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Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur's Quest to Educate the World's Children [Paperback]

John Wood
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
RRP: £8.99
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Book Description

16 Jun 2008

In 1998 John Wood was a rising executive at Microsoft . Then a trip to Nepal inspired him to set up schools and libraries in the developing world.

Fuelled by the same drive that made him a top executive, Wood took his business acumen into the charity sector and created Room to Read, a stunningly effective organisation that has created a network of more than 2,000 schools and libraries throughout Asia and Africa in only six years.

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World chronicles John Wood's incredible journey, his first years at Microsoft, his life-changing decision to leave, and the adventure that followed. Wood shares the methods he uses to manage Room to Read, taken from the boardroom of one of the world's most influential companies and applied successfully in a very different setting. His story is an inspirational example of how to create success on your own terms and change your world.

After earning an MBA at the Kellogg School of Management, John Wood joined Microsoft in 1991. He quickly ascended to become Microsoft's director of business development in China and the surrounding regions. In 1999, he founded Room to Read, a charity that promotes literacy throughout the developing world. He lives in San Francisco.


Frequently Bought Together

Leaving Microsoft to Change the World: An Entrepreneur's Quest to Educate the World's Children + Creating Room to Read: A Story of Hope in the Battle for Global Literacy
Price For Both: £20.73

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Product details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Collins; New edition edition (16 Jun 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0007237030
  • ISBN-13: 978-0007237036
  • Product Dimensions: 13.1 x 19.5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 204,426 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

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Product Description

Review

"Wood is obsessed with putting to work the business practices he learnt at Microsoft… melding 'the compassion of Mother Teresa' with 'the focus and tenacity of a blue-chip company'." Financial Times

About the Author

John spent most of his career running significant parts of Microsoft’s international business. At age 35, he chose to leave Microsoft in the middle of his career to focus on bringing educational opportunities to poor communities. His passion is to combine the lessons he learned in business with the compassion and service ethic found in the non-profit arena. John holds a B.S. from the University of Colorado and a MBA from the Kellogg Graduate School of Management.


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Customer Reviews

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational 4 Feb 2009
By R. Wood
Format:Paperback
Life changing.. No really! As a direct result of reading this book I am flying to China to offer what little support I can to my foster sister in her care and dedication towards severly disabled and abandoned children. This is only the beginging I promise.

Rachel Wood
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic! 7 Sep 2008
Format:Paperback
This book is amazing, really inspiring with the added bonus that profits from the book go to the charity! This should be read by anyone who is bored with work and wants to get out there and make a difference - one man can make a difference as is proved here. The book also fills you with hope for humanity, showing that even with all the suffering in the world, there are still great things happening.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Thumbs up! 6 Feb 2012
By Sangs
Format:Paperback
A MUST read for millions of people like me who is a thinker, dreamer and pessimist for this book is all about action, reality and optimism! It will give you the much needed kick to get up and started!
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5.0 out of 5 stars amazing book! 28 Aug 2011
By Laura
Format:Paperback
It is an amazing book. After reading this I wanted to help more and more. It is still an inspiration and I believe I will never forget this wonderful story.
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4.0 out of 5 stars Action man discovers the third world 26 July 2011
Format:Paperback
I only noticed the ambiguity in the title half way through reading this book ;-)

You have to admire John Wood's energy and his single mindedness - or do I mean obsession? By the end of the book I was exhausted .... I dread to think what he's like in real life. He does seem to have found the cure for what St.Bob Geldof memorably called "compassion fatigue'.

I guess the world needs 'doers' (like JW), but to change the status quo it also needs 'thinkers'. One side of JW's life is spent in desperately poor communities. The other side is in a social whirl with events full of people who can write out a cheque for $10,000+ without batting an eyelid. As JW moves seamlessly between the two worlds, does he never stop to ask: why?

Read the book - it will either inspire you or infuriate you.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Never have I been so inspired... 24 Mar 2011
By Lucy VG
Format:Paperback
This is a spectacular book, well written and inspiring beyond belief. Buy it, read it, pass it on and give this book to others.. an incredible feat with incredible results and John Wood is an inspiration to us all. This is the best book I have read for a long time and I have since bought 5 copies to give as presents and every recipient has mirrored my own thoughts. If there is one book you read this year, make it this one.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational 23 April 2010
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is the fourth copy of this inspirational book that I've brought. Someone brought it for me when I retired & I'm now buying it for others. The story it tells is so inspirational. My son is a long time great & active supporter of the 'Room to Read' charity, and though I've supported it through him, I've never wondered how it came into being. This true story shows how the seed of an idea, when acted upon with integrity and passion, can grow into something life changing for many, many people, as well as the person who had the idea. I can't recommend this enough - and once you've read it, go to the 'Room to Read' website and do what you can!!
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4.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational, Interesting, Intelligent 18 Mar 2010
By Ivan
Format:Paperback
Great book, well written and does inspire you to consider how you could make a difference. John Wood is definitely an articulate and intelligent man. It's a good read if you just want to hear about how someone changes their life but also a good read from a not-for-profit business angle (that's not an oxymoron) and how to apply commercial accumen to the NFP world. And if, like me, you work in the IT industry then it is even interesting from that angle.

When I started the book, I hadn't heard of Room to Read but by the end I was looking for their web site to find out more.
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