What executives are reading in 2019

We still know what you’re reading this summer

Our annual leadership reading list is back and updated for 2021.

We have books on the brain, with the recent release of the Financial Times–McKinsey Business Book of the Year long list.1 (See coverage of last year’s winner, Bad Blood, on our blog, and check back December 3, when the 2019 award is given.) There’s inspiration aplenty in the selections, which offer compelling insights on topics crucial to business today. But we also wanted to see what CEOs and other business leaders are keeping on their shelves or tucking into their suitcases—consider it food for thought in picking your next read. Read on for selections from leaders at Novartis, PayPal, Walmart, and more.

Doug McMillon, CEO, Walmart

Doug McMillon
Doug McMillon

Meg Whitman, CEO, Quibi

Meg Whitman
Meg Whitman

Jørgen Vig Knudstorp, executive chairman, LEGO Brand Group

Jørgen Vig Knudstorp
Jørgen Vig Knudstorp

Jonathan Franzen is one of the great authors of our times. His latest is a nonfiction collection that, among other things, argues for reading and writing essays (in contrast to reading quick messages, social media, and brief news stories).

Salman Khan, founder and CEO, Khan Academy

Salman Khan
Salman Khan

Jacqui Canney, chief people officer, WPP

Jacqui Canney
Jacqui Canney

Andrew Penn, CEO and managing director, Telstra Corporation

Andrew Penn
Andrew Penn

I found Architects of Intelligence incredibly interesting and helpful in understanding AI and its potential, where we are in the development cycle and different perspectives on the good and evil of it.

Dan Schulman, president and CEO, PayPal

Dan Schulman
Dan Schulman

Strive Masiyiwa, founder, executive chairman, Econet

Strive Masiyiwa
Strive Masiyiwa

Joerg Reinhardt, PhD, chairman, Novartis

Joerg Reinhardt
Joerg Reinhardt

Beth Comstock, former vice chair, General Electric; author, Imagine It Forward: Courage, Creativity, and the Power of Change

Beth Comstock
Beth Comstock

Jesper Jos Olsson, group CEO and founding partner, White Peak Real Estate

Jesper Jos Olsson
Jesper Jos Olsson

Richard Plepler, founder, RLP & Company; former chairman and CEO, HBO

Richard Plepler
Richard Plepler

Sarah Friar, CEO, Nextdoor

Sarah Friar
Sarah Friar

I try to read 52 books a year, so the issue is what to choose!

Kevin Sneader, global managing partner, McKinsey & Company

Kevin Sneader
Kevin Sneader