Leadership Book Club Framework

BOOK CLUB PHILOSOPHY

Book Club Fundamentals

LEADERSHIP BOOK CLUB PHILOSOPHY

WHY A BOOK CLUB:
☐ Shared learning experience
☐ Common frameworks and language
☐ Dedicated time for development
☐ Cross-functional connection
☐ Models learning culture
☐ Low cost, high impact

BOOK CLUB PRINCIPLES:

1. RELEVANCE OVER NOVELTY
   ☐ Choose books that address current challenges
   ☐ Classics are often better than new
   ☐ Applicable > interesting
   ☐ Quality over quantity

2. DISCUSSION OVER READING
   ☐ Value is in the conversation
   ☐ Share perspectives
   ☐ Challenge and debate
   ☐ Connect to our context

3. APPLICATION OVER THEORY
   ☐ What will we do differently?
   ☐ Specific commitments
   ☐ Follow-up on actions
   ☐ Measure impact

4. CONSISTENCY OVER INTENSITY
   ☐ Monthly rhythm
   ☐ Protected time
   ☐ Everyone participates
   ☐ Long-term habit

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BOOK CLUB FRAMEWORK

Comprehensive Book Club Setup

LEADERSHIP BOOK CLUB

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STRUCTURE
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CADENCE:
Frequency: Monthly
Duration: 1 book/month
Session: 60-90 minutes
Timing: [Day/time] recurring

PARTICIPANTS:
☐ Executive team
☐ Extended leadership (optional)
☐ Open to all (optional)
Size: 5-12 people (ideal for discussion)

ROLES:
☐ Facilitator (rotating monthly)
☐ Discussion leader (can be same)
☐ Note-taker (rotating)
☐ Follow-up owner (tracks actions)

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BOOK SELECTION
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SELECTION CRITERIA:
☐ Relevant to current challenges
☐ Actionable frameworks
☐ High-quality thinking
☐ Reasonable length (<300 pages)
☐ Available in multiple formats
☐ Team interest/vote

SELECTION PROCESS:
1. Each person nominates 1-2 books
2. Brief pitch for each
3. Vote or discuss
4. Plan 3-6 months ahead

THEMES TO ROTATE:
☐ Strategy
☐ Leadership
☐ Culture
☐ Operations
☐ Personal development
☐ Industry/market
☐ Innovation
☐ People/management

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LOGISTICS
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BUDGET:
Per book: $___
Annual budget: $___
Includes: Physical, Kindle, Audible options

DISTRIBUTION:
☐ Purchase in advance
☐ Multiple format options
☐ Send with enough lead time
☐ Track who has what

PREPARATION:
☐ Facilitate guidelines sent
☐ Discussion questions prepared
☐ Pre-read expectations clear
☐ Calendar holds protected

Discussion Format

BOOK CLUB SESSION GUIDE

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SESSION STRUCTURE (90 min)
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1. CHECK-IN (10 min)
   Go around:
   ☐ One sentence on the book overall
   ☐ Did you finish? (No shame if not)
   ☐ One thing that stuck with you

2. KEY TAKEAWAYS (20 min)
   Each person shares:
   ☐ Top insight or quote
   ☐ Why it resonated
   ☐ Brief discussion

   Facilitator captures on board.

3. DEEP DISCUSSION (30 min)
   Prepared questions:
   ☐ What was the author's main argument?
   ☐ What do we agree with? Disagree?
   ☐ What challenged our thinking?
   ☐ How does this apply to us?

   Open discussion:
   ☐ Surface tensions and debates
   ☐ Connect to our company
   ☐ Challenge each other's views

4. APPLICATION (20 min)
   For us specifically:
   ☐ What will we do differently?
   ☐ Specific actions/experiments?
   ☐ Who owns what?
   ☐ How will we know it worked?

   Capture commitments.

5. WRAP-UP (10 min)
   ☐ Confirm next book
   ☐ Assign next facilitator
   ☐ Preview next month
   ☐ Quick round: one word reaction

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FACILITATOR GUIDE
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BEFORE SESSION:
☐ Read the book (fully!)
☐ Prepare 5-7 discussion questions
☐ Identify 2-3 key themes
☐ Note controversial points
☐ Send pre-read if any

DURING SESSION:
☐ Keep time
☐ Ensure everyone participates
☐ Ask follow-up questions
☐ Connect ideas across people
☐ Redirect if off-topic
☐ Capture key points

AFTER SESSION:
☐ Send summary notes
☐ Document action items
☐ Follow up on commitments
☐ Prepare for next month

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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS TEMPLATE
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COMPREHENSION:
☐ What was the core thesis?
☐ What framework did the author propose?
☐ What evidence did they use?

APPLICATION:
☐ How does this apply to our company?
☐ What would implementation look like?
☐ What barriers would we face?

CRITIQUE:
☐ What do we disagree with?
☐ What context is the author missing?
☐ What doesn't work for us?

ACTION:
☐ What one thing will we try?
☐ Who will own this experiment?
☐ How will we measure success?

Comprehensive Recommended Reading List

LEADERSHIP BOOK SUGGESTIONS

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STRATEGY
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CLASSICS:
☐ Good Strategy Bad Strategy - Rumelt
☐ Playing to Win - Lafley & Martin
☐ Competitive Strategy - Porter

MODERN:
☐ Blue Ocean Strategy - Kim & Mauborgne
☐ 7 Powers - Helmer
☐ The Innovator's Dilemma - Christensen

STARTUP:
☐ Zero to One - Thiel
☐ Crossing the Chasm - Moore
☐ The Lean Startup - Ries

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LEADERSHIP
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CEO/EXECUTIVE:
☐ The Hard Thing About Hard Things - Horowitz
☐ High Output Management - Grove
☐ The CEO Next Door - Botelho

PEOPLE LEADERSHIP:
☐ Radical Candor - Scott
☐ Crucial Conversations - Patterson
☐ Leaders Eat Last - Sinek

TEAM BUILDING:
☐ The Five Dysfunctions of a Team - Lencioni
☐ Team of Teams - McChrystal
☐ Multipliers - Wiseman

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CULTURE
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BUILDING CULTURE:
☐ The Culture Code - Coyle
☐ No Rules Rules - Hastings
☐ What You Do Is Who You Are - Horowitz

ORGANIZATIONAL:
☐ Work Rules! - Bock
☐ Powerful - McCord
☐ Reinventing Organizations - Laloux

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OPERATIONS & EXECUTION
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CLASSICS:
☐ The Goal - Goldratt
☐ The Effective Executive - Drucker
☐ Principles - Dalio

SYSTEMS:
☐ Thinking in Systems - Meadows
☐ Measure What Matters - Doerr
☐ The Phoenix Project - Kim

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PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
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MINDSET:
☐ Mindset - Dweck
☐ Thinking, Fast and Slow - Kahneman
☐ The Psychology of Money - Housel

PRODUCTIVITY:
☐ Deep Work - Newport
☐ Essentialism - McKeown
☐ Atomic Habits - Clear

COMMUNICATION:
☐ Never Split the Difference - Voss
☐ Made to Stick - Heath
☐ Influence - Cialdini

Book Club Tracker

Month	Book	Facilitator	Key Action	Status
				☐
				☐
				☐
				☐
				☐
				☐

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Quick Reference: Which Resource for Which Challenge

Challenge	Recommended Resources
"Personal effectiveness as CEO"	#395, #404, #406
"Building company culture"	#396, #397, #410
"Communication struggles"	#398, #399, #400
"Executive team issues"	#401, #402, #403
"Leading through crisis"	#408, #409
"Engagement declining"	#411, #412

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