Have you made a New Year’s goal to make your next job move but don’t know where to start? Do you want to be a more effective leader, advocate, or time manager? We combed through the catalogues of 2022 publishers for the career and leadership books that appear to be the most useful, compelling, or, in one case, the most entertaining. Here are some alternatives to keep an eye on in 2022.
Amp It Up: Leading for Hypergrowth with High Expectations, Urgency and Intensity, Frank Slootman, January 19
The CEO of Snowflake, which debuted on the New York Stock Exchange last year in the software industry’s biggest-ever IPO, Slootman shares his experience taking three companies public in this guide to improving performance without making pricey changes. While Slootman likes to say he doesn’t have a formula, there’s certainly a method to his approach: An “amp it up” strategy that includes declaring “war” on incrementalism, sharpening a company’s focus and leading with speed and urgency. “I exercise executive prerogative,” he told Forbes’ Alex Konrad in March. “I don’t have to justify it, I don’t have to convince you. I just have to know that this is what I want to do.”
Jerks At Work: Toxic Coworkers And What To Do About Them, Tessa West, January 25
West’s book follows in the footsteps of Stanford University professor Robert Sutton’s No A**hole Rule and its hands-on sequel, The A**hole Survival Guide, which were both smash bestsellers. West, a social psychologist at New York University, divides toxic coworkers into categories such as “kiss up/kick downer,” “free rider,” and “gaslighter,” to name a few, and explains how to deal with them. Even if you don’t have to deal with them in person, tough coworkers exist in the virtual world and can be just as challenging to manage.
How To Talk To Your Boss About Race: Speaking Up Without Getting Shut Down, Y-Vonne Hutchinson, February 1
A former international human rights lawyer who now acts as a diversity and inclusion consultant, Hutchinson is a straight-talking adviser to tech leaders and Fortune 500 companies. Her book is aimed at employees who recognize that changing systemic racism is everyone’s job. Described as a “handbook to moving beyond fear to push for change,” Hutchinson’s book, in one sense, is about power—and a reminder that employees have the ability to make change happen, too.
The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward, Dan Pink, February 1
Readers may know Pink as the author of several business blockbusters—Free Agent Nation, which defined the freelance economy; A Whole New Mind, which celebrated creative right-brainers; and Drive, which examined what motivates people. While his new book isn’t entirely about work and careers, it draws on research in social psychology, neuroscience and biology to explore one of the big human emotions that drives both our personal and professional lives: regret. For the book, he embarked on two public opinion research projects about what people regret and their attitudes toward the emotion. His thesis: The concept of having “no regrets” is nonsense, and we should use this “indispensable emotion” to make better decisions, improve performance and find greater meaning.
Anti-Racist Leadership: How To Transform Corporate Culture In A Race-Conscious World, James D. White, March 1
There are plenty of books about diversity and inclusion on the 2022 publishing schedule, but few are authored by a CEO who has been in charge of change. White, who ran Jamba Juice from 2008 to 2016 and now sits on multiple high-powered boards, collaborated with renowned scholar Joan C. Williams on a book about diversity challenges. He is claimed to have increased the diversity of senior executives at Jamba Juice during his tenure there. The description of the book warns that it isn’t politically neutral: “This book is not apolitical.” This book is unmistakably anti-racist. “You have a significant position in the power structure,” the book tells corporate leaders, “and this book admits that capitalism is founded on a foundation of systemic racism.”
Love + Work: How to Find What You Love, Love What You Do, and Do It for the Rest of Your Life, Marcus Buckingham, April 5
Noted “strengths” guru Buckingham, now at the ADP Research Institute, takes a practical approach to helping people follow the age-old advice to “do what you love.” Buckingham’s guide aims to not only help people determine what they love to do, but help them choose roles where they’ll succeed, reshape existing jobs and do work that stands out from the crowd.
A New Way To Think: Your Guide To Superior Management Effectiveness, Roger Martin, April 12
This management handbook, which includes letters he addressed to CEOs and their teams and collects Martin’s Harvard Business Review articles in one place, brings together the works of one of the business world’s most regarded thought leaders. Martin, the former dean of the University of Toronto’s business school, has been crowned the world’s top management thinker. He has counselled CEOs from Procter & Gamble, Lego, and Ford, and is noted for his strategy, design, and innovation studies. Martin has assisted leaders in re-framing their ideas and breaking free from failed strategies.
Burn Rate: Launching a Startup and Losing My Mind, Andy Dunn, May 10
Founding a new company is never easy, but doing so with bipolar disorder is doubly hard. Dunn, the cofounder of direct-to-consumer menswear startup Bonobos, which sold to Walmart for $310 million in 2017, shares how he struggled with his mental health as he was launching the fast-growing brand. During that time, the book’s description says, “Dunn was haunted by a ghost: a diagnosis of bipolar disorder he received after a frightening manic episode in college, one that had punctured the idyllic veneer of his midwestern upbringing.” At a time when more and more focus is being placed on mental health, Dunn’s memoir appears to offer insights on the particular challenges entrepreneurs with mental illness face.
The World’s Worst Assistant, Sona Movsesian, July 19
This book isn’t usual career-shelf stuff, and it’s more for Conan O’Brien fans than business experts. Nonetheless, we couldn’t resist including what appears to be a humorous and irreverent beach read about everything not to do on the job. Consider it a vacation from the genre’s never-ending parade of earnest self-help books, and laugh along with Movsesian, O’Brien’s longtime assistant and cohost of his podcast. She shares personal experiences about working with O’Brien over the past 12 years, including how-tos on anything from watching TV at your workplace to becoming “untouchable” (endearing oneself to friends and relatives).
Happier Hour: How to Beat Distraction, Expand Your Time, and Focus on What Matters Most, Cassie Holmes, September 6
We think of money as our most scarce resource, but it’s really time. Holmes, a professor of marketing and behavioral decision making at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, writes about how to use your time in a way that is most meaningful and satisfying. Offering guidance about how to avoid distractions, be present and design your schedule, this book by Holmes, who studies happiness, looks to be worth your, well, time.