6 Executives Share the Books That Shaped Their Leadership Style

AWS executive Sarah Cooper said she’s rereading Clayton Christensen’s “The Innovator’s Dilemma.” She said the book is filled with guiding principles for capitalizing on disruptive innovation, which are lessons that resonate in today’s workforce.

She’s also a fan of Daniel Goleman’s “Emotional Intelligence,” which explores why IQ alone doesn’t guarantee success and why emotional awareness matters. Cooper said that leading with empathy is especially critical as AI reshapes the workforce.

“I truly believe that the way we work could change dramatically,” Cooper said.

AT&T’s head of business operations, Jennifer Van Buskirk, told Business Insider that she’s “a bit of an adrenaline junkie,” and looks for signs of risk-taking when interviewing candidates. Her book picks reflect that intensity.

The executive said “Extreme Ownership: How US Navy Seals Lead” by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin teaches people to take ownership and see things through.

The second book she named, “Get Sh*t Done,” by Lauris Liberts and motivational brand Startup Vitamins, was handed to her by the CIO of her former startup. She said it’s filled with great quotes that reflect her style of thinking.

Mastercard’s Raj Seshadri highlighted the book “Dare to Lead” by Brené Brown. Seshadri said that the book focuses on courage and vulnerability in leadership and argues that great leaders are defined by their ability to build trust and lead with empathy, rather than their titles.

“It provides practical tools for creating brave cultures where people feel safe to take risks and innovate,” Seshadri said.

Revlon CEO Michelle Peluso said she gravitates more toward biographies over traditional business books because “they offer a more human-centered perspective.” A few of her favorites include:

• “Team of Rivals” by Doris Kearns Goodwin
• “Personal History” by Katharine Graham
• “Leonardo da Vinci” by Walter Isaacson
• “Long Walk to Freedom” by Nelson Mandela

IBM’s chief sustainability officer said the company has rallied around the book, “The Geek Way” by Andrew McAfee. She said that IBM CEO Arvind Krishna is working to build a culture inspired by the book, which focuses on four core pillars, including science, ownership, speed, and openness.

Shim said another book that has shaped her own leadership style is Susan Cain’s “Quiet.” The book explores how to navigate being an introvert in an extroverted world — and she thought it was so important that she bought copies for her entire team. She said that introverts often make up half a team, and understanding how to work effectively together is essential.

The CEO of jewelry brand Mejuri told Business Insider that many books have influenced her leadership style, but one that stuck with her was Ben Horowitz’s “The Hard Thing About Hard Things.”

Sakkijha said it helped her understand that building a business is rarely a linear process. She said that sometimes reading other founders’ stories made the process look easy. In contrast, Horowitz, who cofounded Andreessen Horowitz, offers practical advice for navigating the most challenging aspects of starting a business, based on his own experience.

“It was really helpful to read his story, how they built the business, the challenges they went through, and the persistence,” Sakkijha said.