Winner of a 2018 Notable Indie from Shelf Unbound for one of the best independently published books of the year!
You're in a matrix, whether you realize it or not. The test: Do you have multiple bosses? Do you depend on a variety of resources throughout the organization to get your tasks done, and do these resources report into other people or teams? If you answered ''yes'' to either, you're in a matrix role.
Matrix organizations and matrix roles are everywhere. The field customer contact person who writes contracts, negotiates delivery and troubleshoots product issues is in a matrix role. So is the product manager simultaneously accountable for numbers in her country, region and business unit despite the fact they are in conflict, or the HR person who reports both to a globalized function and the head of the business they support.
All of these roles require matrix management, or as this book describes, "matrix mastery."
Master the Matrix: 7 Essentials for Getting Things Done in Complex Organizations is based on the experiences and ideas of over 100 matrix practitioners, combined into seven matrix essentials: Start with Partnerships, Get Goals Aligned, Clarify Roles, Get Decisions Made, Flex Your Influence Muscle (Influence without authority), Communicate without Assumption and Make Meetings Matter. These seven essentials can push you past matrix management and toward matrix mastery. From the book's Foreword Author, Harry M. Jansen Kraemer Jr. (Professor, Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, Former CEO, Baxter International and Author, From Values to Action): "What Susan does in this book is provide you with the tools to make the matrix work--from how to build partnerships that ease goal alignment, role clarity and decision-making to the key skills of influence, communication and meeting facilitation that enable you to gain traction and accomplish things in a matrix role. And getting things done is really what it's all about. At the end of the day--have you made a difference? Have you moved the organization forward? Do you feel a sense of pride and accomplishment in your work?"Susan Finerty has been working in matrix roles and with matrix organizations for more than 20 years. Since 2004, she has developed a consulting practice focused on organizational effectiveness--helping organizations design and implement change, helping teams work effectively together and coaching individuals on communication, influence and leadership. Susan has held adjunct faculty roles at Northwestern University and Loyola University-Chicago. She has a blog focused on leadership that can be found at www.LeadershipMutt.com and a blog focused on matrix management at www.MasterTheMatrixBlog.com . She has a BA from Central Michigan University and an MA from Indiana University. Ms. Finerty resides in suburban Chicago with her husband and three children.AUTHOR HOME: Vernon Hills, Illinois
