Why am I passionate about this?

I am passionate about integrating individual, organizational, and community needs to create a better world for the benefit of us all. I am an author and founder of organizations in the career and workforce development fields. My four books (Affiliation in the Workplace, Building Workforce Strength, Business Behaving Well, and How to Build a Nontraditional Career Path) and much of my career explored bringing work to life for those close to us, for ourselves, for our organizations, and for our communities. My social activism has been expressed through community volunteer work and promoting a range of social causes. I hope you enjoy the books I have chosen for you!


I wrote...

Business Behaving Well: Social Responsibility, from Learning to Doing

By Ron Elsdon ,

Book cover of Business Behaving Well: Social Responsibility, from Learning to Doing

What is my book about?

Social responsibility as a driving force for organizations integrates business, community, and individual needs. But what does the term “social…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies

Ron Elsdon Why I love this book

This book changed the way I think about organizations and leadership. It has influenced my entire career. It helped me understand the importance of focusing on customer needs, on quality, and, most critically, on supporting people in organizations so that they are inspired and can prosper and excel at what they do.

It helped me see the crucial role of supportive leadership. It is a landmark book, and I am grateful to have read it at a formative stage. 

By Thomas J. Peters , Robert H. Waterman ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked In Search of Excellence as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The "Greatest Business Book of All Time" (Bloomsbury UK), In Search of Excellence has long been a must-have for the boardroom, business school, and bedside table.

Based on a study of forty-three of America's best-run companies from a diverse array of business sectors, In Search of Excellence describes eight basic principles of management -- action-stimulating, people-oriented, profit-maximizing practices -- that made these organizations successful.

Joining the HarperBusiness Essentials series, this phenomenal bestseller features a new Authors' Note, and reintroduces these vital principles in an accessible and practical way for today's management reader.


Book cover of Leading from Within: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Lead

Ron Elsdon Why I love this book

I loved this book as soon as I started reading it. And yet, I came across it almost by accident at a talk given by Parker Palmer, who wrote the introduction. It is a meditation on leadership, blending reflections by many leaders on how poems they each choose speak to them.

I was fascinated by the depth of emotion and thinking and have returned to this book many times over the years for quotes. It is a hidden gem. 

By Sam M. Intrator , Megan Scribner ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Leading from Within as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Leading from Within is a wonderful collection of ninety-three poems from well-loved poets, each of which is accompanied by a brief personal commentary from a leader explaining the significance and meaning of the poem in his or her life and work. The contributors represent a wide range of professions including Vanguard Group founder John Bogle, MoveOn.org cofounder Joan Blades, several members of Congress, Christian activist Brian McLaren, business guru Peter Senge, and many other leaders from business, medicine, education, nonprofits, law, politics and government, and religion. In their reflections, these leaders explore how they have been inspired by poets such…


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Book cover of Punctuated

Punctuated by LeeAnn Pickrell,

LeeAnn Pickrell’s love affair with punctuation began in a tenth-grade English class.

Punctuated is a playful book of punctuation poems inspired by her years as an editor. Frustrated by the misuse of the semicolon, she wrote a poem to illustrate its correct use. From there she realized the other marks…

Book cover of The Living Company: Habits for Survival in a Turbulent Business Environment

Ron Elsdon Why I love this book

What is it that leads some organizations to survive and thrive for a long time when many fall by the wayside? I have wrestled with this question over the years and find the insights in this book refreshing and helpful.

The book underlines the importance of internal dynamics integrated with external sensitivity, leavened by learning as a continual source of renewal. 

By Arie De Geus ,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked The Living Company as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Most companies do not survive the upheavals of change and competition over the long haul. But there are a few remarkable firms that have withstood the test of several centuries. What hidden lessons do they hold for the rest of us? Arie de Geus, the man who introduced the revolutionary concept of the learning organization, reveals the key to managing for a long and prosperous organizational life. The Living Company speaks not just to aspiring leaders, but to anyone trying to adapt to a turbulent business environment. Only those steeped in the habits of a living company will survive. 'This…


Book cover of The Tyranny of Merit: What's Become of the Common Good?

Ron Elsdon Why I love this book

Sometimes, a book brings such a perceptive view that it elicits in me a response of gratitude and respect for the author. It surfaces ideas I long suspected were there but were just beyond grasp.

This is such a book. It shines a bright light on false meritocracy and what that means. I found this book profoundly moving and reaffirming about the important principles inherent in a just society. 

By Michael J. Sandel ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked The Tyranny of Merit as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A TLS, GUARDIAN AND NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020

The new bestseller from the acclaimed author of Justice and one of the world's most popular philosophers

"Astute, insightful, and empathetic...A crucial book for this moment" Tara Westover, author of Educated

These are dangerous times for democracy. We live in an age of winners and losers, where the odds are stacked in favour of the already fortunate. Stalled social mobility and entrenched inequality give the lie to the promise that "you can make it if you try". And the consequence is a brew of anger and frustration that has…


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Book cover of Social Security for Future Generations

Social Security for Future Generations by John A. Turner,

This book provides new options for reform of the Social Security (OASI) program. Some options are inspired by the U.S. pension system, while others are inspired by the literature on financial literacy or the social security systems in other countries.

An example of our proposals inspired by the U.S. pension…

Book cover of Capital in the Twenty-First Century

Ron Elsdon Why I love this book

Some books reach me on an emotional level, while with others, it is in their intellectual reach and research rigor. This book is of the latter kind.

I was captivated by the breadth of ideas presented and the depth of research involved. It affirmed for me the dangerous trajectory of growing financial inequality that is unfolding and why that is important. This book is a monumental work. 

By Thomas Piketty , Arthur Goldhammer (translator) ,

Why should I read it?

7 authors picked Capital in the Twenty-First Century as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A New York Times #1 Bestseller
An Amazon #1 Bestseller
A Wall Street Journal #1 Bestseller
A USA Today Bestseller
A Sunday Times Bestseller
A Guardian Best Book of the 21st Century
Winner of the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award
Winner of the British Academy Medal
Finalist, National Book Critics Circle Award

What are the grand dynamics that drive the accumulation and distribution of capital? Questions about the long-term evolution of inequality, the concentration of wealth, and the prospects for economic growth lie at the heart of political economy. But satisfactory answers have been hard…


Explore my book 😀

Business Behaving Well: Social Responsibility, from Learning to Doing

By Ron Elsdon ,

Book cover of Business Behaving Well: Social Responsibility, from Learning to Doing

What is my book about?

Social responsibility as a driving force for organizations integrates business, community, and individual needs. But what does the term “social responsibility” mean, and what paths must businesses take to make a positive impact on society? This book provides a basis that encourages businesses to integrate social responsibility into their purpose and operations.

Using real-world examples from various sectors, including health care and education, the book describes how private firms, nonprofits, and public entities can structure effective relationships for everyone’s benefit. Addressing strategic issues as well as practical implementation, this book provides, by example, a rationale and structure for applying principles of business social responsibility in a way that is inspiring and builds confidence to act.

Book cover of In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies
Book cover of Leading from Within: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Lead
Book cover of The Living Company: Habits for Survival in a Turbulent Business Environment

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