Recommended reading: How to lead in times of crisis and the ‘troublemakers’ of Silicon Valley
Marketing Week reviews the latest books for marketers.
Tribe of Mentors
Timothy Ferriss
Trying to find a mentor can be difficult but Tim Ferriss has done the hard work by rounding up 100 of the world’s leading thinkers to offer advice on everything from careers to wellbeing. Contributors include Arianna Huffington who says “burnout is not the price you have to pay for success”, while TED curator Chris Anderson believes “pursue your passion” is bad advice. There are also lessons from top athletes such as Maria Sharapova and Tony Hawk.
READ MORE: Helen Tupper – The best way to get a mentor is to never ask for one
Crisis Leadership
Tim Johnson
Business leaders must be prepared to lead in times of crisis, especially these days, when anything that goes wrong happens very publicly on social media. Crisis management expert Tim Johnson shares his experience and guidance for brands, examining the challenges faced at each stage of the ‘crisis life cycle’. The book includes interviews with Sir Mervyn King, ex-governor of the Bank of England, and others.
READ MORE: How brands can bounce back from disaster
Troublemakers
Leslie Berlin
Silicon Valley historian Leslie Berlin looks at how some of the most innovative brands of the past 50 years have influenced the modern world. She looks at the people and stories behind the internet and the microprocessor, as well as brands like Apple and Xerox. She talks about well-known figures like Steve Jobs and Larry Ellison, as well as “underappreciated” Apple chairman Mike Markkula and Sandra Kurtzig, the first woman to take a tech company public.
Outside Insight
Jorn Lyseggen
Jorn Lyseggen, CEO of social insight company Meltwater, looks at what businesses can learn from the information that companies and people leave behind on the internet, which he refers to as “digital breadcrumbs”. Using examples from brands including Apple and Facebook, as well as newer businesses, he explains how publicly available data types such as job postings, social media and patent applications can provide intelligence.
