Elizabeth I CEO: Strategic Lessons from the Leader Who Built an Empire

Recently, we have seen England's venerable Queen Elizabeth I portrayed in popular movies as both a wise supporting character and powerful leading lady. Now, thanks to historian and author Alan Axelrod, we can not only see the 16th-century monarch as a single woman who turned the fortunes of an entire nation around--we can apply many of the traits and practices of Good Queen Bess to our own business lives. "You can learn that being a leader is being a leader, whether your enterprise is a Renaissance kingdom, a small business, a major corporation, a corporate department, or a three-person work group with a job to do," Axelrod writes in Elizabeth I, CEO. Like other authors who relate the conduct and writings of a historical figure to situations in the modern world (including himself in Patton on Leadership), Axelrod uses Elizabeth's behavior and words to frame a blueprint for corporate survival, personal image building, staff development, control, and--ultimately--success. The author draws 136 pointers from Elzabeth's life, each amplified with lively, germane anecdotes. Among them: "Control the Message, not the Messenger," "No Leader Is a Solo Act," and "Forgive, but Don't Forget." --Howard Rothman