Samuel is president of IMPAQ, a California-based, worldwide consulting firm, that teaches organizations how to thrive in the 21st century global marketplace. His other published works include The Power of Personal Accountability: Achieve What Matters to You co-authored with Sophie Chiche and The Accountability Revolution: Achieve Breakthrough Results in Half the Time co-authored with Barbara Novak.
Samuel’s thesis is that an accountable organization is one in which “people at all levels of [it] can be counted on to keep their commitments and agreements.” That is to say, an accountable organization is a human community in each person involved demonstrates a high level of personal accountability. Samuel wrote this book for leaders and change agents at any level within any organization “who are ready to move the next level of excellence and success.” First, in Part 1, he focuses on the need to break away from what he characterizes as “old leadership paradigms.” Specifically, he explains why individual ability can be unleashed only through personal accountability, how to create an accountable culture by vigorously confronting the real issues, how to avoid or escape from what he calls “the three traps of ineffective leadership,” what the formula is to achieve breakthroughs, and how specific leadership roles produce breakthrough results.
Then in Part 2, he suggests six specific strategies for leading with authority, devoting a separate chapter to each strategy. They range from completing a transition from empty platitudes to clear direction (Chapter 6) to communicating effectively with “nonbelievers” to obtain their involvement and, more importantly, their commitment (Chapter 11). In the final chapter, Manuel offers a six-step process to achieve breakthrough results, concluding with this observation: “Whatever problems are solved by being more accountable, you will create new problems in their place. They will be ‘higher level’ problems, and when those are resolved as you become more accountable, you will have even ‘high level’ problems to resolve. The good news is that as you develop higher levels of accountability, you will be able to solve all of those problems and more-resulting in greater strength and much greater success.”
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