Top 24 Business Books Managers Can’t Ignore

The Innovator’s Dilemma takes an unorthodox yet effective angle on what businesses should really focus on and explains why some of the most outstanding companies around fail even though they’re seemingly following the right path. It has changed the way I approach managing my business completely. A definite must-read if your business works with innovation. No wonder this was a go-to book on Steve Jobs’ shelf.

I’ve read over 80 business books in the past 2 years, and there is just 1 that I would consider to be the BEST business book for managers. I’m the COO of a digital agency with a team of 10, so when I found this book, it was just the thing I needed to improve my own effectiveness as a manager. Organize Tomorrow Today teaches 8 habits observed in top performing business leaders and competitive athletes to help managers become the best versions of themselves. It offers specific steps you can implement in your business to immediately improve your own performance and your impact on the team you’re managing. Unlike the classic 7 habits book or other business advice, this book is very actionable and is full of examples of other managers and athletes applying the principles to their daily life. The book is also self aware and deliberately suggests to only try to implement 1 habit at a time over a period of 90 days. The examples are relatable and easy to translate into your own business. This is a book to read again and again at least every year.

This is a great book for managers or any role that involves interacting with people because it teaches you to be PEOPLE CENTRIC. The most coveted skillset in management is how to influence without power. Most managers rely on their title and power to get people to do what they want (particularly employees) however it’s an entirely different skill set in being able to influence without power as it positions you to influence not only downstream, but also vertically and horizontally (known as managing up).

This simple book will teach you how to turn a team or business into a system of processes so you can deliver high-quality results, every single time. This ultimately means you can scale your business because every position has a user-manual.

David Allen’s GTD is the instructions for creating the simplest work and personal project management system so you can turn your random list of to-do’s and throw them into a machine that gets everything done on time. This means having ultra-clarity with your projects and never being frazzled by a workload.

This book is about trust. To succeed in business, managers need to inspire comfort and trust in their team. Otherwise, you simply can’t expect to innovate and grow as a company. This book provides actionable tactics for creating a safe and creative environment–one where employees can thrive.

All managers can benefit from including viral loops into their products and services. When done correctly, viral loops can transform small companies into billion-dollar corporations without the need for expensive marketing campaigns. In this book, Adam Penenberg pulls back the curtain to show how some of the largest corporations in the world were built on word-of-mouth recommendations. If you’re looking for a high-level analysis of how viral loops work and that offers enough details to apply the concepts to your own business and family, give this book a go.

This is an incredible business book because it shows you the power of what imagination, hard work, and innovation can do. Of course, most people are not as smart as Elon Musk, but it is inspiring from both a business and a personal perspective on how dedicated and relentless Elon Musk is in everything he does. These are definitely traits that can help anyone in the world of business.

It is one of the best management books. I would recommend it to those who are new to investments, management and startups or If you are looking for your first-ever book to read about management then go for it.

Some managers and HODs forgets the meaning of leadership when they get promoted to a new rank. A narcissistic manager is the main reason why many workers leave the organization because they make their team members sit late, create distractions in work, and yell when someone uses earphones for productivity. Don’t be like this guy! Instead, turn your script from me to we with the help of this book that offers guides on how to become a good leader that everyone wants to work for. Richard Branson says, If you take care of your employees, they will take care of your clients. Good leadership means good business.

Time is very important in the world of business. This book teaches managers how they can carry out several management tasks as effectively, and in as little time as possible. Readers will learn how to set goals, give praise, and give reprimands in one minute each.

Distractions are what we encounter on a daily basis and it can get so worse that it puts our important personal and professional goals on hold. Indistractable is a powerful book that provides a framework that will deliver the focus you need to get results. It provides practical, novel techniques to control your time and attention thereby helping you live the life you really want.

Being a female leader comes with its own unique set of challenges. A little more work and innovation often must go into receiving recognition, and the home-work balance often becomes more important. That’s why this book is such a wonderful tool for any empowered female to read and refer back to over and over again when in any type of leadership role.

This book perfectly ecompasses the situations that women need to overcome to reach that all-important glass ceiling. Yet, the positivity in this book is out the roof! Rather than focus on the problems, it provides clear-cut answers and strategies to rise to the success that you’ve always desired as a manager.

This is hands down one of the most powerful books I’ve read in my life. The fact that you’re seeking it out says volumes about your level of self-awareness as it is and this book builds on that. Very seldom do books really make me get involved when I read them, but this book made me break out my highlighter and notepad. There was so much good stuff I just had to take notes I could quickly reference. The 7 habits of highly effective people is a book for everyone who is looking forward to learning new things, everyone who is interested in entrepreneurship and business, and also for those who fell a bit lost and searching for themselves. The Author talks about principle-centered life, which is fundamental to become an effective person. Everything talked about in this book requires practice and an ongoing effort. So, it’s important to internalize the concepts talked about in this book and practice constantly, to see the effects.

The author shares ideas and strategies for making improvements in many aspects of one’s life. For a manager who is looking to make improvements in the workplace, the concept of “incremental improvements” can be useful to share with employees. At any company, getting employees to focus on achieving goals or implementing change can be difficult. But the lessons taught in this book show the manager and the employees how to take various corporate goals, and break them down into more manageable tasks and actions. The book includes lots of helpful ideas regarding personal and professional development for managers and their workers.

This book tells you the tricks and strategies to transform your business from good to great. Multiple comparison studies made among leading and non-leading companies are available in this book that gives you insights to understand your own business in a better way and to plan an efficient business strategy to boost your profits.

Being the CEO of my organization, I expect my managers to be on toes for taking up any uncertain situations that come across the way since I won’t be able to micro-manage tasks. On top of it, I want to build a team of leaders working independently and as a team on any project with minimal intervention. So, I recommended this book to my managers as it will help them to do just that. They can develop a calm mindset for decisionmaking in a pressurized environment. Written by former World Series of Poker champion Annie Duke, I would recommend this to every manager irrespective of their field of operations and industry for achieving a common goal of embracing uncertainty

This book discusses the six principles of influence and using it for effective persuasion within ethical boundaries

The book covers some of the best practices for making things happen like time management, the right priorities, and effective decision-making.

Everyone is guilty of dragging their personal/household problems to work at least once in their careers. This book helps in drawing the line between home and office life. It also tackles the different personalities you encounter at work and how to deal with them.

In this book, you’ll learn that rather than rewarding your employees for doing their job, you should give employees fulfilling work that they’ll want to do in the first place.

In this book you will learn to cultivate your leadership style and also how to become a better leader, you will learn hone these skills in every area of the business.

In this book you will learn and have a good grasp on how to create an office environment that fosters innovation and exceeds your expectations.