It’s Your Ship 

By D. Michael Abrashoff

Originally published May 22, 2002

240 pages

This book was published 20 years ago. I happened upon it in a used bookstore last week. It’s a quick read because Michael Abrashoff is a good storyteller and he has a good story to tell: his experience in taking over as commander of USS Benfold, one of the worst-run ships in the Navy. Abrashoff comes across as smart and experienced and accepting of his limitations. He also has a good sense of humor.

I recommend It’s Your Ship for anyone that is in a position of taking a leadership role in an organization that is established and set in its ways. I, of course, particularly liked the observations that I agree with, such as:

“The thing about rules and policies is they become very hard to fix once they are put in place. Both the people who put them in place and the people whose jobs it is to exercise them become highly motivated advocates of the policies. Even if the policies originally made sense, they become very hard to change. When you try to change something but can’t, you start becoming a tenant and stop being an owner.”

Click here for a short (5-minute) read about the book.

And here to watch an interview with the author.

And here to watch him making a presentation at a conference.