Bookshelf

Alumni and faculty members who would like to have their books considered for this listing should contact Stacey Himmelberger, editor of Hamilton magazine. This list, which dates back to 2018, is updated periodically with books appearing alphabetically on the date of entry.

Hope at Work: 5 Principles to Breathe Life into Your Organization by Harry Hutson ’69 and Barbara Perry.

June 19, 2026

Tags Alumni Book

(Armin Lear Press, 2026).

“Hope’ has become a soft word in a hard time, often treated like a sentiment, a slogan, or worse, a distraction. Hope is real, and especially now really needed — at work. Across industries, regions, and sectors (including higher education), there is a pattern: People are dispirited, cautious, and lying low. Not because they lack gumption, but because they doubt whether their efforts will lead to something better — and because the world is presenting unforeseen fractures and unknowable forecasts.”

So notes Hutson, a leadership development professional who works with organizations worldwide, as a coach, consultant, and educator. In this book, the authors argue that hope is a disciplined and daily leadership practice that can be built, measured, and sustained. They introduce five principles — possibility, agency, worth, openness, and connection — that restore belief in a better future, increase willingness to act, and enhance meaning in and at work.

Connections to Hamilton in the book include A.G. Lafley ’69, former board chair and CEO of P&G; Aron Ain, ’79, trustee and former CEO of Kronos; and President Steven Tepper. The author notes, “Each leader puts hope to work but with a different emphasis. Hope is human, as they say, never formulaic. When it is present, people step forward, take risks, and solve problems that matter. Results follow that are evident to all. Hope is within reach, according to the authors, and what is more, hope belongs close-in and at our side.”