Managing
Academic Mintzberg, ranked nine on the "Top 20 Business Thinkers" list of the Wall Street Journal and 16 on the Financial Times' "The Thinkers 50" list, bases this book on information developed from spending a day each with 29 managers in a variety of fields. Observing, interviewing, and reviewing the managers' diaries, Mintzberg shares what he learned from his research--what happened in each manager's day--and then interprets why it happened. Industries of these managers include business, government, health care, and the social sector--from the managing director of a high-tech company to an orchestra conductor to the manager of a refugee camp. These 29 pictures of management as practiced illustrate the varied realities of managing. Mintzberg concludes, "to be effective in any managerial position, there is a need for thoughtfulness--not dogma, not greed risen to some high art, not fashionable technique, not "me too" strategies, not all that `leadership' hype, just plain old judgment." This is an excellent, must-read book for managers and aspiring managers. -- Mary Whaley  --Booklist, Sep 2009.