Reinvention
Accelerating Results in the Age of Disruption
This is one of those rare business books that is both conceptual and pragmatic about fostering change.
In this concise, unerring business book, two management consultants exhort businesses and their leaders to embrace massive change and promulgate reinvention.
Employing terms such as “disruption” and “global shockwaves,” Cragun and Sweetman emphasize the notion that succeeding in business in the future will take nothing less than reinvention, “where absolutely everything is on the table, and all assumptions are challenged in accelerated and quantum ways.” It is somewhat unusual for a business book to promote reinvention for both individuals and organizations, but the authors manage to adeptly execute the concept with skill and clarity.
Most far-reaching business books adopt a problem-solution approach, and Reinvention is no different. The authors first discuss the “Age of Disruption” and outline twenty “Global Shockwaves,” such as the “advent of e-commerce” and the standardization of a virtual workforce. They explore several companies that have failed to adapt, including Blockbuster and Radio Shack, and explain how “six deadly blindfolds” cause businesses and their leaders to stumble.
The heart of the book, though, is the authors’ formula for reinvention. Using examples, exercises, and self-evaluation tools, Cragun and Sweetman provide a detailed “Reinvention Roadmap” that demonstrates how individuals and organizations can implement a reinvention plan. Just as important, the authors augment the road map with “accelerators” to help make significant change happen and stick over the long term.
While the book is sweeping in its intent and encourages broad and extensive personal and organizational change, it is highly accessible and easy to read. The authors pare away any unnecessary verbiage, concentrating on exactly how to foster reinvention. As a result, Reinvention is one of those rare business books that not only introduces a conceptual approach to fostering change but also presents a detailed, specific plan for how to do so. Also unusual is the book’s exclusion of the typical chapter summary; instead, a number of business experts write about the key insights they gained from each chapter, tell how the insights apply to their careers, and offer advice to readers.
Leaders who recognize that their organizations’ very survival depends on their ability to adapt and radically remake their business model will find much of value in Reinvention.
Reviewed by
Barry Silverstein
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
