Organizations Books

This book is essential for anyone need to involve with BPR.

Other books tell you about reengineering and its benefits. Rarely do they tell you how to do it. This book is the exception. Its main focus is the "how". It provides enough details on a reengineering methodology to guide a project. Normally, the only other way to obtain a methodology is from engaging consultants. The methodology discussed in this book is comprehensive and practical. This is a must read for any person involved or going to be involved in business-focused or reengineering projects.

Manganelli and Klein posit a process reengineering methodology that they call 'Rapid Re(TM)'. It consists of five phases: Preparation, Identification, Vision, Solution, and Transformation. The book explains each of the five phases and breaks them down into a 54 step action plan. Successfully communicates how their strategy should work and provides a number of concrete tools and examples for implementing this kind of project.

Over the past few years, re-engineering has gotten a bum rap. At best, it's been trivialized as a Dilbert-ism; at worst, it's a code word for layoffs. But as "The Re-engineering Handbook" shows, re-engineering is a very real -- and very sensible -- tool for evaluating and enhancing workplace productivity and competitiveness.

The book provides a concise overview of business process re-engineering. The exact process that the book uses (Rapid Re) is straightforward and manageable, especially when compared with other approaches such as Six Sigma. And no, the book doesn't simply recommend layoffs (in fact, it emphasizes job reassignment and re-training over wholesale terminations). The book is informative enough so that a workgroup with minimal re-engineering experience could at least get a healthy start into the process without first turning to a pricey consultant, though more background into specific techniques such as project management and process mapping are needed.

Written in the pre-Internet era, parts of the book seem dated. But the core techniques remain sound. "The Re-engineering Handbook" should be at the top of the reading list of anyone who expects to get involved with a re-engineering effort.

Anyone who has ever worked in an organization has witnessed the paralysis that sets in with failure, reprimand, disappointing results or unfulfilled expectations. That recognition is palpable throughout this book. The deepening loss of power that follows seemingly small pitfalls or mediocre human interactions is extremely damaging and spreads to each and every aspect of an organization. Martin does a great job of both carving out the territory of these viral disempowerments, and of showing us how to bring greater authenticity to our work and communication to turn around these conditions. A correction in the psychological or cultural environment can be powerfully segued into an opportunity for more strategic thought and alignment of behavior with an organization's vision. Having seen so many of these cultural viruses do irreparable harm to both people and business results, the book has become a wonderful addition to an arsenal of tools that is never complete. I highly recommend The Responsibility Virus to business-people of any level of authority.

Amie Devero, Author of Powered by Principle: Using Core Values to Build World-Class Organizations

Ever notice how offices (maybe even yours) are split between the doers and the idlers? Ever notice the resentment that accrues in workplaces where control freaks do everything and ne'er-do-wells do nothing? Ever wonder how such jaded office environments came to be, and whether they ever could change?

Well, step right up, dear reader, because this book decodes the phenomenon that cruelly saps the morale out of even the most capable of offices. Labelling this task imbalance as the `responsibility virus,' Roger Martin seeks to render a diagnosis and prognosis of this nefarious sickness. Martin, with the assistance of psychological and biological principles, explains how the basic `fight or flight' response leads many to assume too much or too little responsibility in times of stress. This results in a causal chain reaction where the other workers correspondingly take positions on the opposing end of the spectrum to best complement this initial game opening. As Martin ably explains, these positions are never static; over-responsible persons eventually become under-responsible, and vice versa. This is essentially a never-ending dance that may eventually destroy an entire office.

So what to do, you ask? Martin proposes four separate strategies that are designed to purge the workplace body of this virus, all of which may be used on their own or in combination with the others, depending on the state of the virus' evolution and the players' goals. These different methods all have the share the same central goal: maximizing inter-office collaboration and thereby ridding the workplace of the responsibility virus. They are all very easy-to-understand and readily adaptable to many workplaces. Martin's generous use of case examples also provides a context to identifying problems and their respective solutions.

Martin's most intriguing strategy is to redefine the nature of true leadership and, by extension, corresponding `followership.' Martin entreats the reader not to accept the canard of the `man on the horse;' the heroic, all-knowing, all-powerful leader who can jump into the fray at any given moment and single-handedly solve a vexing problem, while his minions listlessly stand by waiting for the hero to save the day. Rather, true leadership fosters collaboration; followers contribute to the best of their abilities and open lines of communication are maintained throughout the various levels of management.

In all, this is a persuasive read that is very ably argued. Although I felt the conclusion was a bit rushed (where Martin makes a u-turn from his central argument that people's actions are dictated by their governing values), readers would be hard-pressed to write the book off as unhelpful. Use it in your business life or even your personal life; the book is a powerful suppressant of the responsibility virus.

This book explains in very simple terms why some people are so driven while others just go on a cruise and the relationship between the two.
If you ever feel overwhelmed at work and often find yourself wondering why others don't pull their own weight - this book is for you.
If you feel like you could do so much more at work if only given a chance but lack the confidence or the knowledge to go for it - read this book.

Roger Martin has lain down business organizations in the therapist chair, but you won't notice it because the author avoids skillfully the psychological labels currently in vogue.

If you often wonder about why you end up working more than others, why some people don't understand what you clearly state or why everybody sees what is wrong in the company and they don't do anything to fix it, this book is for you. It goes to the root of the problem, explains it plainly and offers a step by step program to solve it. The book also provides a better understanding of what's behind the Enron debacle and the government agencies mishandling of security issues before, during and after September 11.

It doesn't matter if the reader is a CEO, a manager, a professional or a secretary, he or she will find familiar faces and situations; people that could be your boss, your vice-president of sales or your managing editor. Why do we have the chance to see ourselves and others in these pages? The book is simply about human nature. It deals with the underlying emotions, culture and language that make many bureaucracies what they are: an incompetent and unfulfilled mass of otherwise intelligent, good and hard working people.

Martin explains that lack of collaboration between leadership and other parties in the organization brings an unbalanced approach to responsibility. The author describes what he calls the "heroic leader", which takes more responsibility that he or she should. Conversely, the other parties react giving up responsibility. Once the leader is unable to meet the goals, he or she sits back and takes the position of the followers. Meanwhile the frustrated followers take responsibility for their part, but because they can not attain the needed broad or bold solutions, parties induce the leader to take again more responsibilities that he or she can handle, and the infectious cycle of dependency starts again.

The mysterious Responsibility Virus is nothing more than the very human fear of failure. According to Chris Argyris, cited in the book, there are "governing values" that guide the way we interpret and deal with the world. They reside so ingrained in human nature that they apply to people across ages, cultures, economic status, and educational levels. Humans-Agyris claim--will always try to win, maintain control, avoid embarrassment and stay rational in any situation. Fear of failure triggers the governing values and they make us either take more responsibility (fight) or abdicate responsibility (flight).

Martin proposes the use of some "tools" to improve collaboration (choice structuring process), eliminate the mistrust and misunderstanding (frame experiment) and to balance capability and responsibility (responsibility ladder) among the parties in the organization. All these tools have the general objective of untying the person from the situation that requires attention and put aside the biased frame of mind from which we see the problem. Once all the parties involved in decision-making have a better perspective of the issue, they are in a position to find a middle ground between capabilities and responsibility.

It is at the end of the book, redefining leadership, when Martin describes the leader as what sociologists or psychologists would call a mature personality. According to the author, a leader should be capable of splitting responsibility through dialogue, apportioning responsibilities in keeping with capabilities, but more importantly, making apportionment discussable and subject performance to public testing. Although he doesn't mention it, you have the sense that it is the leader a significant carrier of the responsibility virus and also accountable for spreading his or her fear of failure throughout the organization.

In these times of leaders finger-pointing at each other and frustrated managers turned into audacious whistle-blowers this book is a timely required reading to understand not only organizations but the world around us.

Why can't we hear God and understand what He is saying today is the question and "Restoring God's House" tells why. We look like Christians but the things we do as Christians are an insult to God. Dr. Reid has made it simple to understand. We have fallen into a spirit of religion. I thank God I am free, that I have a relationship with God. This book is a good tool for anyone seeking the truth about what God is telling us to do in this hour. Somebody once asked, "Can you handle the truth?" It's time to take the full responsibility for the truth.

God has turly blessed Dr. Reid ,to have his finger on the pulse of what the chuurch of the 21st century really needs to regain its rightfull place as a change agent for society. This book is a gift to the entire body of christ and can and will radically change the lives and ministires of all those who read it. Thank you Dr. reid for this tremendous gift .

This book by Dr. Frank M. Reid, III is a vital piece of information for the leaders of today and tomorrow. Dr. Reid is a remarkable teacher and preacher who has a heart for the people of God. If you need your marriage, home life, or work life restored, read this book and watch the transformation. It has changed my life and made me a better servant for the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you Pastor Reid for your revelation knowledge.

Dr. Reid has articulated the core requirements of Kingdom Living. Inspired by God this book has caused a revival within that offers priority,promise and provision for me and others willing to follow the guidelines discussed in this book. I am convinced that readers will be blessed, allowing us to commit ourselves to Restoring the House of God! This is an excellent read.

Finally an evaluation measurement system that works! I have used this approach as a foundation for creating, redesigning and managing two corporate universities in Fortune 100 companies. The RESULTS method worked where the traditional approaches didn't. The Kirkpatrick approach was too complex to implement and our senior management customers wouldn't buy into it.

The RESULTS model worked so well that in both situations, our HRD budgets increased even as the organizations were cutting costs. The RESULTS model provides a simple, easy to implement, business framework for rationally calculating return-on-investment decisions about training, organization development, and performance improvement projects. You may know that your work as a performance-improvement professional adds value, but not feel that you are getting the recognition you deserve. Use this approach to prove your contribution to your organization's bottom line.

Even if you think no one cares, your internal customers are making these decisions all the time when they approve, slash, or don't approve your budget and projects. Why not give your customers real numbers to work with rather than let them use their imagination? You will find that your credibility increase exponentially. Systematic Human Resource Development is a solid, cost-effective business investment.

My only critique is that there isn't more data showing how well the approach works.

Richard A. Swanson and Elwood F. Holton, III, based this book on valuable material, drawn from various organizations' positive reactions to their Results Assessment System. However, the book's writing actually obscures the value of their material and method. This would be just a subjective matter of style if the book were dull and boring. But that is not the case. The writing is disjointed and unclear, severely handicapping the reader's ability to discern much of what the authors are trying to convey. Nevertheless, we [...] recommend that human resources professionals all pick up this book, simply to extract the authors' system for measuring employee performance and learning. The system itself is - the creators should thank their lucky stars - a much more valuable resource than this documentation of its logistics and performance.

This book is the most useful resource I've encountered in the assessment arena for training and organization development efforts. The book outlines three areas of assessment: PERFORMANCE (system outputs and financial results), LEARNING (knowledge gained by participants & expertise that can be demonstrated by trainees), and PERCEPTION (reactions from both participants and stakeholders). The processes are described for each area using straightforward language, and sample templates show how deliverables could look for each type of assessment. Overall, the structure of the book is logically assembled with references to research supporting the main ideas. I especially found useful the discussion on performance drivers, measurement of outcomes, critical outcome technique, and the certification of core expertise. The book also contains usable information on drawing conclusions from assessment data, key questions to be answered when planning an assessment, and advice on conducting practical, credible assessments. Finally, the assessment framework described in the book makes sense from a business perspective and should help almost anyone be more effective as a practitioner. If you are planning or designing an initiative that involves changing how people do work, you'll likely find benefit from using the framework, tools, and techniques outlined in this book.

This book is a must for every Human Resource Development (HRD) professional! Swanson and Holton make the case for the need to measure performance results, not just stakeholder reactions, if HRD is to be seen as a legitimate business partner and contibutor to organizational performance. To this end, the authors have written a book for the everyday HRD practitioner, not the theorists. They present a comprehensive system for assessment of HRD interventions built around a logical five-step process. A full compliment of simple, yet powerful, tools is presented, which will enable any HRD practitioner to conduct reliable and meaningful assessments of performance results.

In the future, HRD must sit at the table, not only as a contributing business partner, but as an organizational leader in performance improvement as well. This book is a starting point for HRD leadership. I've used it - it works!

This thoughtful, faith filled workbook provides a user friendly, clearly developed process to assist pastoral councils in their work at every stage.

To date I have bought nearly 100 copies of this book and use them when facilitating the formation of Parish Pastoral Councils. It is a wonderfully thorough text.

Built on research and loaded with examples of how it works, this approach led us through the re-visioning process at Good Shepherd parish here in State College PA -- right to a "pastoral Plan" for our parish. Having a framework we could all understand, and the steps to follow are invaluable when working with volunteers with so many other demands on their time.
A word of caution: get ready for change! Not everyone will want to. Mary Ann's process will take you to new places.

Our parish began the challenging process of building a new pastoral council two years ago, using this book as our initial guide. The book has been an extremely valuable reference tool for defining council responsibilities, criteria for membership, consensus decision making, and setting goals and objectives.

We initially found the "seven essential elements" an effective model for designating ministry clusters, or organizing councils, but have since reduced the number to five based on Thomas Sweetser's book. However, we will undoubtedly continue to reference the Gubish workbook for years to come.

Mal has done it again. This book takes you through every step to incorporate the power of direct mail into your fundraising plans. Whether you're a large established organization or just starting out there are important tips that can help you understand the direct mail business and implement them. It is written in an easy to read style and was quite enjoyable. The techniques will greatly impact our fundraising plan this year!

This book should be required reading for every non-profit organization using direct marketing. Whether you are using a direct marketing agency or doing it all in-house, this book explains not just "how" but "why" and is an invaluable reference that you will turn to again and again. Most of the questions your board has ever asked about direct marketing are answered here. Plus, the author uses real client examples with supporting spread sheets as illustrations. You can't help but be a better fundraiser after reading this book.

Mal has done it again. This book takes you through every step to incorporate the power of direct mail into your fundraising plans. Whether you're a large established organization or just starting out there are important tips that can help you understand the direct mail business and implement them. It is written in an easy to read style and was quite enjoyable. The techniques will greatly impact our fundraising plan this year!

Sometimes I wonder if Mal Warwick ever sleeps. He is the most productive author in the fundraising field and he turns out wonderful books - full of sage advice.

Readers will be happy to see that this completely revised edition of his classic has many examples and hundreds of ideas that will help raise more money. Moreover, it is extremely well-written, unlike many fundraising books!

If your nonprofit has a direct mail program - or you need to convince your executive director to use the mail - this book is valuable.

Revolution in the Mailbox goes on my staff list of "must-read" books - half of which Mal has written or edited. If I could give this book six stars I would.

A very cool appraisal convincingly indicating that Freemasonry provided a social cement for the post-revolutionary era.

Steven Bullock has added a great deal to the study of Masonry with this book. If nothing else were accomplished he makes clear to the Freemason the true difference between ancient and modern Masonry. This book is also a fine study of the social history of the United States in its early years. Often overlooked by historians, the importance of the Freemasons in the early republic is finally looked at in depth.

Freemasonry often claims a large role in the advent of the Revolution which according to Bullock does not seem to be the case. On the other hand its importance to the American cause during the Revolution can hardly be overstated. Southern planters like Washington and Lee had little in common New Englanders such as General Greene, a Quaker from Connecticut. They had even less in common with the likes of Lafayette and von Steuben. Their one common link was Freemasonry. It seems that the officer corps of the American army forged its strong bonds around the fraternity. Not just the generals but many officers of all ranks seem to have bonded through Masonry. Military lodges spread the fraternity through out the army and soon some regiments actually marched with the officers wearing their Masonic badges of office.

Freemasonry as the title of this book suggests seems to have been important in the transformation of the American social order after the war. Masonry acted somewhat as a school for democrats but the fraternity itself began to grow into an elite order of "nobility" that almost became a new aristocracy. This status would help bring on the antimasons as the brotherhood which had helped mold early America's social order failed to change with changing times. The more open democracy brought on by the age of Jackson made a seeming aristocracy like the Masons seem out of place. In an odd twist, the father of this age was himself an active Mason. Jackson in fact served two terms as Grand Master of Tennessee.

There are only two small things about this book that I can fault. The writing style as is often the case with history professors is just a tad dull. The wealth of information to be found tends to make up for the style though. The more serious problem is the manner in which Bullock decides the Masons grew out of the stone masons guilds. There are many ideas about the origins of Masonry that deserve more attention. Bullock may well have taken the true path but he fails to document his conclusion in the way he documents his other insights.

Finally, this book which was written as a history offers important warnings for today's fraternity. As the brotherhood failed to change with the times during the antimasonry frenzy and almost died the changes in society today are also slowly killing Masonry. The fraternity must take the warnings given us in this book and learn from our past mistakes. Change is hard but sometimes necessary.

As the first third party in an American presidential election (1832) the Anti-Masonic Party has usually appeared suddenly in the story of the Jacksonian Era with little explanation except that the Masons were suspected in the murder of one William Morgan, who threatened to reveal their innermost rituals and secrets. The prosecution of the case was hampered by the fact that Masons dominated local and state government, which came to be seen an secret, elitist plot against democratic institutions. Steven C. Bullock traces the history of the Masonic movement from England to America and demonstrates how Masons were critical to the success of the American Revolution and the creation of a new nation under the Constitution of 1789. As such the Masons were not a sudden a aberration in American history but a group central to the early history of the nation. Masonic meetings gave members a place to learn how democratic government worked, how to socialize, how to argue without resorting to force, and how to participate in establishing a concept of national interest, or virtue, in the language of the times. Bullock's volume is one of the most critical interpretations of this period in American History. Do not be put off by its academic style or philosophical tone, especially in the first chapter. It really moves along afterward and demonstrates how an organization that boasted such diverse members as Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Joseph Smith (the founder of Mormonism), and Andrew Jackson came to be seen as a conspiratorial institution that needed to be curbed for the betterment of an egalitarian American democracy. It also illustrates how the Masons sprang back from near destruction to be the charitable organization better recognized by Americans living today. It's well worth while!

This is a "must have" book for the person wanting to add a solid, well researched, and reliable study of the history and role of Freemasonry in these United States.

Easy to read and language easy to understand.
Really great book.
You really understand the reason behind the Sacred Heart devotion
with this book.

When I was little, I used to love reading about the Saints. My Dad encouraged it, and I found their lives very inspiring. As I got older and busier, I either didn't have the time to read these books or I just wasn't interested. The other day, I couldn't find anything to do so I pulled this book out.

It starts out by giving you a bit of background on the life that St. Margaret Mary was living. She was 13 and very ill. She and her mother prayed all they could for young Margaret to get better, but nothing worked. Finally, her Mom came up with the idea that Margaret should offer herself to be a Nun. After praying on such, Margaret was healed, and was able to resume a normal life.

Years later, Margaret's mother wanted her to get married, but Margaret knew that she had to become a nun. The idea made her so happy. She begged her Mother and brother, and finally, they allowed it. They wanted her to become a nun at the nearby convent, but Margaret wanted to be a nun with the Order of the Visitation. They finally agreed, and she was accepted.

When Margaret was there, it was hard for her to undersatnd some of their ways of life. And when she started to have visions from God, the sisters began to think she was mental. They were very critical and felt that she was very different from them.
Margaret did all she could, but they still criticized her. After convincing the Superior of the time that she wasn't crazy, they got a new, more practical, Mother Superior. But God told her things would be better. Margaret still was having visions and knew that all of the criticism and suffering would be worth it in the end. And God told her he would send someone to help.

That someone was a priest. Sister Margaret Mary told Father Coliembre about her visions, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and how Jesus wanted to be loved, and not feared so much. The Priest offered to do everything he could to help her, and convinced the practical Superior that the Sister was really having visions. But later on, Father Coliembre gets sent away.

Later on, troubles meet Father in England and the story goes to him for alittle bit, telling of all that he had to deal with in England at a time when Catholicism was looked down upon. When he is finally done with all the suffering, he goes back to the convent, and is surprised to see a new Mother Superior, who won't let him speak to Sister Margaret Mary. When they finally do talk, Sister Margaret tells of all of the promises of the Sacred Heart that God told her about.

Father Coilembre dies later on, and a few strange things happen at the convent when Mother Superior won't allow Sister Margaret Mary to make her holy hour of prayer on Thursday nights, and get communion on the first of every month. She allows Sister Margaret to do these things, and also believes that Sister Margaret is meant to be a Saint. With the help of Mother Superior, Sister Margaret Mary stops getting criticized for her visions and ways and gains support from her fellow sisters. She receives the final promise, and gets many involved with the devotion of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Soon, Mother Margaret Mary (She was ranked higher) dies.

This book is great, especially for those who want to know mroe about the promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. And remember, I'm a 14 year old who reads popular teen books (by Meg Cabot, Ann Brashares, Lisi Harrison, etc.) and if I liked it, then there is a good chance you will too! :-)

The story for children 10 and up of the revelations of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to a holy French nun, including the Great First Friday Promise, her painful childhood, troubles in the convent, St. Claude, the Apparitions and her many penances.

Saint Margaret Mary... an apostle for Christ, a loving and obedient nun, one who would do anything for Christ and Our Blessed Mother, one who recognized the power of love and suffering for Christ... yes, this is who St. Margaret Mary is.

And Mary Fabyan Windeatt wrote the book, Saint Margaret Mary and the Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in such a way that it is very hard to describe. The story started out with Margaret, ill in bed, at the age of 13. Mary Wineatt tells how Margaret and her mother promised to Mary, Our Blessed Mother, that if Margaret is cured of her illness she will become a religious. Their prayers were answerd... the Blessed Mother cured Margaret!

It took a long time until finally Margaret could visit the Visitation nuns to become a religious. When she becomes a Visitation nun at the convent she begins to have visions of Christ's suffering. Most of the nuns don't believe her at first. Our Lord revealed twelve promises to Margaret and she saw the Sacred Heart of Jesus two times.

Our Lord tells Margaret of a person who is going to come and help her spread the word. This person was Father de la Colombiere. He was a very well known and educated priest. He helps Margaret in a lot of ways until he dies at the age of 41.

Before Margaret dies she was perfectly healthy but in a few hours she dies at the age of 43.

I like this book so much because the way the author writes it. It sounds like a story instead of facts just put together. This book is beautifully written. And I especially liked how Margaret seems so loving and kind to everyone.

School Crisis Survival Guide by mental health counselor Suni Petersen and Ronald L. Straub provides hundreds of guidelines, strategies, and working plans for counselors and teachers to help students in grades K-12 to deal with any manner of crisis or tragedy from personal loss, tragic accidents, and terminally ill classmates, to incidents of suicide, violence, and natural disasters. School Crisis Survival Guide address why every school needs a crisis plan and how to form a crisis team; provides step-by-step instructions for developing and administering a crisis plan custom designed to fit a schools particular need, ranging from setting up a student counseling program to dealing with media, to preparing memorial services; offers in-depth information on the impact of crisis and death on faculty and students of all ages, and the necessity of dealing with "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder"; lists a wide variety of individual and group activities for all age groups with respect to the different stages of traumatic reaction; and even presents specific ways for handling such common yet unpredictable events as suicide, and the associated trauma and grief that violence, death, and natural disaster will leave in their wake. No public or private grade school, junior high, or high school counseling department can afford to be without their own reference copy of School Crisis Survival Guide.

I recently purchased this book in "used" condition from the bookseller booksbyjoe.com. The book arrived within three working days and in perfect condition. I recommend this book for all new school psychologists, or school administrators who must be aware and prepared for the events that may occur on their school campuses.

As a school crisis coordinator, I used this book a number of years ago to write a crisis response plan for a school. As a presentor at conferences, both at state and national level, I often recommend this book to individuals who have the responsibility to write a crisis response plan or to provide intervention during times of crisis. I was pleased when it was again made available after being out of print. Thank you.

As a school crisis coordinator, I used this book a number of years ago to write a crisis response plan for a school. As a presentor at conferences, both at state and national level, I recommend this book to individuals who have the responsibility to provide intervention during times of crisis. I was pleased when it was again made available after being out of print. Thank you.

This book was valuable as an aspiring educational leader. The 21 responsibilities were extremely valuable in understanding the role that an educational leader must take on. The down side was the statistical calculation which without having had stats in some time made understanding the rationale behind some of the data more challenging. I would still recommend though!

I had asked to borrow this book from friends and was turned down. So I finally picked up my own copy and I was not disappointed. It is a good book, practical, short and concise for us busy administrators. I recommend it.

In this book, Robert Marzano, the most effective force in educational reform today, continues his efforts to promote excellence in schools. Here, he and his colleagues turn their attention to defining school leadership behaviors and actions that raise student achievement. They blend practical advice and research to come up with specific steps that school leaders can take to see that students improve academically.

Marzano et al found that there are 21 leadership responsibilities that have a statistically significant relationship with student achievement. All are important, but the three most correlated with achievement are (1) Situational Awareness (of the specific school situation and good use of this information), (2) Flexibility (to adapt to the specific situation and to handle dissent), and (3) (tied) Discipline (to protect teachers from undue distractions), Outreach (as advocate and spokesperson for the school), and Monitoring/Evaluation (creating a system that provides feedback on effectiveness).

They classified previous efforts at school change into two types. First-Order Change is incremental, a step-by-step pattern. Second-Order Change is sudden reversal of pattern or direction, anything but incremental. Both change processes can be effective, and both require different behaviors by school leaders. The three most effective behaviors for First-Order Change are (1) Monitoring/Evaluating, (2) Culture (building a positive culture that influences teachers), and (3) Ideals/Beliefs (leader's well-articulated ideals and beliefs). The three most important behaviors for Second-Order Change are (1) Knowledge of Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment, (2) Optimizer (optimism as a critical characteristic), and (3) Intellectual Stimulation (of Staff).

The third component Marzano et al looked at was the importance of the leader's ability to select the right work or issues for the school staff to tackle to improve achievement, whether through the use of models of site-specific or of comprehensive school reform. Both models are effective if tailored to the needs and context of a given school.

But hold on. Don't be discouraged from reading this book because you fear that this is just another text full of education theory and cliches. Or don't succumb to thoughts of "been there, done that" and been burned too many times before. Marzano and company offer a thorough, five-step plan that works for experienced or novice leaders. They recognize that no one person can do all they suggest, and they show how to share leadership with other educators and community members. This book is the most clearly defined, research-based plan for improving student achievement you can find today; and everyone, educator or not, who is interested in better student academic growth should read it.

If there were educational awards equivalent to the Congressional Medal of Honor given for service beyond the call of duty for the promotion of student academic excellence, Robert Marzano should receive the first.

Robert Marzano and his colleagues translate the knowledge base on effective school leadership into a clear and precise format applicable to 21st century schools. It is a great gift to both successfuil veterans and aspiring leaders. Students and the nation are better off for this work. Education professors and school board members will use Marzano's meta-analysis to understand and articulate the qualities we need in today's leaders.