Stacking the Deck: How to Lead Breakthrough Change Against Any Odds

Book description

Change is a constant, and leaders must do more than keep up—they must innovate and accelerate to succeed. Yet people are often unnerved by change. As a leader during a time of transformation, you may stand up before teams that are indifferent, or even hostile, and need to convince them that change is necessary and urgent. More than money, time, or resources, the ability to lead these people determines your ultimate success or failure. What does it take to be an effective change leader and increase the odds of success?

Stacking the Deck offers a proven, practical approach for inspiring meaningful, lasting change across an organization. Stacking the Deck presents a nine-step course of action leaders can follow from the first realization that change is needed through all the steps of implementation, including assembling the right team of close advisors and getting the word out to the wider group.

Based on Dave Pottruck's experiences leading change as CEO of Charles Schwab and later as chairman of CorpU and HighTower Advisors, these steps provide a guide to ensure that your change initiative and your team have the best possible shot at success. In addition, established business leaders who have led extraordinary change initiatives demonstrate the steps in action. These executives include eBay CEO John Donahoe, Wells Fargo former CEO Dick Kovacevich, Starbucks chief executive officer Howard Schultz, San Francisco Giants CEO Larry Baer, JetBlue CEO Dave Barger, Asurion CEO Steve Ellis, Pinkberry CEO Ron Graves, and Intel's President Renee James, among others.

Leading an organization through major change—whether it's the introduction of a new product, an expansion to a new territory, or a difficult downsizing—is not for the faint of heart. While success is never guaranteed, the right leadership, process, and team make all the difference. For all leaders facing major change in their organizations, Stacking the Deck is an indispensable resource for putting the odds in your favor.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
    1. More praise for Stacking the Deck
  2. Title Page
    1. Copyright
    2. Dedication
    3. Foreword
    4. Introduction
      1. Why “Stacking the Deck”?
      2. Stacking the Deck for Breakthrough Change
      3. A Guide to Stacking the Deck
      4. Voices of Experts
      5. Heading into Change
      6. Change and Learning Are Continuous
      7. Leading Breakthrough Change Is Not for the Faint of Heart
  3. Part One: The Stacking the Deck Process
    1. Chapter 1: Step One: Establishing the Need to Change and a Sense of Urgency
      1. Link the Purpose and Mission
      2. Know the Need
      3. Understand the Big Picture—and All Perspectives
      4. Underscore the Urgency
      5. Prepare for Resistance and Conflicts
    2. Chapter 2: Step Two: Assembling and Unifying Your Leadership Team
      1. Find and Nurture the Pioneers
      2. Take Steps to Unify the Team
    3. Chapter 3: Step Three: Developing and Communicating a Clear and Compelling Vision of the Future
      1. Heading into the Blue
      2. Leaving the Status Quo and Creating the Future
      3. Showing Your Passion
    4. Chapter 4: Step Four: Planning Ahead for Known and Unknown Barriers
      1. Mapping the Bermuda Quadrangle
      2. Compounding the Dangers
      3. Planning for the Unexpected
    5. Chapter 5: Step Five: Creating a Workable Plan
      1. Planning and Budgeting
      2. Making Assessments: From the Present to the Future
      3. Planning Components
      4. Planning for Risks and the Inevitable Questions
    6. Chapter 6: Step Six: Partitioning the Project and Building Momentum with Early Wins
      1. Planning for Interim Successes
      2. Buying More Time with Interim Successes
    7. Chapter 7: Step Seven: Defining Metrics, Developing Analytics, and Communicating Results
      1. Knowing Your Key Results
      2. What Are You Measuring?
      3. Measuring Progress and Success: Big Data, Metrics, and Analytics
      4. Sharing Results—and Progress
    8. Chapter 8: Step Eight: Assessing, Recruiting, and Empowering the Broader Team
      1. Assess Today for Future Needs
      2. Imagine the Dream Team—and Dream Big
      3. Search for Talent, Skills, and Fit
      4. Unify and Empower the Larger Team
      5. Rebalance and Revamp the Team
    9. Chapter 9: Step Nine: Testing with Pilots to Increase Success
      1. Pilot Projects Are Key
      2. Pilots Demand Constant Evaluation and Coordination
      3. Looking to the Future
  4. Part Two: Leading the Change
    1. Chapter 10: Using the Nine Steps to Bring Your Initiative to the Real World
      1. Navigating and Sequencing the Nine Steps
      2. Leading with Conviction
      3. Negotiating Terms
      4. Getting Started
      5. Dealing with the Risk of Failure
    2. Chapter 11: Communicating and Connecting to Inspire
      1. Leadership Communication Must Be Authentic
      2. Leadership Connection Is a Discipline
      3. Framework for Personal Leadership Communication Guide©
    3. Chapter 12: Innovation: Ideas and Perspectives
      1. Innovating by Meeting Unspoken and Undiscovered Needs
      2. Tying Innovations to Values
      3. Breakthroughs Ahead
    4. Epilogue: Final Comments and Reflections
    5. Appendix: Featured Leaders
    6. Acknowledgments
    7. About the Author
    8. More from Wiley
    9. Index
  5. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: Stacking the Deck: How to Lead Breakthrough Change Against Any Odds
  • Author(s): David S. Pottruck
  • Release date: October 2014
  • Publisher(s): Jossey-Bass
  • ISBN: 9781118966884