Many CEOs ask me for book recommendations for their long-haul flights. Here is a selection of the ones I am currently reading and would definitely recommend (in no particular order):

– The Mobile Wave, Michael Saylor: a great overview of how the internet and social connectivity is changing the way we live and do business by the CEO of MicroStrategy. Many of the ideas are common sense, but the history and summary of them makes it a worthwhile read. And, some of his ideas on business, education, commerce and communication are quite unique.

– Megachange 2050, The Economist: I love books that try to imagine the future and the thoughtful overview from key economist writers on how the world will look like some forty years from now is truly insightful. It being the Economist, there is also a great selection of data and research to back up each hypothesis.

– A Whole New Mind, Daniel Pink: Pink is an engaging and influential writer, and here he makes the case that right-brainers will rule the future. While finance in the past has focused on spreadsheets, linear thinking and details, he argues – successfully, I think – that those skills will not be sufficient in the future. They need to be supplemented with empathy, story, design, meaning, and big picture thinking. The MFA as the new MBA.

– Race Against the Machine, Erik Brynjolfsson/Andrew McAffee: a fascinating and very short hypothesis by the director of MIT’s Center for Digital Business on why the future due to Asia, automation, and abundance, will depend on teamwork with computers. It is what the authors call a bold effort to make sense of the future of work. I especially like their thoughts on innovation by so-called “micro-multinationals” – like Enskat & Associates 🙂 Oh, it also is available free online.

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(c) Enskat Associates 2012