Leadership Library: Curated Resources for Every Leadership Stage

Leadership development isn't a straight path—it unfolds through distinct phases, each presenting its own challenges and learning imperatives.

This Leadership Library organizes essential resources by leadership tier: New Team Leaders/Managers, Directors/VPs, and Executive Leaders. Understanding that development needs shift with career progression, we've selected materials that target the specific competencies critical at each level.

Each section features Books, Podcasts, TED/TEDx Talks, YouTube Videos, and Articles/Research Papers that blend enduring leadership principles with cutting-edge approaches, maintaining relevance in today's fast-evolving landscape.

These resources address both the technical skills and adaptive challenges of leadership growth, and explore not just what leaders should do but who they must become to excel at increasingly senior organizational levels.

1. Leadership Library for New Team Leaders/Managers

For first-time leaders focusing on foundational leadership skills: managing teams, building trust, effective communication, and personal development.

Books

• The Making of a Manager by Julie Zhuo

• The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins

• Radical Candor by Kim Scott

Podcasts

• Manager Tools

• Coaching for Leaders with Dave Stachowiak

• HBR’s Coaching Real Leaders

TED/TEDx Talks

• Why Good Leaders Make You Feel Safe – Simon Sinek

• Everyday Leadership (The Lollipop Moment) – Drew Dudley

• The Happy Secret to Better Work – Shawn Achor

YouTube Videos

• First Follower: Leadership Lessons from Dancing Guy – Derek Sivers

• How to Manage for the First Time (Various sources)

• Jeff Weiner on Managing Compassionately

Articles & Research Papers

• 9 Mistakes to Avoid as a First-Time Manager – Harvard Business School Online

• Saving Your Rookie Managers from Themselves – Harvard Business Review

• Becoming the Boss – Linda Hill, Harvard Business Review

2. Leadership Library for Directors/VPs

For mid-level leaders focusing on strategic leadership, scaling teams, organizational growth, and relational intelligence.

Books

• Power to the Middle by Schaninger, Hancock & Field

• Multipliers by Liz Wiseman

• The Leadership Pipeline by Ram Charan

• The 360° Leader by John C. Maxwell

• Managing Up and Across (HBR Guide)

Podcasts

• HBR IdeaCast

• Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman

• The McKinsey Podcast

• WorkLife with Adam Grant

• The New Rules of Business – Chief

TED/TEDx Talks

• Dare to Disagree – Margaret Heffernan

• What It Takes to Be a Great Leader – Roselinde Torres

• The Puzzle of Motivation – Dan Pink

YouTube Videos

• Fireside Chat with Indra Nooyi

• Daniel Goleman on Emotional Intelligence

Articles & Research Papers

• Power to the Middle – McKinsey Quarterly

• How Does Leadership Influence Organizational Culture? – HBS Online

3. Leadership Library for Executive Leaders (C-Suite & Senior Executives)

For top-level leaders focusing on visionary leadership, shaping organizational culture, high-stakes decision-making, and influence.

Books

• Dare to Lead by Brené Brown

• The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek

• Good to Great by Jim Collins

Podcasts

• Leadership Next – Fortune

• The Knowledge Project

• McKinsey’s Inside the Strategy Room

TED/TEDx Talks

• Start with Why – Simon Sinek

• The Power of Vulnerability – Brené Brown

Articles & Research Papers

• What Makes a Leader? – Daniel Goleman (HBR)

• The CEO’s Role in Leading Transformation – McKinsey