15 books for those who want to build a dream team and succeed in business

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Attract strong specialists to the company, build trust and solve business problems creatively.

Lifehacker and Bombora have selected the best books on how to start your own business and succeed in it. Look for them online and in bookstores with a Lifehacker's Choice sticker. They contain only working advice and real stories of entrepreneurs.

1. “Eaters of time. How to save yourself and your employees from unnecessary work ", Alexander Fridman

This book is called the "Manager's Bible". The author, a business coach and regular management expert, insists that in order to effectively lead a team, you first need to learn how to manage yourself. And in order to increase results, you don't have to be a “heroic manager” and force yourself and your employees to work harder and harder.

It is much more effective to soberly assess resources, analyze your own management style, and understand your strengths and weaknesses. And identify chronophages - organizational mistakes that cause you and your team to waste time and do unnecessary work. The book will be useful for managers of all levels.

2. “The strongest. Business by Netflix Rules, Patti McCord

Netflix is a streaming giant with over 150 million subscribers worldwide. Former HR Director Patti McCord explains how she built a strong team based on the principle of total honesty. By showing real cases, she teaches how to look for talented employees and keep them not only with a high salary, but also with interesting work.

McCord says that governance models that were effective in the 20th century no longer work in the 21st. She believes that employees should openly express their opinion on any issue, express disagreement, share any ideas. And leaders, in turn, should "open up access to themselves", encourage questions, discussion and debate. It is this kind of corporate culture, according to the author of the book, that leads to high productivity and profits.

3. “Alibaba. The History of World Ascent ", Duncan Clarke

Alibaba is a global marketplace where over 600 million people shop every year. Jack Ma, founder of the Alibaba Group, which brings together AliExpress.com, Taobao.com, Alipay and other platforms, is considered one of the world's most mysterious entrepreneurs.

The author of the book is his close friend. He wrote an inside story about how the company was formed and how it became the leader in online retail. And in this story, he not only sets out the facts, but also energizes readers, shares with them the principles of Jack Ma. Success stories can be skeptical, but those in the internet commerce business will find interesting ideas and a lot of inspiration in this book.

4. "Sales department to capture the market", Mikhail Grebenyuk

First of all, the book is useful for managers who want to create a sales department and manage it effectively. But it can also be useful for line employees, salespeople who want to improve their performance. The author is engaged in the creation of turnkey sales systems and in his recommendations relies only on real Russian experience.

He explains how to choose a trading model, build trust with clients and develop an individual approach. He also shares ideas for increasing conversion and ready-made scripts for cold and warm calls. In addition, the book also contains practical exercises that may make the reader nervous, but will definitely improve their sales skills.

5. “Pay yourself first. Turn your business into a money making machine”, Mike Mikalowitz

Once the author of the book almost went broke, and this forced him to reconsider his views on business management. He realized that a successful company doesn't just make money - it must be predictably profitable. Therefore, Mike Mikalowitz has created a system that will help small business owners pay off their debts, regularly make a profit and increase it.

The book provides a step-by-step plan with many real-life examples. It will help entrepreneurs avoid bankruptcy and build businesses that generate money, not stress.

6. “Sincere service. How to motivate employees to do more than enough for the client. Even when the boss is not looking ", Maxim Nedyakin

Clients choose those companies in which they sincerely, and not according to the regulations, want to help them. But this cannot be achieved by strict instructions, fines and dictatorship. Sincerity is not about scripts and rules, but about relationships between people. The book's author, an expert in building service organizations, talks about how to create a truly customer-centric company.

He shares the basic rules for creating a quality service, talks about tools for improving it, and helps to solve the most pressing problems and tasks. The book is a must-have for everyone who develops customer-oriented service: managers of different levels, managers who communicate directly with customers, service providers and business trainers.

7. “CA. How to find your target audience and become a magnet for it”, Tom Vanderbilt

Clearly defining your target audience is perhaps the first piece of advice that business schools and consultants give. After all, it is the understanding of who you are selling your product to that will help you do it effectively. The author of the book does not just talk about how to define your target audience. Drawing on research evidence, he explains how to anticipate and even manage the tastes of potential customers.

This knowledge will help entrepreneurs tailor their product to customer preferences and thus outperform their competitors by many steps.

8. “Shoe seller. The Nike Story As Told By Its Founder ", Phil Knight

There are no detailed instructions or step-by-step plans on how to start a $ 30 billion company. In the pages of the book, Phil Knight, Nike's Man Behind the Tick, simply shares his story - honest and very inspiring.

At the beginning of his journey, the author and protagonist could not scrape together money for Adidas sneakers and borrowed $ 50 from his father to sell Japanese shoes. And you already know the end: Nike has become a world famous brand. Readers say that the book has become a guide for them on how to create their own business. But Phil Knight talks about more than that - he talks about life, family and travel. And he does it frankly, ironically and in a friendly way.

9. “Types of leaders. Define, approach, get where you want it, Archie Brown

Historian and political scientist, professor at Oxford University Archie Brown analyzed the characters of the most prominent political leaders - including Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, Mao Zedong and others.

He created his own typology - so that readers can analyze what type of leaders they are. And also to identify your strengths and weaknesses and try to avoid mistakes in governance that were once made by democrats, dictators and revolutionaries.

10. "How Google Works", Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg

Google is one of the most successful tech companies. Its value exceeds $ 50 billion, and more than 45,000 people work in offices around the world. Former top executives at Google talk about principles that have made the company successful, such as abandoning traditional management models and creating a comfortable work environment.

They share the secrets of how to attract and retain talented professionals, how to create a strong corporate culture, and how to make important decisions. The book can be useful for entrepreneurs who want to be successful or just get a dose of motivation and inspiration.

11. “Six Disciplines of Disruptive Learning. Turning Learning and Development into Business Outcomes, Roy W. H. Pollock, Andrew McK. Jefferson, Calhoun W. Wick

The success of a company largely determines the ability of its employees to assimilate new knowledge. Therefore, leaders constantly wonder how to get a return on training and not waste money. The authors of the book are building a whole system that will allow entrepreneurs to take a fresh look at corporate training. To make it not just a duty, but a value and an assistant in solving specific problems.

The principles and cases that the reader will find here will help make training effective - so that results improve and companies grow. The book can be useful for entrepreneurs, managers, employees of HR departments and specialists in corporate training.

12. “Drivers of growth. How an average company can become a giant ", Nikolay Molchanov

Business consultant Nikolay Molchanov interestingly, easily and without water talks about how to scale a business, increase profits, launch new products and conquer new markets.

The book is clearly structured, written in simple language, contains many diagrams and examples. No empty ranting - only accessible and understandable tools combined into a step-by-step plan. It will help entrepreneurs adjust their product positioning, set up a sales funnel and take their company to the next level.

13. “How Coca-Cola Conquered the World. 101 successful cases from brands with a worldwide reputation ", Giles Lury

An inspirational book for entrepreneurs and those who are just planning to start their own business. The author has collected the stories of many successful brands such as Chanel No. 5, KFC, Coca-Cola and others. The stories are presented succinctly and fascinatingly, from them you can learn how the "Louboutins" appeared, how Pinterest was invented, what is the secret of the success of Coca-Cola and other giants. At the end of each chapter there is a short summary and homework that will help you think through a strategy for a future startup or eliminate weaknesses in an existing one.

14. “Design thinking. All instruments in one book ", Oliver Kempkens

How exactly an entrepreneur deals with problems depends on whether he will be able to achieve the desired results. Design thinking is a method of solving business problems based on a creative approach; it is used by many world and Russian companies. It allows you to create cool innovative products, solve problems not in theory, but in practice - using mockups, iterations and tests.

The book provides a complete overview of tools for applying design thinking in business. The author explains how to generate ideas, conduct competitive analysis, brainstorm and create prototypes for a future product. In addition, it offers games and exercises to develop creativity. The book will be useful to owners of their own business, project managers, team leaders and anyone who wants to create and launch a successful product.

15. "Leaders Eat Last: How to Build a Dream Team" by Simon Sinek

For an employee to perform well, he must feel safe at work, according to the book's author, business coach and speaker Simon Sinek. This idea is based on data on the physiology of a person, his hormonal status: if he is under stress, he cannot solve intellectual and creative problems.

To create a "safety circle" for staff, the manager must "eat last", that is, show employees that he cares about them more than about himself. The book tells how to build a warm, trusting and productive atmosphere in a team, and explains why many bosses fail.