Diana's Leadership Qualities

In this section of the book, we see Diana as the hero of the tale. She recognizes the merit of her ideas even though the upper management of Squirrel, Inc. doesn't. The current leaders of the corporation are threatened by change even though it is clear that their model of nut burying isn't working. Rather than explore new ideas, they fire Diana and cling to their old ways.

Meanwhile, Diana isn't disheartened by the firing. She realizes that even if Squirrel, Inc. isn't willing to try her way of doing things, she can find others who will. She uses the firing as a chance to start her own company. The difficult journey to the Windy City represents what it must be like to start a career. Diana demonstrates her toughness on this journey, and when she arrives she reaps her reward. Her reputation has preceded her, and the other squirrels listen eagerly as she turns her story into a motivational speech. Adversity has made her stronger.

I think Diana's sex may have caused extra difficulties for her. The upper management at Squirrel, Inc. may not have been receptive to her ideas because she is female. Even the narrator, who is largely sympathetic, expresses doubts about her ability to make the journey.
When Diana fights off the Doberman, she is exhibiting distinctly unfeminine traits. Such aggression is often admired in men but frowned upon in women. But maybe the discrimination Diana faces as a female has made her even stronger.

Denning - Part 3

The last section of Squirrels, Inc. was interesting. Although the format of the story is almost identical to Who Moved My Cheese?, the story's ending was reminiscent of the excitement in Dan Brown's The DaVinci Code (in my opinion). Essentially, Diana learned how to be an effective communicator and work with others in an organization through her own struggle. It was not that she was so personable and just had a knack for making things work well; she had to wrestle with working with different people and their ideologies and with her own.

Like any good writer, Denning set the scene for the story through each character's narrative. Each narrative collided in Part 3 and showed how Diana's thought process changed from one in which she was looking for a formula to success to considering all the factors each character discussed and making wise choices from that. I really enjoyed the book, and it was a quick read.