Book Archives
See our past book recommendations below.
The review of Everybody Matters describes it as a powerful reminder that leadership begins with care, highlighting how the short documentary based on Bob Chapman’s bestselling book resonates with Women of Flexo’s values by showing that Truly Human Leadership—seeing people behind their roles, respecting their lives and creating a caring culture—drives engagement, lowers turnover, and transforms a company into a thriving community; it offers timeless lessons that empathy, listening, shared growth, and intentional culture matter for leaders at every level and invites everyone to reflect on how their leadership impacts those around them.
In “Common Sense Culture,” Nicole Onesti argues workplace culture isn’t defined by flashy perks or policies but by trust, respect, and how leaders show up in everyday interactions, shaped by her own experiences in both positive and toxic cultures. She draws a clear line between surviving—where employees walk on eggshells—and thriving—where people feel valued, respected, and heard. Onesti emphasizes that real culture shows in everyday treatment, like trusting employees after hard work, and underscores trust as central to healthy workplaces. For leaders stuck in survival mode, she suggests starting with honest conversations and human gestures that acknowledge employees as whole people, capturing the heart of her book as making work “suck a little less.”
“Dare to Lead” by Brené Brown encourages leaders in any area of life to be transparent, to “embrace the suck” and to choose courage over comfort. The book cheers you every step of the way because Brown’s expectation is not that you change who you are but rather that you exploit what you excel in and lean in with courage to the circumstances, conversations and crowds that require it.
It will change your perception of leadership whether you are new to leading professionally or you’ve done it for years. Bravo to Brene Brown!”
-Michelle Henson, WoF member
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
- Through a relatable story, Lencioni breaks down common issues like trust problems, fear of conflict, and commitment challenges. The book offers practical solutions for building better teamwork and achieving results. It’s a straightforward and valuable read for anyone looking to boost their team game whether you’re a team leader or a team member.
Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family by Bob Chapman
- This book helps put the concepts of ‘Servant Leadership’ into action – to break down what this truly means, to help leaders define this for themselves and find ways to put into practice.
- Everyone wants to do better. Trust them. Leaders are everywhere. Find them. People achieve good things, big and small, every day. Celebrate them. Some people wish things were different. Listen to them. Everybody matters. Show them.”
– Laura Wright, WoF member
Untethered Soul By Michael A Singer
- When attempting courageous leadership, a person needs to feel clear about their own convictions – why what they do matters and how to express that to other people.
- This book was instrumental in my own reflections, to get clear on my life and my priorities, in order to make decisions on how I will spend my time and how I will show up to others.
– Laura Wright, WoF member
Four Thousand Weeks By Oliver Burkeman
- For anyone struggling with ‘SO many conflicting priorities’ – this book helps you gain perspective.
- When attempting courageous leadership, a person needs to feel clear about their own convictions – with recognition that there is not time and space for everything and everyone else’s convictions of you; only for your own.
– Laura Wright, WoF member
How Women Can Succeed in the Workplace (Despite Having “Female Brains”) by Valerie Alexander
“Yes, the title is hard to get past, but this is a great quick read that had me thinking on so many levels about what women are up against in male-dominated industries like ours.
This is a published copy of a lecture that Valerie Alexander gives about the evolution of the political and industrial world around male-focused values and how women need to understand these values and how they differ from those that women, in general, naturally hold. She offers advice on how to manage our natural inclinations in order to better develop our careers and advocate for the other women around us.”
– Laura Wright, WoF member
You should Smile More by Dawn Hudson, Cie Nicholson, Mitzi Short, Katie Lacey, Lori Tauber Marcus, and Angelique Bellmer Krembs.
“This book is written as a collaboration from 6 women who have all held high ranking positions within PepsiCo who call themselves “The Band of Sisters” and have come up through the ranks. They share their experiences with gender bias that they experienced. They talk about barriers to inclusion and how these can equate to barriers in success and how they’re not glaring transgressions but little micro offenses that we all have encountered at one time or another.
While reading this book, I could identify with some of the situations as a female that I did not even realize were condoning behaviors that promote gender bias. These women had great ideas and suggestions in this book about how to dismantle gender bias in the workplace with small positive changes.”
– Brandy Marlow, WoF member
The One Thing – by Gary Keller
“I appreciate that this book offers a fresh & logical perspective on a constant challenge: there will always be more “to-dos” that can be done. I’m often overwhelmed by this reality, and “The One” gives a road map for prioritization that makes sense to me.” – Alyssa Denney, WoF member
The First 90 Days – by Michael Watkins
“This is a great book to read if you’re transitioning to a new position. Questions and exercises help you to think about the new challenges you’ll face and how to make the most of your first few months on the job. It presents leadership ability as a skill that can be learned, not a natural talent that you have to be born with.” – Laura Wright, WoF member
The Male Factor – by Shaunti Feldhahn
“This book gave me a better understanding of how men in the workplace perceive and think about female behaviors in the workplace. The author has interviewed and surveyed several thousand men to get their truthful perspectives. It may not always be what you want to hear, or it may pleasantly surprise you. The book helped me to better understand my male co-workers and opened my eyes to how men can and want to be great mentors to women who are developing their careers.” – Laura Wright, WoF member
The review of Everybody Matters describes it as a powerful reminder that leadership begins with care, highlighting how the short documentary based on Bob Chapman’s bestselling book resonates with Women of Flexo’s values by showing that Truly Human Leadership—seeing people behind their roles, respecting their lives and creating a caring culture—drives engagement, lowers turnover, and transforms a company into a thriving community; it offers timeless lessons that empathy, listening, shared growth, and intentional culture matter for leaders at every level and invites everyone to reflect on how their leadership impacts those around them.In “Common Sense Culture,” Nicole Onesti argues workplace culture isn’t defined by flashy perks or policies but by trust, respect, and how leaders show up in everyday interactions, shaped by her own experiences in both positive and toxic cultures. She draws a clear line between surviving—where employees walk on eggshells—and thriving—where people feel valued, respected, and heard. Onesti emphasizes that real culture shows in everyday treatment, like trusting employees after hard work, and underscores trust as central to healthy workplaces. For leaders stuck in survival mode, she suggests starting with honest conversations and human gestures that acknowledge employees as whole people, capturing the heart of her book as making work “suck a little less.”“Dare to Lead” by Brené Brown encourages leaders in any area of life to be transparent, to “embrace the suck” and to choose courage over comfort. The book cheers you every step of the way because Brown’s expectation is not that you change who you are but rather that you exploit what you excel in and lean in with courage to the circumstances, conversations and crowds that require it. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick LencioniUntethered Soul By Michael A SingerFour Thousand Weeks By Oliver BurkemanThis is a published copy of a lecture that Valerie Alexander gives about the evolution of the political and industrial world around male-focused values and how women need to understand these values and how they differ from those that women, in general, naturally hold. She offers advice on how to manage our natural inclinations in order to better develop our careers and advocate for the other women around us.”
You should Smile More by Dawn Hudson, Cie Nicholson, Mitzi Short, Katie Lacey, Lori Tauber Marcus, and Angelique Bellmer Krembs.– Brandy Marlow, WoF member
“I appreciate that this book offers a fresh & logical perspective on a constant challenge: there will always be more “to-dos” that can be done. I’m often overwhelmed by this reality, and “The One” gives a road map for prioritization that makes sense to me.” – Alyssa Denney, WoF member
The First 90 Days – by Michael Watkins
“This is a great book to read if you’re transitioning to a new position. Questions and exercises help you to think about the new challenges you’ll face and how to make the most of your first few months on the job. It presents leadership ability as a skill that can be learned, not a natural talent that you have to be born with.” – Laura Wright, WoF member
“This book gave me a better understanding of how men in the workplace perceive and think about female behaviors in the workplace. The author has interviewed and surveyed several thousand men to get their truthful perspectives. It may not always be what you want to hear, or it may pleasantly surprise you. The book helped me to better understand my male co-workers and opened my eyes to how men can and want to be great mentors to women who are developing their careers.” – Laura Wright, WoF member
