Finalist
Book Title:It's Not in the Manual: Real-World Leadership for Security and Risk Professionals
Author:Michael Adam Gips
Published:2025
How is your book helping others?
Leadership is often presented as a tidy set of models and best practices. Real leadership, though, begins when the models stop working. It’s Not in the Manual helps professionals lead when there is no script: when information is incomplete, pressure is high, and getting it wrong can be tragic. Drawing on decades of experience in security, law, journalism and risk management, Michael Gips brings these moments to life through dozens of vivid real-world stories, from crises and organizational turning points to everyday leadership dilemmas, showing how leaders actually navigate difficult decisions. Rather than offering formulas, talismans, or cant, he encourages readers to think critically about leadership clichés and management fads. Gips's writing ranges from humorous to poignant, incorporating references from the quotidian to the erudite (Monster.com and Montaigne, Ted Lasso and teleology). It's been called "A handbook for navigating chaos, complexity, and humanity at the same time."