Antidote to the Crisis of Leadership : Opportunity in Complexity

Longlisted for the CMI Management Publication of the Year 2024

Finalist in the Leadership - Think Differently category of the Goody Business Book Awards 2024

Leadership is in crisis. Scandals are commonplace, only 20% of employees claim they trust their leaders, two in three think politicians are only motivated by self-interest, three-quarters of firms say they don’t have the leadership bench that they need today, and major societal problems are not being resolved.

In the context of this scenario, this book answers two important questions:

1. What skills do you need to be successful as a leader today that are different from those required previously?
2. How can you develop these differentiating skills and mindsets?

The antidote to the crisis of leadership lies in four attributes:

• Aspire: Make clear personal choices of what purpose to pursue, what values to resolutely promote and which stakeholder interests to represent.
• Ally: Form mutually respectful, supportive relationships with others within and beyond the organisation.
• Adapt: Navigate through turbulence, flexing the enterprise and flowing resources to the priority issues.
• Accelerate: Continually learn to remain relevant and heighten impact.

Antidote to the Crisis of Leadership is replete with quotes, vignettes and encouragement contributed by over 50 leaders from a broad variety of backgrounds, sectors, and countries. Each chapter includes commentary, draws on the most relevant theory and reference texts and concludes with suggested exercises to increase your impact.

Insightful and thought provoking, Antidote is a treasury of concepts and illustrative examples by a management veteran with a proven track record of business growth, financial impact and people development. A truly actionable reading for leaders who have the desire to make something happen in a world of complexity and instabilities. --Alessandro Bogliolo, former CEO, Tiffany & Co.

Professor Wyatt shares insights and advice as well as a strong nudge that we should all be striving to make tomorrow better for everyone. The book is enriched with comments from leaders globally, representing a wide variety of entities; private and public, government and commercial, charity, public service, education and military. A fascinating and thought-provoking message. --John Vamvakitis, Managing Director, Google for Education

Steve’s work always provokes new insights and deep reflections, and Antidote is no different. I am always amazed by his ability to explain a complex issue like the evolving role of leadership in present times, in a simple and pragmatic way. In these times when that pause every leader needs is elusive, this book is a must read to connect with who you are and how you can expand and sustain your impact. --Atul Khosla, Founder, Leadership et` Humanite` LLC, Chicago, USA

Those who have the courage and ability to step forward to lead during these ‘decisive years for humanity and the planet’ will find a great deal of inspiration and wisdom in this book. Steve Wyatt has expertly curated and reflected on his own experiences and those of others to craft a guide for the leaders we need now. I highly recommend reading it. --Sarah Gillard, CEO of A Blueprint for Better Business