Australia's leading information resource on Human Resources issues
 
   Home   |   Companies   |   Browse Archives   |   HR Awards   |   Subscribe     
Search Site


HR directory
Career development
Consultants
Employment law / OHS
HR management & strategy
International HR
Leadership development
Learning & development
Organisational change & Development
Psychological services
Recruitment
Recruitment by sector
Remuneration & benefits
Technology
 
 
 

  NewsAugust 29, 2008
Generating buy-in: Mastering the language of leadership
 
Generating buy-in

by M Walton

Amacom, 2004

$37.95

According to Aristotle, it’s impossible to think without a mental picture. Thoughts, memories and dreams therefore are a series of stories with pictures, sounds, smells and feelings. It stands to reason then, that managers can most effectively communicate with their people via this most basic language form: a story.

A manager must inspire, lead, cajole, supervise, mentor and more – so many things to so many people. According to Walton, chairman of the Centre for Leadership Communication in the United States, the best way to do this is by leaders telling their own stories.

The leader’s story in this case is the corporate vision, the ‘big picture’. For a leader to succeed, they must be able to inspire and excite their teams thus ensuring their buy-in and turning the vision into a reality.

Generating buy-in: Mastering the language of leadership is very American and examples abound, ranging from Abraham Lincoln to Coca Cola. That aside, the book is very easy to read and the content is drawn from real-life situations. While little of the book relates to how HR professionals can secure specific buy-in from various stakeholders, it is useful in providing insights into the minds of leaders. All in all, quite inspirational.



26 August 2004

Send this article to colleague/friend

Home |  Archived Articles |  Advertising |  About Us |  Contact Us |  Privacy Policy

Copyright © Reed Business Information. All material on this site is subject to copyright. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced, translated, transmitted, framed or stored in a retrieval system for public or private use without the written permission of the publisher.

eNewsletter
 
enter email to register/unregister
Resources
Book Reviews
Web Reviews
Professional Links
Conferences
Breakfast Briefings
LexisNexis
Lawyers Weekly
Risk Management