First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently

Here is the brief about this book. The book is about a 30 year long survey conducted by a team from Gallup (a reputed name in market research) to find out what it takes to select and retain people and groom them for future. Some of the interesting points of view expressed in the book would help you choose your modus operandi:

1. People perceive the company to be what his immediate manager is. Hence, reasons for most of attrition in any company is the attitude of managers.

2. The HR function may be efficiently managed by a separate HR team but the manager needs to be concerned about development and growth of people in his team, and not just for getting work done.

3. Selection of appropriate persons should not be just on the basis of education, experience or intellect. Talent is what should be taken in to consideration. Talent is defined as the capability to repeatedly do something with excellence. So, not just Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods are talented, but everyone of us are, but in different fields - some in writing, some in singing, some in mopping floors, some in empathizing with patients, some in sales and marketing, etc.

4. Setting expectations right is one of the key concerns. Most companies do set the rights steps to be followed without specifying the outcomes to new recruits. And many of them do not provide adequate support and facilities to reach those outcomes. This clearly is very frustrating for employees.

5. I have been party to a process where a company's annual development assessment would focus on the weaknesses of the employees and give them a chance of improve in a year. The book challenges the thought behind this and states that you cannot change humans with ease. In place of focussing on weaknesses, companies should focus on strengths and let people improve on them, the employees would be happier and satisfied.

6. Growth is key to employee satisfaction and retention, but growth shouldn't just happen in ranks in form of promotions. Grooming managers into leaders is the key. Managers are generally inward looking and have to manage the individual and company performances and leaders are generally outward looking with focus on markets, competition and future. So, there needs to a gradual grooming for a manager to move from managing to strategizing and grow into a leader.