Results by title

This is an enlightening and entertaining history of the Arkansas-based firm, one of America’s premier trucking companies.

John H. Burdakin and the Grand Trunk Western Railroad provides a look at the principles and personal values that guided John H. Burdakin through a long, successful career as a top manager at three railroads—the Pennsylvania, the Penn Central, and finally the Grand Trunk Western, where he was president of the regional carrier from 1974 to 1986. The book, written from interviews with Burdakin before his death in 2014, gives real-life examples of how Burdakin’s management principles and personal qualities helped him solve labor- management problems, update railroad technology, protect worker safety, and improve employee morale while managing a four thousand–person workforce. It introduces colorful characters who were involved in American railroads, as well as the serious, life-threatening issues that confronted railroads in the last half of the twentieth century in America. This book will provide insights for managers of any business as well as for those seeking to balance a successful career and a rewarding home life.
 
 

Genuinely talented and successful managers in any field—business, government, military, academia—are scarce. John Howard Burdakin was a happy exception to the norm. This engaging biography examines Burdakin’s life in the railroad industry—at Pennsylvania Railroad, Penn Central, and finally at Grand Trunk Corporation—during a tumultuous time in the transportation business and underscores his core principles and how he employed them in the management of people and property. Some contemporary observers may consider Burdakin’s often conservative style as quite out of date, but a more sober assessment reveals that his approach has utility in any time and in any field. An excellent resource for leadership professionals, this study focuses on Burdakin’s career in management, ever stressing his foundational convictions—how he came by them, how he employed those principles as a manager, and how they were understood by those who worked for him or with him. Through teamwork, trust, hard work, honesty, diligence, and integrity, Burdakin would become respected as one of the railroad industry’s brightest guiding lights.

How have women managed to break through the glass ceiling of the business world, and what management techniques do they employ once they ascend to the upper echelons of power? What difficult situations have these female business leaders faced, and what strategies have they used to resolve those challenges? 

 

Junctures in Women’s Leadership: Business answers these questions by highlighting the professional accomplishments of twelve remarkable women and examining how they responded to critical leadership challenges. Some of the figures profiled in the book are household names, including lifestyle maven Martha Stewart, influential chef Alice Waters, and trailblazing African-American entrepreneur Madame C.J. Walker. Others have spent less time in the public eye, such as Johnson & Johnson executive JoAnn Heffernan Heisen, Verizon Senior Vice President Diane McCarthy, Wells Fargo technology leader Avid Modjtabai, Xerox CEO Ursula Burns, Spanx founder Sara Blakely, inventor Jane ni Dhulchaointigh, engineering firm President Roseline Marston, Calvert Investments President and CEO Barbara Krumsiek, and Merrill Lynch executive Subha Barry. These women, from diverse backgrounds, have played important roles in their respective corporations and many have worked to improve the climate for women in male-dominated industries. 

 

This is a book about women who are leading change in business. Their stories illuminate the ways women are using their power and positions—whether from the middle ranks or the top, whether from within companies or by creating their own companies.  Each case study in Junctures in Women’s Leadership: Business includes a compelling and instructive story of how a woman business leader handled a critical juncture or crisis in her career.  Not only does the book offer an inspiring composite portrait of women succeeding in the business world, it also provides leadership lessons that will benefit readers regardless of gender.