Unite The Tribes

Christopher Duncan

Human nature is the only constant in the universe. Companies, departments and projects don't falter because people aren't good enough to get the job done. They fail because no one is given training in how to handle the common obstacles of bureaucracy, turf wars, office politics and personal agendas.

When your people create a movement for the pursuit of excellence, your company will be transformed into an invincible empire.

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Business is war. Yikes. Does that mean we need to build a moat around our cubicles and learn how to dodge sharp, pointy objects? Well, not exactly, unless those pointy objects happen to be the ball point pens that sign some of the more outlandish memos we've seen. However, make no mistake, the business world is a highly competitive one, both within your office walls and without. If you don't learn the basics of everyday strategy, your projects and even your career will continually come under fire. Work isn't nearly as much fun when you spend the better part of your day removing arrows from your posterior.

Fortunately, neither the departmental competitors inside your company nor all those other businesses who compete with your own have made a habit of studying strategy and tactics, either. That's a decided advantage when you're looking for ways to improve your career and build that ever elusive Better Mousetrap for your company. Given the number of rats in the corporate world these days, the latter might come in quite handy if you can ever get it built.

Most important of all, however, is this one simple fact. No matter what you do for a living, success is all about people. Through the ten Pillars of the Empire, Unite the Tribes will show you how to join together with others in your company to accomplish your mutual goals. The fact that this involves frequent socializing and even the occasional pizza party drives home an oft overlooked point. Business may be war, but like a good game of chess, the art of strategy should be fun!

Dust jacket flap

From the beginning of time, people have been working for a living and, chances are, you're carrying on this tradition. Whether you labor as a frontline worker or toil in high-level management, this book is for you.

Unite the Tribes: Ending Turf Wars for Career and Business Success shows the imaginary lines that divide companies into separate "tribes," with each fighting the other in small or petty disputes. From this new perspective, you'll see how such internal divisiveness weakens business and makes employees vulnerable to competitors in the marketplace. Most of all, this book demonstrates how important the health and well-being of a company is to each individual who works there.

In an age when it's common for people to be apathetic about the profitability of the companies they work for, thinking only of their personal needs, it may not be immediately apparent why one should work to unite isolated workplace tribes into a single, invincible empire. The reason, however, is as timeless as it is relevant to individual paychecks: rich and powerful empires have more wealth to share.

No matter which tribe an individual belongs to, his or her loyalty must be to the greater good of this empire. The message here is simple: strive for excellence and inspire those around you to reach for greater heights themselves. Manager or worker, it's all about bringing people together, rewarding their efforts, and giving them a reason to care about the cause.

Both corporations and individuals seek common goals, and both face the same basic challenges: competition (whether from other employees or other companies), changing technologies and economic conditions, and a host of other events that can disrupt even the best-laid plans.

Unite the Tribes: Ending Turf Wars for Career and Business Success presents a practical, ten step strategy complete with the tactics you will need to implement changes that work in the real world. Get ready for change, get excited, and take action now!

Back Cover

No matter what business you're in, at the end of the day, it's all about people. Workers are people, and so are managers. Every day millions of people wake up, get dressed, and go to work. The fact that all of them do different jobs and have different levels of authority has been used for ages to divide us. The truth of the matter, however, is that we're all just trying to make a living and provide for the ones we love-and that's a powerful common bond.

If you can grasp this one concept, you will have the power to change your world for the better in ways that you never dreamed possible. When you reach people at this fundamental level-letting them know that you care about what's important to them, and showing what's in it for them personally when they join forces with you-nothing is beyond your grasp.

Unite the Tribes: Ending Turf Wars for Career and Business Success presents the "Ten Pillars of the Empire" for just this purpose. You don't have to become a great charismatic leader to make them work. Each Pillar speaks to individual employees and shows them how to improve both their careers and the company's bottom line in a practical and organized manner. These principles and tactics are designed for the real world, where things inevitably do not always go right. The Pillars are at once practical, sensible, and applicable in the hectic realities of the workplace because they focus on people, which you'll come to see as the most unstoppable force in a company's dynamic. The workforce does not have to settle for less any longer. Working together, we have the power to build a better tomorrow.