"Based on extensive interviews with today's . . . corporate leaders, this look at how the best CEOs do their jobs focuses on the mindsets and actions that foster an environment of excellence"--

A look at the leadership style of the brilliant military strategist who also laid the administrative and judicial foundations for much of Western Europe. In this fascinating book, historian and bestselling business author Alan Axelrod takes an in-depth look at this much-studied historical figure in a new way, exploring six areas that constitute the core of what made Napoleon Bonaparte a legendary military and political leader: Audacity, Vision, Empathy, Strategy, Logistics, and Tactics. Within these areas, Axelrod formulates approximately sixty lessons framed in military analogies, valuable for anyone who aspires to leadership—whether in the boardroom or the Oval Office.

Business success comes neither easily nor quickly. What is needed is a practical guide to achieving peak performance recognising your starting point and telling you what is required to achieve your goals. The Complete CEO does exactly this by providing a comprehensive framework against which any business leader can assess their strengths and weaknesses. The Complete CEO combines invaluable insights from some of the most successful CEOs in North America and Northern Europe along with the authors’ extensive knowledge and experience to create a complete programme for you and your business to achieve peak corporate and individual performance. The Complete CEO distils learning built up over the last ten years from 1000 leaders of the world’s largest quoted companies. By comparing the ways these leaders ran their businesses with their long-term performance, you will be able to see what works in practice and how to make it work for you. The Complete CEO is not a conventional business book and recognises there are no shortcuts to greatness. Even great CEOs have important areas of relative weakness. The tailored model of high performance presented in this book will be of enormous value to anyone who aspires to be a high-performing CEO. “The Complete CEO is an excellent handbook for any manager or leader. I keep it within reach.” —Mervyn Davies. CEO Standard Chartered Bank Plc “This book is helpful to any CEO, or indeed any business manager, who wants to deliver sustained high performance.” —Jim Nicol, CEO Tomkins Plc “As CEO of a newly floated business, I have found The Complete CEO to give extremely helpful focus, as well as practical tools.” —Heikki Sirviö, CEO Kemira Growhow “The Complete CEO is a fascinating book. While it won’t turn the average CEO into Warren Buffett, it does contain a wealth of uncommon, common sense wisdom, which will take him or her a number of steps in his direction.” —James O’Loughlin, Author, The Real Warren Buffett “The ultimate test of a CEO is value creation. Yet few are prepared for the task. This book will be of practical help to anyone who seriously takes up this challenge.” —Sir Brian Pitman, Former CEO And Chairman Of Lloyds TSB “I believe that the High Performance Model described in this book will be of value to any business leader – but especially to one new in post, or one who has good reason to introduce change.” —Sten Scheibye, CEO Coloplast “The High Performance Model at the core of the book, moves from a clear and insightful discussion of what drives the creation and maintenance of a winning business model into a decomposition of the role of the CEO. The authors have worked with a number of highly successful CEOs and former CEOs to understand the essence of their success, and the actions they have taken day-to-day to drive it; and the result is a practical, easy-to-understand guide.” —From The Foreword By Ben Verwaayen, CEO BT Plc

This book focuses on what makes a successful CEO and the paths to becoming one in today’s global economy. Chapters in the book include insights by 20 top CEOs – one from each G20 country – gathered from an extensive global qualitative research project. Through seven easy-to-digest “master classes” that demystify the role of the 21st century CEO, the authors present their findings in an accessible, conversational style that serves as a step-by-step guide for those who aspire to become CEOs, and develop essential character traits, experience, and skills required of the role.

A reexamination of the major economic theories of the past two hundred years discusses how long-dead, famous economists such as Adam Smith and others would handle today's economic problems.

It's time to redefine the CEO success story. Meet eight iconoclastic leaders who helmed firms where returns on average outperformed the S&P 500 by more than 20 times.

Businesspeople share lessons they have learned about business, growth, life, and success

Have you always known what you wanted to be in life? What are some “watershed moments” that made you who you are? When did you get on track to become a successful CEO? It started with three questions at Davos. The younger Peter Vanham looked to the answers from the elite leaders he asked to validate his own career choice, and the rich, private wisdom he received revealed more about building a career than he’d found anywhere else. He shares it all with you in Before I Was CEO. For everyone who lays awake at night wondering if they’re heading up or down the corporate ladder, this collection of personal stories from a remarkable group of the most accomplished men and women in business today proves everyone can put themselves in the C-suite by taking a variety of different paths—it’s all how you do it. Some found opportunity through adversity and others came by their big-break moments through serendipity. A group of them walked away from corporate life and lived in other ways and all of them made calculated moves to advance their careers. In their own words, read how it all unfolded, the tough decisions they wrestled, the risks and rewards they saw, and how it all came together. You don’t need a royal pedigree or Ivy League education to reach the top as long as you: • Value family, leave home, and make informed decisions based on your dreams • Take the first thirty-five years of your life to discover what you’re interested in and don’t rush to be a CEO • Strategically deal with failure, remember the lessons you learned, and adapt to situations you can’t change You aren’t the first person to be at the crossroads you’re standing in, and with the motivating and instructive stories in Before I Was CEO, you may be answering a young journalist’s questions at Davos one day.

As a leader, you've heard that design is important, and you believe it. But you may not know what you need to know about it, how to buy it, and how to manage it. This is the book for you."The strongest companies I work with use design as their secret weapon. This short primer makes it not such a secret any more. If how to leverage and lead design is still a secret to your company, buy this book." - Jeff Patton"If you're the CEO of a technology-powered company, you owe it to your customers, your employees and your investors to learn the power and potential of professional product design. Audrey has been there since the start of the Internet and has worked with countless companies, product teams, and executive teams to leverage the value of product design." -Marty Cagan