From Smart to Wise: Acting and Leading with Wisdom - Hardcover

by Prasad Kaipa (Author), Navi Radjou (Author)

A fresh and timely approach to nurturing wise, resilient, and flexible leadership in a world of growing complexity

Leaders tend to obstinately stick to the leadership style that brought them most success in the past, usually one of two extreme styles: functional leadership that focuses on operational excellence or smart leadership that focuses on growth. When a leader's focus is too functional, the organization becomes introverted and can focus too much on bottom-line profitability while missing out on top-line growth opportunities. But when leaders focus too much on smart leadership, the organization may experience quick growth but lose its effectiveness quickly.

From Smart to Wise offers a new approach that balances the two styles to achieve a form of wise leadership that is both functional and smart. Drawing on inspiring real-life stories of historical and contemporary wise leaders such as Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, and even Mahatma Gandhi, the authors identify six characteristics of wise leaders and offer a practical framework to help readers develop their own style of wise leadership.

• A timely and innovative approach to leadership
• Written by noted speakers who conduct dozens of keynote speeches and workshops, training thousands of people annually

Front Jacket

Smart people impress us with their intellectual power and uncanny ability to achieve their goals. But smartness alone is not always sufficient to keep leaders out of trouble and sustain their success over time. In From Smart to Wise, CEO advisor and coach Prasad Kaipa and strategy consultant Navi Radjou propose a different and counterintuitive approach to leadership that goes beyond optimizing "smartness."

Wise leadership, the authors argue, means cultivating a broader perspective and responding to external events with discernment, flexibility, and authenticity. It's the foundation for lasting success.

Kaipa and Radjou identify six capabilities that all leaders, both smart and wise, share--perspective, action orientation, role clarity, decision logic, fortitude, and motivation. Wise leaders optimize those capabilities, becoming better able to:

• switch from a narrow focus on operation or strategy to a more holistic perspective;
• act both authentically and appropriately in any context;
• know when to lead from the front and when to step back and let others lead;
• make intuitive decisions that are both ethically sound and utterly pragmatic;
• show true courage under fire, knowing when to hold and when to fold;
• act consistently out of enlightened self-interest, creating value for both shareholders and society.

From Smart to Wise offers a practical framework--and personalized tools--for you to operate consciously as a wise leader every day.

Based on Kaipa and Radjou's extensive research and consulting experience over twenty years, From Smart to Wise draws on real-life stories of leaders such as Alan Mulally (CEO, Ford), Sam Palmisano (former CEO, IBM), Bill Gates, Indra Nooyi (CEO, PepsiCo), Ratan Tata (chairman, Tata Group), John Mackey (CEO, Whole Foods), and Tim Cook (CEO, Apple). Filled with thought-provoking advice and insight, From Smart to Wise will help leaders at all levels nurture a resilient and balanced leadership style that is essential to succeed in our complex world.

Author Biography

PRASAD KAIPA is a Silicon Valley-based CEO advisor and coach. He was the founding executive director of the Center for Leadership, Innovation and Change at the Indian School of Business and a Richardson Fellow at the Center for Creative Leadership between 2010 and 2011.

NAVI RADJOU is a Silicon Valley-based strategy consultant, a World Economic Forum faculty member, and a Fellow at Judge Business School, University of Cambridge. He is also the coauthor of acclaimed Jugaad Innovation (Jossey-Bass, 2012).

For more information, please visit www.fromsmarttowise.com