It's not enough anymore to be smart, hard-working, and able to show results; At this level, everybody is smart, hard-working, and able to show results. Now it's a game for grown-ups. What really sets you apart is the relationships you build with people of influence. These people can include your peers, your employees, your organization's directors, reporters, vendors, and regulators-as well as the people directly above you in the organizational hierarchy.
In senior management, you no longer answer to just one boss. There is now a hazy matrix of hundreds of bosses both inside and outside the office, any one of whom can stop you cold or give you a tremendous push forward. Executive Warfare offers concrete advice for handling all of them, including
YOUR PEERS: They are the most valuable of allies or the most dangerous of enemies
THE CEO: Her office is often where the real fairy dust is kept. Make sure you have a good relationship here
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS: They won't judge you fairly if all they see of you is your PowerPoints
YOUR DIRECT REPORTS: They are your vital organs, so treat them accordingly. And if you find a blood clot among them-excise that person before he kills you
YOUR RIVALS: It's not always wise to shoot at them, but if you do, do not shoot to wound
In his bestsellers Brand Warfare and Career Warfare, author David D'Alessandro offered sharp advice for building a brand and building a career. Now Executive Warfare is the advanced class for the truly ambitious. Learn what it takes to rise to the top-and to do the even harder thing, which is survive there.
A must read for the college graduateNovember 13, 2008 This book is easily read and understood and generally a necessity for anyone entering a job no matter what. Perfect for people just out of college entering the work world aiming for the corner office. How are you bosses and coworkers viewing you? Are you presenting your image properly? Do you even know what kind of image you want to display?
Essentially unless your parents were executives and you know the ins and outs of corporate behavior, this book can add to your career.
EXCELLENT!!September 16, 2008 The author KEEPS IT REAL!!!! Very unconventional advice that is both grassroots wisdom and ivy league insider quality!! I will this book over and over again.
Strictly for Executives and Senior ManagementAugust 12, 2008 1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Make no mistake: David D'Alessandro knows what he's talking about. His previous "Warfare" book, the excellent Career Warfare: 10 Rules for Building a Sucessful Personal Brand on the Business Battlefield, laid out the steps to a successful career for anyone working as a white collar professional. "Executive Warfare," however, is more narrow in its aim: It is focused exclusively on senior managers and executives. Are there really enough executives out there to make this a bestseller? I believe that many customers who buy this book may aspire to be executives, but aren't there yet...rendering much of the book somewhat useless.
Besides the limited focus, D'Alessandro covers many of the same success tips as he did in "Career Warfare." If you're going to read one of the two books, I would recommend skipping this newest book and picking up "Career Warfare" instead.
If you want to rise to the top, read this bookJuly 25, 2008 2 out of 3 found this review helpful
If you want to rise to the top of your organization, read this book. Many times.
The ideas in this book (if properly executed) are worth $1 million to $100 million (or may be more).
Also recommended: Career Warfare.
I would be happy to pay good money for any work by D'Alessandro and Michele Owens. I hope the next book by the duo is about how to hunt (for business).
In the book David D'Alessandro thanks his father and his father's namesake, which I thought was most interesting.
How to win a "combat game for grown-ups"July 16, 2008 4 out of 4 found this review helpful
With Michele Owens, David D'Alessandro has written another book whose title and subtitle suggest direct correlations between the battlefield and the business world. What sets this book apart from almost all of the others is the fact that he includes no references to Sun Tzu's The Art of War nor to Carl von Clauswitz' On War. I also appreciate the fact that D'Alessandro establishes, develops, and then sustains a direct rapport with his reader. The informal, indeed conversational tone is precisely appropriate and brilliantly sustained. For example: "The single greatest reason why otherwise talented people get stuck in mid-career is because they believe that the same rules that applied for the first part of their careers still apply. They don't. You have to master a much subtler set of rules. You'll need to learn how to acquire the global perspective your peers lack, when and how to deliver bad news, when to take a shot at your rivals and when to be gracious, and, most important, how to handle the many new influences on your [career] trajectory...Intelligence, imagination, and cunning are all required here - but not underhandedness...I don't believe you need to be devious to succeed. In fact, I think being excessively political is a mistake."
D'Alessandro focuses on the adjustments any executive must make as she or he assumes increased responsibilities during an incremental ascension to higher levels of management. His observations and suggestions indicate that he is an empiricist in that he is especially alert to context as well as to significant details, a pragmatist who prefers to focus on what does - and does not - work and has little, if any patience with "woulda/coulda/shoulda," and he has a unique ability to recognize what is most important among whatever options may be available. He seems determined to share what he has learned so that his reader will be able to balance impeccable integrity with "street smarts." His advice concerns do's and don'ts of when responding to challenges such as these:
Managing increasing complexity at various stages throughout a "career trajectory"
Excerpt: "It's not just that the pyramid narrows and the competition toughens as you rise. It's that the game changes fundamentally...[and, to repeat] In my experience, the single greatest reason why otherwise talented people get stuck in midcareer is because they believe that the same rules that applied for the first part of their career. They don't. You now have to master a much subtler set of rules."
Dealing with rivals
Excerpt: "It is far better to be a steady incremental player who wins, in the end, by impressing people all along the way than to be the kind of hothead who tries to force a quick culmination." Years ago, someone whose name I do not recall invoked a metaphor to make the same point: "Be a Bunsen burner, not a sparkler."
Building a team
Excerpt: "If you are not picking your own team, you are going to be handed some turkeys. When one of those turkeys screws up, you own the turkey...Having a reputation as somebody who not only can build a strong team but also can bring in people who can build strong teams is extraordinarily valuable...The most valuable employees are those willing to rain on your parade when it's necessary - willing even to rain on a parade they organized themselves."
Earning the trust of direct-reports
Excerpt: "Most of your rivals will treat the people who work for them like children. You can win incredible loyalty simply by treating people like adults who can accept the truth. You will also build a team that way because your key people now all share the same information and can work together to act on it...It's important that your employees see that you are [decisive but] not heartless."
Rising into the senior ranks
Excerpt: "You must become a person of presence." How? "First of all, you have to offer something substantial and not just self-importance. Second, "you have to be true to yourself and the things you believe in." And thirdly, "is perspective - and you cannot develop perspective if your entire life revolves around your job...To get to the top - and stay there - you need to be able to lead human brings. And, the only way to learn how to lead is to live."
I realize that these brief excerpts are taken out of context and that D'Alessandro's key points may seem simplistic. They are offered merely to suggest the thrust of his insights and the flavor of his prose. Moreover, I hasten to add that his observations and suggestions are fully developed within an extended narrative that is both cohesive and comprehensive. Also, although much of his advice concerns challenges that C-level executives face, those who do not as yet occupy a position at that level will nonetheless derive a substantial benefit from understanding those challenges because (a) such understanding will improve their relationships with C-level executives in their own organization, and (b) they can prepare themselves adequately for a time when they most respond to them.
David D'Alessandro begins his book with a disclaimer that also serves as an appropriate conclusion to this review: "If you are not interested in success, put down this book and buy a latte."
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