The Manager’s Handbook
The secrets to why some people are so much better
at getting things done!
“The best book I’ve ever read on why some people are more effective at getting things done than others. The Manager’s Handbook is a master class in implementation and execution.”
—LINDA HENRY, CEO, The Boston Globe
The Best Selling Book, The Manager’s Handbook turns the assumption that great managers are born a certain way on its head.
After three years of observation and study, I discovered that what united all great managers was their mastery of a set of five common skills. Their personality attributes varied, but their command of these skills did not. It is universal. There are no exceptions.
Whether it was sending rockets into space or drilling wells under the sea, exceptional managers share five common skill characteristics which can be learned and applied by anyone—including you.
ADVANCED PRAISE FOR The MANAGER’S HANDBOOK
“I attribute most of my success to recruiting people with high scores for ‘GSD’ – get shit done. This is the definitive guide to GSD.”
—PAUL ENGLISH, Co-Founder, Kayak.com
“Business success is 1% insight and 99% implementation. Dodson puts the 99% in what will become the playbook for anyone serious about accomplishing anything.”
—WALTER ROBB, Former Co-CEO, Whole Foods Market
The Manager’s Handbook replaces the dozens of books you don’t have time to read.
Few of us have the time to read thousands of pages to get a few dozen pages of actionable content. My aim was not to fill pages in a book for you to slog through but to get you the vital information most efficiently. I explain each skill in as few words as possible, as plainly as possible, to give you a battle plan for getting stuff done!
“Dodson does not waste a single word. He packs a dozen business books, and a two-year MBA program, into one book.”
—BRIAN SPALY, Co-Founder, Bonobos
“Why didn’t someone give me this book twenty years ago?”
—AMY ERRETT, Founder and CEO, Madison-Reed
The Manager’s Handbook is a book to use, not just to read.
It is the book I wished someone had handed me when I first became a manager. This is the unique insight of The Manager’s Handbook: identify the primary skills necessary to run something; break them down into a combined set of subskills that can be mastered by just about anyone; and present them in a format designed for busy people.
"Dodson unmasks in a single book the practical skills that separate those who flounder from those who drive results."
—ILENE JACOBS, Former Executive Vice President for Human Resources, Fidelity Investments
“Simply the desire to do things is not enough. The Manager’s Handbook helps reveal the importance of joining the right strategy with excellent execution.”
—MICHAEL PORTER, Professor, Harvard Business School and author of Competitive Strategies and Competitive Advantage
DAVID DODSON is on Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business faculty, guiding students in tactical execution. He teaches one of the most sought-after courses at Stanford, and in 2023 The Economist listed his course as one of the three “hottest” courses at Stanford.
He recently received the MSx Teaching Excellence Award and is a six-time speaker in the graduation Last Lecture series. He also holds an economics and business degree from Stanford University. Dodson’s success in the classroom follows a vast experience in the trenches. Beginning as a McKinsey & Company consultant, he left to become a serial entrepreneur, operating six companies as CEO or Executive Chairman. He has since served as a board member of more than 40 companies and has been an active investor in over 150 businesses. Read more about David here.