American technology may be experiencing a renaissance, but its CEOs' reading tastes aren't going to force booksellers to stock up on more Montaigne and Shakespeare. A SALON survey revealed that few captains of digital capitalism have the time to immerse themselves in the pleasures of great literature. Here's a list of books they are currently toting around in their briefcases:
Lewis Platt, CEO, Hewlett-Packard :
"Profit From Experience: The National Semiconductor Story of Transformation Management" by Gil Amelio.
Trip Hawkins, CEO, 3DO :
"How to Win Friends and Influence People" by Dale Carnegie
"The Goal" and "It's Not Luck" by Elijahu Goldratt
"Iron John" by Robert Bly
"Rising Sun" by Michael Crichton
"The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success" by Deepak Chopra
"Being Digital" by Nicholas Negroponte
"Dave Barry's Guide to Guys" by Dave Barry
"Neuromancer" by William Gibson
"Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson
Doug Carlston, CEO, Broderbund
"Alchemy of Finance: Soros on Soros" by George Soros.
"Tour of the Calculus" by D. Berlinski
"The Maltese Falcon" by Dashiel Hammett
Scott McNealy, CEO, Sun Microsystems :
Prefers periodicals to books: "Forbes, Fortune, InfoWorld, PCWeek -- you know, the usual."
Bud Colligan, CEO, MacroMedia :
"Sacred Hoops" by Phil Jackson
"Rainmaker" by John Grisham
"Being Digital" by Nicholas Negroponte
"Building Brand Identity" by Lynn B. Upshaw
"Inner Simplicity" by Elaine St. James
Mitch Kapor, Lotus founder :
"A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and "Promises of Spiritual Life" by Jack Kornfield
"The Same River Twice" by Alice Walker
"The Good Life and its Discontents" by Robert Samuelson
"A Brief History of Everything," by Ken Wilbur
By Cynthia Joyce
Cynthia Joyce has been a writer, editor and Web producer for 20 years. A former Arts and Entertainment editor for Salon, she lives in Oxford, Mississippi, and teaches journalism at the University of Mississippi.
Shares