• The Talent Masters

  • Why Smart Leaders Put People Before Numbers
  • By: Bill Conaty, Ram Charan
  • Narrated by: Bob Walter
  • Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
  • 3.8 out of 5 stars (52 ratings)

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The Talent Masters  By  cover art

The Talent Masters

By: Bill Conaty, Ram Charan
Narrated by: Bob Walter
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Publisher's summary

If talent is the leading indicator of whether a business is up or down, a success or a failure (and it is)...do you know how to accurately judge raw human talent? Understand a person's unique combination of traits? Develop that talent? Convert what supposedly are "soft" subjective judgments about people into objective criteria that are as specific, verifiable, and concrete as the contents of a financial statement?

The talent masters do. They put people before numbers for the simple reason that it is talent that delivers the numbers. Success comes from those who are able to extract meaning from events and the forces affecting a business, and are able to look at the world and assess the risks to take and the risks to avoid.

The Talent Masters itself stems from a unique combination of talent: During a 40-year career at General Electric, Bill Conaty worked closely with CEOs Jack Welch and Jeff Immelt to build that company's world-renowned talent machine. Ram Charan is the legendary advisor to companies around the world. Together they use their unparalleled experience and insight to write the definitive book on talent - a breakthrough in how to take a business to the next level:

  • Secrets of the masters. The specifics on how companies regarded as world-class - GE, P&G, Hindustan Unilever (and others) - base their stellar performance decade after decade on their systems for finding and nurturing leadership talent.
  • Intimate and systemic. Why deep knowledge and intimacy with your talent and a systemic rhythm of reviews are the foundation for creating a steady, self-renewing stream of leaders for all levels of an organization - from first-line supervisors to the CEO.
  • The competency that lasts. Financial results, market share, brand, and legacy products all have a half-life that seems to grow shorter by the year. Talent is the only competency that endures.
  • What to do Monday morning. The Talent Masters tool kit provides the specific guidelines for assessing and improving your company’s talent mastery capabilities.
©2010 Bill Conaty, Ram Charan (P)2010 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Enduring principles and powerful practices combine in this must-read manifesto for leaders at every level." (Jack Welch)

What listeners say about The Talent Masters

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Only for corporate execs

This book is filled with great information if you are a corporate exec of a large company. Then again, if you're a corporate exec you probably already know this stuff. Has a lot to do with team building and succession planning.

I struggled to find a way it would apply to me and my small businesses now, but the vast majority refers to companies like GE and there is only one GE. I don't have 300 VPs and I don't need to do succession planning 30 yrs into the future.... My business is simply not that big so a lot of this was just not relevant.

Some good skills and tips are in this book... but it is mostly dedicated to the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies with great ambitions. The rest of us might want to look elsewhere unless you just have some time to kill.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

The narrative could be more enthusiastic

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I could not listen to it. It's very hard to keep concentrated on listening. The way it is narrated is very boring.

What was most disappointing about Bill Conaty and Ram Charan ’s story?

I listened less than 1 hour. I could not continue. Not because of the story, but because of the way it is told.

What didn’t you like about Bob Walter’s performance?

I listened less than 1 hour. I could not continue. Not because of the story, but because of the way it is told. The narrative could be more enthusiastic

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Talent Masters?

Change the narrator

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1 person found this helpful