Why This Book & Why Now

Today’s leaders aren’t failing because they don’t care or aren’t trying hard enough. In fact, most are working harder than ever. But they’re doing so in an environment that feels increasingly unforgiving – where employees are stretched thin and disengaged, customers are more informed and less loyal, and expectations from boards, investors, and markets keep rising.

At the same time, strategy is moving at breakneck speed but culture struggles to keep up. Decisions have to be made faster, with less certainty, and under constant pressure to deliver short-term results. In that kind of environment, even well-intentioned leaders can find themselves reacting instead of leading, prioritizing urgency over impact, and solving the wrong problems at exactly the wrong moments.

The real challenge isn’t effort. It’s how leaders think, decide, and set priorities when the pressure is on, and how habits quietly shape employee experience, customer trust, and long-term results.

In Obsessed, you’ll discover:

• The four leadership archetypes that determine whether organizations stagnate or scale
• Why Customer-Centricity fails without the right leadership behaviors
• How Customer-Driven Leaders align strategy, culture, habits and execution
• Practical examples from well-known companies that got it right…and wrong

This book is for leaders who don’t just want to react to the market – they want to shape it. Featuring collaboration and key insights with over a dozen experts in leadership, employee experience and customer experience including:

• Robert Hogan, Ph.D.
• Shep Hyken
• Annette Franz
• Professor Rob Markey
• Tom DeWitt, Ph.D.
• Mark Slatin
• Nick Glimsdahl
• Lou Carbone
• Bruce Temkin
• and many more!

Where Does Your Support Go?

My publisher (Manuscripts Press) gave me a publishing team to help me produce and launch my book. I am working with…

• A revisions editor, copy editor, and proofreader to further hone my book (when you buy a ticket for my launch, you’ll get early excerpts and access to earlier versions of my manuscript!)
• A marketing specialist to coach and support me in marketing efforts, and help me reach new audiences
• A cover artist and layout editor will be designing my book. The mockups you see are just a placeholder. Early readers will get to help me choose the final cover design!

I am also offering some exclusive rewards for people who buy a ticket to my book launch:

• All tickets include either a physical copy (softcover, paperback) or digital copy (ebook) when I publish and a handwritten thank-you note.
• Your name will appear in the Acknowledgments section of my book (“with Special Thanks to”).
• You will be invited to join my Author Community and get behind-the-scenes sneak peeks into the publishing process.
• You will receive early access to the Introduction and some excerpts from my book, with the opportunity to review it and give me early feedback.
• You will have the opportunity to be involved in finalizing my cover and title.
• And more!

Other Ways You Can Support Me

If you cannot contribute, you can still help me with reach and exposure!

• Please share my pre-sale campaign on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn with your friends, family and network.
• Please recommend my book to five (5) friends, family members, or co-workers who you think would enjoy it via text or direct message on social media.

Thank you so much for all of your love and support!

Warm Regards,

James

A Personal Note: I wrote Obsessed for leaders who care deeply about performance but refuse to sacrifice people or customers to get there. If you believe leadership should create value for customers, employees, and the business at the same time, I’d be honored to have you as a Founding Sponsor & Reader.

Author Bio

James H. Killian, Ph.D. is an internationally recognized expert on the topics of talent assessment, leadership development, organizational culture, employee experience (EX) and customer experience (CX). He has served as a strategic growth and global revenue leader for over 25 years in high-impact roles at industry leading firms such as Qualtrics, SAP, IBM and Hogan Assessment Systems. James has also led several startups and turnaround assignments to record growth and helped achieve 1 IPO and 5 business acquisitions at multiples.

As founder of The Customer-Driven Leader© management framework, and author of the upcoming book “Obsessed: Cultivating the Customer-Driven Leader,” Dr. Killian’s focus is on organizational health through leadership activation. His proprietary methodology focuses on core leadership teams, measuring and improving how they work together toward achieving business imperatives. From this assessment, he works with clients to expose gaps related to leadership, culture and team dynamics, allow for interventions and leader accountabilities toward factors such as people, systems, technologies, process and workflow in order to remove friction and derailing behaviors that impede businesses from exceeding their potential.

Throughout his career, James has advised leaders of the world’s best-known brands such as Amazon, Apple, Disney, Expedia Group, L-Brands, Meta, Netflix, Nike, Starbucks and Visa to diagnose and improve EX and CX programs, talent management and leadership development programs that lead to measurable, impactful and long-last business outcomes. Dr. Killian is professor practice in the Broad College of Business at Michigan State University, and the author of over 50 published articles, conference presentations and book chapters. He also serves as Managing Partner and strategic advisor for several AI-powered startups and professional services firms. James is passionate about serving as a force multiplier to help leaders, teams, and businesses reach potential they never thought was possible. He resides in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a serious fitness fanatic, foodie and outdoor enthusiast.

Do you have the right stuff? Are you Obsessed? Join Dr. Killian as a Founding Member and get special access to tools and resources that you can use to help your teams create winning habits and conditions for success.

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📚 Frequently Asked Questions