Heart of a Leader

Kristin Harper is CEO of Driven to Succeed, LLC, a leadership development company that provides keynote speaking and brand consulting for businesses, organizations, colleges and high achieving individuals around the world. Kristin built her career at Procter & Gamble, The Hershey Company, and Cardinal Health, a $120B Fortune 15 healthcare company. She’s known for building successful brands including Crest®, Oral-B®, and Hershey’s KISSES®, and helping people accelerate their careers.

Harper, CEO of the leadership development company Driven to Succeed, covers the “what” and “how” of successful business leadership in her helpful debut. Using case studies based on her experience working for such companies as Proctor & Gamble, Hershey’s, and Coca Cola, she covers 12 skills one needs to be a successful leader—social awareness, emotional self-control, positive outlook, adaptability, and conflict management, among others. Her advice is organized into 52 leadership and emotional intelligence insights and includes tips on how to “control the controllable,” “prosper where you’re planted,” and “extend grace.” She also covers navigating office politics and personalities, getting along with one’s boss, establishing a 90-day plan for starting a new job or taking on a new role, the importance of self-management, and how to deal with disappointment. For instance, in order to “cultivate influence” within one’s office, she recommends developing and pitching plans, soliciting feedback, and using the information to align the interests of others within the office. Useful tables, lists, and practice scripts round things out. This action-oriented guide will be useful to anyone looking to climb the corporate ladder.