Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/72038
Ventures Program, thinks so. In inGenius, she offers her Innovation Engine model with its six intercon- necting components: the interior ones of attitude, imagination, and knowledge, and the exterior ele- ments of habitat, resources, and culture. She explains how someone can unleash creativity simply by reframing a problem. For instance, Don't Miss Most CEOs today know their companies have to be global to survive, but few of them understand what kind of leadership that will demand, according to Ángel Cabrera and Gregory Unruh in BEING GLOBAL. "Most businesses believe they only need to tap a rising star from the home office to capitalize on an overseas opportunity," according to Unruh of Thunderbird and Cabrera, formerly of Thunderbird and now with George Mason. But the true leader of the future will need to develop a global mindset, become a global entrepreneur who flourishes in political and social arenas, and act as a global citizen determined to make the world a better place. (Harvard Business Review Press, US$30) DO NOTHING is only the first piece of advice J. Keith Murnighan has for leaders. While it's the attention grabber, he really wants to remind leaders that they need to practice a whole range of counterintuitive behaviors. The first—doing nothing—is hard for managers who have been promoted because of strong technical skills. But, writes the North- western professor, they have to stop using those familiar talents in favor of becoming facilitators who make the people around them shine. They also have to battle other natural tendencies—like being egocentric, lack- ing empathy, and believing everyone else agrees with their positions—if they're to be effective leaders. (Portfolio/Penguin, US$26.95) When Aaron J. Nurick writes about THE GOOD ENOUGH MANAGER, he doesn't mean one who's mediocre. The Bentley University professor equates the "good enough manager" to the "good enough parent"—one who provides a safe and adaptive environment that allows a child to develop autonomy and a sense of self. A parent who tries to be perfect, on the other hand, forces the child to hide "his true and genuine self, sti- fling meaningful interactions and creativity." From this premise, Nurick segues to research that identifies the best managers as mentors who build relationships and manage with integrity. He also offers dozens of first- person accounts about great and terrible bosses—all of them familiar. (Routledge, US$120) answers grow significantly more varied when the ques- tion is changed from "What is the sum of 5 plus 5?" to "What two numbers add up to 10?" She outlines the best way to set up a brainstorming session and hammers home the need for innovators to be incessantly obser- vant. But the most fun parts of the book are her many examples of creative ideas offered in classrooms or adopted by organizations. How about a prosthetic limb that dou- bles as a fashion accessory? Now that's a creative idea. THE ARMCHAIR ECONOMIST AUTHOR: Steven E. Landsburg PUBLISHER: Free Press, US$16 LANDSBURG TAKES great delight in explaining away the quirks of human behavior and the failures of civic and political reforms. "Economists spend a lot of time challenging each other to find rational explanations for seemingly irrational behavior," he says. For instance, why is executive pay so high? He thinks it's because stockholders want CEOs to take more risks, which they're more likely to do if they're wealthy. Why do people die in automobile accidents even when cars have airbags and seatbelts? Because they drive more recklessly when they know safeguards are in place. "We would probably cut the accident rate dra- matically by requiring each new car to have a spear mounted on the steering wheel, pointing directly at the driver's heart," he writes. Landsburg, a professor at the University of Rochester, originally published the book in 1993 and updated it for 2012. It's just as eye- opening now as it was then. BizEd July/August 2012 61