Adventures of an IT Leader, by Robert D. Austin, Richard L. Nolan, and Shannon O'Donnell, Harvard Business Press (Rev. Edition, 2016).
Becoming an effective IT manager presents a host of challenges-from anticipating emerging technology to managing relationships with vendors, employees, and other managers. Ultimately, a good IT manager must be a strong business leader, not just a technical specialist. By inviting you to "walk in the shoes" of an IT leader, this book will help you better understand the role of IT in your organization and navigate your own career with greater confidence. Accompany Jim Barton as he struggles through a challenging first year as the IT director of IVK Corporation, handling (and fumbling) situations that, although fictional, are based on true events. You can read this engaging narrative from beginning to end, like a regular book, or treat it as a series of cases. You can also skip around and use the book to satisfy your most pressing needs. For example, need to learn about crisis management and security? Read chapters 10-12. Or formulate your own responses to a CIO's management obstacles by reading the authors' recurring "Reflection" questions. You'll turn to this book again and again-thumbing through to reference critical chapters when you face troubling IT-related issues in your own career.