Books published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Ditch the negative mental habits that derail conversations and destroy projects, and discover a framework for forging authentic, enduring, and productive connections.We live in conversations like fish live in water—we’re in them all the time, so we don’t think about them much. As a result, we often find ourselves stuck in cyclical patterns of unproductive behaviors. We listen half-heartedly, react emotionally, and respond habitually, like we''re on autopilot.This book is a practical guide for thoughtfully reflecting on conversations so we can avoid the common pitfalls that cause our relationships and work to go sideways. Chuck Wisner identifies four universal types of conversations and offers specific advice on maximizing the effectiveness of each:Storytelling—Investigate the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves and othersCollaborative—Explore the way our stories and other people’s stories interactCreative—See new possibilities and discover unforeseen solutionsCommitment—Make promises we know we can keepThese conversations unfold sequentially: our awareness of our and others’ stories transforms our ability to listen and collaborate, which opens our thoughts to creative possibilities, guiding us toward mindful agreements.Our conversations—at home, at work, or in public—can be sources of pleasure and stepping-stones toward success, or they can cause pain and lead to failure. Wisner shows how we can form a connection from the very first conversation and keep our discourse positive and productive throughout any endeavor.

PepsiCo’s award-winning chief design officer reveals the secret to creating life-changing innovations: putting human needs at the center of any design process.“Innovation is an act of love—or at least it should be. Always. It is a gesture of empathy, respect, generosity, of one human being’s devotion to another,” writes Mauro Porcini at the beginning of this extraordinary book.It is in part a memoir by one of the world’s leading designers—the first chief design officer at both 3M and Pepsi. But even more, it is a manifesto for a genuine, authentic, and deeply humanistic approach to design, one that aims to create personal and social value first and financial and economic value afterward.In every industry, new technologies have lowered the barrier to entry like never before. Either you design exceptional products or somebody will beat you to it. Porcini shows, through example after example and story after story, that the key to real, world-changing innovation is to put people first—not only the people we innovate for but also the people who lead the innovation process.Putting people first requires what Porcini calls unicorns: people who are in love with people, who have a genuine fire in them to create meaningful solutions for actual human beings. In this book, he describes them, celebrates them, and details their superpowers so you can find them, hire them, grow them, and retain them.Some are qualities you might expect—the ability to dream combined with the ability to execute. But when was the last time you heard an executive ask prospective hires if they were kind, optimistic, curious, or humble? Porcini uses his journey across startups and multinational corporations, through successes and failures, to create a handbook for modern innovators.

"How can questions lead to the biggest breakthroughs and successes? In the latest edition of the bestselling classic, Marilee Adams shares that great results begin with great questions. When we're looking for answers, we often forget to take the time to ask the right questions. But, as Marilee Adams shows, intentionally using questions helps us make wiser choices, find solutions, and transform our personal and professional lives. Drawing on decades of research and experience as a coach and consultant, Adams uses a highly interesting and entertaining fable that illustrates how to recognize and reframe undermining questions to ones that open us to learning, connection, and success. Asking "What great things could happen today?" creates very different expectations than asking "What could go wrong today?" Change Your Questions, Change Your Life is an international bestseller with over 400,000 copies sold. This revised edition contains many of the elements that made the previous editions a success, including the Choice Map and Learner/Judger mindsets, along with new neuroscience research"--

Holding the Calm is a practical and immediately useful guide that meticulously lays out twenty concrete, easy-to-use tools for defusing tension, settling cases, resolving disputes, and rechanneling arguments.How do you stop conflict? Settle disputes? Handle someone who is yelling at you, crying, or just won't speak? How do you find a solution when a solution seems impossible? Holding the Calm shares the secrets that enable everyone to avoid, minimize, or resolve conflict.Popular master mediator Hesha Abrams has tens of thousands of hours in the trenches mediating human conflict, and she shares her pragmatic wisdom in digestible bites that detail how to improve situations and solve difficult problems between human beings, from family and workplace disputes to complex commercial and global conflicts. Learn how to* Speak into the ears that hear you * Be the grown-up in the room* Listen to what is not said* Create small, winnable victoriesPractical, inspirational, and full of accessible tools you can use right now, Holding the Calm proves that you don't need an advanced degree or certification to minimize challenges and defuse tension between real people, businesses, and countries.

This complete guide to effective, transformative diversity training provides an answer to the superficial, check-the-box DEI efforts that are undermining the entire field.DEI work is getting a bad reputation. But that's because it's not being done right, say veteran diversity consultants James O. Rodgers and Laura Kangas. Too many organizations are treating diversity training as a quick-hit, low-cost, check-the-box activity. Effective diversity training involves behavioral change based on adult learning theory. It is rigorous, deeply personal, experience based, and, if done well, life changing. Rodgers and Kangas offer a complete guide, from design to implementation to results. They show how to* determine what specific, tangible outcomes an organization wants before it starts* link diversity training to overall organizational strategy* help all participants forge an individual, emotional connection to the training* identify what skills a facilitator needs—the right facilitator makes all the difference* create memorable learning experiences, not simply educational programs The authors' goal is nothing less than to spark a worldwide revolution of informed practitioners, employees, and business leaders who will demand diversity training be given the same time, resources, and attention as any other critical enterprise initiative.Reading group discussion guide available in book.

You don't have to betray yourself or your values to close stellar sales. This book introduces a simple formula for a personalized approach to building connections through alignment and problem-solving.So many salespeople believe that they have to push themselves out of their comfort zones and compromise their values to sell products. But, as Stacey Hall shows, the comfort zone can actually be a power zone that leads to sales, satisfaction, and success. Selling from Your Comfort Zone shifts away from ';pushy' and ';spammy' sales tactics and instead shows how you can bring meaning to your role as a salesperson. Hall teaches how to remain in alignment with your calling, with yourself, with what you are selling, with your prospects, and with what you are saying to your prospects. By being aligned with your core values and personality traits, you will have more confidence, energy, and courage to achieve your goals, which greatly increases the chances of success. Studies reveal that while men generally rely on improving and driving outcomes to close sales, women tend to emphasize building connections, shaping solutions, and collaborating. Hall's Alignment Marketing formula combines both skillsets in an easy-to-follow process for gently expanding your comfort zone to the edge of its safe boundaries. By adopting this approach, you can stay flexible and resilient in the face of problems and objections that all salespeople encounter along the way.

Bestselling authors adrienne maree brown and Sonya Renee Taylor create an unforgettable and transformational experience of journaling your way into your most authentic self.It's time to claim our permission to live out our purpose.Based on the bestselling philosophies of radical self-love, emergent strategy, and pleasure activism, this journal gives you permission to love yourself, deeply, as you are. Journaling to these prompts will help you surrender to your body's needs instead of forcing yourself into cramped disciplines. It will encourage you to become awed by the natural beauty of your divine self instead of being rampantly self-critical. It will aid you in embracing your shadows and accepting responsibility for your impact all while liberating you to just be.Taylor and brown have designed a twelve-week course called the Institute of Radical Permission where participants uproot old patterns and create new conditions for claiming miraculous potential. This structured journal, based on the course, provides six key practices, with prompts for each practice that center on curiosity, surrender, grace, and satisfaction. The daily prompts for self-inquiry and words of wisdom from the authors can be used in conjunction with the course (which can be accessed at radicalpermission.org) or on its own as part of your journey toward healing.

This essential playbook shows how companies can scale success by coupling digital strategies with an investment in the health of their organizations and the people within.To scale and grow, a company must get the organizational elements right. That begins with having the right strategy, the right leadership to drive it, and the right talent, culture, and organizational design to realize a company's potential. This is especially true in the AI era, where a company's most valuable assets are its people. To begin with, leaders must rethink their value creation strategies. To hone their organizational edge, leaders must prioritize their organization's health in seven vital areas: strategic direction, culture, leadership, talent, organizational design, EID (equity, inclusion, and diversity), and well-being. No matter what type or size of business, those essential conditions must be leveraged for increased value and growth. Put simply: organizational matters matter. To hone their digital edge, leaders must understand AI, as advances in technology allow leaders to build organizations that can compete and win in the future. Finally, an investor mindset will enable leaders to invest wisely in the technology (and leverage that tech) that sets their organizations apart.

This is the first authoritative book on building employee resource groups (ERGs) to empower underrepresented employees and positively impact diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts within organizations and in society at large.In existence for decades, ERGs originated out of affirmative action policies and have evolved into powerful sources of employee activity and engagement. Organizations can leverage ERGs to support business goals, but ERGs can also play a critical role in creating a more inclusive work environment for marginalized individuals. ERGs represent a balance of serving company interests and empowering employees, offering the opportunity for innovative leadership within organizations.This book is a practical guide on how to manage ERGs effectively and how they inspire a deeper connection between employees and companies while helping us progress toward the DEI goals that we aim to accomplish. Participating in an ERG can help professionals of color and other historically excluded groups advance their careers, thereby increasing diverse representation in leadership. Farzana Nayani provides foundational tools for starting ERGs and outlines the five Ps—purpose, people, processes, planning, and priorities—needed to successfully operate them. Unlike other ERG handbooks, this book is people-centric and socially conscious and thoughtfully takes into account the experiences of employees and leaders during current times. It also serves as a deeper call to action around how ERGs can foster authentic change within organizations, creating transformative impact in the surrounding world.  

Majora Carter shows how brain drain cripples low-status communities and maps out a development strategy focused on talent retention to help them break out of economic stagnation. My musical, In the Heights, explores issues of community, gentrification, identity and home, and the question: Are happy endings only ones that involve getting out of your neighborhood to achieve your dreams? In her refreshing new book, Majora Carter writes about these issues with great insight and clarity, asking us to re-examine our notions of what community development is and how we invest in the futures of our hometowns. This is an exciting conversation worth joining.' Lin-Manuel MirandaHow can we solve the problem of persistent poverty in low-status communities? Majora Carter argues that these areas need a talent-retention strategy, just like the ones companies have. Retaining homegrown talent is a critical part of creating a strong local economy that can resist gentrification. But too many people born in low-status communities measure their success by how far away from them they can get. Carter, who could have been one of them, returned to the South Bronx and devised a development strategy rooted in the conviction that these communities have the resources within themselves to succeed. She advocates measures such as* Building mixed-income instead of exclusively low-income housing to create a diverse and robust economic ecosystem* Showing homeowners how to maximize the long-term value of their property so they won't succumb to quick-cash offers from speculators* Keeping people and dollars in the community by developing vibrant ';third spaces'restaurants, bookstores, and places like Carter's own Boogie Down Grind Cafe This is a profoundly personal book. Carter writes about her brother's murder, how turning a local dumping ground into an award-winning park opened her eyes to the hidden potential in her community, her struggles as a woman of color confronting the ';male and pale' real estate and nonprofit establishments, and much more. It is a powerful rethinking of poverty, economic development, and the meaning of success.

Leadership legend and bestselling author Ken Blanchard and trust expert and thought leader Randy Conley present this carefully curated collection of fifty-two essential leadership principles that are easy to implement and practice.Effective leadership is an influence process where leaders implement everyday, commonsense approaches that help people and organizations thrive. Yet somehow, many of these fundamental principles are still missing from most workplaces. In Simple Truths of Leadership, legendary servant leadership expert Ken Blanchard, whose books have sold millions of copies worldwide, and his colleague Randy Conley, known and recognized for his many years of thought leadership and expertise in the field of trust, share fifty-two Simple Truths about leadership that will help leaders everywhere make commonsense leadership common practice.Readers will discover profound, memorable, and in some cases counterintuitive leadership wisdom such as* Who should make the first move to extend trust* What role a successful apology plays in building trust * When to use different strokes (leadership styles) for different folksand for the same folks* Where the most important part of leadership happens* How to create autonomy through boundaries* Why the key to developing people is catching them doing something right A fun, easy read that will make a positive difference in leadership and organizational success, Simple Truths of Leadership will show readers how to incorporate simple but essential practices into their leadership style, build trust through servant leadership, and enhance their own lives and the lives of everyone around them.

White privilege damages and distorts societies around the world, not just in the United States. This book exposes its pervasive global reach and creates a new space for discourse on worldwide racial equality.As Chandran Nair shows in this uncompromising new book, a belief in the innate superiority of White people and Western culture, once the driving force behind imperialism, is now woven into the very fabric of globalization. It is so insidious that, as Nair points out, even many non-White people have internalized it, judging themselves by an alien standard. It has no rival in terms of longevity, global reach, harm done, and continuing subversion of other cultures and societies. Nair takes a comprehensive look at the destructive influence of global White privilege. He examines its impact on geopolitics, the reframing of world history, and international business practices. In the soft-power spheres of White privilegeentertainment, the news media, sports, and fashionhe offers example after example of how White cultural products remain the aspirational standard. Even environmentalism has been corrupted, dominated by a White savior mentality whereby technologies and practices built in the West will save the supposedly underdeveloped, poorly governed, and polluted non-Western world. For all these areas, Nair gives specific suggestions for breaking the power of White privilege. It must be dismantlednot just because it is an injustice but also because we will be creating a post-Western world that has less conflict, is more united, and is better able to respond to the existential challenges facing all of us.

This is the first in-depth examination of the important ongoing fusion of activism, capitalism, and social change masterfully told through a compelling narrative filled with vivid stories and striking studies. Today, corporations and their executives are at the front lines of some of the most important and contentious social and political issues of our time, such as voting rights, gun violence, racial justice, immigration reform, climate change, and gender equality. Why is this sea change in business and activism happening? How should executives and activists engage one another to create meaningful progress? What are potential pitfalls and risks for each side? What can they learn from each other? What first principles should guide leaders moving forward? The Capitalist and the Activist offers an engaging and thoughtful look at the new reality of corporate social activismits driving forces, promises and perils, and implications for our businesses and personal lives. Weaving deep research and fascinating stories that span business, entertainment, history, science, and politics, Tom Lin provides an insightful road map for how society arrived here and a practical compass for moving forward. Drawing together examples from the civil rights movement, campaign finance litigation, gun regulation, Black Lives Matter, the Confederate flag controversy, the Trump presidency, and other historical events, Lin brilliantly reveals and charts the course for a changing society of capitalists and activists seeking both profit and progress. The Capitalist and the Activist is a must-read for anyone trying to understand the emerging future of activism, business, and politics.