Make Work Work - by Deborah Lovich (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Five daily habits that reduce burnout, build engagement, and create a stronger organization, with no complex programs or HR mandates required.

Burnout is at record levels, and most leadership advice isn't solving it, because it's too complicated, lands on HR teams who can't change daily culture, or simply doesn't stick. This book offers something more useful: 5 simple, repeatable practices that managers, executives, and CEOs can weave into their existing routines right now, across in-person, hybrid, and AI-supported teams.

The 5 practices:

• Recognize good work immediately
• Help your team daily
• Be genuinely curious about people
• Insist on cocreation
• Be the change

These are daily actions grounded in research and built for how work actually happens today, including distributed teams and AI-integrated workflows. Leaders who adopt them create cultures of support that sustain themselves without top-down mandates or expensive rollouts.

This book is for managers frustrated that engagement programs don't stick and for executives who want tools they can use today, not initiatives that take months.

Supporting your people isn't just the right thing to do; it builds more profitable, resilient organizations. Start here.

About the Author

Deborah Lovich is a Managing Director and Senior Partner in the Boston office of Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and a future-of-work fellow in BCG's Henderson Institute. Her TED talk on the future of work has been viewed over 2 million views, and she speaks at 30-40 major industry events annually. Lovich has published extensively in Forbes, Harvard Business Review, MIT Sloan Management Review, and Fortune, and she is a sought-after media expert for The New York Times, Washington Post, Bloomberg, and NPR.