There’s a new excerpt up on our Excerpts Blog. The excerpt is taken from Divide or Conquer: How Great Teams Turn Conflict into Strength by Diana McLain Smith. This chapter examines the the Steve Jobs/John Sculley breakup at Apple in the 1980s, a conflict that nearly destroyed the company.

The story begins:

More than 20 years have passed since Steve Jobs and John Sculley’s much-publicized breakup at Apple. Yet it still serves as a cautionary tale. In two short years, their celebrated camaraderie turned into an antagonism so great it escalated hostilities between divisions, put the firm at risk of a takeover, and sent Steve Jobs into a 12-year exile, from which the firm has only recently recovered. How these leaders went from soul mates to adversaries in such a short time shows how relationships, even those touted as a perfect match, can self-destruct under pressure, leaving a firm to pay the formidable price of a failed relationship.

This case study is one of many found in Divide or Conquer. From the publisher: “Smith shows us how to build work relationships that are flexible and strong enough to survive the toughest challenges… This book will break the myth that relationships are too mysterious to decode and too difficult to change. It offers powerful tools that can help anyone, from new recruits to CEOs.”
Here’s a direct link to the excerpt: http://800ceoread.com/excerpts/archives/008261.html