When Smart People Work for Dumb Bosses: How to Survive in a Crazy and Dysfunctional Workplace

by Kathleen Lundin and William Lundin

Book Overview

Suffering under an intimidating supervisor? Mistreated by thoughtless management? Bullied by a lazy boss? Suitable for those in dysfunctional organizations, this work features interviews with real... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0071348085
• ISBN13: 9780071348089
• Release Date: July 1999
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill
• Length: 185 Pages
• Weight: 0.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Is there life after the Peter Principle?

Back in the '60s Dr. Laurence Peter discovered the Peter Principle: "in a hierarchy everyone rises to his/her level of incompetence". What made it so revolutionary is that it explained why everything is so screwed up in the business world. It's being run by incompetents. (As if you hadn't noticed.) Now, over three decades later the Lundins have documented the devestating impact these "dumb bosses" have on the workplace. If you now work or have worked for an insensitve, ego driven, individual you need no further explanation of what we're talking about.But, what's best about this book is that the Lundins offer strategies for survival. Bill Lundin says dumb bossess are here to stay, and unfortunately, he's right. It's the old Peter Principle. Now at least there are some ideas of how to get through the day if you work for an incompetent manager. This is a great read for those whose work life is quietly frustrating and an even better read for managers brave enough to want to discover if they're really as smart as they think they are.Shel NewmanPresident-Elect, Chicago Chapter, American Society for Training and Developmentshelnewman@worldnet.att.net

This book is a must read for every one in the workplace.

I could not put this book down. This is a must read for all of you who either are a boss or have a boss. "When Smart People Work for Dumb Bosses" not only exposes, but offers solutions to the dilemma that is facing the workplace today. Bosses do not know how to manage and those who have a boss are allowing their work product to suffer due to being subjected to a dumb boss. The Lundins have exposed the cancer of the workforce. They have exposed the nerve that is damaging what we find most precious, namely our work life. Today work has transformed into home. We are looking for work to treat us in a certain fashion that will allow us to meet and exceed the expectations of our employer. This book delves into the inability of the work place to allow us to achieve our goals. "When Smart People Work for Dumb Bosses" is an educational tool that enables a work place to redesign itself. This book comes at a time when the work place is a disaster. We! need assistance in restructuring and this book gives us that assistance. "When Smart People Work for Dumb Bosses" is the means with which a company can change from a place where all employees disdain their daily life, thereby being unproductive, to a place where employees show up ready and willing to give themselves to the company that is giving back to them. It is the must read of our time!!!

A company's thinkers and doers need to come together.

The Lundin's examine an aspect of the work relationship that other authors and experts have overlooked. This book is the first that seriously explores the idea that many of the problems that plague American Business is caused by a lack of true communication between members of the two main divisions in the workplace, the "hands on" doers and the "heads on" planners. Basically, the "heads" which plan a strategy and the "hands" which carry it out are not in touch. The great minds behind a business endeavor are blind to the real world glitches in their plan because they lack input from the real world. The employees who carry out the plan are often hampered by the fact that the thinkers, because they are not fully informed, cannot provide proper direction.

I wish this book had been available sooner.

In a previous employ, I had put up with "dumb bosses" for nearly nine years before I mustered up enough courage to quit my job. These years really took a toll on me, professionally and emotionally. Had this book been available years ago, my career could be much further along because it spells out very clearly what is a non-healthy working environment. After reading this book, I now know what to expect of bosses and what subordinates should expect of me, and will not make the same mistakes of the past. It defines an environment necessary for maximum productivity, opportunity, advancement and psychological well being. This book is clear and concise and excellent reading for anyone in the workplace, whether or not a "Dumb Boss" exists.

A smart book that tells it like it is in the work place

How refreshing it is to read a book written by real people in the work place about real work life situations. For anyone who's had a "dumb boss", you know what I'm talking about. We've all heard stories around the water cooler, but never quite realized how many there are and what the implications of these actions are. READ THIS BOOK AND MAYBE IT'LL GIVE YOU THE STRENGTH TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR OWN "DUMB BOSS". Or, if you're a boss yourself, maybe it'll give you a clue about what you can do not to become a dumb boss. Hooray to the Lundins for addressing a very contraversial issue in a straightforward way.