Hardwired Humans

by Andrew O'Keeffe

Offices are not our natural habitat. Leadership is easier when we understand the nine instincts that still drive human behaviour.

With the Industrial Revolution only 250 years ago, we left our hunting, gathering and village societies to work in offices and factories. The behaviour that ensured our ancestors’ survival on the savannah plains of Africa over the millennia is alive and well in today’s workplaces. The nine instincts explain the reasons, and the solutions, to the challenges that leaders commonly face.

Based on the author’s wide experience in large organisations combined with witty true stories of chimps from Gombe, Tanzania and Taronga Zoo, Sydney, Hardwired Humans explains the psychology behind the human instincts of social behaviour.

As you read this entertaining book, you will learn how the instincts of clan connections, hierarchy, gossip, politics, snap judgments, status displays and sexual competition continue to drive modern office interactions just as they have driven human interaction for millennia.

The book shares a practical framework that helps makes sense of human behaviour and allows leaders to manage more effectively.

244 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2012

About the author

Andrew O'Keeffe has been observing bosses for many years. He's worked for
bosses, and he's been a boss. As a senior human resources executive, Andrew has worked closely with a range of bosses in diverse companies over his career. He was employed by an IBM, Cable & Wireless Optus, Sinclair Knight Merz and Hewitt Associates. Early in his career, he worked in industrial relations in the mining and manufacturing industries.

Andrew grew up in Broken Hill, Australia and studied economics and labor relations the University of Sydney. He lives in Sydney, Australia and consults in
the human dimension of organizations. He specializes in aligning leadership
practice to human instincts.

In October 2008 Andrew joined the famous chimpanzee researcher, Dr. Jane
Goodall to present to business audiences in Australia and New Zealand on the leadership lessons of our instinctive hardwiring. Dr. Goodall spoke about the lessons from her studies of chimpanzees, and Andrew spoke on them regarding our human hardwiring.

Reviews

[Clare Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the key to understanding human behaviour in the office context. From the inevitably negative response to any proposed changed, to the work performance of small teams vs large, the answers are here. Clear and concise, this book is an easy read with extraordinary insight.

[Sandra Wood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! It was so interesting and so practical and helped make sense of a lot of human behaviour. I think it's a 'must read' for all leaders.