Book Review: The CEO Next Door

Title: The CEO Next Doot
Authors: Elena L. Botelho, Kim R. Powell, Tahl Raz
Source/Format: Blogging for Books; hardcover
More Details: Management
Publisher/ Release date: Currency, March 26 2018

Goodreads     Barnes & Noble     Book Depository (Paperback)

Synopsis from Penguin Random House:
Based on an in-depth analysis of over 2,600 leaders drawn from a database of more than 17,000 CEOs and C-suite executives, as well 13,000 hours of interviews, and two decades of experience advising CEOs and executive boards, Elena L. Botelho and Kim R. Powell overturn the myths about what it takes to get to the top and succeed. 

My Thoughts:

What if the path to being a CEO wasn’t as complicated as you once thought? Well The CEO Next Door almost entirely proves just that. It’s not just an inspirational book; it’s also a rational one, proving that you don’t have to be perfect to be a CEO and that hard work and smart decisions can get you to the top as well.

Most proof for the ideas the authors’ present came from interviews of current and former CEOs as well as some board members and previous counseling experiences. Their quotes and experiences proved that nothing overly fancy is required. Besides that, I like the fact that every experience wasn’t presented as being peachy-keen. The authors readily provided examples of pitfalls from not handling mistakes well to negative attitudes and actions that can totally obliterate a career.

Small details presented in a book can make the biggest difference for me. As such, the details and layout in The CEO Next Door made it an engaging read. First, I loved the text boxes that included additional information and never interrupted a sentence. They were usually placed strategically after a paragraph was completed. Secondly, except for chapter one, each chapter contained a small section called Key Takeaways. So, instead of skimming through pages to refer back to information I’d already read, I simply had to go to the end of each chapter to locate the information.

Overall, the CEO Next Door was a highly inspiring book. I recommend giving it a read especially if you’re an aspiring CEO.

Thanks for reading.
I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.