Biz Lit

The folks at InBubbleWrap.com have been too kind. Four additions to my bookshelf, so far. If you haven't signed up, it's not too late.

At the moment, however, I'm deep in Naked Conversations. The subtitle sums it up: "how blogs are changing the way businesses talk with customers." It's worth a review, and once I'm finished I'll post one. Check back.

I'm a longtime, avid reader of business books. During a couple of phases in my professional life I sent out periodic reviews of relevant biz books to colleagues and friends. Apparently these adhoc e-zines were a hit, since I got many (generally positive) comments and some encouragement to keep doing it. My interest might seem out of place for a guy who studied Southern US literature in college, but the whole business genre has spawned some excellent reading. It's fertile ground - ideas, passion for the subject and good writing come together to create engaging books. 

There's also a load of vanity-driven dreck (I'm thinking of you, Jack Welch), but that's easy enough to avoid. What's the alternative? Here are a few I've found particularly worthwhile:

• The Great Game of Business, Jack Stack. Forget the all-too-easily-forgettable Who Moved My Cheese? The Great Game pointedly shows that while crisis is a great motivator, it's better to change before you have no other choice. Not to mention the empowerment that results from giving employees responsibility for their futures, and a share of the rewards.
• Leadership is an Art, Max DePree. A brief, simple, and very human look at the qualities of a leader from the founder of Herman Miller.
• The Eng@ged Customer, Hans Peter Brondmo. It was written in 2000. It's about email. Not too relevant anymore, right? Nope. The underlying ideas are still valid.