————————————————————–

“Passion is the lifeblood of organizations. Passion is what differentiates great companies from mediocre ones. In an enlightening way, Jim Lucas demonstrates the competitive advantages of leaders that recognize the role of emotions in organizations.”
- Manfred Kets de Vries, Raoul de Vitry d’Avaucourt Professor of Human Resource Management
and Clinical Professor Management & Leadership, INSEAD, France,
and author of Leaders, Fools, and Imposters

————————————————————–

“In the race for sustainable success, it’s simple: passion wins! Lucas shares how to smash through the walls of corporate complacency to create an energetic and spirit-filled workplace. [This book] transcends the skin-deep, quick fix pabulum so prominent in management today to uncover how to build and sustain bone-deep, long-term organizational passion! Powerful, pragmatic, and (yes) passionate. Embrace this book, drive its principles deep into your organization, or risk becoming dull, boring, and obsolete.”
Jim Harris, Ph.D. Author of Getting Employees to Fall in Love with Your Company
Coauthor of Finding & Keeping Great Employees

————————————————————–

“Jim Lucas has identified a missing link to organizational success: passion. He provides us with a solid rationale for why passion is important, and a practical blueprint for instilling it in our organizations.”
- Oren Harari, Author of Leapfrogging the Competition and Jumping the Curve

————————————————————–

“In the face of nonstop newness and constant changes, Lucas…instructs readers on how to find and inspire passionate employees who focus on diversity, originality, and feistiness. These workers must also share deeply held core values, mutual trust, and a common vision…This unique and thought-provoking book walks a fine line, daring to be spiritual while not treading on employees’ religious beliefs. Lucas really believes that ‘the game is people and the formula for winning it is involvement.’ Recommended.”
Susan C. Awe, Library Journal

————————————————————–

“Jim Lucas abandons the boring, traditional mumbo-jumbo of ‘empowerment’ and ‘ownership’ and leads us to the unexpected, irrational, secret shortcut to fire-in-the-belly, evangelistic, workplace joy – being a Southerner I wanted to shout ‘Amen, Brother Jim!’”
- Annette Simmons, Author of Territorial Games and A Safe Place for Dangerous Truths

————————————————————–

“Jim Lucas delivers a powerful message. We must forget about trying to light fires under people. It is the fire in them that is critical to the success, even the survival of today’s organization. Lucas provides us with the game plan to discover, ignite, and nurture that fiery core called passion.”
- John G. Hughes, Jr., President, Creative Leadership Strategies

————————————————————–

“Passion is a quality all too often evoked rather than defined. Not so here! With insight, force, and clarity, Jim Lucas reveals great lessons for winning in today’s competitive global marketplace. There is timeless genius within the pages of this book.”
- R. Michael Mahoney, President, Manufacturing Decision Analysis, LLC

————————————————————–

“Passion is the critical link between great ideas and great accomplishments. It is the ‘x-factor’ that results in the sum of strategy and execution being greater than the parts. Mr. Lucas examines in depth what most business books consistently ignore. Bravo!!”
- Terry L. Lay, President, Lee Apparel (A Division of VF Corporation)

————————————————————–

“Most of us have formulated a vision for our organization’s direction and destination. Few have really mastered the art of ‘igniting the fire of employee commitment.’ Lucas provides one of the best ‘how to’ books on building a passionate organization that I have ever seen.”
- M. Terry Turner, President, First American Investment Services Group

————————————————————–

“At a time when our leaders are transforming themselves and their organizations into knowledge workers and learning organizations, let us not forget what makes both great: passion. Lucas brings us to the core of success and its necessity.”
- Philip V. Lewis, Ed. D., Dean, School of Business Administration, Oklahoma Christian University
Author of Transformational Leadership

————————————————————–

“Strategy is not just a technical subject. For organizations to succeed over the long term they need to harness the energy that comes from feelings and passion. This book is a powerful plea for more passion, as well as a perceptive analysis of where, and how, this often illusive factor arises. It goes to the heart of the organization. Essential reading for all CEOs and anyone aspiring to a leadership role.”
- Dr. Bruce Lloyd, Principal Lecturer in Strategy, South Bank University, London
Review Editor of Long Range Planning Journal

————————————————————–

“The Passionate Organization is indescribably, extraordinarily, stupendously good . . . I just could not put it down . . . I am so excited about the possibility of implementing the things I’ve learned from your book . . . Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.”
- Elzia Leggs, Training Specialist, Transportation Industry

————————————————————–

“Lucas acknowledges what is critically true: ‘The future is not a given. It isn’t predetermined. It will be what we and many other people make of it.’ That’s what singles out this book as a top-read this year: it isn’t what you, alone, think or feel about your company that will make the difference tomorrow. It’s what you can do to get an organization full of others to think and feel positively. Will they be passionate about your business? If not, what’s the chance your customers will be passionate? Not much. On this simple thought, Lucas has crafted a deep and worthy management agenda.”
- Tom Brown in Management General, Nominating The Passionate Organization for “Best Book of the Year”

————————————————————–

“Shows leaders and managers how to find and inspire passionate people, with a focus on deeply held core values, mutual trust, and a common vision. Filled with real-world examples and straightforward strategies, it reveals the keys to bringing diverse, driven, and feisty people together and bringing out their best.”
- Booknews

Author James R. Lucas

James R. (Jim) Lucas, P.E., is a recognized authority on leadership and organization development. He is a groundbreaking author, thought leader, and provocative speaker on these crucial topics. Jim has served in multiple key positions in a number of organizations:

EMCI, a high-tech design and manufacturing firm working primarily in aerospace components and orthopedic medical devices, where he served as President & CEO

Black & Veatch Consulting Engineers, where he served as Manager of Planning for the Power & Industrial Division and as Project Planner on four major power plant projects

Hallmark Cards, where he served as Director of Construction and supervised the completion of projects worth over a quarter of a billion dollars

VF Corporation, where he was responsible for production and inventory control on the largest product line

Jim is the author of fourteen books, including seven recent books on leadership and organizational development:

• Broaden the Vision and Narrow the Focus: Managing in a World of Paradox – World-class leadership means leading with a balance of apparent contradictions. For example, should you spread optimism or spread the ugly truth? In this provocative book, you’ll learn that the answer to this and many other similar questions is “yes.”
• The Passionate Lives & Leaders Series. This colorfully written 8-book series includes breakthrough principles from James R. Lucas along with entertaining anecdotes from some of the world’s most successful business leaders about how to truly succeed.
• Balance of Power: Fueling Employee Power without Relinquishing Your Own. Introducing powersharing, a high-concept replacement for “empowerment” and fresh insights into such important issues as decision-making and succession planning, this book was a Newbridge Executive Program Book Club “Main Selection.” It has been translated into Chinese and Japanese and was distributed to all members by the Canadian Management Association.
• Fatal Illusions: Shredding a Dozen Unrealities That Can Keep Your Organization from Success. Long before Collins’ Good to Great and Bossidy and Charan’s Confronting Reality, this book established the critical need for leaders and organizations to face, define, and align with or change reality. It was a Newbridge Executive Book Club “Main Selection,” and was selected as “Book of the Year” by the American Management Association and distributed to over 60,000 of their members.
• High-Performance Ethics: 10 Timeless Principles for Next-Generation Leadership. This newly released book is co-authored with the retired CEO of Harris Corporation/Lanier Business Systems. It discusses the connection between ethics and performance, a previously under-explored subject. Mr. Steve Forbes has written the powerful foreword, and Mr. Zig Ziglar has written the inspiring afterword. Dr. Stephen Covey has given this book a thoughtful endorsement.

Jim has written numerous curricula for business and leadership seminars, as well as many essays and articles. Recent essays include “How to Avoid Enronism,” the cover story for the launch issue of MWorld Journal (and now a featured essay on Amazon.com), “Managing Through Meltdown: 12 Things You Must Do to Exploit Tough Times,” “A Legacy in the Making,” “Anatomy of a Vision Statement,” and “Illusion and the Death of Quality.”

Jim is an award-winning senior faculty member of the American Management Association, where he teaches its premier course, The Course for Presidents. Jim has an extensive speaking schedule in which he addresses topics from his books and research and has been interviewed frequently on radio and television. He has also served as a professor in the School of Professional Studies at Rockhurst University in Kansas City. Jim received his education in leadership, business, economics, and engineering at the University of Missouri (Columbia and Rolla), including a B.S. and Jim was awarded a professional degree in Engineering Management from UMR. He is a member of the American Society for Training & Development, a senior member of the Society of Manufacturing Engineers, and a registered professional engineer in Missouri and Kansas. He was the first graduate of UMR’s Engineering Management Program to receive a professional engineering license in both Missouri and Kansas. While at Rolla he was a member of the Student Union Board and Delta Sigma Phi fraternity.

Jim has been honored with continuous listings in Who’s Who in America (1999-2006), Who’s Who in the World (1989-2006), and Who’s Who in Finance & Industry (1989-2005). Jim grew up in the St. Louis area and now lives in the Kansas City area with his family, which includes four children.


]]> http://thepassionateorganization.com/author/feed/ 0 http://thepassionateorganization.com/hello-world/ http://thepassionateorganization.com/hello-world/#comments Fri, 17 Jun 2005 16:37:34 +0000 passion /?p=1 Check back soon!
]]> http://thepassionateorganization.com/hello-world/feed/ 0