Leading with Questions

Giving advice on the art and manner of asking the right questions at the right time could seem pretentious, given that the relevance of a question obviously depends on a thousand parameters that are difficult to define in advance. Yet, it works. By adding successive touches and constantly alternating concrete examples and theoretical thinking, Michael Marquardt manages to convince us that the art of leading with questions is not a God-given gift bestowed upon a happy few, but a remarkably effective tool that any manager can acquire.
Identifying the most valuable chapters is difficult, since the interest of the book lies primarily in the innumerable small tips and comments scattered throughout the pages. However, the central principles involved in asking the right questions are summarized in chapter 4, which can thus serve as an introduction for a rapid read. Chapter 5, devoted to the ""art of asking questions,"" describes a concrete application of these key principles.
Readers specifically interested in the concept of leading with questions should go directly to chapters 7 and 8, which lay out the principles and show how to turn them into an efficient tool for guiding behavior and unifying teams. Chapter 6 provides a complementary description of the risk of conflict between leading with questions and the predominant company values, and suggests ways to resolve these conflicts.