Making the Grass Greener on Your Side

In this somewhat self-serving title, the CEO of the Toro Company tells how he pulled the Fortune 500 lawn products corporation out of an earnings crisis by empowering employees to participate in its management. Drawing inspiration from Robert Greenleaf's Servant Leadership, Melrose fostered a corporate culture he defined as ``pride in excellence,'' in which employee teams set goals, solved problems, made decisions, assumed accountability and ultimately realized their potential as individuals. The process allowed for taking risks and granted freedom to fail and try again. One success attributed to team effort was a golf course irrigation system that conserves water. The book is divided into four sections, each of which represents a stage in the growth process of servant leadership. With frequent references to soil, seed, turf and harvest, Melrose advises corporate leaders to impart a company vision along with motivation, channels of communication and a participatory, family-like environment in order to succeed in today's market. (Oct.)