Are you struggling to develop leaders within your organisation who manage but truly inspire and deliver results?
In a world where leadership matters, turning to the wisdom in books is a powerful strategy. The right book doesn’t just give you ideas; it can fundamentally change how leaders see challenges, interact with their teams and drive real, lasting change.
Here are my recommended leadership books that I particularly like. I hope to offer insights into what makes each book great, highlighting their key contributions to leadership development and leadership success.
The leap from mediocrity to excellence is often driven by the ideas and strategies in leadership books. These inspiring books can spark motivation and passion in readers leading to remarkable changes in perspective and behaviour.
This isn’t just another reading list; it’s a curated list of strategic, corporate ready books that will transform leaders and their organisations.
Many of these books have led executives and global leaders to implement key strategies and create a culture of collaboration and innovation within their teams.
10 Books Every Corporate Leader Should Read
Here are 10 books I find most impactful for leaders seeking organisational effectiveness and personal growth. These books not only teach valuable lessons and strategies to improve management skills but also provide frameworks for personal development. Engaging with these books increases knowledge and critical thinking in readers.
“Leaders Eat Last” by Simon Sinek
Description: Sinek explores the biological and anthropological roots of leadership, arguing that the best leaders create a “Circle of Safety”. This environment fosters trust and cooperation so teams can focus on external challenges not internal threats.
Quote: “Returning from work feeling inspired, safe, fulfilled and grateful is a natural human right to which we are all entitled and not a modern luxury that only a few lucky ones are able to find.”
Bookmarkable Insight: Leadership isn’t about rank or power; it’s about taking responsibility for those in your care. When people feel safe, performance goes through the roof.
Example: Imagine a department facing potential restructuring. A leader applying Sinek’s principles would communicate transparently, prioritise protecting their team members’ roles where possible, and ensure everyone feels supported rather than let fear and uncertainty dominate. Great leaders inspire through their actions and not just words.
Applications: Building psychological safety within teams, prioritising employee well-being initiatives, transparency during organisational change, team cohesion through shared purpose. The book provides insights into becoming an effective executive by focusing on key management principles and decision making skills.
“Small Steps to Big Changes®” by Kenneth Kwan
Description: Kwan wrote Small Steps to Big Changes to share a solution-focused approach that has impacted hundreds of teams. It’s about small, positive actions that build momentum for big, sustainable change, moving away from problem saturation towards possibility and forward momentum.
Quote: “When people win small, they want to win more. Winning is motivational.”
Bookmarkable Insight: Small wins build confidence and momentum, making big change feel achievable without overwhelming teams. The traditional diagnostic approach may not work well in today’s complex environment. Solution solution-focused approach works really well in dynamic environments.
Example: Leaders are usually more optimistic than others. But their team members do not often share that same level of mindset. Help others change their thinking by focusing on winning small first. When others have tasted consistent wins at work, they usually want to win more. This is how great leaders shape a winning culture that is results-oriented and sustainable.
Applications: Creating possibilities in conversations with colleagues, team problem-solving sessions (focusing on desired outcomes), personal goal setting, driving continuous improvement initiatives, coaching individuals through performance challenges. Small steps can help teams focus on positive outcomes and build momentum for change.
Also read: Leadership Training and Consulting with Your Business Goals
“Change the Culture, Change the Game” by Roger Connors & Tom Smith
Description: This book offers a practical, results-oriented framework (The Results Pyramid®) for changing organisational culture. It directly links experiences, beliefs, actions and ultimately the results an organisation achieves.
Quote: “If you want to accelerate change and achieve breakthroughs in results, you have to address the Culture – the way people think and act every day.”
Bookmarkable Insight: Culture isn’t an intangible concept; it’s the direct driver of your organisation’s results. To change the game, you must intentionally shape the underlying beliefs and experiences.
Example: An organisation that is struggling with missed deadlines might use the ideas in the book to redefine their culture and embed new beliefs into their thinking. Leaders can create experiences (e.g. celebrating quick prototypes, rewarding proactive communication) to foster a new belief around agility.
Applications: This book is great in helping you build a sustainable corporate culture, impacting performance, aligning culture with strategic objectives, implementing targeted change initiatives and greater accountability across teams.
“Dare to Lead” by Brené Brown
Description: Brown translates her extensive research on courage, vulnerability, shame and empathy into leadership practices. She argues that daring leadership requires embracing vulnerability, living into one’s values, building trust and learning to rise from setbacks.
Quote: “The courage to be vulnerable is not about winning or losing, it’s about the courage to show up when you can’t predict or control the outcome”
Bookmarkable Insight: Vulnerability isn’t weakness; it’s the foundation of the courage needed for authentic, effective leadership and building deep trust within teams.
Example: A leader admitting they don’t have all the answers in a tough situation and asking the team to brainstorm solutions together fosters trust and encourages collective problem solving rather than projecting false certainty.
Applications: There are many applications to common leadership challenges. Feedback conversations (making them clear and kind), building psychological safety, leading tough change initiatives with empathy, more authentic relationships within teams. Vulnerability with whole hearts can develop leadership qualities like empathy and courage.
“Good to Great” by Jim Collins
Description: Based on extensive research Collins identifies timeless principles that distinguish companies that achieve greatness from those that are just good. Key concepts include Level 5 Leadership (humility + will), getting the right people on the bus, confronting brutal facts and the Hedgehog Concept (be what you can be best at).
Quote: “Good is the enemy of great. And that is one of the key reasons why we have so little that becomes great.”
Bookmarkable Insight: Sustained organisational greatness isn’t about market timing or technology; it’s about disciplined people, disciplined thought and disciplined action.
Example: A company deciding to exit a profitable but non-core business because it doesn’t align with their Hedgehog Concept (what they can be best in the world at, are passionate about and drives their economic engine) demonstrates disciplined thought.
Applications: Hire slow to get the right people onboard, strategic planning (Hedgehog Concept), culture of discipline and accountability, humble yet resolute leaders (Level 5). The book provides strategies for doing the right things to get results, leadership and management practices.
“The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Patrick Lencioni
Description: Lencioni uses a business fable to illustrate his model of the five interconnected obstacles that prevent teams from performing at their best: absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability and inattention to results.
Quote: “Not finance. Not strategy. Not technology. It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.”
Bookmarkable Insight: High performing teams are built on a foundation of vulnerability based trust which enables healthy conflict, commitment, accountability and ultimately a focus on collective results.
Example: A leadership team that avoids debating critical strategic decisions for fear of disagreement (fear of conflict) will likely struggle with buy-in (lack of commitment) and holding each other accountable for execution.
Applications: Team building and diagnostics, improving meeting effectiveness, constructive debate, clear team commitments and accountability structures, aligning teams around shared goals. The book has taught me essential principles for building high performing teams by addressing and overcoming these dysfunctions.
“Multipliers” by Liz Wiseman
Description: Wiseman contrasts two leadership styles: “Multipliers,” who use their intelligence to amplify the intelligence of those around them and “Diminishers” who unintentionally stifle talent and intelligence within their teams. The book provides practical ways to become a Multiplier.
Quote: “Multipliers invoke each person’s unique intelligence and create an atmosphere of genius—innovation, productive effort and collective intelligence.”
Bookmarkable Insight: The best leaders don’t have to be the smartest person in the room; they excel at making everyone else around them smarter and more capable.
Example: Instead of providing all the answers a Multiplier leader asks questions that challenge their team to think critically and develop their own solutions, thereby building capability. A Diminisher might constantly jump in with their own ideas, shutting down others’ contributions.
Applications: Leadership development programs, coaching managers on delegation and empowerment, improving talent development practices, innovation and idea generation within teams, self reflection for leaders on their impact. Leaders can use their passion to inspire and engage their teams, overall performance and commitment.
“Radical Candor” by Kim Scott
Description: Scott presents a simple yet powerful framework for giving feedback that is both effective and humane. It’s about “Caring Personally” while “Challenging Directly” avoiding pitfalls like obnoxious aggression, ruinous empathy or manipulative insincerity. Many leaders tend to have difficulty holding tough conversations with others. Great leaders do it well.
Quote: “It’s not mean, it’s clear.” (Often used to summarise the ‘Challenge Directly’ aspect when paired with care).
Bookmarkable Insight: Good feedback requires balancing genuine care for the individual with the willingness to deliver direct, specific and actionable criticism or praise.
Example: Instead of vaguely saying “good job” (ruinous empathy) or harshly criticising a presentation flaw without context (obnoxious aggression), a radically candid leader might say, “I care about your success, so I want to be direct: While your analysis was strong, the presentation structure was confusing. Let’s work together on how to make the key points clearer next time.”
Applications: Performance review conversations, day-to-day feedback (both praise and criticism), coaching and mentoring, building a culture of open communication, manager-employee relationships. The surprising truth is that effective communication and feedback as explored in books like ‘Drive’ by Daniel H. Pink often challenge traditional beliefs about motivation and leadership.
“Leadership and Self-Deception” by The Arbinger Institute
Description: This book tells a story about “self-deception” – being “in the box” – where we see others as objects or obstacles rather than as people with their own needs and challenges. Getting “out of the box” is key to resolving conflict and improving relationships and results.
Quote: “As long as I’m blaming you, I’m blind to the ways I might be contributing to the problem.”
Insight: Our own mindset and how we view others fundamentally shapes our interactions and effectiveness; seeing people as people unlocks collaboration and solutions.
Example: A manager frustrated with an employee’s perceived lack of initiative (“in the box”) might realize (“out of the box”) that their own micromanaging style could be contributing to the employee’s passivity. This shift allows for a more productive conversation about expectations and support.
Applications: Conflict resolution, improving collaboration between departments or individuals, communication skills, empathy and understanding within teams, personal reflection on leadership blind spots. Understanding the history of leadership can also provide context for current perspectives and approaches.
“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey
Description: A classic in personal and professional development, Covey presents a principle-centered approach to effectiveness based on character ethics. The habits move from dependence to independence (“Be Proactive,” “Begin with the End in Mind,” “Put First Things First”) and then to interdependence (“Think Win-Win,” “Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood,” “Synergize”), culminating in continuous renewal (“Sharpen the Saw”).
Quote: “Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”
Insight: True effectiveness comes from aligning your actions with timeless principles and focusing first on personal mastery, then on building productive relationships and collaboration.
Example: A leader applying “Begin with the End in Mind” would define the outcome of a project or meeting before diving into tasks, so everyone is clear on the purpose and vision.
Applications: Time management and prioritization (“Put First Things First”), personal mission statement (“Begin with the End in Mind”), communication and listening skills (“Seek First to Understand”) to influence people, negotiation and collaboration (“Think Win-Win,” “Synergize”), work-life balance (“Sharpen the Saw”). These books teach you valuable lessons and strategies for personal and professional growth, to help you develop as a leader and grow within your organization.
These books will give you insights and strategies for leadership. For more on these topics check out related articles that go deeper into these themes and offer more resources for your leadership journey.
Pair Books with Coaching, Peer Groups, Workshops and Retreats
Books provide the lessons and the map, but guidance helps you navigate the terrain. In my experience, the most significant leadership growth happens when reading is paired with activation strategies like:
- Coaching: A coach can help you apply the insights from books to your specific situation and develop action steps.
- Peer Groups: Discussing the concepts with other leaders provides diverse perspectives and accountability.
- Workshops & Retreats: Time away from the daily grind allows for deeper reflection and skill practice based on the principles learned.
Frameworks like the 5Ds or concepts like “Small Steps to Big Changes®” are often used in these settings to bridge the gap between theory and practice so that learning leads to real behavioural change and organisational improvement.
For more on these topics, check out this article that goes deeper into these themes.
Final Thought: Reading Isn’t Enough — Activation Is the Real Win
Written by some of the most influential authors, these leadership and self-help books are a good start. They provide wisdom, frameworks and inspiration. But the ultimate goal isn’t just to accumulate knowledge but to apply it.
True leadership development comes from taking those insights – those potential “small wins” – and turning them into consistent action.
Focus on applying one key concept, practice one new behaviour and build momentum. Remember, you don’t get better at leadership by reading alone; it is through applying as well.
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