Reset is an indispensable manual for every manager, leader, and team member. Tackling the thorniest issues of talent and culture, Johnny Taylor provides a clear, practical roadmap for leading your organization into the future.
Laszlo Bock , CEO of Humu and former Chief People Officer, Google
Full of insights and delivered with Johnnys trademark candor and compassion, Reset masterfully presents a practical framework for leaders to rethink, reconsider, and reimagine ways to truly build better workplaces for a better world.
Ginni Rometty , former Chairman, President and CEO of IBM
With Reset , Johnny Taylor has written a truly valuable book. Now more than ever, recruiting and engaging the right talent is critical to organizational success. His insights, in-depth research, and wealth of experience in all aspects of Human Resources shine a guiding light on the need for rethinking and resetting an organizations culture and talent during turbulent times. His tremendous passion and belief in the power of people resonate throughout this informative read.
Gail J. McGovern , CEO of the American Red Cross
Reset redefines and reinvents human capital. Johnny brings his optimism and personal experiences to timely and timeless principles and tools. Every business and HR leader will savor and apply these insights.
Dave Ulrich , Rensis Likert Professor, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan; Partner, The RBL Group
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The figure is adapted from Alonso (in press). Talking Taboo at Work: Making the Most Out of Polarizing Situations , p. 16. Alexandria, VA: Society for Human Resource Management.
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ISBNs: 978-1-5417-0043-7 (hardcover), 978-1-5417-0045-1 (ebook)
E3-20210811-JV-NF-ORI
AA,
Without your dedication and smarts,
thered be no book.
TDT,
To the love of my life,
Daddys Baby Girl
Greetings. It is my great pleasure to introduce you to Reset. It is inspiring, provocative, and full of wisdom based on lessons of life.
Ive known Johnny for many years. He delivers his speeches with such passion and principle. His articles produce something of real use to the reader. You can expect the same from this book.
Simply put , Reset is the most effective guide to reimagining your organization at a time when we need it most.
So what does reset mean?
The true intent of this book in the world of work turned upside down is to place people with care and with deliberate purpose.
Reset means developing truly inclusive organizations that leverage differences for growth and innovation. It means reexamining antiquated paradigms and developing policies that support your unique company culture.
It means tapping into the hidden superpowers of nontraditional talent pools. It means deepening and diversifying your talent pools and building skills with remote education and distance learning.
It means that people matter more than ever.
It means leaders must face the hard truth that their biggest challenge isnt technology, innovation, or even leadingits finding, developing, and engaging the right talent to thrive now and in the future.
We live in a world of constant upheaval a concept generally understood as a period of great change and disorder, sometimes used in reference to the earths crust. But instead of geological shifts creating heretofore nonexistent islands and lakes, Reset details in plain language the tectonic changes underway for work, workers, and workplacesfor all things workand delivers data-driven practical guidance and solutions.
Johnny has a gift for understanding what matters most in the world of work, what levers to pull and how hard, but he is also a gifted storyteller, and perhaps Reset shines brightest in the many captivating stories that bring to life the insights and guidance of the book.
In Reset , Johnny challenges, enlightens, and delights, and more than a few times on the same page!
Predicated on the hard truth that if leaders dont get culture right now, they wont survive the war for talent, much less thrive in the future of work, Reset
- shows executives how to lead through difficult, extraordinary times;
- gives HR professionals a deeper understanding of the urgency to cultivate culture and the agency of HR to implement real change;
- emboldens leaders and senior managers to harness the power of people for those not formally in HR but charged with the success and growth of employees; and
- offers People Managers big picture insights and data-driven organizing principles for improving day-to-day management and achieving long-term goals.
If youre a leader, active, aspiring, or otherwise, this is not just the right book at the right timeit is essential reading for building better workplaces and a better world.
Happy reading!
Ram Charan , global CEO advisor and bestselling author
As the leader of an organization devoted to human resources (HR), I find that Im often frustrated by how difficult it can be to convince other leaders why HR is so important. Thats because, as an employee, its actually something you feel more than you see.
Ive been there. Mine is an outside-in perspective. Too often, books on this subject are written by leaders who have been involved only in this professionthe liferswhereas my career began in journalism and took incredible twists and turns before landing me where I am today.
I was always a curious kid, so the idea of being a reporter seemed at first like a natural fit: so much of that job is about asking questions. I was also a driven student wanting to achieve, and fast. By age twenty I had earned a bachelors degree with honors in journalism from the University of Miami.
I landed an internship at the Miami Herald back when the newspaper industry was growing in size and influence. The Herald was one of the best papers in the country and I enjoyed my work there. But it wasnt my passion. And I quickly discovered the real downside of journalism: it didnt pay.
I decided to go to law school and earned a doctor of jurisprudence degree and a master of arts degree with honors from Drake University. Now I really was on my way. Within a few years, I became vice president of HR at Blockbuster, which at the time was the big innovator in the home movie experience. Following that I took on the role of a senior vice president at Viacoms Paramount Pictures. Then it was on to become senior vice president at IAC/InterActiveCorp., where I worked with legendary CEO, Barry Diller.