High-Stakes Leadership

Preface

High-stakes leadership. The phrase has a ring of drama, and for good reason. When risk and ambiguity are both high, leadership can make the difference between success and failure.

This book offers a series of examples of leaders and organizations that exemplify courage, judgment, and fortitude when the stakes are high. Some of the leaders highlighted are well known, while others are relatively unknown outside their own spheres. Some of the organizations—The Home Depot, Best Buy, and Reckitt Benckiser—have market capitalizations in the billions, while others fly below the radar of most of us. The parallels between these well-known companies and the lesser known ones are, nonetheless, real and robust. The lessons from Frank Blake, former ...