After a long time stumbled upon a great management book called the Halo Effect, which critically analyses the claims of scientific rigour and empirical evidence iconic management books like Built to Last and Good to Great make.
Personally, i have always felt the discomfort in the absoluteness with which these books dish out recipes for success. Built to Last was still important from the point of view of uncovering a blind spot in Corporate Brand Building and the significant role for a corporate ideology in it. However, in my opinion the findings and recommendations of G2G are motherhood at best and force-fits at worst.
The Halo Effect, for me has been another addition in a series of readings i have found useful over the last year or so starting from Mintzberg's Rise and fall of Strategic Planning to The Witch Doctors to a lot of writing from David Maister. These have all questioned the simplistic, formulaic management writing and emphasised the need for multiple perspectives and thinking on the feet.
As an advisor to companies, it has resonated with my idea of the role i need to play as not a person with answers but as a person with multiple perspectives and empathetic listening. We are there to act as mirrors to our clients and reflect back what is occurring from the outside as a result of their actions so that they can readjust their organizational functioning in line with what they wish to be seen as.
Unfortunately there is also a school which believes that clients are buying a consultant's conviction rather than advice...which leads to the salesman in them take over the advisor.
The Halo Effect is a must read for anyone wanting to know how little we know and how complex real-world management is for anyone to zero in on a magic pill for guaranteed success!
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