Management-Business – Scott J. Pearson’s Book Review

Leading Effective Engineering Teams: Lessons for Individual Contributors & Managers from 10 Years at Google

By Scott J. Pearson | May 19, 2025May 19, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

This book fills a gap in literature about technology leadership. Many books on leadership exist; likewise, many books on approaching technology from the perspective of business leadership exist; however, not a lot of books talk about how to lead from a technologist’s angle. People working in software are usually really smart people. They know and respect “game” when they see competence and mastery in their field. But mentorship from books or from seasoned leaders is…

Management-Business

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive & Others Die

By Scott J. Pearson | May 1, 2025May 1, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Many business folk seek the one great idea that’ll transform the world and their bank accounts. They want to start a company or a product line to take them to the top or provide more stability. In our information age, however, ideas are everywhere; people able to push those ideas forward into beneficial, lasting change are harder to find. Leadership gurus (and brothers) Chip and Dan Heath seek to educate us about how to make…

Leadership Management-Business

Scaling Leadership: Building Organizational Capability & Capacity to Create Outcomes that Matter Most

By Scott J. Pearson | April 24, 2025April 24, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

For anyone, leadership is a journey, not a destination. It’s more of an art than a series of steps to implement. We all break down as much as we build up. It helps to have intelligent partners to dialogue with, but those are often hard to come by. Good books certainly provide helpful sparring partners to hone one’s style. This book seeks to help leaders advance their personal leadership by advancing how they build leaders…

Leadership Management-Business

Organizational Culture & Leadership, 5th Edition

By Scott J. Pearson | March 28, 2025March 28, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

“Culture” has become a trendy word in today’s business talk. Many popular books espouse it as a cure-all to every organizational malady. Much hype certainly permeates those book, but Edgar Schein’s work cuts through the hype with an academic lens. Known as the father of the field of organizational culture, Schein describes his early explorations about it with the now-defunct DEC and how his ideas expanded with later work. As a result, this 5th edition…

Leadership Management-Business Program Management

Designing Matrix Organizations That Actually Work: How IBM, Procter & Gamble, and Others Design for Success

By Scott J. Pearson | March 12, 2025March 12, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

I work in software at a research lab in an academic medical center. We produce new software to address large problems, locally and globally. Although our organization’s formal structure is hierarchical, our informal structure very much resembles a matrix – not uncommon in research labs. In business, a matrix organization occurs when people report to more than one manager. In my work, most teams I’m near are cross-functional. I recently moved from a developer role…

Kids Leadership Religion-Philosophy

The Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict

By Scott J. Pearson | February 15, 2025February 15, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Leadership is a tricky task. No amount of technical excellence makes a good leader. The Arbinger Institute, a leadership research group, suggests that a heart at peace internally is the most important component for individuals to lead effectively. They contend this assertion applies to almost every realm of leadership, from parenting and organizations to world politics. And they show exactly how in this leadership fable. This story tells about a group that resolves family conflicts…

Kids Leadership

The Three Big Questions for a Frantic Family: A Leadership Fable About Restoring Sanity to the Most Important Organization in Your Life

By Scott J. Pearson | February 11, 2025February 11, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Organizational leadership is well-studied because it has such a wide impact. Many professionals spend time perusing books and other materials to glean actionable insights. However, many of those same people don’t spend any time learning how their families work. To reply, leadership author Patrick Lencioni points out that families are just another sort of organization. Yes, family dynamics are different than those of businesses; they deserve a different approach. As with organizations, the skill of…

Management-Business Psychology

Coping with Toxic Managers, Subordinates… and Other Difficult People

By Scott J. Pearson | February 9, 2025February 8, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

As young people leave the classroom and enter the workplace, they are immediately struck by how central dealing with people issues becomes. Even the most technically gifted employee has to deal with others’ innumerable quirks. Then, when someone enters management, they may have power, but their job is based on motivating subordinates to produce. Yet few of us have academic expertise in dealing with people. Roy Lubit does. He holds an MD in psychiatry, which…

Leadership Management-Business Psychology

Leadership & Self-Deception: Getting Out of the Box

By Scott J. Pearson | February 8, 2025February 8, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Many blindly go into leadership roles to achieve a level of social prestige and power over others. However, that attitude does not last long as the spoils of ego satisfaction fade away quickly. To contrast, the Arbinger Institute offers a better way: service to one’s fellow human beings, centered around getting results for the company. When an organizational catches on to this purpose, its effectiveness can skyrocket. This fictional story illustrates how such a mindset…

Leadership Management-Business

HBR’s 10 Must Reads on Collaboration

By Scott J. Pearson | February 4, 2025February 4, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Since most emerging contemporary problems require team approaches, fostering a collaborative environment is a key to business success in today’s marketplace. Therefore, the Harvard Business Review (HBR) has a long list of articles available on the topic. They picked and compiled the ten best in this short guide. Much like the magazine articles they originally were, chapters cover various topics, each with its own angle. For instance, one chapter addresses how to check if the…