Mother Leads Best: 50 Women Who Are Changing the Way Organizations Define Leadership

According to Grzelakowski, corporate America is about to become a kinder, gentler place thanks to CEO Moms and their softer, more humane approach to dealing with coworkers and underlings. Whether or not the country is truly ""on the cusp of a leadership revolution"" is questionable, however, as Grzelakowski's book consists primarily of anecdotal information and subjective impressions. Grzelakowski starts with the premise that anyone can be a maternal leader-even men-if they master the skills and lessons embraced in this book. Drawing on her own experiences as a mother as well as those of 50 successful businesswomen, Grzelakowski outlines the numerous traits of the maternal leader (sensitivity, warmth, patience, full attentiveness, adaptability, tolerance, etc.) and backs up her claims with anecdotal passages from people like Melinda Brown, the controller for PepsiCo Beverages and Foods, and Doreen Toben, the CFO at Verizon. In the section dedicated to creative problem-solving, for example, consultant Lorene Steffes says, ""Problem-solving my kids' issues definitely carried over to work. When things weren't going well on a project, I learned to stay positive, and I would figure out a way to make things work."" While mothers on the executive track may find these segments inspiring, Grzelakowski's primary message-that authentic, human behavior will engender better responses from coworkers and clients-is an all-too-familiar refrain.