Churchill on Leadership: Executive Success in the Face of Adversity

It seems such a natural idea to distill the ""management"" wisdom of an inspirational leader such as Winston Churchill for today's corporate chiefdoms. Unfortunately, Hayward, who works for the think tank Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, does not deliver. He identifies four strategies that he believes made Churchill a successful leader: ""candor and plain speaking, decisiveness, the ability to balance attention to details with a view of the wider scene, and a historical imagination that informed his judgment."" But instead of using those strategies as an organizing principle--giving managers examples of how Churchill put those traits into practice--Hayward treats us to truncated versions of numerous Churchill biographies. Except for his chapter on Churchill the communicator, there is never any analysis of Churchill's effective leadership. Even the pithy quotes from the prime minister at the end of each chapter lack a ""how to"" component. Given Churchill's autocratic nature, perhaps it's just as well. (June)