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| Customer Reviews: | | Average Customer Review: ( 6 customer reviews )
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4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
A Brilliant Book on Greenleaf Jun 30, 2005
By Hamilton Beazley
This is a splendid book that beautifully captures the spirit, the ideas, and the intellect of an American giant in management thought. Don Frick is a masterful biographer whose grasp of his subject matter treats us to tantalizing pieces of information about Greenleaf even as he recreates the complex, often paradoxical mosaic of his life, artfully illuminating the man and the extraordinary legacy he left behind. Engaging, insightful, deeply fascinating and, ultimately, prophetic, this book is not about management in the 20th Century when its subject lived, but about managing in the Information Age of the 21st century. Fortunately, Frick's biography is no hagiography, which makes it all the more powerful, but the careful consideration of a man's life-a man who had a deep impact on society, yet who wrestled with inner demons and speaks to us out of his humanity. Frick gives us a feel for Greenleaf himself by inserting excerpts of his writings throughout the book, yet he never disrupts the continuity of the text. It's as if Greenleaf has whispered something in our ear at just the right moment. The real story here is not just servant-leadership, but what Greenleaf can teach us about living as well as about managing in today's turbulent environment. I can't get over how well Frick has told his story, how engaging he has made it, and how much he has to offer us in its pages. I enjoyed the biography immensely and am grateful to Don Frick for creating a comprehensive portrait of Greenleaf's remarkable life. The book is a pleasure to read as well as a exciting journey of the mind and spirit. Enjoy!
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
The Secret of Success: "Service" Aug 14, 2004
By Louise Hartzog
As a University Professor, what I really like about Robert K. Greenleaf: A Life of Servant Leadership is how well Don Frick reflected on the people, historical events and experiences that evolved Greenleaf's management style and ultimately the Servant-Leadership Philosophy. It is one thing to understand the concept but the richness of that understanding is greatly enhanced with an understanding of the experiences that supported Greenleaf's theories. I think the book will have a very broad appeal. It is a "How To: management book that comes alive in the form of a BIO. I think it will appeal to a broad audience. The Greenleaf bio with appeal to research scientists, because of how effectively Greenleaf understood the human factors of scientific research and how those factors drove results and the success of large corporate projects. Bob was a research scientist for ATT. Finally in terms of a broad appeal, this is a story of a man whose integrity and personal values were reflected in how a corporation managed a business. His priority in life was to serve his fellow man. The corporation can be tool of service and everyone benefits. It is a great contrast to the ENRON and TYCO stories in which the lack of integrity and personal values ultimately resulted in the demise of the company and the retirement funds of thousands of people.
4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
The First and Truly Definitive Biography of Robert Greenleaf Jul 21, 2004
By D. Valeri
This book is a labor of love and will likely stand for a very long time as the definitive biography of Robert Greenleaf. The author had access to Greenleaf's family and private papers. You will learn how and why Greenleaf was able to develop his ideas about leadership and their vital connection to altruistic service, stewardship and a higher standard of ethics in our world today. Frick relates how he grew up, what his family life was like, what his career in corporate America was like and how his unusual 'second career' as a writer and consultant shaped his thinking. If you wish to understand servant leadership, Greenleaf's gift to humanity, and perhaps our only true hope of finding the leaders we need to create a better planet, then you need to read this book. FIVE STARS EASILY!
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Ken Lay: Take Note Aug 16, 2004
By Bob McGinnis
In the wake of the Martha Stewart and Ken Lay trials it is important to keep in mind that this behavior is the exception and not the rule. In my experience, the people who succeed in business are those who are aware of the contribution that they make to society. Robert K. Greenleaf: A Life of Servant Leadership sketches a history of the evolution of the concept of Servant Leadership, a concept that has been a cornerstone of thought for many great philosophers such as St. Francis, Lou Tzu, Confucius, Rumi and Gibran. The life of Robert Greenleaf is a living testimony to how the principles of Servant Leadership can be successfully applied to ones professional and personal life. From Greenleaf's example, we learn that effective leaders, lead out of service to their fellow man. Just imagine the strength of a business community that embraces this standard of conduct. The impact that Robert Greenleaf has had on corporate America is truly revolutionary. Robert Greenleaf was an enlightened, twentieth-century business executive practitioner and a twenty-first century visionary whose work is rooting in fertile ground in a global economy and WORLD PEACE!
1 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Robert Greenleaf Jan 01, 2011
By Barry P. Dixon
I bought the book because I studied this author in one of my classes. I wanted to know how he became a good leader. His biography has inside information about Robert Greenleaf's life. He was a mystic, but that was kept quiet. He had a whole leadership philosophy invented due to him. Servant leadership. This book does answer many questions about the inner nature of Robert Greenleaf and his relationship with his family and the companies he worked with.
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