Mavericks At Work

An engaging and incisive look at today's top business leaders – visionary and creative mavericks who are changing the way we do business. Inspiring and accessible, ‘Mavericks at Work’ is for anyone who wants to succeed in business – from the entry-level employee to the CEO.

In ‘Mavericks at Work’, two high-profile journalists introduce an inspiring group of entrepreneurs and executives who are building great businesses by challenging business as usual. From break-the-mould innovators such as HBO, Pixar, and Netflix to global giants such as IBM and Procter & Gamble, these mavericks are winning big by devising new answers to the oldest (and toughest) challenges of competition and leadership. Their stories are exciting – and their ideas are truly powerful.

Real mavericks know that:

• Big, original ideas pay big dividends
• Being different makes all the difference
• Nobody is as smart as everybody
• Cheaper is better, but value is priceless
• Great leaders are insatiable learners

‘Mavericks at Work’ is a relentlessly useful how-to book. But it is also an eye-opening what-if book – with insights that showcase the power of business at its best and set a positive agenda for the future.

Although the title sounds like a self-help guide to the dysfunctionally employed, the aim of this book is actually to challenge business leaders to think bigger and aim higher. Those are certainly not new challenges, so what makes this book different from all the others that encourage entrepreneurs to "break the mold"? The authors have identified positive developments in a business environment that is struggling to emerge from slow growth, dashed expectations, and corporate scandal. Although they show how big-name innovators such as HBO, IBM, and Proctor & Gamble are finding new ways to stand out, a new breed is emerging that is proving that smarter can beat bigger. Companies such as Netflix, Google, and craigslist really are reinventing the wheel and have caused the business community to stand up and notice. The authors' vision is that these new innovators, once dismissed as upstarts, hold the key to reinstituting business as a source of inspiration and progress, creating a path for others to follow. David Siegfried