Business Guru David Maister Breaks Ground
as First Top-Tier Business Author to Podcast

post # 1 — April 18, 2006 — a Uncategorized post

EMBARGOED until Tuesday, April 18, 2006

US-based business guru David Maister is breaking ground as the first top-tier business author to start podcasting — making professional audio broadcasts available for download on the Web. The former Harvard Business School professor, named one of the top 40 business thinkers in the world, launches his pioneering podcast masterclass series on management this month — available free from his website, www.davidmaister.com.

Maister, widely hailed as one of the world’s leading management authorities, is the author of five best-selling management books: “True Professionalism,” “The Trusted Advisor,” “Practice What You Preach,” “First Among Equals; How to Manage a Group of Professionals,” and the canonical management textbook “Managing the Professional Service Firm.” For years people have asked Maister whether his books were available on audio format. Until now, the answer was no, but now they are — for free.

Maister likens the new 15-part series of podcasts, or free downloadable audio broadcasts, to a full university course in management. The new series launching April 18, entitled “Managing Professionals: Attitudes, Skills and Behaviors,” builds on the success of Maister’s original 14-part podcast masterclass on marketing launched in January, which surpassed 15,000 episodes downloaded and was featured as a “New and Notable” podcast in the iTunes Music Store. The earlier series is also available on Maister’s website.

Podcasts are subscription-based audio broadcasts available on the Web. Podcast subscribers automatically receive downloads of new episodes from the Internet directly to their computers. Subscribers can then play back podcasts on desktop or laptop computers, portable mp3 players (such as iPods), and home and car stereo systems. For those new to podcasting, Maister’s website includes suggestions on software for playing podcasts, instructions on how to subscribe to his podcast series, and troubleshooting advice.

Maister, one of the most respected consultants in his field, will cover topics ranging from what the latest research says about the key characteristics of effective managers, through motivation of individuals, building teams, earning the trust of those you must influence and judging your managerial success. The series is based on material contained in all five of Maister’s books, as well as his many published articles.

Maister stresses that he is on a mission to help businesses realize that effective management remains a source of competitive advantage, but that most businesses choose the wrong people for managerial jobs. “Managers should be interested in helping others, but most look on management as a milestone in their own careers,” says Maister. “You can’t be an effective manager if people think you are only interested in yourself.

“This series is an attempt to serve individual people who are accepting a managerial role. I want to help them think through the role they have taken on, the responsibilities they bear, and how they can truly add value and make a difference.”

Maister’s work is dedicated to helping businesses promote and energise people to manage others more effectively — even where this may involve telling them things they don’t want to hear. His website also contains frank, constructive articles and videos about where companies are going wrong, and what they should do to ensure staff are resourced and focused on making clients happy.

The consultant who has lectured businesses for decades on the power of “marketing as a conversation” is committed to 2-way communication through new social media tools. “The great advantage today of the Internet is the opportunity to create dialogues, and not just one-way pontification,” says Maister. In addition to breaking ground with his podcast series, Maister is also one of the first top-tier business gurus to start a web log (or blog).

Maister’s new blog and website, launched in January 2006, make thousands of dollars worth of consultancy wisdom available for free and Maister says, “After a long career, I’m very proud to be able to make these resources available.

“I firmly believe that the best way for an individual or a company to showcase both their expertise and their dedication to client service is to prove they have something to offer by giving something for free. Anyone who wants to test my theory can check out the resources available on www.davidmaister.com.”

If you would like further information on David Maister’s newest free podcast series, or the resources available on his website, please contact David Maister directly at (617) 262-5968 or david@davidmaister.com.

Keywords

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