Synopsis
Eight true stories show that Leaders today aren’t just bosses, they’re self-starters who take charge even when they haven’t been given a charge. Upward leaders get results by helping their superiors lead. They make sure that good ideas don’t die on the vine because a boss’s understanding doesn’t reach down deep enough into the organization. Upward leadership assures that advice arrives from all points on the corporate compass, not just from the top down. And it applies at every level: Even CEOs need to learn about leading up because they ultimately answer to their boards.
In Leading Up, Michael Useem offers instructive accounts of this vital and unexplored facet of leadership. Drawing on the extraordinary experiences of real people, Useem shows us what happens when those not in charge rise to the challenge, and also what happens when those who should step forward fail to do so:
* Civil War generals openly disrespected and...
Charles O. Holliday
The message afforded by Leading Up is powerful and germane as we continue to decentralize and empower our organizations. As Mike Useem says, ‘If we expect our subordinates to furnish us with unvarnished, unbiased advice and unswerving support at times when it really counts, we need to have cultivated a culture that encourages and rewards them to do so.’ His diverse selection of historical examples and his storytelling ability bring the concepts alive.