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Team Renaissance: The Art, Science and Politics of Great Teams
This manual of business and management know-how includes stories, specifics, and immediate takeaways crafted to illustrate and explain the dynamics of great teams—and how to create those change-producing forces in teams everywhere. The unconventional collection of applicable narratives, individual and team exercises, and sound management insight invites personal growth for everyone from business executives and parents to coaches and college students. Based on the Team Arch model from ArchPoint Consulting, the book provides deeper information focused on leveraging strengths and solving problems. Its whole team approach in the context of storytelling offers specific steps for individual team members to reach greater productivity and enjoyment at the workplace. The poignant real-life stories woven throughout additionally illustrate that team building and getting the job done right is not just about business plans and strategic workshops, but about the meaning that happens when people move toward each other and build relationships.
208 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 27, 2013
Team Renaissance talks about the essential parts of a team in a clear and concise way with concrete advice on how to prepare for team projects, setting goals for these projects and how to measure milestones throughout the process. This easy to read business book contains ideas and concepts that will stick with me in my career for years to come.
March 27, 2013
Team Renaissance was a very informative, enlightening book. The references and stories used to describe efficient team direction were relevant and creative. I also enjoyed the concept of TeamArch as well as the the contemporary feel of the layout and design. I would recommend it to everyone!
May 4, 2013
I won this book from a first reads giveaway. Wow! This is a great book. I read a lot of articles from The Harvard Business Review and the lessons taught in this book correlate with some of what I have read. The difference is that in Team Renaissance you are shown how and what to do to cause change versus just telling you that what you're doing is wrong. The book has a good flow and is easy to read and relate to. I really enjoyed the interaction with the content inside the book. I would recommend this book for anyone and everyone.
June 4, 2013
Everything you need to know about team dynamics, functions, and team growth. If you are part.of a team, there is something in this book that will help you to become a better team member. This is a book that can be referred to often to hone team focus and growth.
July 12, 2013
I won this book in a goodreads giveaway, and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. It provides some excellent advice on leadership and presents it in ways that are unique and user-friendly. One thing I really enjoyed was the creative layout of this book. It follows logical outlines, uses visual diagrams, highlights many useful quotes, and it full of quick-reference checklists and summaries. These features make it excellent as a quick-reference or a quick refresher. A natural drawback to this style is that the prose sometimes seems a bit choppy and overly to-the-point. For that reason, I feel that I did not absorb and digest the material as effectively as I otherwise may have. I hold leadership positions in the volunteer/non-profit sector, and will definitely keep this book nearby as a reference for quick tips and useful tools.
August 27, 2013
Authors Richard Spoon and Jan Risher collaborate for a book entitled Team Renaissance: The Art, Science & Politics of Great Teams, which is a modern day manual for creating effective teams in the workplace. The book was released in 2013, so the stories and data are fresh and memorable in most cases.
On the surface, this book is designed beautifully. The large, heavyweight paper, along with the hard cover, gives the book a first-class feel. While flipping through the 198-page book, you get a sense of organization and high quality content due to the use of the color, design, diagrams and lists throughout the chapters.
The entire book is packed full of data, stories, outlines, quizzes and step-by-step lists of how to’s. In fact, this book reminded me a lot of a college textbook because of its definition-like style, exercises, and short case studies to introduce new ideas.
Spoon and Risher undoubtedly did their research for this book, as there are quotes from hundreds of leaders throughout and in-depth stories that tie directly to each chapter. The amount of experience-driven content is what makes this book decent; however, it is the conveyance of the content that did not engage me.
One example of disengagement is the beginning of the book. In the first two chapters the authors essentially summarized in detail what the remaining chapters in the book would cover. And, to be honest, I almost gave up on the book because it was such dry reading up to that point. It took until the third chapter for the authors to spice the content up with leadership stories from professional sports and the business world; all of which, I found to be very good.
Just about every chapter that followed the first two started with a story to introduce a new idea. The stories were very applicable to the subject matter and I personally found them engaging and wanting more. However, once the stories concluded, that’s when the lists and textbook-style writing kicked back into full gear. And I ultimately found myself let down each time the opening story would abruptly conclude. This could be a personal preference, but I much prefer business books that use a lot of real examples from the business world—whether real or fake—and intertwine it through all the content. Use of stories and studies allow a reader, like me, to easily relate and absorb the new information; and I really feel like Team Renaissance missed the mark on that front.
Because of the way the book is written, I would highly encourage someone who intends on reading Team Renaissance to go chapter by chapter for each sitting and take notes; also, it might be a good idea to highlight areas to apply at the office. Reading the entire book in two sittings, like I did, is not ideal with a book like this. It just becomes too much information at a certain point.
My overly critical comments on the dryness of the book are, in part, my fault for the way I read this book cover to cover. I would have got much more if I read each chapter and discussed the concepts with another teammate.
One of my favorite chapters—Chapter 9: Consistent Communication—opened up with an excellent story about the Beatles’ lack of communication and why the band broke up; the authors then followed up with sections on effective listening, giving & taking feedback and clarifying roles and responsibilities in teams. Two other chapters I also found very enlightening were Chapter 8: Relevant Rewards and Chapter 5: Efficient Processes. Any business leader will most certainly take away good ideas from these two chapters that they can immediately apply in their workplace.
Team Renaissance is a highly respectable book, as it is loaded with fantastic information; but I find it to be one that ultimately should be the foundation of a college course in business management and leadership. Personally, I do not believe that a C-level business leader would have the attention-span to read all the way through in a few sittings. Perhaps this was intentional by the authors.
On the surface, this book is designed beautifully. The large, heavyweight paper, along with the hard cover, gives the book a first-class feel. While flipping through the 198-page book, you get a sense of organization and high quality content due to the use of the color, design, diagrams and lists throughout the chapters.
The entire book is packed full of data, stories, outlines, quizzes and step-by-step lists of how to’s. In fact, this book reminded me a lot of a college textbook because of its definition-like style, exercises, and short case studies to introduce new ideas.
Spoon and Risher undoubtedly did their research for this book, as there are quotes from hundreds of leaders throughout and in-depth stories that tie directly to each chapter. The amount of experience-driven content is what makes this book decent; however, it is the conveyance of the content that did not engage me.
One example of disengagement is the beginning of the book. In the first two chapters the authors essentially summarized in detail what the remaining chapters in the book would cover. And, to be honest, I almost gave up on the book because it was such dry reading up to that point. It took until the third chapter for the authors to spice the content up with leadership stories from professional sports and the business world; all of which, I found to be very good.
Just about every chapter that followed the first two started with a story to introduce a new idea. The stories were very applicable to the subject matter and I personally found them engaging and wanting more. However, once the stories concluded, that’s when the lists and textbook-style writing kicked back into full gear. And I ultimately found myself let down each time the opening story would abruptly conclude. This could be a personal preference, but I much prefer business books that use a lot of real examples from the business world—whether real or fake—and intertwine it through all the content. Use of stories and studies allow a reader, like me, to easily relate and absorb the new information; and I really feel like Team Renaissance missed the mark on that front.
Because of the way the book is written, I would highly encourage someone who intends on reading Team Renaissance to go chapter by chapter for each sitting and take notes; also, it might be a good idea to highlight areas to apply at the office. Reading the entire book in two sittings, like I did, is not ideal with a book like this. It just becomes too much information at a certain point.
My overly critical comments on the dryness of the book are, in part, my fault for the way I read this book cover to cover. I would have got much more if I read each chapter and discussed the concepts with another teammate.
One of my favorite chapters—Chapter 9: Consistent Communication—opened up with an excellent story about the Beatles’ lack of communication and why the band broke up; the authors then followed up with sections on effective listening, giving & taking feedback and clarifying roles and responsibilities in teams. Two other chapters I also found very enlightening were Chapter 8: Relevant Rewards and Chapter 5: Efficient Processes. Any business leader will most certainly take away good ideas from these two chapters that they can immediately apply in their workplace.
Team Renaissance is a highly respectable book, as it is loaded with fantastic information; but I find it to be one that ultimately should be the foundation of a college course in business management and leadership. Personally, I do not believe that a C-level business leader would have the attention-span to read all the way through in a few sittings. Perhaps this was intentional by the authors.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews