Business fable
Encyclopedia
A business fable is a fable
, parable
or novel
that shares a lesson or lessons that can be applied in the business
world. Business fables focus on providing a powerful message for CEOs, executives, senior and middle management, sales teams, human resources
, change management
, goal setting
, inspiration, self-help
, leadership
, change management
, sales
and marketing
, customer service
, winning strategies and overall success.
New York Times bestsellers in the business fable genre include:
Other notable business fables include:
Fable
A fable is a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, mythical creatures, plants, inanimate objects or forces of nature which are anthropomorphized , and that illustrates a moral lesson , which may at the end be expressed explicitly in a pithy maxim.A fable differs from...
, parable
Parable
A parable is a succinct story, in prose or verse, which illustrates one or more instructive principles, or lessons, or a normative principle. It differs from a fable in that fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects, and forces of nature as characters, while parables generally feature human...
or novel
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
that shares a lesson or lessons that can be applied in the business
Business
A business is an organization engaged in the trade of goods, services, or both to consumers. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies, where most of them are privately owned and administered to earn profit to increase the wealth of their owners. Businesses may also be not-for-profit...
world. Business fables focus on providing a powerful message for CEOs, executives, senior and middle management, sales teams, human resources
Human resources
Human resources is a term used to describe the individuals who make up the workforce of an organization, although it is also applied in labor economics to, for example, business sectors or even whole nations...
, change management
Change management
Change management is a structured approach to shifting/transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. It is an organizational process aimed at helping employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business environment....
, goal setting
Goal setting
Goal setting involves establishing specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-targeted goals. Work on the theory of goal-setting suggests that it's an effective tool for making progress by ensuring that participants in a group with a common goal are clearly aware of what is expected from...
, inspiration, self-help
Self-help
Self-help, or self-improvement, is a self-guided improvement—economically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a substantial psychological basis. There are many different self-help movements and each has its own focus, techniques, associated beliefs, proponents and in some cases, leaders...
, leadership
Leadership
Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task". Other in-depth definitions of leadership have also emerged.-Theories:...
, change management
Change management
Change management is a structured approach to shifting/transitioning individuals, teams, and organizations from a current state to a desired future state. It is an organizational process aimed at helping employees to accept and embrace changes in their current business environment....
, sales
Sales
A sale is the act of selling a product or service in return for money or other compensation. It is an act of completion of a commercial activity....
and marketing
Marketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
, customer service
Customer service
Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.According to Turban et al. , “Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer...
, winning strategies and overall success.
New York Times bestsellers in the business fable genre include:
- Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer JohnsonSpencer JohnsonSpencer Johnson is an American football defensive end for the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League. He was originally signed by the Minnesota Vikings as an undrafted free agent in 2004. He played college football at Auburn.-Early years:Johnson attended Southern Choctaw High School in...
- The One Minute ManagerThe One Minute ManagerThe One Minute Manager, a book by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson. According to Blanchard's website, it has sold more than 13 million copies and has been translated into 37 languages....
by Ken BlanchardKen BlanchardKenneth Hartley Blanchard is an American author and management expert. His book The One Minute Manager has sold over 13 million copies and has been translated into 37 languages... - The Five Dysfunctions of a TeamThe Five Dysfunctions of a TeamThe Five Dysfunctions of a Team is a business book by consultant and speaker Patrick Lencioni. It describes the many pitfalls that teams face as they seek to "row together". This book explores the fundamental causes of organizational politics and team failure. Like most of Lencioni's books, the...
by Patrick LencioniPatrick LencioniPatrick Lencioni is a New York Times best-selling author, speaker, consultant and founder and president of , a firm dedicated to helping organizations become healthy. Lencioni’s ideas around leadership, teamwork and employee engagement have impacted organizations around the globe... - The Traveler's GiftThe Traveler's GiftThe Traveler's Gift - Seven Decisions That Determine Personal Success, a book released in 2002 by author Andy Andrews and featured book selection of ABC's Good Morning America, weaves a fictional tale about a man who loses his job and money, but finds his way after he is magically transported into...
by Andy AndrewsAndy AndrewsAndy Andrews is an American author of self-help/advice books and a corporate speaker, known for his 2002 bestselling book The Traveler's Gift. He has written over 20 books and sold more than 3.5 million copies around the world. His books have been translated into over 20 languages... - Surviving your SerengetiSurviving your SerengetiSurviving Your Serengeti: 7 Skills to Master Business and Life, published March 2011, is a motivational business fable based on author Stefan Swanepoel's experiences in business and growing up in Africa....
by Stefan SwanepoelStefan SwanepoelStefan J. M. Swanepoel , is an American business executive, author and motivational speaker. His books have been listed on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists.-Education:...
Other notable business fables include:
- The GoalThe GoalThe Goal is a management-oriented novel by Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt, a business consultant whose Theory of Constraints has become a model for systems management. It was originally published in 1984 and has since been revised and republished every few years, once in 1992 and again in 2004...
by Eliyahu M. GoldrattEliyahu M. GoldrattEliyahu Moshe Goldratt was an Israeli physicist who became a business management guru. He was the originator of the Optimized Production Technology, the Theory of Constraints , the Thinking Processes, Drum-Buffer-Rope, Critical Chain Project Management and other TOC derived tools.He authored... - The Paradox of ExcellenceThe Paradox of ExcellenceThe Paradox of Excellence is a fiction book co-authored by David Mosby and Michael Weissman first published by Jossey-Bass, an imprint of John Wiley & Sons, in 2005...
by David Mosby and Michael Weissman - Radical Leap by Steve Farber
- The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon
- The Go-GiverThe Go-GiverThe Go-Giver: A Little Story about a Powerful Business Idea is a 2008 book written by Bob Burg and John D. Mann. It is a story about the power of giving.- Reception :...
by Bob Burg and David John Mann - FISH! philosophyFISH! philosophyThe FISH! philosophy is a workplace management system created by John Christensen. The system was first published as a film, with a spin-off series of books....
by Stephen Lundin - The Fred Factor by Mark Sanborn
- Our Iceberg is Melting by John KotterJohn KotterJohn Paul Kotter is a professor at the Harvard Business School and author, who is regarded as an authority on leadership and change. He outlines eight steps that organizations need to implement to successfully change:1...