Heroz (which is pronounced exactly like “heroes”) was a follow-up to Zapp with Bill Byham. Like Zapp, it is fiction, but it’s a simple parable about self-empowerment and to a degree about work teams. It goes into what to do when you, the worker, want to make a difference, you want to change things for the better, but your boss is so unenlightened that your efforts seem futile. There are, in fact, a number of little ways to start moving things in the right direction, and Heroz details how you can empower yourself and those around you.
The story takes place in a world of magic and sorcery. There are swarms of dragons attacking the kingdom - symbolic of one’s company, organization, or nation - and the only way to fend off these monsters is by magic arrows. But the king’s castle cannot turn out the arrows fast enough. Even as the king issues edicts to make the arrows faster, the arrow-makers are falling behind. Making matters worse, they are getting very little support from the rest of the castle. So they take matters into their own hands, figure out how to empower themselves, and eventually save the day.
Heroz sold very respectably, and is still available in new copies. And there are techniques described in this book, particularly with respect to quantifying and measuring one’s own performance that I personally use even to this day.