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Book details
  • Genre:BUSINESS & ECONOMICS
  • SubGenre:Management
  • Language:English
  • Pages:274
  • eBook ISBN:9781618428950

The Manager's Oracle

125 Key Lessons Nobody Ever Taught You About Leading and Managing

by Mark Schwartz

Book Image Not Available Book Image Not Available
Overview
HOW DO I GET STARTED? Through no fault of their own, most new managers begin their careers with no real idea where or how to actually manage a team. Via its 125 KEY LESSONS NOBODY'S EVER TAUGHT YOU, "The Manager’s Oracle" uses sharp, easy-to-grasp concepts and more than 40 clear examples to expose new leader/managers to all 125 of those secret lessons long before any career adversity or failure can ever confront them. The book identifies four fundamental areas that all new leader/managers absolutely need to grasp, including: • Managing your own activities and personal resources; • Managing the boss; • Managing staff; and • Leading!
Description
HOW DO I GET STARTED? Through no fault of their own, most new managers begin their careers with no real idea where or how to actually manage a team. Via its 125 KEY LESSONS NOBODY'S EVER TAUGHT YOU, "The Manager’s Oracle" uses sharp, easy-to-grasp concepts and more than 40 clear examples to expose new leader/managers to all 125 of those secret lessons long before any career adversity or failure can ever confront them. The book identifies four fundamental areas that all new leader/managers absolutely need to grasp, including: • Managing your own activities and personal resources; • Managing the boss; • Managing staff; and • Leading! In mid-career, I returned to school to earn my MBA degree in the field of management. I was fortunate to be quickly offered my first major supervisory assignment, which was to lead a team tasked with developing a very complex computerized customer-billing application. The project brought with it a relatively short and very firm deadline. Even though we were successful, my team and I were completely exhausted! During development, I'd had to quickly learn many key management lessons that for some not very apparent reason had always been kept secret from me – even by the professors in my MBA program. I eventually realized that THOSE MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP LESSONS ARE NOT GENERALLY PACKAGED, NOR GENERALLY TAUGHT, in ANY graduate school! Most leader/managers have to discover these truths on their own, one at a time, usually when a difficult situation emerges - and right in the midst of lots of other pressing work. Like most new managers – I initially made lots of errors and could have been sent right to the minor leagues any number of times. Somehow though, I managed to circle the bases and score a run my first time on the field. Looking back, a good mentor would have been a very big help. Now, having learned all those lessons the hard way - and over a long period of time, I believe "The Manager's Oracle" will leave any new or aspiring leader/manager - or entrepreneur - with abundant tools, as well as the confidence to move smartly forward. I wish something like this had been in my hands when I started my own career. Reader, I want you to benefit - and succeed - from my experience.
About the author
Mark Schwartz, MBA, has been part of the management/leadership of small as well as quite large employee teams over more than 25 years. During that busy, productive and demanding period, Mark successfully planned, oversaw and worked along with the various teams he managed, to bring in many large and complex efforts - invariably on-time and within-budget. He also served on numerous senior-level divisional and corporate steering committees and mentored many new managers as they developed into true professionals. As a major by-product of that very active period, Mark polished and documented dozens of unique insights into the essential techniques associated with successfully leading and managing. Having acquired early management experience in both accounting and information technology (IT) venues, Mark later took on IT/Programming vice presidential responsibilities for a large, multi-branch commercial bank. From there, Mark went on to direct sizeable technical staffs with a pair of large consulting organizations. Two highly valuable by-products of Mark’s 25 years in leadership and management are: (1) a full understanding of the trials facing anyone involved in just about any kind of management and leadership career, as well as (2) the ability to effectively coach, mentor, and motivate others. Based upon that solid foundation, Mark has assembled "The Manager’s Oracle: 125 Key Lessons NOBODY EVER TAUGHT YOU About Leading and Managing," alive with dozens and dozens of essential messages, useful for leader/managers at all levels. Career highlights: • Mark stepped in to save a failing commercial data center that had been established specifically to serve a very large U.S. Government agency. Over a very short timeframe, Mark transformed his small group of very talented – but previously mismanaged – technicians, into an aggressive, teamwork-oriented, and extraordinarily productive set of project teams. By way of a rapidly burgeoning workload (stemming from now – well-pleased clients) Mark’s group more than doubled its staff size in the course of just about two years. • Within another short two-year period, Mark transformed a large commercial bank’s IT department from a loose confederation of inward-looking, isolated and self-concerned groups – into a unified and farsighted team of corporate achievers. • Mark successfully established a large new Pricing-Billing department within a quasi-governmental organization that had never previously engaged in commercial customer billing. For their cooperative and exceedingly successful efforts, Mark and his staff won a stream of accolades. Mark has always enjoyed using a close interpersonal approach and a touch of humor in both his leadership efforts as well as his writing. He assembled "The Manager’s Oracle" to reflect the full range of his experience, aiming to share with others the many insights and skills he amassed over his busy career.