I submitted my review of this book to Teach Secondary magazine, an educational magazine in the UK. The first review below is what the magazine published. The second one is what I actually wrote! In substantive terms there is little difference between the two, but you may find it interesting to see what the editor altered.
Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings: (When) Do Leaders Make a Difference?
(Diamond, Allen Lane, £25)
The published review
This book’s subtitle echoes a question often asked of leadership – ‘Do leaders make a difference?’A better question, argues Diamond is, “When do leaders make a difference?” In other words, what they do or don’t do really depends on not just the attributes ofthe person in question, but also factors such as general timing, availability of resources and the qualities of other contenders forthe role (if any). Diamond then proceeds to set out the ‘natural experiments’ approach as a counterto the more traditional ‘biographical’ approach.Where the latter examines only the person themselves, the former accounts forvarious external factors – not least, whether anyone else at the time could have taken the reins instead.While not a primer on good leadership per se,this is a very interesting,thoughtful and readable book, and potentially a source of some useful case studies.
My original review
Profits, Prophets, Coaches and Kings: (When) Do Leaders Make a Difference?
(Diamond, Allen Lane, £25)
A common question about leadership is: “Do leaders make a difference?” A better question, argues Diamond, is: “WHEN do leaders make a difference?” In other words, whether they do or do not really depends not only on the attributes of the person in question, but also circumstances such as timing, resources and the qualities of other contenders for the role, if any. The approach adopted is that of “natural experiments” rather than the more usual biographical one, in four spheres: business, politics, sports and religions. Whereas the biographical method examines only the person themselves, the experimental method takes into account such factors as whether there was anyone else at the time who could have taken the reins instead. It is, as far as is feasible, a more scientific approach. The book is very interesting and readable, and while not a primer on leadership, it does provide useful case studies.
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