Because Stijn asked me a long time ago… A selection of books I’ve read and recommend to others. I have left out most of the Agile and software/technology related books on purpose. I think most of the people reading this blog would pick those up anyway, so instead I hope what is below can serve as a form of inspiration for books I think Stijn wouldn’t naturally pick up 
They are not in any particular order but rather all have their own value, hence why they’re on the list.
On Strategy
Michael Porter: Competitive strategy & Joan Magretta: Understanding Michael Porter
No discussion on strategy is complete without at least someone mentioning Porter’s 5 forces. I love Porter’s work in practical situations because it offers a framework to quickly get to grips with the dynamics of any industry. More often than not I use Porter as a starting point and a way to help focus further analysis and thinking.
Mintzberg: the rise and fall of strategic planning
As with Porter, you can’t really get around Mintzberg when it comes to strategy . While his original 5 P is definitely worth reading up on I prefer this book more. It’s not exactly bedtime literature, but It does offer a very critical view on the application of strategy and strategic planning in organizations.
Sun Tzu: The art of war
I picked this up years ago when playing civilization and used it to advance my gameplay. I occasionally still get back to the copy I have and every time I find something inspiring. It’s not so much the actual rules as much as the way of thinking that I have come to appreciate.
Machiavelli: The Prince and other writings
Yes, I picked it up to find the magic “end justifies the means” feeling. However what you get is a very nuanced writing, against the backdrop of a struggling collection of kingdoms. It’s definitely worth a read not only for it’s literary value but also to think about some of the nuance put in the actual means of effective leadership.
Boston Consulting group on strategy
A collection of various papers produced by BCG, across a section of topics. Obviously includes the BCG product matrix (dogs, question marks, stars, cash cows). Definitely not a cover-to-cover book but more something for research and background reading.
On people management
James Autry: The servant leader
These days I almost take for granted what this book has given me, but it has influenced me a lot as a manager. It’s a neat little book that I think should be on the shelf of every manager who wants to understand leading a team.
Michael Lopp: Managing humans
As with the servant leader, one of the books that have influenced me a lot. It’s essentially a collection of posts from Rands In Repose, in the typical style. I had read most of them online but it’s such an insightful set of ideas, particularly if you work with engineers.
John Kotter: Leading Change
This book explains Kotter’s 8 steps in creating and maintaining change in an organization. It’s one of the first books I read on the subject and I still find myself using it as a basis for much of what I do every day.
On Finance
Reuben Advani: The wall street MBA
Even if you don’t have a background in finance, this book has the basics of what everyone should know about corporate finances. I read it as a quick refresher on topics I studied before. It definitely won’t teach you all the ins and outs, and I’m pretty sure it won’t help you get an MBA or a job on wall street . But if you’re new to finance it’s a great way to get a basis and then explore details from there should you want to.
Jeffrey Little: Understanding wall street
A fairly in depth view on stocks, the stock market and related analysis. I wouldn’t recommend this book for anyone who hasn’t spent significant time dealing with investing and financials. However, if you’re into that sort of things it’s a very interesting read.
Atkinson et al: Management accounting
Several business schools use this as a textbook in their financial management course and I can see why. It’s a very clear explanation of the basics of gathering accounting information and related decision making for management purposes. Don’t just read it but spend time with the examples in the book and work through the numbers (i.e. use it as a proper study book)
The few “technology” books I couldn’t leave out
W. Edwards Deming: Out of the crisis
No self respecting lean/agile person can go without reading this. Nuff said.
Robert Martin: Clean Code
I reread this book every so often and every time I’m profoundly struck by the beauty of the code in the examples. I’m not enough of a coder to claim I understand it all, and definitely can’t claim I practice it, but it has given me a very good radar for picking up code smells and working through technical debt in software.
Humble and Farley: Continuous delivery
I love (re)reading this book. Obviously the practice of continuous delivery, done well, is a very entertaining idea that I entirely support, but on a different level I also love some of the reasoning around deployment pipelines. In essence it comes down to investment decisions…help understand if your product is in a good enough state to justify spending an amount of money on taking it to the next step in deployment.