Top Dog: A Different Kind of Book About Becoming an Excellent Leader
by By Pincus, J. David and Debonis, J. Nicholas
Category: Business & Economics , Management

This book isn't like any business book you've probably ever seen. Part novel, part how-to, it's a totally gripping exploration of a vital message in an age of change: that the ability to communicate and collaborate can make or break an executive career.People at the top are under fire as never before, a fact keenly illustrated by the saga of Arlen Burch Royster. The CEO of Royal Accommodations, a national hotel chain, Royster has just learned that renegade managers have been cooking the company books. Not surprisingly, the world is about to learn it at the same time. Suddenly Royster has investigations to make and plenty of explaining to do - to his staff, board of directors, stockholders, employees, the media, the government, and all the others who seem to be hungering for his scalp. It's a new level of pressure for someone who clings to the vestiges of the "me boss, you worker" era, but this CEO's future - and perhaps the very existence of his company - hinges on his response.Royster is a fictional figurehead, but his crises are all too real. And that's where the balance of this extraordinary book comes in. Lead author J. David Pincus has researched matters of leadership and communication among executives in the Fortune 500 for the past ten years. His findings are interspersed throughout the episodes of Royster's story, adding detail to this exploration of corporate leadership. Here, too, are one-on-one exclusive interviews with America's actual "top dogs" - including Tom Clausen (Bank of America), Hicks Waldron (Avon), Walter Williams (Bethlehem Steel), Sandy Sigoloff (Wickes Companies), Henry Rogers (Rogers & Cowan), and Dick Schlosberg (The Los Angeles Times) - who describe how leaders must adapt to new realities in the workplace and marketplace.At the heart of Top Dog is a four-part model for all managers who recognize the growing importance of communication and relationship-building. Through case studies and anecdotes, it illustrates the leader's need for consistency (the need for credibility), compassion (the need to be empathetic and responsive), organization (the need to integrate strategies and tactics), and selectivity (the need to limit and focus communication).A fascinating blend of the "real" and the "realistic," Top Dog chronicles the evolution of the CEO as facilitator and communicator. It will captivate everyone with a stake in corporate leadership and its rapidly changing nature.