Shaping the Future
Four Leadership Pivots for Lasting Educational Impact
- Lyle Kirtman - CEO & Founder, Future Management Systems, Inc.
Elevate your leadership to inspire lasting change and student success.
Public education is facing an unprecedented crisis. Exhausted educators are leaving the profession in record numbers, while persistent systemic issues and polarizing debates distract from the core mission of education—student success. Shaping the Future offers educational leaders a compelling guide to meet these challenges head-on and transform their leadership approach to improve outcomes for students and staff alike.
Grounded in original research and rich experience in over 400 school districts, Lyle Kirtman introduces four pivotal leadership shifts to align vision, leadership practices, and student success. Additional features include:
- Practical frameworks and real-world examples demonstrating how to overcome persistent barriers in workforce challenges and accountability
- Strategies to integrate diversity and social emotional learning into goals and actions for academic excellence
- Reflection tools, case studies, and step-by-step guidance to help you act immediately and effectively in your unique context.
This book equips leaders with tools to address misalignment in improvement strategies, low morale, and the retention crisis, while reigniting a collective focus on student achievement. Shaping the Future is more than a leadership guide—it’s a solution-driven call to action for anyone dedicated to sustaining public education and unlocking the potential of every learner.
Lyle Kirtman not only has deep experience in many facets of education, but he also has a unique ability to think both quantitatively and qualitatively. In Shaping the Future, Kirtman provides actionable strategies to for creating sustainable student success and empowered educational teams.
Shaping the Future is a powerful guide for educators seeking to create a culture of high expectations. By focusing on individual student needs, fostering a supportive environment, and building community partnerships, Kirtman provides a practical and inspiring roadmap. This book is a must-read for education leaders committed to student success.
Shaping the Future provides educational leaders with sound and practical advice on how to shift their work so that they can meet the needs of their students and staff and stay relevant. For leaders who seek to lead rather than react to change, this book is essential reading.
Kirtman makes the thoughtful and crucial case for shifting our thinking and practice for the good of all students. It is not for a lack of trying that American public education has not moved the needle on student success - but we need a new north star and this book is a great beginning.
Kirtman cuts through the noise of the times, providing us with very relevant, practical, researched-based steps to help lead and shape the futures of those we serve. He captures the moment we are in and gives us a roadmap to rediscover our north star, thereby guiding us to lead our schools through these rough seas to safer shores.
Kirtman focuses on two things that matter the most to educators, simplifying the work and empowering, collaborative leadership. This book is an excellent resource for school leaders seeking a path to success. By pivoting as he suggests, everyone wins.
Shaping the Future challenges us to rethink what effective leadership looks like and who we trust to lead. By uncovering biases that limit innovation and emphasizing traits like persistence, flexibility, and intrinsic accountability, Kirtman offers a bold framework to align leadership with student success. This book isn’t just a guide—it’s a wake-up call to build schools where everyone rises.
Kirtman is a genius. He gets inside the weeds of organizational change. Not only does he extricate us from the constraints for change, he liberates us from the daily grind. If you want novel, high leverage levers for changing cultures using existing hidden forces this is the book for you.
Shaping the Future empowers educational leaders with practical and equity-driven guidance to transform their work in ways that address the diverse needs of students and staff. The insights offered are both compelling and actionable, reflecting Kirtman’s deep understanding that effective leadership requires clarity, preparation, and a willingness to rethink traditional approaches.