Book excerpt: People can learn how to lead. This was the position John H. Zenger and Joseph R.Folkman took when they wrote their now-classicleadership book The Extraordinary Leader—and it’sa fact they reinforce in this new, completely updatededition of their bestseller. When it was first published, The ExtraordinaryLeader immediately attracted a wide audience ofaspiring leaders drawn to its unique feature: theextensive use of scientific studies and hard data,which served to demystify the concept of leadershipand get readers thinking about the subject ina pragmatic way. Now, Zenger and Folkman revisit the subject to addressleaders’ most pressing concerns today. Theresult is an up-to-date, essential leadership guidefor the twenty-first century that includes: Late-breaking research on the psychologyof leadership New information on leading in a globalenvironment A breakthrough case study on measuringimproved leadership behavior Studies revealing the importance offollow-through The Extraordinary Leader is a remarkable combinationof expert insight and extensive research.The authors analyzed more than 200,000 assessmentsdescribing 20,000 managers—by far themost expansive research ever conducted for a leadershipbook. Zenger and Folkman have created the leadershipbook of the ages. The Extraordinary Leader explainshow to build leadership skills that will take you andyour organization to unimagined success.