Thursday, May 29, 2014

This just in from Jim Korkis:

[My newest book was just released today at Amazon. Who's The Leader of the Club?  Walt Disney's Leadership Lessons.  The print edition is available now and the Kindle edition will be paired with the print edition in a few days.  That's just Amazon's way.
 
My new book is different than any other book I have written.  It is a workbook on Walt Disney's approach to leadership.   There is a Walt quote (sometimes several) and a Walt story on every single page so it should satisfy the casual Disney fan.   However, you can tell this was written for a different demographic...the coach of a Little League team, the head of a P.T.A., the owner of a small business, the person in charge at a hospital, etc...with useful information.  I have purposely avoided technical jargon whenever possible so it is accessible to all.
  
Here's the Table of Contents
 
SECTION ONE:  DISNEY AND LEADERSHIP
Who Was Walt Disney?
What Type of Leader was Walt?
Leaders and Managers:  Walt and Roy
Roy O. Disney and Manager Skills
Walt Disney and Leadership Skills
 
SECTION TWO:  LEADERSHIP LESSONS
Lesson One:  Know The Story
Lesson Two:  Share The Story
Lesson Three:  Take a (Calculated) Risk
Lesson Four:  Make ‘Em Laugh
Lesson Five:  Eager To Learn
Lesson Six:  Understand People
Lesson Seven:  Live The Story (Integrity)
 
SECTION THREE: ADDITIONAL GUIDANCE
Walt’s Bad Leadership Traits
Walt’s Advice to Leaders
Create Leaders
Letting People Go
Walt and Money
Do You Know Your Story?
Remembering Walt’s Leadership  (Quotes from those who worked for Walt)
Final Words from Walt  (Quotes from Walt not previously used in the book)
Recommended Reading
Quotation Sources (which runs ten pages of teeny type so I had no room for a planned index)
 
Each of the lesson chapters ends with a one page checklist called “What Would Walt Do?” summarizing the key points in the lesson and a space to write notes.
 
This was one of the hardest books I have ever written but it is also one that I am proudest to say I have written.
 
Here are some comments from business oriented folks who also happen to be Disney fans. 
Mark David Jones, President of Small World Alliance, Inc. and co-author of Lead With Your Customer: Transform Culture and Brand into World-Class Excellence.   www.SmallWorldAlliance.com
"As a former Disney leader whose career there spanned 26 years, I am very fortunate to have worked with Jim Korkis.  His unrivaled knowledge of Disney history was a consistent highlight of our projects with Fortune 500 companies such as PricewaterhouseCoopers.  Jim’s transformational insights of Disney history and leadership are brilliantly captured within the pages of this intriguing book.  I’m buying copies for everyone on my team.  And if you want to optimize your leadership potential, I highly recommend you doing the same."
Henry Hardt, Professor of Business Law and Professor of Finance,
Harold Walter Siebens School of Business, Buena Vista University, Storm Lake, Iowa
“Jim weaves an entertaining story of Walt’s leadership principles into seven lessons. Although each lesson merits the attention of any serious business or organizational leader, I would highlight Lesson Seven, ‘Live the Story’.  In this lesson, Jim reaches deep into his seemingly never-ending bag of Disney information to set forth Walt’s approach to ethics and integrity.
 
“Until you have the great pleasure to hear Jim speak in person (Jim’s passion about Disney and his oratorical skills spellbind all audiences including our students at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa as well as business and organizational leaders.), I am confident the readers of Jim’s book will likewise be entertained by the story narrative that only Jim can tell. At the same time, they will be able to immediately apply Walt’s ‘best practices’ to their businesses or organizations to help achieve their goals—with integrity.”
 
Lou J. Repassy,  Former Senior Sales Manager, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts
"Our department called on the services of Jim Korkis for specialized client seminars.  With his vast knowledge of Disney heritage and tradition, Jim was always able to effectively include those elements to complement the business needs of the programs.  In the pages of this book are the same passion, insight and good humor that made Jim a very valuable internal business partner."
 
Kaye Bundey, Disney Institute Manager of Disney Adult Discoveries programs and Convention Workshops
“Jim's knowledge and insight of Walt and all things Disney enhanced and enriched all our offerings at the Disney Institute including introducing elements of Disney history into the business programs.  This book captures Jim's skill on how to make something both entertaining and informative and should be on your bookshelf.”
 
David Zanolla, Senior Associate Faculty, Western Illinois University
“Jim Korkis' expertise in the field of Disney studies is beyond compare and I am thrilled that he continues to share his knowledge in books like Who’s the Leader of the Club?  My students thoroughly enjoyed their time with him and it greatly enhanced their understanding of both Walt himself and the Disney Company.”
 
William Dixon, Adjunct Professor, Rosen College of Hospitality Management 
"Over the years that Jim Korkis lectured to my classes at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management, he was always an engaging and informative speaker.  He understood not only Disney history but the Disney business.  My students always rated his presentations as one of the highpoints of the class." I hope that this book will prove to be an informative workbook of Walt’s leadership philosophy as well as an entertaining glimpse into a different perspective of his life.  
I hope that Walt’s words and actions will inspire a new generation just as he inspired so many others in the past.   I hope you will consider adding this new, but very different, Disney book to your collection and letting others know that it exists.]

2 comments:

ahmed said...

This does look great! and a wonderful cause

Bob McLain said...

Excerpts and other content from the book are available here:

http://themeparkpress.com/books/leader-club.htm