My Top Fourteen Innovation/Tech/Business/Weird Reads of 2020
The year was traumatic. Reading provided welcome escape, especially history and biography. It was great to get into the head of an author who has yet to hear the phrase ‘social distancing’.
For your consideration, these are some of the titles I found memorable in my 2020 reading:
The Future Is Faster Than You Think
by Peter H. Diamandis, Steven Kotler
Thoughtful, entertaining, and frequently correct, Diamandis and Kotler are worth reading on several levels.
So many screens, so much content, what is this doing to our brains?
Leading Digital
By George Westerman, Didier Bonnet, Andrew McAfee
This book does an elegant unpacking of digital transformation. It calls out where opportunities still exist and gives pragmatic advise for implementation.
Legal Upheaval
By Michele Destafano
I work with lawyers every day. This is the first book that addresses the nuanced approach needed to effectively embrace innovation.
Not new, but still pertinent. This is particularly useful for the C level executive trying to understand the evolution of technology’s place in an organization.
Smarter Data Science
By Neal Fishman
Addresses the operational underpinnings necessary to realize value from the evolving power of AI.
Switch
By Dan Heath, Chip Heath
Excellent guide for anyone who needs to influence change on a group of human beings. The elephant metaphor alone is priceless!
Play Bigger
By Al Ramadan, Dave Peterson, Christopher Lochhead, Kevin Maney
I started a business in 2020. Play Bigger reminds you of the need to clarify your goals. “Category Design” is key to outsized success.
But What If We’re Wrong?
By Chuck Klosterman
This was a particularly timely read in 2020. Klosterman encourages us to think about how much we know of as true will prove to be true a hundred years from today. What do we really know and why? Many won’t want to turn over this rock, but it’s worth it.
Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World
By Jack Weatherford
Kind of a weird business book, but I learned a lot here. Governance, leadership, information management. I was ignorant of the achievements of Khan. Incredibly happy I gave this a read.
Your Brain at Work
By David Rock
The science behind the challenges of working in today’s technology whirlpool. This dovetails into the work of Cal Newport and others.
I’m always interested in how people get better at their jobs. This book gives a detailed view into the information, tools and processes top players use to
The Ride of a Lifetime
By Robert Iger
It’s always interesting to hear the justification for successful and sometimes unsuccessful decisions. Iger’s book is particularly entertaining because almost everyone is aware of Disney’s ups and downs. This is a great opportunity to learn from another leader’s experience.
How to Measure Anything: Finding the Value of Intangibles in Business
By Douglass W. Hubbard
I’m obsessed with finding a way to measure return on investment on knowledge management and other esoteric technology spends. This book offers some great tools to take on these challenges.
