Building Leaders

Corporations are spAnding billions of dollars on leadership development initiatives. But are these programs paying off? Building Leaders takes a hard look at the successes and failures of more than a dozen organizations—including Ernst & Young, Motorola, the U.S. Army, and Federal Express. It identifies the three dominant approaches to leadership education and provides a blueprint for how organizations can use them to more effectively cultivate a continuous crop of talented leaders.

Here, readers will find an in-depth presentation of the specific skill sets that individual managers need in order to lead. They'll also discover which organizational values promote leadership, examine successful strategic interventions, and see what a successful leadership plan looks like.

In Building Leaders, authors Conger and Benjamin examine the very best practices of American and foreign companies to present a comprehensive plan for developing leadership talent at every organizational level. Here, readers will find an in-depth presentation of the specific skill sets that individual managers need in order to lead. They'll also discover which organizational values promote leadership, examine successful strategic interventions, and see what a successful leadership plan looks like.

Booknews

Consultants Conger and Benjamin look at the successes and failures of more than a dozen organizations in order to provide a blueprint for effectively cultivating a continuous crop of talented leaders. They identify and examine three principal approaches to leadership education: individual skill development, instilling organizational values that promote leadership, and strategic interventions. They also study the popular technique of action learning as a training paradigm. Individual case studies illustrate best practices in an array of business sectors. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Jay A. Conger is the director of the University of Southern California's Leadership Institute and the author of Learning to Lead. Named Business Week's Best Professor to Teach Leadership to Executives, he has served on the faculties of the Harvard Business School, McGill University, and INSEAD, and is an internationally recognized leadership expert.

Beth Benjamin,Ph.D., is a leadership consultant for Booz?Allen & Hamilton and has conducted extensive research with the University of Southern California's Leadership Institute and RAND Corporation.