Gaucho Dialogues on Leadership and Management

By (author) Alfredo Behrens

Publication date:

15 December 2017

Publisher

Anthem Press

Dimensions:

229x153mm
6x9"

ISBN-13: 9781783087105

Most subsidiaries of multinational organizations in developing countries are managed like modern-day saladeros, beef-jerking companies where, in the process of salting beef, workers salted themselves out of life. In Gaucho Dialogues on Leadership and Management Alfredo Behrens illustrates the Latin American organizational how-to through a dialogue attributed to two iconic literary characters, Martín Fierro and Don Segundo Sombra. Fierro—passionate, nonpragmatic, xenophobic—and Sombra—with a more nuanced affection toward old ways—comment on the militia-led insurrections from Argentina and Uruguay through Brazil, Venezuela, Central America and Mexico, and draw lessons about leadership, strategy and people management in Latin America and the United States. While the book’s argument covers the ethos prevailing in the Americas, Behrens believes it may be relevant elsewhere among similar societies where people prefer to act as members of clans than as autonomous individuals. If so, the book’s argument may be relevant for the vast majority of humankind at work.

Preface to the English Edition; Preface to the Portuguese Edition; Acknowledgments; Introduction; Chapter 1 Fierro and Sombra Head for Mexico; Chapter 2 The Unquenchable Thirst for Honor: The Gladiator; Chapter 3 Martin Fierro Inspires Perón’s Leadership Style; Chapter 4 The Siege of Montevideo; Chapter 5 Fierro and Sombra Discuss Leadership Theory; Chapter 6 Fierro and Sombra Follow the Federalist Revolt in Southern Brazil; Chapter 7 The Unquenchable Thirst for Honor: The Bullfight; Chapter 8 In Venezuela Fierro and Sombra Assess the Marcha Restauradora; Chapter 9 Panama Secedes from Colombia and Fierro Looks for Heroism in Costa Rica; Chapter 10 Fierro and Sombra Discuss the Leadership of the Mexican Revolution; Chapter 11 Contrasts with American Military Leadership: The Punitive Expedition; Chapter 12. Epilogue; Glossary; References; Index.

“Alfredo Behrens has written a most engaging book, applying an imaginative, literary approach to debunk the idea that there is a unique form of management suitable for all cultures. His focus is on Latin America but his provocative conclusions have relevance for other cultures and contexts.”
—Simon Commander, Altura Partners, London and IE Business School, Madrid