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The AMA Handbook of Leadership stands as the most recent in a long line of comprehensive volumes designed to put a lot of knowledge between a single pair of covers. This book is the latest in an evolutionary line of books for businesspeople designed to tell you about a lot of different things.

First, there were management encyclopedias. The first edition of Carl Heyel's Encyclopedia of Management came out in 1963. Heyel was described as "management counsel."

There were over 300 articles. The 1973 update added about fifty more. Each article was written by an individual contributor.

The articles added in 1973 had titles like "Automation," "Management by Objectives," and "Managerial Grid." The article on "Women in Industry" was updated.

In 1985, McGraw-Hill published the Handbook for Professional Managers, edited by Lester Bittel and Jackson Ramsey, both of whom were on the faculty at James Madison University. This book had 239 articles which it clustered into fifty "Vital Areas of Concern."

There was a cluster of articles devoted to "computers." And there was another whose subject was "data processing." Some articles seem quaintly dated. There's an article on "Management of Older Workers." Older workers are defined as those 45 years of age and older.

The AMA Handbook of Leadership is right on the trend line. We've gone from comprehensive, cover-it-all encyclopedias of management, to shorter handbooks of "professional management" to an even shorter handbook of leadership.

The new book has fewer articles. There's about 6 percent of the number in Heyel's encyclopedia and 10 percent of Bittel and Ramsey's handbook. The articles themselves are generally longer than the articles in either of the earlier books.

In fact, they're about the right length for a quick read. Only seven articles are longer than ten pages. The longest is only seventeen.

Those are statistics. They can tell us something, but they can't answer the question of whether this is a good book for you. Here goes. For this book to get the best possible review from me it needs to answer three questions with a resounding "Yes!"

Did the editors zero in on good topics? Yes!

The topic selection is broad enough that there is almost sure to be one or more topics where you don't have much expertise. There are essays on new and hot topics of the day. They include leading in a global environment, the future, engaging people, facilitating change, and what the editors call "the X Factors."

Did the editors select experts to write the essays? Yes!

This could be the strongest feature of the book. The list of authors is simply awesome. They aren't just good. You've got essays here by true legends such as Paul Hersey and Dave Ulrich and Frances Hesselbein and James Bolt and Fons Trompenaars and Jack Zenger. It doesn't get better than this.

Did the writers do a good job? Yes!

It seems clear that no one took this as a quick-and-dirty assignment. Note that I used the word "essays." That's what these are. They're not short articles, dashed off in the course of daily events. They're thoughtful, like a rich soup that has reduced until the flavor is powerful.

These are well-written pieces, some of which may turn out to be classics in themselves. My pick: the essay by Laurence Lyons titled "Situational Intelligence."

The fact is that the essays that aren't by legends or "All-Stars" are at least as good. I recommend "Talent Pool or Talent Puddle" by Marc Effron and Miriam Ort as an example.

If you're serious about leadership in today's and tomorrow's challenging world, this book will be a great addition to your library. Keep it nearby.

When something comes up that's just a bit outside your comfort zone, check here to see if there's an essay that will help. If there is make The AMA Handbook of Leadership the starting point for your learning.

When you need a refresher on an important issue, check this book. Odds are there's an essay here to help.

The AMA Handbook of Leadership is a worthy successor to the encyclopedias and handbooks that have gone before, stripped down and streamlined for a new century.

Wally's Working Supervisor's Support Kit is a collection of information and tools to help working supervisors do a better job. It's based on what Wally's learned in over twenty years of supervisory skills training. Click here to check it out.