Mastering Organizational Politics
If there's one skill that far too many CIOs are missing, it's the fine art of mastering organizational politics. Not the backbiting kind but those informal, behind-the-scenes efforts that smart executives use to sell their ideas, influence company direction and increase their power base.

Doing all that with integrity, honesty and decent behavior is what psychologists Rick Brandon and Marty Seldman spell out in Survival of the Savvy. They keep the psychobabble to a minimum as they supply examples and how-to scenarios in chapters such as "Ethical Lobbying," "Know the Corporate Buzz" and "Address Hidden Agendas." Particularly useful is their advice on how to assess your own political style -- and then put it to better use. (Free Press , $26, 320 pages)

This was first published in May 2005