When people ask me, “Hey Karina, what inspired you to write a book?”,  there are two answers I typically give. 

The funny (and truthful) answer is that Teams That Meet The Moment is a midlife crisis book. 😅

A few decades into my career, and 10 years since August was founded, I started wondering: Is it enough to continue helping teams work better every day inside organizations? Or is the wisdom we've gathered worth writing down? 

Then, as it does with these things, the doubt crept in. All the questions that plague someone taking a big step into unfamiliar territory:

“Can it be done?”

Logically, yes. I’m not the first, and certainly won’t be the last, to write a book on teamwork.

“Do you have the time? The energy?” 

Yeah, I think I finally do. August has been wanting to write a book for years, and I feel ready to take on the challenge.

“But wait—can it be done by me?” 

The hardest question of all. But why not me? 

Now, the polished answer (just as truthful, a tad more PR-friendly) is that the August team believes our work is extremely valuable and should reach more people. 

We wanted to take our foundational practices out of the meeting rooms and bring them to anyone, anywhere, who wants to think differently about how they work. 

The best way to do that? A book. 📖

Over the years, there have been many instances of people reaching out—over email, through LinkedIn, and even a chance encounter at my local rec center—to say how our teachings left a lasting impact. 

These small reminders, that our work matters in ways I can't always see, were the final push I needed to quiet the “can I really do this?” voice and get to writing.

With Teams That Meet The Moment, I hope to achieve two main goals. Help people think differently and help people act differently.

The book walks readers through August’s 9 blockbuster practices. The best of the best. The ones that are most essential to teams who are facing challenging times, and that people have told us they continuously come back to.

“I still write a Team Charter.” “I'm always using Even Over.” “It's Work in Progress, right?” “Hey, I did a Retro yesterday.”

If you recognize these terms, chances are you have a similar success story. If you don’t, this might be the book for you.

Teams That Meet The Moment is for anyone who isn’t content with the way things are now. 

It’s for the leader who wants to think differently about what performance looks like. The business book enthusiast seeking out new knowledge and better working practices. The person in the trenches who already knows what needs to change but lacks the steps, language, and strategies.

Not the cynic. Not the person who believes work will always suck. 

This book is for the work optimists. Those who believe there’s a better way to work. 

If that’s you, I hope you'll grab a copy when the book hits shelves in May. Future you, your team, and my midlife crisis self will all thank you. 😉

Karina Mangu-Ward

Partner, August Public