Reviewed by Samantha Badcock
Gerald R. Griffin’s book on management uses classic Machiavellian strategy to guarantee success in today’s corporate world. Griffin follows The Prince and breaks down Machiavelli’s work in a way that is easier to follow and applicable the corporate workplace. He applies Machiavelli’s strategies to today’s workplace and replaces kings and princes with CEOs and managers, all in an attempt to educate us on how to become a powerful and beneficial leader. He preempts us with warnings of what not to think while reading to help get our minds in habit of thinking like a leader. This author is very effective in grabbing the attention of his audience by recycling a centuries old doctrine for success into a modern day guide for everyday winning management practices.
Griffin’s main points focus on becoming a successful leader and the ways in which one can achieve success through adopting his and Machiavelli’s concepts of leadership. The preface explains Machiavelli’s excellent mastery of organization and how this is one of the most valuable traits a leader can posses. Griffin acknowledges that no matter the setting, conflicts occur: in the public and private sector, for-a-profit and not-for-profit organizations all encounter “turf fights” which can lead to organization destruction, and as a result of this, organizations cause their own downfall and bring others down with it. He also focuses on long-term solutions that strengthen the company or organization for the long-term by creating complex dynamics between the individuals and the groups in order to embed thoughtful leadership strategies in all facets of a corporation.
Griffin refers to organizations as “empires” and spends significant time explaining why empires fail, corporate games played, and how to maintain an empire. He states that the rules of the “corporate” game can change at any time and without warning; therefore, it is important to be able to adapt as a manager in order to keep your subordinates calm and ease them into adaptation of new policies and strategies that can and will occur, most likely when you least expect it. In his explanation of why empires fail, he cites the importance of not seeking your own self-interest; how self-interest contributes to the fall of an empire because abuse of power causes short-term gain but inevitably, the foundations on which these strategies were built are more likely to crumble. I believe that his chapter on maintaining an empire was the most enlightening, because he tells us at the beginning that corporations will fail. They will not and do not last forever, they are not meant to; other larger corporations are always a threat, but also that smaller entities like irate customers, superiors, peers and even the government are all a cause of an organization’s demise. As a result, it is important to keep this in the forefront of your mind while maintaining your corporation: picking your battles is an invaluable asset according to Griffin, that in the end, it comes down to game-playing. Griffin’s book was written in order to help a manager become more successful or to teach someone how to be a successful leader. When applying management theories to this book it is hard to see his plan. He does not have a particular “plan of action” so to speak, but he does have guidelines in which to follow in order to achieve beneficial relationships and building and reinforcing leadership practices. He does not have specific methods for achieving this goal like the Management by Objectives theory, but he is reminiscent of the Total Quality Management theory in that it emphasizes customer satisfaction by requiring that the employees raise their standards of production. Griffin reminds us that as a manager we need to anticipate our subordinates needs, wants, shortcomings, and strength; moreover, a good manager will be able to see these traits and delegate work accordingly. In addition to Total Quality Management theory, this book draws many parallels to The “New Management” theory also focuses on quality but forces managers to focus on how companies are organized. Moreover, “New Management” and Griffin both talk about being flexible and being fluid as integral parts of successful management. Though Griffin has an overall successful approach to leadership and management, I feel that there are some things that he leaves unaccounted for; for instance, action plans, objectives, goals, etc. are all motivators in the workplace for success. Griffin fails to mention how to achieve winning leadership practices, because after all isn’t success measured by successful execution of a laid out plan for improvement? Griffin needs to supplement his leadership/management guide with concrete examples of how to become a successful manager. I would not recommend this book to another public relations student looking for insight into this topic. I felt that this book was written too abstractly for someone who is just beginning their quest for leadership and managerial skills. This book is tailored more so to someone who already holds a managerial position. In addition, I felt that this particular book was hard to implement from a public relations standpoint. Although Griffin does a good job explaining what a good manager is made of, he does not tell us how to get there, and consequently I feel that this is not a good book for a public relations student just starting out in the corporate world.
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