Recommended reading: Transforming business culture and disruptive technologies

Futureproof

Minter Dial and Caleb Storkey

Subtitled ‘How to get your business ready for the next disruption’, this book explores the three core mindsets and 12 disruptive technologies that the authors claim every business must be able to master today. The former are meaningfulness, responsibility and collaboration while among the latter are smartphones, the internet of things and cloud computing – and the technologies must be used together, not in isolation, to obtain maximum benefit, they say. The book doesn’t focus on one industry or business function, but aims to provide an action plan for how to harness these elements to generate future business growth.

Stepping Up

Sarah Wood and Niamh O’Keeffe

This title from FT Publishing urges leaders to step forward and transform business culture for the better, calling for people at all levels of seniority and from all backgrounds to take the initiative and make an impact on their business. Rather than defining leadership along the lines of management, the authors say traditional organisational models serve only to restrict possibilities and anyone has the capacity to lead, whatever their role. Entrepreneur Sarah Wood is the founder of Newscorp-owned Tech City startup Unruly, while Niamh O’Keeffe advises executives how to make the next step up in their careers. The book will hit stores 19 October.

Streampunks

Robert Kyncl and Maany Peyvan

Written by YouTube’s chief business officer and a Google speech writer, you could argue the authors come at their topic – ‘How YouTube and the new creators are transforming our lives’ – from a somewhat slanted perspective. But readers will undoubtedly appreciate getting a rare inside look at the video platform, providing behind-the-scenes details from YouTube stars and content dealmakers alike – such as the man who discovered Justin Bieber, and Vice CEO Shane Smith. The book looks at the appeal of niche content and models for funding the creation of content in today’s digital age. Kyncl and Peyvan also address some of the more unsavoury aspects of online content, including racism and bias.

READ MORE: Vice’s Shane Smith on content marketing pitfalls, tech trends and disruption

Colour Psychology Today

June McLeod

‘Colour Psychology Today’, by consultant and trends forecaster June McLeod, examines the impact of colour psychology on businesses and consumers. It is a study of the effect that colours have on human behaviour, particularly the natural, instinctive feelings that each colour evokes. Colour preferences reveal how each colour encourages an emotional, mental and physical response in people, she argues. McLeod, who has worked for companies such as L’Oréal and Royal Parks, seeks to discover how colour influences every area of our lives with the aim of creating a tool that can be deployed to influence perceptions.