This must-read guide offers a practical and engaging introduction to the ins and outs of R&D leadership. Innovation is a two-trillion-dollar industry, and, on top of the baseline complexity faced by any manager, the R&D or Innovation leader confronts an additional set of challenges. Armed with years of experience in roles ranging from scientist to Vice President of R&D to founder of his own company to innovation career coach, Dr. Clifford L. Spiro shares his insights on a carefully curated selection of topics. This indispensable playbook covers: Building, managing, and motivating a team Setting schedules and goals Assessing and rewarding project success Working with other departments Legal and intellectual property considerations Dr. Spiro’s distinctive blend of big-picture strategic thinking and day-to-day, nitty-gritty tips (e.g., Five Great Questions For R&D Managers to Ask Every Time) is essential reading for current and aspiring R&D leaders through seasoned managers as well as anyone at an organization that has an R&D, innovation, or technology transfer component. Providing a prescriptive, in-the-trenches assessment of how to lead innovation more effectively, this book ably equips the reader to anticipate potential problems and to succeed both within the R&D department and across his or her company.

An inspirational, motivational book that chronicles Michael MacDonald’s transformation from a scholarship player at Rutgers’ high-level Division I basketball program to a highly successful executive at Xerox and then chairman and CEO of Medifast. “From the Bench to the Boardroom, Michael MacDonald shares his journey from his college basketball career at Rutgers to executive positions at Xerox and Medifast. His leadership, work ethic, and persistence, which were on display every step of the way, have made him a valued member of our board at the Jimmy V Foundation.” —Mike Krzyzewski, Naismith Hall of Fame coach, Duke University “Mike holds a deep reverence and appreciation for his time at Rutgers, as well as for the opportunities that Rutgers has provided him. As a letterwinner on the Rutgers men’s basketball teams in the 1970s, Mike took his student-athlete experience and translated these learned lessons to successes in his career…. His time as a Rutgers student-athlete, alumnus, board member, donor, and father/father-in-law of three Rutgers alumni continues to leave an indelible legacy on our alma mater. I am proud to call him not only a great teammate, but an even better friend.” —Marco Battaglia, Rutgers Football All-American and Cincinnati Bengals Player “I believe the combination of an excellent education and participation in highly competitive sports programs provides invaluable preparation for life after school is over. The best sources of knowledge about the benefits of such a background are people who have been there. Mike MacDonald fits the bill. And he is particularly well suited to write about his experiences because of an amazing ability to recollect the details of his formative years. A student athlete at Rutgers, he was part of the school's then outstanding basketball team. He went on to use this and similar pre-college experiences to build an exceptional business career. That’s part of his story but those of us who know him well would add that he is the epitome of a ‘good man.’ I have seen him close up with family, friends, and others for years. He is a great husband, dad, and grandfather, kind and generous, enthusiastic, and always on the go. You will enjoy what he has to say.” —Gene Renna, Retired Senior Executive, Exxon Mobil “Mike MacDonald represents the absolute best of Rutgers University and is an inspiration to everyone on campus. From the day I met Mike, he has always made himself available to mentor, guide, and motivate both our student-athletes and our coaching staff. As an alumnus, he has given back generously and led the charge in ensuring that Rutgers continues to be a beacon of higher education. I’ve always admired his ability to juggle the roles of family man, businessman, and leader in the Rutgers community. His path from Rutgers is a shining example for student-athletes of the future. He has succeeded in every aspect of life and continues to give back to the community that molded him. To give Mike MacDonald the ultimate compliment a coach can give, simply put, he is a winner.” —Steve Pikiell, Head Men’s Basketball Coach, Rutgers University

#3 New York Times Advice/How-To Bestseller #7 Wall Street Journal Nonfiction Bestseller "This book is game changing in a way I have never seen in a business book. I learned about myself and gained new insights into the work I've been doing for thirty years. It is a spectacular read." – John Riccitiello, CEO, Electronic Arts This is not a management book. This is a book for managers. Ever have the feeling that no matter how rewarding your job is that there's an entirely different level of success and fulfillment available to you? Lingering in the mist, just out of reach… There is, and Stan Slap is going to help you get it. You hold in your hands the book that entirely redraws the potential of being a manager. It will show you how to gain the one competency most critical to achieving business impact, but it won't stop there. This book will put a whole new level of meaning into your job description. You will never really work for your company until your company really works for you. Bury My Heart at Conference Room B is about igniting the massive power of any manager's emotional commitment to his or her company-worth more than financial, intellectual and physical commitment combined. Sometimes companies get this from their managers in the early garage days or in times of tremendous gain, but it's almost unheard of to get it on a sustained, self-reinforced basis. Of course your company is only going to get it if you're willing to give it. Slap proves that emotional commitment comes from the ability to live your deepest personal values at work and then provides a remarkable process that allows you to use your own values to achieve tremendous success. This is not soft stuff; it is the stuff of hard-core results. Bury My Heart at Conference Room B is the highest-rated management development solution at a number of the world's highest-rated companies—companies that don't include "patience" on their list of corporate values. It has been exhaustively researched and bench tested with tens of thousands of real managers in more than seventy countries. You'll hear directly from managers about how this legendary method has transformed their careers and their lives. As Big as It Gets Stan Slap is doing nothing less than making the business case for a manager's humanity-for every manager and the companies that depend on them. Bury My Heart at Conference Room B gives managers the urgency to change their world and the energy to do it. It will stir the soul, race the heart, and throb the foot used for acceleration. Buckle Up. We're Going Off-Road. Slap is smart, provocative, wickedly funny and heartfelt. He fearlessly takes on some of the most cherished myths of management for the illogic they are and celebrates the experience of being a manager in all of its potential and potential weirdness. And he talks to managers like they really talk to themselves.

Best Kept Secrets was written by an athlete for athletes and those with an athletic or personal development mindset. At the macro level, this book is for people who have felt or feel marginalized and/or ostracized because they aren’t the superstar in their respective space. At the micro and more personal level, Best Kept Secrets is a book by a walk-on, for walk-ons, about walk-ons, and the power that we possess to move from feelings of invisibility to life champions. While the context of Best Kept Secrets highlights the sports journey, it is not only about sports. It is also about life. The life game we play is not for the weak. It is for the battle tested. It is for the courageous. It is for those who understand their why. Transitioning from best kept secret to life champion is about more than throwing a ball through a hoop, lifting weights, running a ball into an end zone, kicking a ball into or hitting a ball over a net. The transition is about the journey from caterpillar to butterfly. In order to become a life champion, significant effort is required. Craftsmanship and personal mastery are foundational. The mandates to become artisans of our own fortunes, the best of the best, examples of human potential, and love personified are calls to action. Fear and love cannot live in the same place. To transition from best kept secret to life champion, a willingness to carry on despite the odds stacked against you is imperative. Best Kept Secrets is an outpouring of love. This is a manifesto for my forgotten tribe members. This is a clarion call for athletes and non-athletes who aspire to summit their chosen mountains.

Alexis Levi: Boardroom To The Locker Room is a rivoting story about the first African American Woman to own a men's professional basketball team. This story is a weave of a thrilling true life story of a modern day hero who risks all to fulfill her passion to live the dream of entering the male dominated industry of professional sports. Read about the struggle not only in her personal life as a "First," in a man's world of fierce competition, and sexist biases. A must read for aspiring, adventures in any industry.

"Before he became president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage and took his company to the top of the game nationally, Mat Ishbia was a member of Tom Izzo's 2000 Michigan State national championship basketball team. More specifically, he was the guy at the end of the bench. But as Ishbia likes to say, "You don't have to be a captain to be a leader." Running the Corporate Offense is packed with this and other learned principles for smart, empathetic leadership based on teamwork. Ishbia shares his personal strategies and tips, such as "no-meeting Thursdays," as well as anecdotes from his playing days in East Lansing, demonstrating the universality of these practical approaches. This is an essential, accessible volume which proves that effective leadership truly translates from the bench to the board room"--

Julie L. Davis and Suzanne Harrison Today's corporations are always on the lookout for exciting new andinnovative ideas that can be used to generate revenue. Up untilrecently, this meant taking these ideas and turning them intoproducts or services, which could then be sold for profit. Buttoday, a unique new concept is revolutionizing the way companiesare getting value from ideas. Instead of incorporating them intoproducts or services, today's innovations may be bartered, licensedor sold in the "idea" stage for tremendous amounts of money. Forexample, IBM currently receives well over $1 billion in revenueevery year from licensing its intellectual property, unrelated tothe manufacture of a single product. Today more and more companiesare adopting this idea of turning their legal departments, whereintellectual property is housed, from cost centers into profitcenters. Edison in the Boardroom: How Leading Companies Realize Value fromTheir Intellectual Assets takes an in-depth look at therevolutionary concept of Intellectual asset management (IAM). IAMis changing the way companies all over the world are doingbusiness. In their careers as business consultants, the authorshave been privileged to meet individuals who were clearly ahead oftheir time when it came to realizing value from their companies'innovations. Based on their interactions with the ICM Gathering--aninternational group of companies who meet several times a year tocreate, define and benchmark best practices in the area of IAM--theauthors have compiled a wealth of knowledge and successful storiesthat illustrate how far businesses have come in their ability toleverage and monetize their intellectual assets. Incorporating stories and teachings from some of the mostsuccessful companies in the worlds -- such as Hewlett-Packard, IBM,Procter & Gamble, Rockwell, Dow, Ford and many others -- theauthors have made an exhaustive study of IAM and its implicationsfor today's businesses. They have culled a hierarchy of bestpractices that today's companies can integrate into their ownbusiness philosophies to gain the best return from theirintellectual assets.

This book is based on my 30+ years of elite athlete/corporate executive coaching. It speaks about the psychology of performance.

Build a more effective board with insight from the forefront of corporate governance The Handbook of Board Governance provides comprehensive, expert-led coverage of all aspects of corporate governance for public, nonprofit, and private boards. Written by collaboration among subject matter experts, this book combines academic rigor and practitioner experience to provide thorough guidance and deep insight. From diversity, effectiveness, and responsibilities, to compensation, succession planning, and financial literacy, the topics are at once broad-ranging and highly relevant to current and aspiring directors. The coverage applies to governance at public companies, private and small or medium companies, state-owned enterprises, family owned organizations, and more, to ensure complete and clear guidance on a diverse range of issues. An all-star contributor list including Ram Charan, Bob Monks, Nell Minow, and Mark Nadler, among others, gives you the insight of thought leaders in the areas relevant to your organization. A well-functioning board is essential to an organization’s achievement. Whether the goal is furthering a mission or dominating a market, the board’s composition, strategy, and practices are a determining factor in the organization’s ultimate success. This guide provides the information essential to building a board that works. Delve into the board’s strategic role in value creation Gain useful insight into compensation, risk, accountability, legal obligations Understand the many competencies required of an effective director Get up to speed on blind spots, trendspotting, and social media in the board room The board is responsible for a vast and varied collection of duties, but the singular mission is to push the organization forward. Poor organization, one-sided composition, inefficient practices, and ineffective oversight detract from that mission, but all can be avoided. The Handbook of Board Governance provides practical guidance and expert insight relevant to board members across the spectrum.

Board-Seeker: Your Guidebook and Career Map into the Corporate Boardroom is the first practical guide written specifically to help board-ready leaders and executives gain the knowledge, resources, and confidence to shape their personal “onboarding” program. Assess your experience that makes you valuable to a board–there’s more than you think. Shape this into a powerful outreach portfolio, such as board resume, online image, and personal pitch. Gain the targeted network and mentors you’ll need, especially your boss! Learn step by step how board searches really happen and how to master each stage. Prepare for the board interview and vetting process, and get ready for your first board meeting. With leads, links, checklists, and first-hand success stories, Board-Seeker spells out each step you’ll take into the boardroom—and beyond.