It’s nearing the end of the year, and with holiday seasons beginning, there are books on sale everywhere. With deep discounts being offered in-store and online,  it’s a good time to invest in them and build your personal collection of HR management books.

But with so many on offer, which ones would be the best to choose, and offer ideas and  thinking to develop your edge as HR professionals?

Fret not…for we have made it easier to scout the best titles through our list of top reads that offer a wide range of perspectives on HR value creation and organisational thought. In these books you will find inspirational material, as well as clever nuggets of  ‘workplace wisdom’, which the authors have shared, culling through their years of working in diverse organisaions, exploring, understanding and researching the subject.

First, Break All The Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently — Marcus Buckingham, Curt Coffman

The book offers an indepth view of what exceptional managers across industries do differently – they are fearless, open to experimenting, and craft newer ways  and ideas ro cultivate productive organisations.  The results they create drive  innovative methods that help  shape positive,  can-do work cultures and grow productive teams.

This is a highly recommended read for all HR leaders who constantly face challenges and situations that demand out of the box thinking and novel approaches to solution building and delivery. Grab this book if you would like to set newer ways of thinking on workplace culture and capability building,  both within your team and the leadership in your organisation.

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t — Jim Collins

In this book,  Jim Collins lays out insightful portrayals on  organisations that make the leap from good to great. An an expert analyst of corporate performance, Collins effectively observes how organisations vision, prepare and build their journey to greatness.  Reading through the book, you can savour the questions he confronts and the truths he outlines on growing teams and organisations to the next level.

100 Ways to Motivate Others: How Great Leaders Can Produce Insane Results Without Driving People Crazy — Steve Chandler

This book is a must read for all HR professionals looking to create a shift in the cultural paradign within their organisations.  Having previously authored the best seller Reinventing Yourself,  in this book, author Steve Chandler details ways in which HR leaders can drive increased productivity and an improved workplace culture by upholding values of accountability and driving focus on people’s strengths.

Chandler asserts that organisations waste too much effort by focusing on employee weaknesses, and can see vast improvements in employee motivation and morale by helping them build and deliver with their strengths.

Lean In: Women, Work and the Will to Lead — Sheryl Sandberg

Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In doesn’t need really any introduction, and is a must-read for any HR leader looking to  build an organisation that is gender sensitive and richly values diversity, inclusion and participation.

Sandberg asserts many issues that are real to women in the context of the present day workplace, and through a candid personal narrative explore ways in which they can navigate through failures and learnings to craft their career achievements and maintain productive and healthy work life balance.  Her work makes for an empowering read and we highly recommed it to all professionals looking to drive increased engagement and sensitivity within their teams and organisations.

Love’em or Lose’em: Getting Good People to Stay — Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans

As the war for talent intensifies,  proactive employee retention practices help companies stay ahead of the game. Authors Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans contend that successful HR leaders understand that it can take far more energy to find and groom new talent than nurturing and developing existing employees.

In their book they lay out innovative employee retention practices that help create a workforce that is focused,  motivated and rooted on the organisation’s goals – a valued asset in today’s competitive talent terrain.