Description:

WINNER: CMI Management Book of the Year 2013 - New Manager Category (previous edition)

The Leadership Skills Handbook from best-selling author Jo Owen reveals the essential skills you need to be an effective leader.

This book shows you what works in practice, not in theory, in crucial areas such as people skills, career skills, mindset skills, organization skills, personal values and behaviours. Each skill is presented in a concise, easy to follow format, with an accompanying framework to help you deploy it in your own life. The skills are about the real challenges real leaders must master, and as you observe and record real-life examples of skills in action, you will be developing your own unique formula for success in the context that matters to you.

Based on research from over a thousand leaders throughout the world at all levels in the public, private and voluntary sectors, The Leadership Skills Handbook identifies the practical skills to make you even more successful, and offers guidance on all key topics. This updated new edition includes exclusive new content on the changing demands of leadership in the 21st century and 10 whole new skills. These include the need to influence rather than control, how you get people to commit to your vision rather than comply and how career is no longer a noun but a verb for new generations of workers.

 

Key features at a glance:

• Features practical advice on over 100 leadership skills plus tips, exercises and examples, arranged in an easy dip-in-and-out style
• Allows you to create your own personalized formula for success, based on a combination of what works best for both the individual reader’s career and their company
• New to this edition: exclusive new content on the changing demands of leadership in the current volatile and ambiguous business world
• Is written by award-winning and best-selling author, Jo Owen, who has sold hundreds of thousands of copies of his books on leadership and management worldwide

Contents:

Acknowledgements

Introduction

 

PART ONE: Mindset skills

Chapter 01. Positive leadership

Chapter 02. Responsibility

Chapter 03. High aspirations

Chapter 04. Have courage

Chapter 05. Be adaptable

Chapter 06. Learn to be lucky

Chapter 07. Managing stress

Chapter 08. Honesty

Chapter 09. Self-awareness

Chapter 10. Working to win

 

PART TWO: Career skills

Chapter 01. Your leadership journey: key principles

Chapter 02. Managing your leadership journey: the map

Chapter 03. Discover your rules of success

Chapter 04. Build your career

Chapter 05. Careers versus careering: avoiding the death stars

Chapter 06. How not to get promoted

Chapter 07. Knowing when to move on

Chapter 08. Coach yourself to success

Chapter 09. Running the leadership marathon

Chapter 10. Staying employable

 

PART THREE: People skills

Chapter 01. Understand yourself

Chapter 02. Understand others

Chapter 03. Understand how you affect others

Chapter 04. Delegating

Chapter 05. Motivating

Chapter 06. Coaching

Chapter 07. Valuing others: cultural intelligence

Chapter 08. Managing expectations

Chapter 09. Managing performance

Chapter 10. Managing professionals

 

PART FOUR: Moment of truth skills

Chapter 01. Taking control

Chapter 02. Conflict management

Chapter 03. Crisis management

Chapter 04. Dealing with bullies

Chapter 05. Negative feedback

Chapter 06. Fighting battles

Chapter 07. Power

Chapter 08. Managing adversity

Chapter 09. Knowing who to trust

Chapter 10. Stepping up

PART FIVE: Daily skills

Chapter 01. Reading

Chapter 02. Writing

Chapter 03. Presenting

Chapter 04. Storytelling

Chapter 05. Listening

Chapter 06. Doing numbers

Chapter 07. Problem solving

Chapter 08. Time management

Chapter 09. Hearing feedback

Chapter 10. Using technology

 

PART SIX: Organization skills

Chapter 01. Making decisions

Chapter 02. Making decisions in uncertainty

Chapter 03. Being productive in an unproductive world

Chapter 04. Effective meetings

Chapter 05. Managing projects

Chapter 06. Setting goals

Chapter 07. Selling and persuading

Chapter 08. Reorganizing

Chapter 09. Selecting your team

Chapter 10. Developing your team

 

PART SEVEN: Political skills

Chapter 01. Influencing people

Chapter 02. Achieving influence and power

Chapter 03. Influencing decisions

Chapter 04. Learning to say ‘no’

Chapter 05. The partnership principle

Chapter 06. Negotiations

Chapter 07. Networking

Chapter 08. Altitude sickness: dealing with top management

Chapter 09. Managing upwards

Chapter 10. Flattery

 

PART EIGHT: Financial skills

Chapter 01. Managing budgets

Chapter 02. Negotiating budgets

Chapter 03. Reviewing budgets

Chapter 04. Understand the nature of your costs

Chapter 05. Cutting costs

Chapter 06. Balanced scorecard

Chapter 07. Making an investment case

Chapter 08. Understand your business drivers

Chapter 09. Managing pricing

Chapter 10. Decoding CAPM

 

PART NINE: The art of strategy

Chapter 01. Creating a vision

Chapter 02. Classical strategy

Chapter 03. Post-modern strategy

Chapter 04. Strategic discussions

Chapter 05. Competitive strategy

Chapter 06. Understanding the customer

Chapter 07. Marketing strategy

Chapter 08. Pricing strategy

Chapter 09. Dealing with advertising

Chapter 10. The advertising brief

 

PART TEN: The 21st-century challenge

Chapter 01. Why leadership is different in the 21st century

Chapter 02. Staying relevant in the 21st century: human intelligence versus artificial intelligence

Chapter 03. Resilience and the 21st-century leadership marathon

Chapter 04. Leading without power

Chapter 05. Managing change

Chapter 06. Setting goals for success

Chapter 07. The global leadership challenge

Chapter 08. Leading global teams

Chapter 09. Leading a diverse workforce

Chapter 10. Back to the future: timeless lessons in leadership

 

Further reading

Index

About the Author:

Jo Owen is a best-selling and multi-award winning leadership author, keynote speaker and social entrepreneur. He is a founder of eight charities, including the UK’s largest graduate recruiter Teach First. His books The Mindset of Success, The Leadership Skills Handbook and Management Stripped Bare, all published by Kogan Page, have been translated into eight different languages, and offer expert advice on the leadership field.

Target Audience:

This book will boost your confidence levels, inspire you and guide you on your journey to becoming a leader of excellence.