Summer is the perfect time for any book enthusiasts to refresh their bookshelves and invest in some quality reading material. If you haven’t yet prepared your list of must-reads, we’ve put together some fantastic books that are sure to inspire ideas, bring new perspectives on age old issues and challenge the way you think.
Here is our selection of 12 page-turners across all aspects of economics, business, technology and innovation, global politics, and performance:
Sahar Hashemi
Start-Up Forever: How to Build a Start-Up Culture in a Big Company
A huge problem with large organisations is that the weight of the company can eventually slow down its agility and ability to innovate. In today’s world where we’ve never seen change at such a quick pace, this issue could prove fatal if not addressed.
Sahar believes that to tackle the sluggishness within big business, they must adopt the attitude, flexibility and, customer-focus of a start-up. This book sees Hashemi transfer her wealth of entrepreneurial knowledge and insights along with her gift for storytelling to create this easy to digest manifesto to keep the start-up flame burning.
David Rowan
Non-Bullshit Innovation: Radical Ideas from the World’s Smartest Minds
Innovation is a word that is thrown around a lot these days with little regard. David has travelled the world to bring you examples of what cutting-edge innovation truly looks like today.
On his travels he details meeting with an airline that rewards passengers for walking their dog, the bank that performs surgery and the country that’s an app store, just to mention a few. The book proves that innovation isn’t just confined to the sunny streets of Silicon Valley and can be found in the most unusual places.
Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino
Smarter Homes: How Technology Will Change Your Home Life
Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino is recognised as a key influencer in the Internet of Things space and is the founder of the ‘Good Night Lamp’, and CEO and co-founder of the smart product design studio, Tinker London.
This on the ground insight makes her book a must for anyone with an interest in the industry. She shares the cutting-edge technology that is in development right now, the origins of home product development and what we can expect the future of smart homes to look like.
Bruce Daisley
The Joy of Work: 30 Ways to Fix Your Work Culture and Fall in Love with Your Job Again
Bruce Daisley, European Vice-President for Twitter and the creator of the hit podcast- Eat Sleep Work Repeat has vowed to help you fall in love with your job again in this witty and wise best-selling practical guide. With experience working in organisations such as Twitter, YouTube, and Google, he has become fascinated by the workplace culture.
Bruce looks at the 21st century office life and tackles questions such as ‘Are lunch breaks for wimps or do they increase productivity?’ with empirical testing to provide you with true insights. This book will give you some easy fixes to implement to help you fall in love with your job again.
Jonathan Ward
China’s Vision of Victory
Will our generation witness the final act of America as a superpower? Can American ingenuity, confidence and will power outcompete the long-term strategic planning from China’s Communist Party? Johnathan Ward has given a detailed look at the planning, ambitions, and tactics used by China in their bid to overtake the US’s long-standing reign.
The book outlines the discrete rise of China’s global corporations from the seabed to space and Africa to the Arctic giving you a deep understanding of one of the biggest global power plays that we’ve seen in generations.
Parag Khanna
The Future is Asian: Global Order in the Twenty-first Century
With five billion people, one-third of the global economy, two-thirds of global economic growth, 30 of the Fortune 100 and six of the ten largest banks in the world, Asia is the future. This mega-region is on it’s way to re-occupy it’s number one position and this book will explain how this came to happen.
The impact that this region will have on the future of the world is difficult to comprehend however we can not afford to get it wrong. Global strategic advisor, Parag Khanna depicts Asia from the inside-out, detailing how this mega-region is coming together and reshaping the planet in the process.
Paul Mason
Clear Bright Future: A Radical Defence of the Human Being
Journalist, economist, and best-selling author, Paul Mason sees the current world chaos; new authoritarian regimes, the break-up of the European Union and rise of advanced technology as an attack on the idea of humanity itself and is calling for a radical defence of the human being
Paul believes that we still have the power to imagine and design a better system and shares his ideas and previous historical experiences to outline how we can save ourselves.
Farah Pandit
How We Win: How Cutting-Edge Entrepreneurs, Political Visionaries, Enlightened Business Leaders, and Social Media Mavens Can Defeat the Extremist Threat.
Farah Pandith is a world-leading expert in countering violent extremism and was recognised by Hilary Clinton who made Farah the first-ever Special Representative to Muslim Communities. Pandith stresses that the threat of extremism is an ever growing and ever evolving one and the current policies to tackle it are terribly out of date.
Farah’s revolutionary new analysis and advised strategies call to action entrepreneurs, political figures, business leaders and social media experts alike to fight the war together. This book is filled with inspiring stories and real solutions to ignite action.
Jonathan Tepper
The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition
America has undergone a transformation from an open, competitive marketplace to an economy where powerful monopolists and oligopolists are dominating nearly all areas of our everyday life. Most industries can be concentrated down to a few billion-dollar companies who own most of the market, for example, Google, Walmart, Toyota, and BP.
Tepper and Hearn look at the US’s biggest issues as a result and provide answers to why there is an increasing level of income inequality, why economic growth is stagnant despite trillions of dollars of federal debt and money printing and finally how to create a level playing field for all.
Ivan Rogers
9 Lessons in Brexit
The UK’s former ambassador to the EU, Ivan Rogers is second to none when it comes to knowledge and experience of the inner workings of the EU and UK relationship. Rogers outlines the current state of Brexit with an informed and totally impartial view.
In this short book, Rogers manages to iron out the political debate and draws up nine important lessons that both parties need to learn to ensure that these failings don’t happen again.
Pippa Malmgren
The Leadership Lab: Understanding Leadership in the 21st Century
Winning Business Book of the Year, this read is a must for aspiring leaders and C-level executives seeking to develop a real intuition when it comes to dealing with the global currents disrupting business and how to build an empathetic, credible, stable and strong leadership path.
Pippa brings her expertise from her time serving as Special Assistant on Economic Policy to President Bush and her experience co-founding ‘H Robotics’, to help all leaders blaze a trail in this very politically and economically volatile environment.
Azran Osman-Rani
30 Days and 30 Years: The Sprint and Marathon of Achieving Breakthrough Performance
With the world moving at an unprecedented pace, ideas, plans, and projects can be tossed out the window in the blink of an eye. Renowned Asian innovator, Azran focuses on equipping you with the knowledge to help you not only win the sprints but to stay on course to win the marathon and achieve your long-term vision.
With experience as founding CEO of AirAsia X and founder of the digital health tech company, Naluri Hidup, Osman-Rani is well qualified in the entrepreneurial space and this book makes for an engrossing and thought-provoking read.
Interested in one of these keynote speakers for your next event?
