Evaluating the entire book Organizational behavior: Real research for real managers by Jone L. Pearce, it should be stated that the book is not written in an appropriate level for upper division undergraduate students as the information provided there does not offer the theoretical information layout.
The book is written in an understandable voice which answers the question “So what?” rather then explains hardly known theories and actions. The book under discussion clearly communicates leadership related concepts, especially in the chapters “Managing Performance”, “Managing Incentives”, and “Navigating the Social Scene”.
The author of the book tries to provide the readers with the How-to information directed at practical performance. The main idea of the whole book is to provide the readers with practical and research-tested ideas devoted to people management. The author dwells upon real situations and discussed related issues to make sure that he readers are able to understand how the theory works in practice.
The concepts of leadership discussed in the book are useful and relevant as they dwell upon real problems which deserve attention du to high rate if implementation in the business world. As for me, the book lacks the information about actions leaders should provide in order to feel useful. The working performance of the leaders is really important.
Being able to work in team while completing some specific tasks, many people are not really sure how they are to behave in every day working process and what specific functions they are to perform beyond the managing responsibilities.
Leadership should an inevitable part of those who dared to share the responsibility for the employees (Pearce “Organization and management” 60). I suppose all the problems discussed in the book are appropriate and none of them should be deleted.
The next writing by Jone L. Pearce which should be evaluated is the draft of the 10th chapter for the Organizational behavior: Real research for real managers book which is planned to be published in 2011. The chapter is written in an appropriate level for upper division undergraduate students, professional terms are used along with high level expressions and professional language.
The chapter clearly communicates the leadership related concepts. The main ideas discussed in this chapter deal with the main idea of leadership, the main principles of leadership success, common mistakes made by leaders, the problem of inborn qualities of leadership and those gained by means of hard work, and ideas concerning different situations where various qualities should be applied to.
The information is based on practical discussion and implementation of the theoretical concepts which should be familiar for students. Each of the problems discussed in the chapter are described in detail. There is no need to explain each of them even though, there is much information which may enlarge the chapter.
Leadership is the problem which may be discussed perpetually. I would offer more information about emotional side of the issue and expand the “Harnessing Emotions: Charismatic Leadership” section in the chapter. At the same time, I would delete the section which dwells upon leadership in different cultures. The problem is discussed in the book and there is no need to make a short overview of the problem.
If the author wanted to make a more detailed description of an issue, she should write a new book as I suppose that he problem of leadership in different cultures deserves much more attention than just a section in a chapter. The author fails to make the discussion specialized and considers general concepts which are of no use for understanding the main idea of the chapter.
Works Cited
Pearce, Jone L. “Leading others.” Organizational behavior: Real research for real managers. Ed. Jone L. Pearce. Irvine, CA: Melvin & Leigh Publishers, 2011. Print.
Pearce, Jone L. Organizational behavior: Real research for real managers. Irvine, CA: Melvin & Leigh Publishers, 2009. Print.
Pearce, Jone L. Organization and management in the embrace of government. Oxford: Routledge, 2001. Print.