A few weeks ago John Hughes handed me his latest work - Haunting the CEO.  Being a lover a of a great leadership fable, I put it aside waiting for that perfect quiet morning to curl up with Harley (my dog) and get lost in it. Over the holidays, such an opportunity came up.

Haunting the CEO is a very well written leadership fable, in the style of Lencioni’s classic books.  The book centers around a struggling CIO, who is pushed by his new CEO to become a true leader.

This book is a must read for both developing and experienced IT leaders.  Every one of us will find things we can relate to and simple (in theories) ways to work through common leadership speed bumps.

John, congratulations on the great work.  Loved the book.

Knowing my love for great leadership fables, one of my clients recently passed me a copy of Lencioni’s The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive.

As with his other books, this one is full of great insights and provides a great real-world example of how to achieve results.  To some extent, I found this one a little less tangible than the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, but hopefully that will clear up for me as I digest.

Most executives recognize that finding the right people, with the right alignment of values, culture and purpose, is key to the success of an organization.  Many companies take the time to come up with “missions statements” and “corporate values” and “goals”.  Sadly, not as many take the process to completion and live by these defining statements and attributes.  I’ve been part of a few teams that start to go the right direction, then fail in other areas, especially communications (over-communicate clarity).

This book provides a simple framework that any leader can quickly grasp and implement. I’m a big fan of the Five Dysfunctions of a Team.  As expected, this book meshes well into that framework in many areas, especially in the first discipline (Build and Maintain a Cohesive Leadership Team).

Like his other books, this is another must-read for any business leader.