Book Capsules, July 2025

Strategic Workforce Planning, 2nd Edition
Ross Sparkman
Kogan Page, 380 pp., $45.99

Strategic workforce planning is a proactive, long-term approach that organizations can adopt to ensure they have the right people in place to achieve their strategic goals. The process can be daunting, complex, and technical. This book is a comprehensive and updated guide to explain why strategic planning is necessary and how companies can implement it. The author gives readers remote working strategies, guidance on operational workforce planning, advice on how to incorporate artificial intelligence into business operations, and case studies on workforce planning. Try this book if you're working to align people strategy with company strategy.

Everyday Habits for Transforming Systems
Adam Kahane
Berrett-Koehler, 200 pp., $22.95

The author uses decades of his work with organizational presidents, frontline managers, and grassroots activists to relay seven habits, such as acting responsibly and looking for what you can't see, that empower readers to become change agents. Kahane cites real-world examples to show how adopting the habits has helped spark revolutions, cracked open entrenched systems, brokered peace, and reshaped societies. Such simple actions can help readers collaborate despite deep divides, uncover hidden leverage points, and persevere through setbacks with renewed purpose and energy.