Successful Business Skills: An Annotated Bibliography on How to Get Ahead in the Business World

Adler, Ronald B. Communicating at Work: Principles and Practices for Business 
and the Professions. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1996.

• The author provides numerous examples of how effective communication leads to success in the workplace. Some of the areas covered are the principles of interviewing, listening, conflict management, and presentation skills. 

Badaracco, Joseph L. Leading Quietly: An Unorthodox Guide to Doing the Right Thing. Boston, Ma: Harvard Business School, 2002.

• Demonstrates the importance of the behind-the scenes management which 
  includes the everyday contributions of co-workers and other support workers
  that help make an organization what it really is. 

Baker, Wayne E. Networking Smart: How to Build Relationships for Personal and 
Organization Success. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994.

• Tips for building and managing productive relationships. 

Bower, Marvin. The Will to Lead: Running a Business with a Network of Leaders. 
Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press, 1997.

• How to create a network of leaders for your business. The author advocates that leadership skills can be learned on the job and thereby eliminate the notion of the all-powerful boss. 

Carr, Clay. The Competitive Power of Constant Creativity. New York: Amacom, 1994.

• A how-to book on how to develop a creative organization. How to use diversity and conflict creatively, and how teams promote creativity are just some of the topics explored. 

Denton, D.Keith. The Toolbox for the Mind: Finding and Implementing Creative 
Solutions in the Workplace. Milwaukee, WI: ASQ Quality Press, 1999.

• Discusses the fostering of creativity in the workplace. The book is divided into three sections; the process of creativity and innovative thinking; 
  being sensitive to small changes, separating responsibility and 
  accountability and basic rules; and the last section how to 
  successfully implement innovative solutions such as results-oriented objectives, and knowing your priorities and tradeoffs. 

Ellsworth, Richard R. Leading with Purpose: The New Corporate Realities. Stanford:
Stanford Business Books, 2002.

• Discusses management strategies for achieving success in todays business world. Includes sections on international business, business planning, and industrial management. 

Fairhurst, Gail Theus. The Art of Framing: Managing the Language of Leadership. 
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1996.

• Discusses the concept of framing; or the quality of communication that
  causes others to accept one meaning over another. 

Farkas, Charles M. Maximum Leadership: Five Strategies for Success from the Worlds Leading CEOS. New York: Berkeley Pub. Group, 1998.

• Based on interviews from over 160 heads of major multinational corporations. 

Frame, J. Davidson. Project Management Competence: Building Key Skills for Individuals, Teams, and Organizations. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1999.

• Tips on how to acquire the essential skills to get a job done well. 

Griffin, Jack. How to Say It at Work: Putting Yourself Across with Power Words, Phrases, Body Language, and Communication Secrets. Paramus, NJ: Prentice Hall, 
1998.

• Helpful hints on the secrets of effective communication in the business world 
  from customer service to client relationships and how to communicate with your boss.

Johnson, Spencer. Yes or No: The Guide to Better Decisions. New York: Harper 
Collins, 1992. 

• A practical guide on better decision- making strategies to achieve better results.

Kanter, Rosabeth Moss. Evolve!: Succeeding in the Digital Culture of Tomorrow. 
Boston, Mass: Harvard Business School Press, 2001.

• Discusses how to achieve success in the digital age. Topics covered include 
  internet commerce and economics. 

Kolb, Deborah M. When Talk Works: Profiles of Mediators. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994.

• Explores the art of mediation to settle disputes in the workplace.

Kotter, John P. The New Rules: How to Succeed in Today's Post-Corporate World.
New York: Free Press, 1995.

• The author developed this book as a result of studying the experiences of 115 Harvard MBAs from the class of 74. Interesting study of individual career choices; successes and failures. 

Levine, David I. Reinventing the Workplace: How Business and Employees Both Can Win. Washington,D.C: Brookings Institution, 1995.

• The author suggests that places of business need to value the input of there employees in order to create a work environment that is mutually beneficial to both parties. 

Mackay, Harvey. Dig Your Well Before Youre Thirsty: The Only Networking Book Youll Ever Need. New York: Doubleday, 1997.

• Discusses the art of networking. Examples provided.

Marshall, Edward M. Transforming the Way We Work: The Power of the Collaborative Workplace. New York: American Management Association, 1995.

• How to find new ways to develop more positive work relationships and transform the workplace into an arena for personal growth and success. The author firmly believes that work can be changed to become what he terms as a Collaborative workplace, of people working together toward a common goal. 

Miller, Jerry. Millennium Intelligence: Understanding and Conducting Competitive 
Intelligence in the Digital Age. Medford, N.J: Cyberage Books, 2000.

• How to develop a skill and way of thinking based on business experience and 
  business savvy. 

Naylor, Sharon. Learning the Ropes. Chicago, ILL: Ferguson Pub; 1998.

• Offers some useful business tips on how to fit into the workplace setting, 
  employee rights, and problem-resolving skills. 

Richards, Dick. Artful Work: Awakening Joy, Meaning, and Commitment in the Workplace. New York: Berkley Books, 1995.

• The author, a successful business consultant, espouses the theory that 
  expressing your creative self in the workplace results in promoting a job 
  that assumes a more fulfilling role in your life. 

Simon, Julian. Developing Decision-Making Skills for Business. Armonk, N.Y: M.E. 
Sharpe, 2000.

• The art of assessing ones needs and then transferring them into ones goals.

Updated 02/08/2007