A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders - Turn the Ship Around!

I found this book very interesting to read. Taking copious notes and discussing some of the points mentioned with my fellows.

This is a book that I have and will continue to recommend to my bosses, peers and subordinates alike.

As a retired manufacturing executive, I've seen Marquet's concept really work. We bought a business from a major corporation and turned it into a small profitable business by empowering these former corporate employees. They told me many times how they enjoyed work much more now that they could make informed decisions own their own rather than wait for the bureaucracy to tell them what to do. Marquet's philosophy takes a lot of effort, but definitely pays off in the end.

If you've been spinning your wheels in an organization that has traditionally been top-down management, this book is a ray of hope. Not only does Mr. Marquet explain the principles he used, but also how he implemented them. It won't be easy turning your ship around, but this book will show you that it CAN happen.

Marquet does something that few management and leadrship books pull off. He not only describes the successful principles of the empowering leadership style he implemented but includes the more challenging to articulate practices that make those principles work. As a result a motivated reader can understand the approach well enough to actually implement it. It's not an easy formula but there have been too many theories about how collaborative leadership "should work" and not enough straight forward explanation of how it does work. This book accomplishes that. Highly recommended read for all managers and leader's.

Not quite through with it yet. I really like where it goes. Not sure it will work in all
branches of the service.

This book was recommended to my by my son who was just named
national manager of sales for a large organization. He really likes
the idea, as do I, of getting subordinates to take pride in their
organizational skills, and build by releasing authority to its lowest level.

Bottom line up front, if you are a people manager or about to assume those responsibilities, just a person who is interested in leadership, or one who desires to posses the attributes of an exceptional leader, read this book. For the past 14 years, I have been an Executive Leadership Development Consultant for IBM--and last year, I also authored a book on leadership. Although we have books that compete for your money and attention, I don't hesitate to recommend a book that espouses what I too see as not only good leadership but the type of leadership required for any organization to realize its potential in the 21st Century. CAPT. (ret) Marquet's "Leader-Leader Model" builds organizational capability, strengthens people's confidence, and "emancipates...the inherent genius, energy, and creativity of all" within the any organization. Turn The Ship Around, is an easy read with provocative questions to stimulate your thinking and stories that clearly model just how he did it--and provide the insights necessary for you to "Turn YOUR Ship" around.

This is one of the best friggin' business books I have ever read. Like, "Good To Great" level good. I'm a technology consultant, and will be utilizing a ton of the syntax and techniques in my own practice going forward. Crack this thing open and buckle-up for a fascinating ride.

I had the honor of hearing David Marquet speak in Clearwater Fl. I immediately ordered 15 copies Turn the Ship Around for the management team at our company. I am a true believer in the leader leader concept and the book tells you how to make it happen in your organization. The book is filled with great examples of how the principles were applied on board a submarine and each chapter ends with great thought provoking questions. As a management team we are reading the book and discussing the questions as a group. At the end of the day the book is how to empower everyone in the organization to be leader and move the organization forward!

The real world application of the leader- leader philosophy with the pitfalls and success along the way made it an easy read. It's not just another book on leadership, it reads more like a novel as you come to know the people involved through a great personal journey. Definitely has me re-evaluating the way my business performs

Many moons ago I worked as a test engineer on the ADCAP MK-48, so it was good to hear of the successful shots!

In the corporate world we have a lot of buzzwords and catch-phrases that reference "empowerment". There's little to no info on how to actually implement it so it largely remains a nebulous concept. This book provides very practical guidance on how leaders can instill a sense of responsibility and ownership in their teams. I highly recommend.

Whether you're a staff member, mid-level manager, or CEO, this book has lessons for everyone. Captain Marquet weaves the story of his submarine experience throughout these lessons on improving life and work. His story can be transferred to almost any organization, and he provides a step-by-step plan on how he accomplished turning the worst submarine in the navy into the best.

The author outlines, waved into the story of his command, how to implement a leader-leader structure for operational excellence. Replacing command and control with empowerment and emancipation seems counterintuitive, but is efficient when competence, clarity and control are taken care of.

If you are tired as me on reading management books that give you that dust in the mouth and put you to sleep, you need to pick this up and give it a read. Short chapters, snapping, and you can actually put it into practice. Be careful, you might even enjoy yourself and learn something knew.

I am finding that the newest business techniques are simplistic in nature, but difficult to pull off. Take TPS for example, the tools and practices are simple, easy to understand. However, how many companies have attempted them only to fail? Many of the reasons for failure are rooted in what this book is about....trusting, empowering, and getting out of the way of your people to make improvements. The leader-follower model is what I was raised in and find it natural to follow those principles. However, much more can be accomplished within the leader-leader model. Great book...I like the small chapters so you can stop and think about what was presented. I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because I wanted more detailed examples. Maybe we will get them in the new book coming out in May.

I just finished "Turn the Ship Round." As a former Navy officer I thoroughly enjoyed the trip down memory lane. I have read many leadership books since my Navy days - Covey, Lencioni, Maxwell, Collins, etc., but this was the most practical I have read.

I have spent years unlearning some of the leadership training and modeling I had in the Navy as a junior officer. While I value highly my experience and leadership training from the Navy, I have known all along that much of what I learned was not great leadership and certainly did not translate in the civilian world.

This book really brought a smile to my face as I learn that someone had the courage to take on tradition and impact the Navy way of leading for the better. Plus, David's principles are so transferable to the civilian world. I am a pastor now and churches need strong leaders. But the leader-follower model I learned in the Navy does not translate in an organization made up primarily of volunteers. Thanks for giving me a new way to think about leadership.

This book is about results and how to achieve them. Moving away from a traditional top-down management style towards one where responsibility is pushed down as low as possible, the author demonstrates how this leader-leader style creates more engagement at all levels.

It is useful to be familiar with Covey's seven habits, since this a useful expansion.

Upon relieving as Engineer aboard a 688 I quickly realized I needed some perspective on how to effectively lead such a dynamic group of people. Many engineers run their departments with themselves at the center but that was not my desire. Turn the Ship Around has provided me the insights and tools that I need to develop my department into a leader-leader model that is in-line with the overall command philosophy.

I've been implementing "I intend to" in our small business and it quickly reveals weaknesses in our training and knowledge. When I ask "why didn't you come to me with an 'I intend to' I sometimes hear "I don't know how or what..." Points out deficits in knowledge and training.

Great story of how a US Navy submarine was "turned around" by implementing a 'leader-leader' management model instead of the typical 'leader-follower' model. Apart from the management lessons to be drawn from the book it's also a fascinating look at the inner workings of a navy submarine and the workings of the US Navy more generally. I came away highly impressed by the professionalism and attention to detail that is instilled in the sailors.

This book is amazing and can teach any manager anywhere how to create a better and more effective workplace.

But more than that, it's an utterly fascinating read. David Marquet's story of assuming command on the worst submarine in the American navy and turning it around to become the best is engrossing and reads more like a thriller than a business book. I found myself reading chapter after chapter, simply because I wanted to know what happened next.

There are deep insights in this book about leadership and about getting your people to perform at their very best level. Read it!

For the last couple of years, I have been wracking my brain trying to remember where I read the story of the submarine commander who managed to convert the "worst ship in the navy" into one of the best ships. I remembered that the story was an interview by the author of the book and that he was intrigued by the way every sailor on the ship would approach his leader with the words, "It is my intention to . . ." I flipped through all the books on my shelf that logically might have that story within and couldn't find it. Frustration! Then, three weeks ago, I was reading a leadership blog and there it was! The original book I had been reading was the 2004 Stephen R. Covey book, The 8th Habit and the interview was with L. David Marquet, Captain of the USS Santa Fe. And now, Captain Marquet had written his own book, Turn the Ship Around. What a find, and what a relief.

Marquet's book lives up to my expectations. In clear, conversational writing, he relates an interesting story of life onboard a Navy submarine while at the same time providing excellent leadership principles for all of us. The context for the story is, of course, a military environment. And that provides for excitement as well as a stark contrast from the authoritarian command and control we imagine the military to be and the "give control away" goal the author instilled. At every opportunity, Marquet finds ways to make us think about the translation from shipboard to private sector work.

The book is broken into four parts: Starting Over, Control, Competence and Clarity. Each part comprises several chapters and at the end of each chapter is a list of "Questions to consider." These questions take the reader from the submarine to their own environment and help drive home the messages. "Starting Over" relays the story of how Marquet decided to turn leadership upside down. He decided that the Leader-Follower construct simply doesn't work for building a scalable and sustainable organization. "Control" introduces the mechanisms that the Santa Fe team devised to implement a new Leader-Leader paradigm. "Competence" introduces very interesting mechanisms for strengthening technical competencies. Take deliberate action and we learn all the time are but two examples. And "Clarity" introduces mechanisms to further the Leader-Leader implementation by achieving excellence, not just error avoidance, building trust with your people, using legacy for inspiration and guiding principles for decision criteria among others.

Turn the Ship Around is a must read book for any person aspiring to build a scalable, lasting organization. I especially recommend that entrepreneurs take this excellent Leader-Leader model seriously. Think about it, if you're building a business from scratch and you intend to "someday enjoy life," how will you do that if you teach people to follow you as the leader? When will they be able to make decisions without you? No, building an organization with Leader-Leader in mind is the only way to make sure you will have a life. Giving orders is fun. Not being able to leave your business or having it die when you do is not fun. Building value even if you suspect your company will be purchased by a larger organization means that the acquiring company gets a real leadership team. If YOU are the only leader, your organization is greatly diminished. I highly recommend that every business leader, entrepreneur and employee read this book and practice its principles in business and in life.

My employer is transitioning to a agile servant leader operating model and this book illustrates some of the challenges and payoffs of the new model. This book helped me to see the principles in action. It was a quick and fun read for me.

This book is quick to read and straight-forward. It provides insightful ideas without getting mired in mumbo-jumbo about corporations and businesses, which is what I liked most. It's told from someone who has lived it and successfully implemented the leader-leader model. Definitely read this book of you are looking to make positive change within your school/organization.

Still thinking about this weeks after reading it. This is a story of innovation that survived the crucible of experience and shaped the careers-- and lives-- of good, fine men that are still leading today. The story of getting some cans of oil stunned both my husband and I, but more stunning still was the SOF retrieval. Absolutely incredible.
I am convinced that a man is something you build. Marquet's story is the finest secular construction account I have read, and the value he places on those he is building shows throughout the story. You know people-- journeymen and experts both-- who need this book.

Great story about leadership and how it can apply to a military service/business that is staunchly entrenched in a certain way of doing things, and how empowering others can not only allow the leader to lead, but can actually mean more productivity and results. Highly recommend!

This book and the method it describes is a recipe for creating empowerment throughout any organization. It is a helpful time capsule showing how this method develops and what stumbling blocks you might face as you deploy it. Highly recommended!

David Marquet eloquently chronicles his ideas and implementation of a Leader-Leader human engagement model that not only had immediate and dramatic benefits to his crew of 135 on a LA class Nuclear submarine, but also let to a unprecedented level of continuous success for the careers of his crew.

The book is not only well written but also achieves the necessary de-contextualizing in order that others can apply the ideas, insights and methods to their specific situations. You must deeply believe in people and their natural desires of everyone to control and influence their contribution in life.

If you follow David's leadership ideas described here, in any context, I believe you will experience dramatic results and have a much happier crew.

CEO of Pythian
Andrew Waitman

Loved this book! I read it through the library, then purchased it. My copy is full of highlights and notes. Definitely recommend the kindle edition. This book is on my books to recommend to friends in leadership.

This book made it evident that most people in power need to rethink the way they run their ship. The author gives great mini stories as to how these lessons applied to his journey at sea. Of course they don't all apply to the business world, but certainly make you ponder how you can implement them. I highly recommend this book, especially to college students leading teams in the classroom.

Loved this book! I read it through the library, then purchased it. My copy is full of highlights and notes. Definitely recommend the kindle edition. This book is on my books to recommend to friends in leadership.

This book made it evident that most people in power need to rethink the way they run their ship. The author gives great mini stories as to how these lessons applied to his journey at sea. Of course they don't all apply to the business world, but certainly make you ponder how you can implement them. I highly recommend this book, especially to college students leading teams in the classroom.

I think this is one of the most useful leadership books I have read. While all the examples are navy references the examples are concrete and specific enough that the reader can make her or his own inferences. I highly recommend this book.

This book was full of surprises. I saw the interview with the author first and was looking forward to read the book. Even though I thought what the book be all about it was a pleasant surprise reading it.
The book is structured chronologically outlining a few approaches that didn't work, these were as valuable as the approaches that did work.

I admire the author, implementing his leader-leader approach under pretty much the toughest and not necessarily easy receptive circumstances, within the US Navy, he made it work. I think there are many lessons to learn with the focus being on excellence but not excellence on the leader instead it's about excellence achieving results of everyone involved.
Enjoyable read with highly applicable and useful approaches

A great read...military and industry leaders and managers will recognize various pieces of the leader-leader approach from their own experience. David did a wonderful job in real time, during his command tour in recognizing, and more importantly articulating key human performance/error reduction tools and very effective means to develop teamwork and employee ownership of outcomes. All of this is directly applicable to manager and supervisor development in production/operational organizations. I look forward to hearing more success stories as the leader-leader approach takes hold.

George E. Manaskie
Captain, USN (retired)

I bought this book immediately after meeting David and hearing him speak. David tells the fascinating story of how he enfranchised the crew of one of the US Navy's worst performing ships to turn the ship around. I admire David for his courage to implement the leader-leader management processes in an environment where command and control is not only the norm, it is embedded in the rules. I envy David's opportunity to put theories and his thinking to the test in a real life "test tube"; the closed environment of a nuclear powered submarine where the 135 sailors spend six months living very closely in a 110 metre long submarine. Not all the lessons will be appropriate to your organisation but you will probably be surprised how many of them you could use. Read the book, use his advice and if you get a chance to hear David, take it.

I tend to 'chain-read' on a particular subject (in this case; leadership as explained in human bio terms) I started with 'Leaders Eat Last' , then 'Start with Why' both by Simon Sinek. I felt that these books were theory based to a large extent (many variables). 'Turn This Ship Around' by David Marquet is the most practical/real-world operational manual that put Sinek's theories into play. I recommend all three as a set.

This book is a great book for business leaders looking for new ideas to improve their organization. It's an easy read and well organized for notes on key ideas. I plan to take some of these ideas back to my organization.

As an employee, you can see things from a managers side. It makes you question things at your organization and also makes you think what how you would approach being a manager. Great way to think on another level than where you at.

A demonstration of real leadership and it's success in a challenging environment. Very motivating for those at all levels. Demonstrates how people don't need to be "led" if they're allowed to take the initiative and control their own jobs