list. Read more...

THE PLAY ETHIC: A MANIFESTO FOR A DIFFERENT WAY OF THINKING by Pat Kane (Pan Macmillan 2004)
Pat Kane’s book is every bit a manifesto, railing against the Protestant work ethic and New Labour’s ‘getting people back to work’ thinking, and suggesting a new ethic to cope with an unpredictable world. It is an eclectic collection of ideas and discussion, drawing from ancient and modern philosophy, art, music, education and probably every possible discipline you can think of. Read more...

LEARNING WITH COLLEAGUES by Erik de Haan (Palgrave Macmillan 2005)
COACHING WITH COLLEAGUES by Erik de Haan and Yvonne Burger (Palgrave Macmillan 2005)
These two new books by Ashridge Consulting’s Erik de Haan are texts about the development of our professional skills and abilities. They are written in the context of organisation and management development, but the methods covered are applicable to any professional activity where peer consultation and peer coaching is part of the professional development process. Read more...

THE CONSULTING PROCESS AS DRAMA: LEARNING FROM KING LEAR by Erik de Haan (H. Karnac Books 2004)
This short book is packed with insights and challenges for the experienced consultant, and the contrasting of the consulting process with the text of King Lear is not only unique, but also surprisingly helpful. Read more...

MORE MAGIC OF METAPHOR by Nick Owen (Crown House Publishing 2004)
I reviewed Nick Owen’s previous book ‘The Magic of Metaphor’ in Organisations & People vol. 10.3, and concluded that it was a great introduction to the art of storytelling and also a great resource of stories. This companion work... Read more...


COACHING SKILLS: A HANDBOOK by Jenny Rogers (Open University Press 2004)
Jenny Rogers is well qualified to write a handbook on coaching skills – she has been coaching for as long as it has been a recognised management development tool. Read more...


581/2 WAYS TO IMPROVISE IN TRAINING by Paul Z Jackson (Crown House Publishing 2003)
As the title suggests, this is a collection of activities for trainers/facilitators to use in workshops and courses. And, to answer the question that was the subject of my initial curiosity – there is a half activity, but I won’t spoil your enjoyment by telling you what it is! Read more...


PERFORMANCE COACHING by Angus McLeod (Crown House Publishing 2003)
As a ‘professional who coaches’ rather than a ‘professional coach’ I was pleased to note that this book was aimed at both groups in a spirit of passing on coaching skills to anyone who finds them useful in their work with people. Read more...