The Black Start Leader Reigniting Power and Purpose When Everything Goes Dark

by Rakes, Dr. Mike; Rakes, Mike

• ISBN13: 9798317809461
• ISBN10: 8317809463
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2025-09-25
• Publisher: BookBaby
• More Book Details
• Purchase Benefits

Summary

Power is not merely about authority or titles; it's about generating energy, transforming potential into action, and transmitting influence across an organization to create real, lasting change.
This book will show you how to use your personal influence, language, and political acumen to create real, lasting change in organizations. Through these pages, readers will explore the distinction between leadership and management and why that matters, the role of communication in creating new realities, and the importance of navigating organizational politics.
Discover how power, like a well-functioning grid, can illuminate new pathways to attain missional success and infuse limitless energy to power your organization for greater impact. By comparing organizations to power grids—vast, interconnected systems that require careful calibration—learn how the leaders in an organization play the role of energy generators which produce the energy that fuels progress, or transformers which channel and adapt energy into specific needs. But without strategic oversight, these systems can falter, leaving organizations in the dark or overloaded with inefficiencies.
At its core, leadership is about power; if your organization is going to move, grow, or serve, its power and energy will come from someone. This book shows you how that someone can be you.

Author Biography

Dr. Mike Rakes is a power thinker, soul shepherd, and cultural architect. He is a seasoned C-suite executive, strategic turnaround leader, and higher education innovator with a track record of revitalizing institutions through visionary leadership and disciplined execution. With two terminal degrees, one in business and one in religion, Dr. Rakes brings a rare blend of executive acumen and values-based leadership to every challenge.
With deep roots in both corporate governance and nonprofit transformation, Dr. Rakes is a sought-after executive coach, consultant, and board advisor for organizations navigating disruption, growth, and mission-critical transitions. He has chaired university boards, served on international governance teams focused on institutional transformation, and led global scholar forums addressing leadership, culture, and societal impact.
As the current President of Evangel University, Dr. Rakes has ushered in a new era of momentum—marked by historic philanthropic and alumni support, a resurgence in enrollment, and bold investments in the university's future.