Ebury Press's Adam Grant wins CMI Management Book of the Year

Originals by Adam Grant, published by Ebury Press imprint W H Allen, has won the Chartered Management Institute’s (CMI) Management Book of the Year.

The book, which examines how people can champion new ideas and how leaders can fight groupthink, was awarded the £5,000 top prize by the CMI on Monday night (6th February). More than 150 books were entered into the competition.

The book first won the "Innovation and Entrepreneurship" category, for best inspiring innovation, before taking the ultimate prize. In Originals, Grant champions novel ideas over outdated traditions, as backed up by case studies spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, and explores how to recognise a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt.

Ann Francke, chief executive of CMI, said: “Originals is a timely winner, offering valuable lessons for leaders and managers as they face up to the challenges and opportunities of Brexit. We need to change the old default ways of doing business, and this book will help you to do plenty of original thinking to stay competitive. I also congratulate our other winners for their highly topical insights into the art of negotiation, business ethics and boosting productivity – all are essential reads for today's uncertain business and political climate.”

Grant said: “It’s a tremendous honour to win CMI’s Management Book of the Year. Originals is about how to champion new ideas and fight groupthink - a topic that matters today more than ever for leaders and managers, not to mention politicians. I thank CMI, the judges and everyone involved with the competition for this recognition.”

This themes of this year’s five category winners were said to "reflect prevailing business interests as the UK edges towards Brexit", including the art of negotiation, forecasting, business ethics, innovation and improving productivity.

The Negotiation Book by Steve Gates (Wiley, Capstone) won the award for "Practical Manager" category, for offering the best practical insights or guidance to help practising managers in their work; Superforecasting by Philip Tetlock and Dan Gardner (Random House Books) won the "Management Futures" category, for offering "valuable insight into the future of management"; How to be REALLY Productive by Grace Marshall (Pearson) best served commuters and retained their attention on a management and leadership topic according to the judges to win the "Commuter's Read" category and The Origins of Ethical Failures by Dennis Gentilin (Routledge) best supported a course of study on a management and leadership topic, according to the judges, to win the "Management and Leadership Textbook" category.

Grant's book was selected by judges Patrick Dunne, chairman of the EY Foundation, Andy Rubin, chairman of Pentland Brands, Professor Rebecca Taylor, executive dean of the business faculty at The Open University, Delroy Beverley, chairman at Bradford University School of Management and Diane Lees, director general of the Imperial War Museums.