From leading your organizations through the challenges of burnout to the future of work, Wharton School Press’s 2021 bestsellers tackled a variety of topics to help the leaders of today and tomorrow succeed.
Learn more about our top-selling books of 2021 below, and consider adding them to your 2022 reading list.
Beating Burnout at Work: Why Teams Hold the Secret to Well-Being and Resilience | Paula Davis, Founder and CEO of the Stress & Resilience Institute
Burnout is not an uncommon problem. For those currently suffering from burnout – or for those seeking to avoid it – Davis’ book offers hope. A compelling read, Beating Burnout at Work analyzes a wide variety of studies and offers poignant observations. Davis draws on personal experiences and examples of successful practices in a variety of organizations, including the U.S. military and Mayo Clinic. It even examines qualities we should borrow from kindergarteners.
Customer Centricity: Focus on the Right Customers for Strategic Advantage | Peter Fader, Frances and Pei-Yuan Chia Professor of Marketing at The Wharton School
Peter Fader has long coached businesses toward more successful relationships with their consumers. Customer Centricity takes a look at today’s data-driven landscape. It also challenges that very familiar proverb: The customer is always right. Fader’s book pulls examples from companies like Nordstrom and Starbucks to advise a wide variety of companies in their efforts to maximize business and provide better services for consumers.
The Customer Centricity Playbook: Implement a Winning Strategy Driven by Customer Lifetime Value | Peter Fader and Sarah Toms, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Wharton Interactive
The Customer Centricity Playbook won the Digital Book Awards’ Best Business Book and Axiom’s Best Business Book Award in 2019. Coauthors Peter Fader and Sarah Toms provide businesses with tangible tactics for implementing customer centricity. Different customers require different approaches. The Customer Centricity Playbook outlines a plan for customer acquisition, retention, and development.
The Leader’s Brain: Enhance Your Leadership, Build Stronger Teams, Make Better Decisions, and Inspire Greater Innovation with Neuroscience | Professor Michael L. Platt, Director, Wharton Neuroscience Initiative
Leadership is often considered a natural-born quality. Michael Platt insists otherwise. The Leader’s Brain is a combination of pioneering neuroscience and innovative marketing, management, and finance research. Readers should expect a quick and engaging guide for uncovering their hidden leadership qualities. The Leader’s Brain is supported by Platt’s insight into the inner-workings of the human brain. The Leader’s Brain is a deep dive into real-world examples, both successful and ineffective.
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The Future of the Office: Work from Home, Remote Work, and the Hard Choices We All Face | Peter Cappelli, George W. Taylor Professor and Professor of Management at The Wharton School
The past two years have brought about a dramatic shift in the way we work. The COVID-19 pandemic has pulled both employees and employers out of the office and into a new work world. The Future of the Office proposes the pros and cons of remote and hybrid work. It draws on research and current practices at numerous companies. While Facebook has insisted that permanent remote work can be beneficial, for example, Goldman Sachs is antsy to get people back to the office. Cappelli outlines fundamental tensions and opportunities for experimentation in this exciting read.
Also consider: The Leader’s Checklist, 10th Anniversary Edition: 16 Mission-Critical Principles | Michael Useem, William and Jacalyn Egan Professor of Management at The Wharton School
In 2010, 33 Chileans were trapped for 69 days in the San José Mine. Their rescue was led by Chile’s Minister of Mining, Laurence Golborne, just one of the individuals that Useem profiles in this celebrated book. While readers might not find themselves in such dire circumstances, The Leader’s Checklist lays out – with striking clarity – how to lead through any challenge with a complete set of essential leadership guidelines. This edition, updated and revised for the 10th anniversary of its initial publication, features new real-world examples and new leadership principles to add to your checklist.
