Books We Recommend

by Tony Jaques PhD
This book is designed to provide hands-on, practical guidance for senior executives, lawyers and public relations professionals to navigate crises and to balance conflicting advice from lawyers and communication professionals while promoting open communication and protecting legal liability. Jaques offers practical guidance to CEOs on how to weigh conflicting advice, to lawyers on how to understand the bigger picture, and to communicators on how to be more persuasive in making the reputation-protecting case. It is easy to read and very engaging, with a wealth of case studies, practical examples, and key takeaways. The case studies are from around the world and from a range of organizations, from companies to governments to the military. And the lessons conveyed are priceless. Crisis Counsel is a must-read for who advise or wish to advise on high-stakes situations, whether you are a lawyer, a communicator, a CEO, or a leader of any other form of enterprise. Click here to learn more.

by Stephen Harrison and James E. Lukaszewski
Accountability, civility, compassion, empathy, honesty, humility, and principle: these are the seven characteristics embodied by every truly decent leader. The best organizations develop and maintain a civil culture, valuing ethical behavior, honesty, and integrity as much, or even more, than profitability. The Decency Code provides readers with practical pathways to creating or restoring that type of culture. These strategies address the evolving workplace: flexible, fast-moving, delayered, virtual, unstable, out-of-balance, ambiguous, global, diverse, and ruthlessly competitive. The Decency Code is a much-needed antidote to the prevailing incivility we see in both the workplace and the nation. Harrison and Lukaszewski plot a practical approach to regain civility, integrity and empathy in our relations with others. This is a must read for leaders, investors, employees, and engaged citizens generally. Click here to learn more.
by Chuck Garcia
The top positions in companies go to the most compelling communicators. Regrettably, this critical skill set is often overlooked. Career success is determined 5 percent by your academic credentials, 15 percent by your professional experiences, 15 percent by your natural ability, and 65 percent by your communication skills. Given that so much is at stake, whatever career you’ve chosen, it’s critical to communicate effectively. A Climb to the Top author Chuck Garcia draws on years of coaching and consulting experience to explain how you can become a persuasive communicator. By utilizing such concepts as the Primacy/Recency Effect and the Rule of Three, a public speaking beginner can gain the confidence and influence of a seasoned veteran. Read this book, practice the techniques, and take your communication skills and career to new heights. Click here to learn more.
This is a book about gaining influence and becoming a key trusted advisor. It is for everyone who advises leaders and senior managers (accounting, finance, human resources, IT, law, marketing, public relations, security, and strategic planning) and for outside consultants in these functional staff areas. It’s also for operations people yearning to finally be heard and heeded by their boss. Click here to learn more.

by Simon Sinek
One of the burdens of leaders is to inspire those who matter the most to help achieve their goals. Start with Why by Simon Sinek shows that the leaders who’ve had the greatest influence in the world all think, act, and communicate the same way — and it’s the opposite of what everyone else does. Sinek calls this powerful idea The Golden Circle, and it provides a framework upon which organizations can be built, movements can be led, and people can be inspired. And it all starts with WHY. This book will help leaders from Fortune 500 companies to grassroots organizers understand how to inspire others to action. Click here to learn more.
by Beth Noymer Levine
A substantive yet down-to-earth business book that entertains while it teaches leaders and aspiring leaders why and how they should shape their communications in order to be more effective and impressive. It’s a reality that athletes take more turns than most at public speaking and therefore provide both exemplary and cautionary examples to the rest of us. In Jock Talk, Beth Levine points out, in a pithy and poignant way, what executives can learn from these examples. Click here to learn more.

by Patrick Lencioni
In The Ideal Team Player, Lencioni presents a practical framework and actionable tools for identifying, hiring, and developing ideal team players. Through a compelling narrative form, Lencioni outlines the importance of building strong teams and recognizing strong team players when they come along. This book will not only help leaders build their team better; it will also help anyone reflect on the ways they can improve as a team player and become even more essential in their organizations. Whether you’re a leader trying to create a culture around teamwork, a staffing professional looking to hire real team players, or a team player wanting to improve yourself, this book will prove to be as useful as it is compelling. Click here to learn more.
by Kara Alaimo
Pitch, Tweet, or Engage on the Street offers a modern guide for how to practice public relations and strategic communication around the globe. Drawing upon interviews with public relations professionals in over 30 countries as well as the author’s own experience as a global public relations practitioner in the United Nations and in U.S. President Barack Obama’s administration, this book explains how to adapt public relations strategies, messages, and tactics for countries and cultures around the globe. The book begins by explaining key cultural differences which require practitioners to adapt their approaches, before discussing how to build and manage a global public relations team and how to practice global public relations on behalf of corporations, non-profit organizations, and governments. Then, the book takes readers on a tour of the world, explaining how to adapt their campaigns for Asia-Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, the Americas, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Along the way, readers are introduced to practitioners around the globe and case studies of particularly successful campaigns – from a public relations “siege” that successfully ended an epidemic of violence in Kenya to the remarkable P.R. strategy adopted by Bordeaux wineries in China that led to a staggering 26,900 percent increase in sales. Click here to learn more.

by Lisa Cron
Stories are a powerful way to persuade and influence. This is because our brains are wired to think in stories. Wired for Story helps readers understand why story is such a powerful tool and how to wield it effectively. This book reveals the cognitive secrets of what the brain craves from every tale it encounters and what fuels the success of any great story. Backed by recent breakthroughs in neuroscience as well as examples from novels, screenplays, and short stories, Wired for Story offers a revolutionary look at story as the brain experiences it. Each chapter zeroes in on an aspect of the brain, its corresponding revelation about story, and the way to apply it to your storytelling right now. Click here to learn more.
Crisis is not like other business interruptions. In a crisis, your company spokespersons, managers, and employees must know exactly what to do, what to say, when to say it, and when to do it — while the whole world is watching! But can you depend on your crisis management plan to make that happen? Lukaszewski on Crisis Communication is your guide to preparing for a crisis and the explosive visibility and reputation risk that come with it. In a masterful book selected as one of “30 Best Business Books of 2013” by Soundview Executive Book Summaries and endorsed by the Business Continuity Institute, Lukaszewski distills four decades of public relations experience into 10 chapters of field-tested advice. Delivered in his straight-talking style and backed with compelling case studies, examples and templates, Lukaszewski explains how to build a crisis management plan and how to put it into action in the real world of media scrutiny, social media, activists, and litigation. How-to’s, practical tools, tips, charts, checklists, forms, and templates teach you the simple, sensible, sincere, constructive, positive techniques to reduce contention and to succeed. Click here to learn more.
by Deirdre Breakenridge
This book provides students and professionals with practical answers to important career and communication questions, helping them to communicate successfully in a business setting. Communication expert, Deirdre Breakenridge, examines the ways in which professionals can make the most of their careers in a fast-changing media landscape, offering advice on how new and seasoned executives can utilize and adapt to the latest modes of communication. Grounded in decades of experience, Answers for Modern Communicators will benefit all students getting ready to enter the workforce as well as professionals looking to enhance their communication skills. Learn more here.

by Ian Leslie
Everyone is born curious. But only some retain the habits of exploring, learning, and discovering as they grow older. Those who do so tend to be smarter, more creative, and more successful. In Curious, Ian Leslie makes a passionate case for the cultivation of our “desire to know.” Drawing on fascinating research from psychology, economics, education, and business, Leslie looks at what feeds curiosity and what starves it, and finds surprising answers. Curiosity is a mental muscle that atrophies without regular exercise and a habit that parents, schools, and workplaces need to nurture. This book inspires readers to reach back into their curious mind, to teach them things about themselves, about their kids, and about the work they do (regardless of sector), because Leslie challenges all preconceived notions about the way we take in information. Click here to learn more.

by Robert B. Cialdini
In Influence, Dr. Robert B. Cialdini — the seminal expert in the field of influence and persuasion — explains the psychology of why people say yes and how to apply these principles ethically in business and everyday situations. Readers will learn the six universal principles of influence and how to use them to become a skilled persuader. Understanding and applying the six principles ethically is cost-free and deceptively easy. Backed by Dr. Cialdini’s 35 years of evidence-based, peer-reviewed scientific research — as well as by a three-year field study on what moves people to change behavior — Influence is a comprehensive guide to using these principles effectively to amplify your ability to change the behavior of others. Click here to learn more.

by Patrick Lencioni
Building strong teams is a cornerstone of building a thriving business. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team creatively outlines how to recognize and address behaviors that can inhibit teams from performing at their absolute best. In this book Patrick Lencioni offers a leadership fable that is enthralling and instructive. Throughout the story of Kathryn Petersen, Decision Tech’s CEO, Lencioni reveals the five dysfunctions which go to the very heart of why teams, even the best ones, often struggle. He outlines a powerful model and actionable steps that can be used to overcome these common hurdles and build a cohesive, effective team. Click here to learn more.

by Edward L. Bernays
How to move people to where we want them to be is key to leadership. Public Relations by Edward Bernays outlines his innovative approach to influence by shaping the culture that legitimates and encourages the changes or behaviors we desire, in an ethical way. Public relations as described in this volume is, among other things, society’s solution to problems of maladjustment that plague an over-complex world. This book provides know-why as well know-how. Bernays explains the underlying philosophy of public relations and the PR methods and practices to be applied in specific cases. He presents broad approaches and solutions as they were successfully carried out in his long professional career. Click here to learn more.