What We’re Reading From the Sept. 1 Issue of CIO Magazine

Zilch

The Power of Zero in Business

By Nancy Lublin

Lublin knows a thing or two about stretching a dollar. After using a $5,000 inheritance to start Dress for Success, a charity that provides clothes and training to help women in need land jobs, she became the CEO of DoSomething.org, a site connecting teens with volunteer opportunities. Now she’s advising the for-profit world on how to get big results on a shoestring budget. Some tips: be generous with titles, say thank you, and share information at every level. Portfolio, $25.95

Cyber War

The Next Threat to National Security and What to Do About It

By Richard A. Clarke and Robert K. Knake

Book Early in this book, Clarke compares the current state of cyberwarfare to the early days of nuclear weaponry: Its enormous power is not yet understood and its use is not yet regulated. If that seems far-fetched to you, talk to Estonia. In 2007, its infrastructure was shut down for a week by a massive denial of service attack. Something similar could happen here, Clarke argues, because many businesses have become part of our national infrastructure. (To read an interview with Clarke, see “Richard Clarke: Your Company Is a Front in a Future Cyberwars.”) Ecco, $25.95

Employees First, Customers Second

Turning Conventional Management Upside Down

By Vineet Nayar

Book When Nayar became CEO of IT services provider HCL Technologies, it was in danger of falling behind the market. So he stood traditional ideas about running a company on their heads, adopting what Fortune calls “the world’s most modern management.” First, he asked employees what problems they saw, then began sharing everything with them—they can check the company’s financial health on its intranet—and making managers more accountable to subordinates. Finally, he entrusted others, especially CIOs, with imagining and implementing transformative processes. Harvard Business Press, $24.95

Watchlist

Continuing Changes in the Nature of Work, 2010-2020

By Tom Austin

Research What might your office be like in 10 years? Austin, a Gartner fellow, predicts it will probably be more collaborative, less formal and much, much more virtual. In fact, employees may no longer have any provided workspaces or set schedules, doing everything from home and at all hours. Does your IT department have a plan for that future? www.gartner.com/resId=1331623

Wander Woman 

How High-Achieving Women Find Contentment and Direction

By Marcia Reynolds

Book According to Reynolds, an organizational psychologist, there’s a type of woman who, in her drive to succeed, often finds herself unsatisfied. As a result, she frequently switches jobs in search of a new challenge. Reynolds aims to help such women recognize their reasons for feeling this way so they can use that insight to their advantage and find work that satisfies. She also wants those who find themselves hitting the glass ceiling to discover ways to get more responsibility without necessarily moving up. Berrett-Koehler Publishers, $17.95