Icons and Idiots: Straight Talk on Leadership

by Bob Lutz

Overview

When Bob Lutz retired from General Motors in 2010, after an unparalleled forty-seven-year career in the auto industry, he was one of the most respected leaders in American business. He had survived all kinds of managers over those decades: tough and timid, analytical and irrational, charismatic and antisocial, and some who seemed to shift frequently among all those traits. His experiences made him an expert on leadership, every bit as much as he was an expert on cars and trucks. Now Lutz is revealing the leaders-good, bad, and ugly-who made the strongest impression on him throughout his career. Icons and Idiots is a collection of shocking and often hilarious true stories and the lessons Lutz drew from them. From enduring the sadism of a Marine Corps drill instructor, to working with a washed-up alcoholic, to taking over the reins from a convicted felon, he reflects on the complexities of all-too-human leaders. No textbook or business school course can fully capture their idiosyncrasies, foibles and weaknesses - which can make or break companies in the real world. Lutz shows that we can learn just as much from the most stubborn, stupid, and corrupt leaders as we can from the inspiring geniuses. The result is a powerful and entertaining guide for any aspiring leader.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781101608081
Publisher:	Temple Publications International, Inc.
Publication date:	06/04/2013
Sold by:	Penguin Group
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	334,978
File size:	545 KB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Bob Lutz had a legendary 47-year career as one of the most respected "car guys" in history. He held senior leadership positions at four of the world's leading automakers--GM, Ford, Chrysler, and BMW. He was most recently the vice chairman of General Motors from 2001 to 2010, the years leading up to and through GM's bankruptcy. He is the bestselling author of Guts: 8 Laws of Business from One of the Most Innovative Business Leaders of Our Time and Car Guys vs. Bean Counters: The Battle for the Soul of American Business. 

Editorial Reviews

When General Motors VP Bob Lutz retired in 2010 after forty-seven years in the auto, he had amassed a full lifetime of experiences about the rigors of leadership in tumultuous times. He shared some of his management philosophy education in the bestselling Car Guys vs. Bean Counters. In Idiots and Icons, he writes, sometimes with disarming candor, about managers and executives he has known and what they have taught him about effective leadership. A business primer that is as readable as it is instructive.

Auto industry veteran Lutz (Car Guys and Bean Counters) held senior leadership positions at four of the world’s top automakers, including a stint as vice-chairman of General Motors. Here, he offers a fresh twist on leadership lessons, drawing on the positive and negative examples of real-life leaders he encountered over 47 years in the car business. In concise, snappy, often hilarious chapters, Lutz profiles household names like Lee Iacocca and well-known CEOs like Bob Eaton, who ran Chrysler, but most chapters are devoted to rank and lesser known executives he served under throughout his career, including Eberhard Von Kuenheim, who went on to “transform BMW from a tiny, regional auto company into a global luxury-car powerhouse.” Lutz’s experiences in the auto industry will delight car lovers, but even the uninitiated will likely be amused by his lively prose. His vivid attention to detail brings each leader to life, illustrating his or her individual complexities with stories of foibles, political incorrectness, and praiseworthy moments that will draw sighs of recognition from readers who have worked in hierarchical corporations large or small. Agent: Wes Neff, LeighCo Inc. (June)

Publishers Weekly