The McKinsey Edge: Success Principles from the WorldΓÇÖs Most Powerful Consulting Firm Hardcover – November 3, 2015

It's so frustrating trying to find new books with real substance. So many business/self-help books are actually just one, two or three ideas that are repeated and stretched out over 200+ pages. You can usually get the key message just from reading the title (Atomic Habits ... that's it, done). This is NOT that kind of book. The McKinsey Edge is the type of book with tons of practical advice for a bunch of different situations that you can use immediately in any professional setting. It's written from the perspective of business consulting, but you can apply these principles to probably any work situation. Great advice on note taking, for example. Tons of more useful guideposts on connecting with people, preparing presentations, reporting to your manager. This is one of the few books that I read on Kindle, then listened to the audiobook. I'll be coming back to it frequently to refresh my memory on these very useful points. I just hope I can find more books like this. I think avoiding the "best sellers" is good practice if you want to find something, fresh and actually useful to read and put into practice.

This is not exactly a study in synthesis but a nice reflection on some key elements required to be a successful consultant and business leader. It could have been titled 47 steps to being a McKinsey consultant. An interesting read and you will need to do the prioritization of the key learnings yourself…

This book is very well organized. It has many thought provoking nuggets that can help you see other ways of looking at problems and day to day job. While one may not agree with every inference and at time self-righteous tone may put one off a bit, the book is absolutely worth your time to read and to meditate on.

This book is full of practical tips on day to day actions that can be beneficial to many business professionals! There are 47 powerful principles described in detail in this book.If one can practice and master one per week, he/she will be able to shape a completely different career path/trajectory in just less than a year! I wish I had a chance to read this book when I started my career.But better late than never! : )

In The McKinsey Edge, Shu Hattori aims to communicate the tips and tricks he has learned while working for the global management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company. Truthfully, I'm not completely sure I understand what McKinsey & Company does, but, as far as I can tell, the firm exists to help big companies become more efficient, productive, and profitable.The book, overall, does contain insightful and helpful points. Some of my favorites:(*) Have a 30-second answer to everything. If someone wants more detail, she will ask.(*) Pause 3 seconds before answering difficult questions. Show others you can withstand the weight of silence.(*) Put your best effort into a project early, since this is when you will make the strongest, most lasting impression.(*) Ask questions sooner rather than later. The earlier you ask, the less judgment and irritation there will be.(*) Create a holiday card for yourself one year in advance. Write down what you will have accomplished by the end of next year.(*) Schedule time for "new learning" (reading books, meeting new people, etc.) by putting it on your to-do list.I most enjoyed the advice given in Chapter 2, about "growing with others." I thought this section really showed Hattori to be a thoughtful, caring, intentional, engaged, and kind person. I can see why he would be a good boss. Some of my favorite pieces of advice in this section:(*) Assume people have good intentions. Find the good, and remember it.(*) Deliver feedback using positive criticism.(*) Assign meaningful tasks to employees.(*) Meet with new people every week. And don't "grade" the interactions afterward. The value is in the meetings themselves.I enjoyed the content of this book. However, I have two HUGE criticisms. First, I really wish the author had gone into more detail about what the firm actually does. There is an appendix in the back that describes the structure of the company somewhat, but I still found it insufficient. I ended up having to research the company on my own, so I could understand what I was actually reading about--and, even now, I'm still confused. It didn't help that the author seemed to be writing SO specifically to McKinsey employees. He says things like "the associate to engagement manager transition is the most challenging" and "people who work at McKinsey must learn to use a blank callout text box with an arrow pointed to a manlike figure made up of a circle and an isosceles triangle." Huh? Is that supposed to mean something to anyone who doesn't work at McKinsey? Why alienate readers by putting such specific information like that in there?Second--and this is the biggie--this book is very, very poorly written. The author bio claims that Hattori is a native English and Japanese speaker, but this book definitely reads like it is written by someone who does not speak English as a first language. There is awkward sentence structure, incorrect grammar, and random shifts in verb tense. Hattori says things like "an encapsulating speech" and "Now, let the curtain unveil!" and "You want to show a solid reputation" and "But like most first timers, the experience takes a steep nosedive at first." (Do first timers take steep nosedives at first?) Ugh, it's just bad writing.Normally, I would give a book written like this two stars, max. But the content in here is actually pretty good. Plus, the more I read the book, the more I became accustomed to the author's writing style, and the easier it was to read. So, take it for what it is. There is good info in here, and I would argue that the book IS worth checking out. But be prepared to work to get something out of it; the many grammatical mistakes and odd language choices are undeniably distracting.

Do you lead teams to solve problems? Then this is a must read for you. Succinct and easy to read

I actually found this to be a pretty good book, but it is not so much about problem solving, more about principles behind being a good consultant in the general sense. How to improve yourself, how to work with your team etc. It is also quite brief and easy to read - so provides you with a good checklist of activities

Like the pragmatic and structured approach !Recommended for day to day use in solving issues and adding value.Happy reading!