AsiaLIFE

The current global downturn might be a good time to consider your future business career path, according to William Bagley.

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid – C K Prahalad
How to be a Complete and Utter Failure in Life, Work & Everything – Steve McDermott
Brilliant Teams – Douglas Miller
Brilliant Project Management – Stephen Barker & Rob Cole
Servant Leadership Across Cultures – Fons Trompenaars & Ed Voerman

An article in a British newspaper in July reporting a surge in applications to universities from older people recently made redundant, reminded me that business schools always thrive in a bust. More people sign up for MBA courses in a downturn than during boom periods. So it may not be as contrary as you might think to suggest that now is a good time to recalibrate your skills by browsing our refreshed business book selection at Monument Books.

Along with some of the more successful titles of the last few years (like ‘Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant’, still a bestseller four years after first publication!) we have high-level titles like cross-cultural management guru Fons Trompenaars’ ‘Servant Leadership Across Cultures’. This groundbreaking work portrays the leader's role more as a steward of resources (human, financial and otherwise) and encourages leaders to serve others by focussing on an organisation's values and integrity. It would seem an especially important read for directors of NGOs who need to marry the demands of financing entities from outside Cambodia with perhaps differing local viewpoints.

A more everyday choice for the manager’s toolbox might be the ‘Brilliant’ series. Covering topics as diverse as coaching, presentations, project management and teams these non-technical guides are easy to navigate and for the experienced manager re-state best practice, while also being a comprehensive resource for the complete novice. Whether you’ve been thrown into the deep end or just want to explain basic concepts to colleagues, these are good to have around.

There are lots of ‘Think’ books available at the moment – one example is C K Prahalad’s ‘The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits’. It has case studies from all over the globe (though none from Southeast Asia) about how to sustain growth through private enterprise in the developing world while also delivering lasting societal improvement – an elusive goal in this neck of the woods to be sure.

My favourite title, though, has to be ‘How to be a Complete and Utter Failure in Life, Work & Everything: 44 1/2 Steps to Lasting Underachievement’. Written by a comedian and motivational speaker, the humour may not be everyone’s cup of tea but if an understated reverse psychology approach helps you to personal success by stealth, then this is the book to be caught reading on the riverside this August.

All books are available at Monument Books, 111 Norodom Blvd., Phnom Penh, www.monument-books.com