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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tips for the Top, 17 Nov 2003
If you're serious about your career, especially in business, this is a 'must' read as 2003 draws to a close and your objectives for 2004 come into focus. In 96 pages,it's 'cover to cover' in well under the hour (Boxing Day?) and a very amusing and useful reminder of what to do (and not do) to ease into the boardroom. And once you're there to stay there and prosper. It's all tongue in the cheek, of course, but the book is no less valuable for that. As a former Chief Executive of Ashridge Business School and a non-executive director of numerous organisations, Philip Sadler has seen all the manoeuvres he mentions at first hand. 'Dress well'.Don't work in the provinces'. 'Network and chat-up the right people'. In a phrase, be strategically selfish. Once you're the CEO, use consultants judiciously - tell them what you want to hear, pay lip service (and more) to shareholder value, don't forget to downsize. Have a discreet but juicy personal life. A well timed divorce and a new partnership can add career momentum just when it's needed. Don't forget, too, that a big acquisition will help to secure your reputation and pay packet. If, on the way up, you've made a few enemies, picked up a mistress or two then that's all part of the journey to arrive at the destination you want. Finally, don't forget to leave before the rot sets in. That will give you the time to become a NED (non-executive director), to develop celebrity status, to spend your 'top hat' pension and, above all, to enjoy yourself. That's the satirical bit. But as Sadler stresses, 'realising one's ambitions takes planning, tactics and hard work. You need to flow chart your strategy'. So buy this book and sharpen your wits. You never know you might get seriously rich while succeeding (not failing) in business.
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