What's a great book? I was asked this question recently, not by someone looking for a book, but by someone who questioned what the Review meant by "Great Books." In literary circles, recommended reading lists exist that enjoy almost uniform acceptance by literary circles. Our list has two fundamental justifications. Promoted engineers need to continue extending their base of knowledge. And, regarding reading resources, there is an excessive amount available and a good filter would be useful.
To the first point, newly minted supervisors and managers require skills and awareness that exceed the scope of a traditional engineering education. The second point is that we believe readers of the Review seek worthwhile information and do not want their time wasted. So much published material exists that the task of separating the useful from the less-than-useful is not trivial. We have not been surprised to find that it takes a ton of tomes to create a "Great Books" list. However small it currently is, done right, it ought to provide a broad representation of available management-related literature. It should also be useful for new employees and office/departmental libraries.
The identification and review process for book suggestions at EMR has found its rhythm. Readers, members of the Board of Governors, and Chapter Chairs are most helpful in suggesting titles for consideration. The list, a bit eclectic, comprises almost anything useful to an engineer's career except engineering. The limitations are few, the books must be in print, complement the managing engineer's traditional education, and satisfy a panel review.
The Review's evaluation is straightforward. Each title is read and evaluated by four or five reviewers. They are asked to rate the book numerically across four categories: breadth of audience, topical relevance, content applicability, and writing quality. Written comments are solicited regarding the book's particular strengths and weaknesses. Quantitative responses are averaged to generate the four iconic assessments, and averaged again to produce an overall rating. The panel's written comments are collected and edited to provide several brief written perspectives. By giving the book a glance through several sets of eyes, we hope to help readers triangulate on the relevance of a given book to their particular needs.
Are they truly great books? Books that come highly recommended to the Review, and also meet the standards of the independent evaluation process, have passed a major hurdle and ought to be considered useful reading for engineering managers. If they do prove to be that useful to our readers, then they must be great books indeed.
There is a growing avalanche of information resources on another front. This fall, the Review will introduce a column reviewing web sites and resources that will interest readers of the Review. Our columnist, Linda Kosmin, has an extensive background in the information and library sciences, and is particularly well-suited for helping the Review tackle this vast array of unfiltered resources. Welcome aboard Linda! I am grateful for your willingness to take on this important new task.