Leading with Questions

Many leaders are unaware of the amazing power of questions. Our conversations may be full of requests and demands, but all too often we are not asking for honest and informative answers, and we don t know how to listen effectively to responses. When leaders start encouraging questions from their teams, however, they begin to see amazing results. Knowing the right questions to ask and the right way to listen will give any leader the skills to perform well in any situation, effectively communicate a vision to the team, and achieve lasting success across the organization. Thoroughly revised and updated, Leading with Questions will help you encourage participation and teamwork, foster outside-the-box thinking, empower others, build relationships with customers, solve problems, and more. Michael Marquardt reveals how to determine which questions will lead to solutions to even the most challenging issues. He outlines specific techniques of active listening and follow-up, and helps you understand how questions can improve the way you work with individuals, teams, and organizations. This new edition of Leading with Questions draws on interviews with thirty leaders, including eight whose stories are new to this edition. These interviews tell stories from a range of countries, including Singapore, Guyana, Korea, and Switzerland, and feature case studies from prominent firms such as DuPont, Alcoa, Novartis, and Cargill. A new chapter on problem-solving will help you apply questions to your toughest situations as a leader, and a new Questions for Reflection section at the end of each chapter will help you bring Marquardt s message into all of your work as a leader. Now more than ever, Leading with Questions is the definitive guide for becoming a stronger leader by identifying and asking the right questions.

Many leaders are unaware of the amazing power of questions. Ourconversations may be full of requests and demands, but all toooften we are not asking for honest and informative answers, and wedon't know how to listen effectively to responses. Whenleaders start encouraging questions from their teams, however, theybegin to see amazing results. Knowing the right questions toask--and the right way to listen--will give any leaderthe skills to perform well in any situation, effectivelycommunicate a vision to the team, and achieve lasting successacross the organization.Thoroughly revised and updated, Leading with Questionswill help you encourage participation and teamwork, fosteroutside-the-box thinking, empower others, build relationships withcustomers, solve problems, and more. Michael Marquardt reveals howto determine which questions will lead to solutions to even themost challenging issues. He outlines specific techniques of activelistening and follow-up, and helps you understand how questions canimprove the way you work with individuals, teams, andorganizations.This new edition of Leading with Questions draws oninterviews with thirty leaders, including eight whose stories arenew to this edition. These interviews tell stories from a range ofcountries, including Singapore, Guyana, Korea, and Switzerland, andfeature case studies from prominent firms such as DuPont, AlcoaNovartis, and Cargill. A new chapter on problem-solving will helpyou apply questions to your toughest situations as a leader, and anew "Questions for Reflection" section at the end ofeach chapter will help you bring Marquardt's message into allof your work as a leader.Now more than ever, Leading with Questions is thedefinitive guide for becoming a stronger leader byidentifying--and asking--the right questions.

Introduction 1Part I The Power of Questions1 An Underused Management Tool 112 Benefits of a Questioning Culture 31Part II Asking Questions Effectively3 Why We Have Trouble with Questions 634 Asking the Right Questions 835 The Art of Asking Questions 1036 Creating a Questioning Culture 129Part III A Guide for Leaders on When and How to Ask Powerful Questions7 Using Questions in Managing People 1518 Using Questions to Build Teams 1779 Using Questions to Solve Problems 19910 Using Questions to Shape Strategy and Enable Change 213Conclusion: Becoming a Questioning Leader 239Resource A: Biographies of Leaders Interviewed 247Resource B: Action Learning: A Powerful Training Program for Developing Questioning Leaders 255Resource C: Resources for Training and Information on Questioning Leadership 271Notes 275Acknowledgments 283About the Author 287Index 291