Agile Leadership: 10 Hidden Gems to 10X Your Leadership Game
TL; DR: 10X Your Agile Leadership Game with 10 Affordable Books
Agile leadership is tricky, covering a lot of ground, from team building, decision-making, servant leadership, and self-management to including everyone and giving everyone a voice—to name a few of the challenges.
In the past, I found the following books beneficial to better understand the problem and solution space agile leadership. Moreover, you can significantly improve your leadership game as Scrum Master, agile coach, or manager for less than $ 200—an excellent investment from a professional perspective.
🗞 Shall I notify you about articles like this one? Awesome! You can sign up here for the ‘Food for Agile Thought’ newsletter and join 46,000-plus subscribers.
🎓 Join Stefan in one of his upcoming Professional Scrum training classes!
📖 Get notified when the Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide book is available!
Join your peers on May 4, 2023: HoA EXTRA: How Elon Musk Would Run YOUR Business with Joe Justice.
Agile Leadership Reading Recommendations
All links to Amazon are standard Amazon.com links; no need to worry about affiliate links:
- “Turn the Ship Around!” by L. David Marquet: This book offers a unique perspective on leadership and decision-making from a former submarine captain, emphasizing the importance of empowering team members and creating leaders at every level.
- “Reinventing Organizations” by Frederic Laloux: This book explores the concept of “teal organizations” that focus on self-management, wholeness, and evolutionary purpose as critical principles to foster effective decision-making.
- “Host: Six New Roles of Engagement” by Mark McKergow and Helen Bailey: The authors present an alternative leadership approach called “Host Leadership,” which encourages leaders to create the right conditions for collaboration and decision-making in agile environments.
- “The Coaching Habit” by Michael Bungay Stanier: This book focuses on the power of asking questions and how leaders can use coaching techniques to support better decision-making within their teams.
- “Quiet Leadership” by David Rock: This book delves into the neuroscience behind leadership and offers practical techniques for leaders to create a positive environment for decision-making and collaboration.
- “The Responsibility Process” by Christopher Avery: The author provides insights into the psychological patterns that shape our behavior in decision-making, highlighting the importance of taking personal responsibility for our actions.
- “Radical Candor” by Kim Scott: This book offers a framework for providing honest and constructive feedback, which can improve team dynamics and support better decision-making.
- “An Everyone Culture” by Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey: The authors explore the concept of “deliberately developmental organizations” that foster continuous growth and development, providing a supportive environment for decision-making.
- “The Leader’s Guide to Radical Management” by Stephen Denning: This book offers a comprehensive guide to transforming organizations for the agile age, focusing on customer-centricity, continuous innovation, and empowering teams.
- “Creating Great Teams” by Sandy Mamoli and David Mole: This book introduces the concept of self-selection, where team members choose their teams and projects, fostering a culture of trust and collaboration that supports effective decision-making.
Cannot see the form? Please click here.
Agile Leadership — Conclusion
“Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others.” Otto von Bismarck’s quote perfectly captures the value of learning about agile leadership through reading. By studying the wisdom of experienced leaders, we can gain insights, avoid pitfalls, and save time.
How do you invest in your agile leadership capabilities? Please share with us in the comments.
📖 Related Posts
Why Agile Turns into Micromanagement
Agile Leadership — A Brief Overview of Concepts and Ideas
The Power and Pains of Autonomy — Jimmy Janlén at the Agile Camp Berlin 2021
Adapt How You Lead for Agile Success — Johanna Rothman at the Agile Camp Berlin 2021
The Free Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide
📅 Scrum Training Classes, Workshops, and Events
Learn more about agile leadership with our Scrum training classes, workshops, and events. You can secure your seat directly by following the corresponding link in the table below:
See all upcoming classes here.
You can book your seat for the training directly by following the corresponding links to the ticket shop. If the procurement process of your organization requires a different purchasing process, please contact Berlin Product People GmbH directly.
✋ Do Not Miss Out and Learn more about Agile Leadership — Join the 12,000-plus Strong ‘Hands-on Agile’ Slack Community
I invite you to join the “Hands-on Agile” Slack Community and enjoy the benefits of a fast-growing, vibrant community of agile practitioners from around the world.
If you like to join all you have to do now is provide your credentials via this Google form, and I will sign you up. By the way, it’s free.
Support your team’s efforts in supporting agile leadership by pointing to the free Scrum Anti-Patterns Guide:
Tags: agile leadership, leadership, servant leadership