Must-Read Books for Managers This Summer

There are several resources that will help you grow in your professional development. Some of the most accessible resources are books. Books offer the opportunity to read, or listen to an audio book, when the time is convenient for you and the mobility to take them wherever you need.

We compiled this summer reading list to help get you started.

What Matters in This Moment: Leading Groups Through Uncertain Times

By Harry Webne-Behrman

Building upon his previous book, What Matters at Work, author and CPED instructor Harry Webne-Behrman’s newest book offers new strategies, tools, and processes to lead groups and organizations through complex challenges and important issues.

Actions Speak Louder: A Step-by-Step Guide to Becoming an Inclusive Workplace

By Deanna Singh

Renowned leadership and DEI consultant, and CPED instructor, Deanna Singh’s newest book uses narratives, case studies, interactive exercises, and the latest DEI research to help leaders and teams make change through creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace.

The Manager’s Dilemma: A Manager’s Guide to Change Management

By Steve King

When an organization enacts a change, managers can often feel underprepared and unsupported when it comes to getting teams on board. This is the “Manager’s Dilemma.” In this book, author and CPED instructor Steve King focuses on three key roles managers need to play in moments of change and provides simple tools to get this job done.

Mindset: Changing the Way You Think to Fulfill Your Potential

By Carol Dweck

The right mindset can make all the difference. Stanford University psychologist Carol Dweck’s book points out that it’s not just our abilities and talent that bring success but whether we approach them with a fixed or growth mindset.

High Output Management

By Andrew Grove

This book covers techniques for creating highly productive teams, methods of motivation to improve performance, and practical knowledge for navigating real-life business scenarios.

Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t

By Simon Sinek

The best workplaces foster trust and cooperation, and that’s what this New York Times bestseller explains. Author Simon Sinek weaves his ideas with true stories about successful leadership.

Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead

By Sheryl Sandberg

Interweaving personal stories, research, and practical advice, this book “challenges us to change the conversation from what women can’t do to what we can do.” The book challenges readers to think about gender differently in the workplace and the world.

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You

By John C. Maxwell

This book has been a perennial title on the must-read list for leaders for years, and that’s because the information in its pages is still relevant today. Not just a book of leadership successes and failures, each chapter features application exercises to help you grow as a leader.

Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.

By Brene Brown

This book teaches readers how to be a leader who takes responsibility for recognizing the potential in people and ideas and works to develop that potential. According to the author, “Daring leadership is a collection of four skill sets that are 100% teachable, observable, and measurable.”

The Mentor Leader: Secrets to Building People and Teams That Win Consistently

By Tony Dungy

Authored by a successful former NFL coach, this book explores Tony Dungy’s leadership philosophy and how you can apply the same approach to virtually any area of your life. It explores seven keys of mentoring leadership and why they are so effective.

Primal Leadership: Learning to Lead with Emotional Intelligence

By Daniel Goleman, Richard E. Boyatzis, and Annie McKee

This book explores research into how great leaders excel by connecting with others using emotional intelligence like empathy and self-awareness.

How to Lead: Wisdom from the World’s Greatest CEOs, Founders, and Game Changers

By David M. Rubenstein

We can learn a lot from the stories of other’s successes and failures. This book includes advice from people including Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Oprah Winfrey, Coach K, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and more.

Invisible Solutions

Bu Stephen Shapiro

This book states to find better solutions you need to ask better questions. This book contains formulas to reframe problems in multiple ways and guidance on asking the right questions to find the right (and sometimes hidden) solutions.

The Good Fight

By Liane Davey

This book explores how to use productive conflict to get your team and organization back on track. Conflict is not always a bad thing, and it can often lead to getting things done.

Second Wave Millennials: Tapping the Potential of America’s Youth

By Warren Wright

Attracting and retaining talent continues to be a challenge for many organizations. This book looks at the Millennial generation and what organizations and leaders can do to attract and retain this generation of the workforce at their companies.

Cross-Functional Influence Playbook

By Susan Finerty

CPED Instructor Susan Finerty’s book provides a model to help you get things done across the organization. It dives into the concept of reaching across functions and geographical boundaries to solve problems, make decisions, and achieve success.

Remotely Possible

By Shawn Belling

Author and CPED Instructor Shawn Belling’s book addresses the challenges and opportunities remote teams face. The book offers insight into what leaders must do to effectively lead remote teams. The book also dives into the benefits that come with remote workforces.

The Making of a Leader: What Elite Sport Can Teach Us About Leadership, Management, and Performance

By Tom Young

This book shares practical principles of sustained elite performance and how to develop a leadership philosophy that can add value to your organization.