The Ideal Executive (Why You Cannot Be One and What to Do About it)

By Ichak Adizes

Business, Money & Investing

Language: English Not Rated (NR)

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No. of pages

138

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Buy Online: Amazon.com www.adizes.com

Overview Ratings & Reviews

Dr. Adizes’ premise, developed in this book, is that theideal leader, manager, or executive—ideal in the sense that he canfulfill by himself all the roles necessary for the long-and short-termeffectiveness and efficiency of an organization—does not and cannotexist.
And that is the problem with contemporary management literature:
it presents what the executive should do, (because that is what the organization needs) even though no one can do it.

All the books and textbooks that try to teach us to be perfectmanagers, leaders, or executives are based on the erroneous assumptionthat such a goal is possible. This book explains why it is not. We are all barking up the wrongtree, spending millions of dollars to train and develop executivesbased on faulty logic.

This book is the first in a series of three. In this volume, Dr. Adizes presents a paradigm shift in management thinking:
If no one can be the ideal executive that organizations need, what should be done to avoid mismanagement?
• How to compose a complementary team
• How to structure thecompany correctly
• How to harness conflict that necessarily willemerge within a team composed of diverse styles

This book is a must for all managers and leaders of industry ornot-for-profit organizations. It is based on 30 years of successfulapplication of principles presented in this book in 48 countries, incompanies from start-ups to the largest on the earth.

The Story Behind This Book

Change is constant. The process has been going on since the beginning of time and will continue forever. The world is changing physically, socially and economically. Change is here to stay. And change creates problems. In fact, the greater the quantity and velocity of the changes, the greater the quantity and complexity of the problems we will have. Why does change create problems? Because everything --everything-- is a system, whether we are talking about a human being, an organization, or the solar system. And every system is, by definition, composed of subsystems. When change occurs, the subsystems do not change synchronously. Some subsystems change faster than others. The result is disintegration. Any problem you might have --with your car, your marriage, at work--analyze it and you will find that something has fallen apart, and it has fallen apart because of change. These manifestations of disintegration caused by change, which we call problems, require solutions. And whatever decision organizational leaders take about how to deal with these problems will create new changes, and those changes will create new discontinuities, and thus tomorrow's problems. The purpose of management, leadership, parenting, or governing-- any form of organizational leadership--is to solve today's problems and get ready to deal with tomorrow's problems. And that means managing change.

Praise and Reviews

“While early promotions in one’s career are due to excellence in a professional discipline, promotions to key management positions hinge upon excellence in interpersonal skills. This book is the culmination of Dr. Adizes’ theoretical studies, vast experience and great intuition. It will help you understand and better deal with subordinates, peers, and specifically your supervisor.”

-—Sass Somekh, Executive Vice President of Applied Materials, Inc.

“Every management team is a unique slight mutation of the many others we know. With four basic characters; P, A, E, I, Dr Adizes succeeds in giving us the tools to create the ‘full DNA’ of the numerous management teams that exist out there. With a masterful writing, based on tens years of real life experience, Dr Adizes brings to life characters that are the archetypes of managers we all see around us. Then he takes it one step further by showing us how to fix the unhealthy components of any given mutation.”

—Dr Moshe Benbassat, Chairman and CEO of ClickSoftware Inc.

“Adizes provides help to everyone in his latest book no matter where you are in your life cycle. His wisdom is basic to being a successful manager, father, husband, and leader. There are no limited to what you can achieve if you can strengthen and overcome your own weaknesses through teamwork and improved communications. Adizes provides the insight to help you do it.”

—Charles D. Peebler, Jr., Plum I Managing Director and Plum II Director and Venture Partner.