Amazon.com

Peter Senge, founder of the Center for Organizational Learning at MIT's Sloan School of Management, experienced an epiphany while meditating one morning back in the fall of 1987. That was the day he first saw the possibilities of a "learning organization" that used "systems thinking" as the primary tenet of a revolutionary management philosophy. He advanced the concept into this primer, originally released in 1990, written for those interested in integrating his philosophy into their corporate culture.

The Fifth Discipline has turned many readers into true believers; it remains the ideal introduction to Senge's carefully integrated corporate framework, which is structured around "personal mastery," "mental models," "shared vision," and "team learning." Using ideas that originate in fields from science to spirituality, Senge explains why the learning organization matters, provides an unvarnished summary of his management principals, offers some basic tools for practicing it, and shows what it's like to operate under this system. The book's concepts remain stimulating and relevant as ever. --Howard Rothman ... Read more

Reviews (55)

An inspiration...
The Learning Organization remains one of the most talked-of management concepts in today's business world, and nobody is as capable of explaining exactly what is a Learning Organization or what are the requirements for such an elusive concept than Peter Senge.

Senge's main thesis is that for an organization to become a Learning organization, it must embrace five disciplines:
1) Building Shared Vision so that the organization may build a common commitment to long term results and achievement.
2) Mental models are a technique that can be used to foster creativity as well as readiness and openness to change and the unexpected.
3) Team Learning is needed so that the learning is passed on from the individuals to teams (i.e. the organization as a whole).
4) Personal Mastery is the individual's motivation to learn and become better (hence the term Mastery).
and Finally
5) The fifth discipline is that of Systems Thinking which allows to see a holistic systemic view of the organization as a function of its environment.

However, this is not simply a book about management practice.. though it was written primarily for the use managers. This is a book about growth, improvement and continuous development. If you wish to achieve these results for yourself, your home, or your organization, then you MUST read this book.

Senge introduces his ideas and concepts smoothly and in an absorbing style. He is able to explain difficult concepts simply and by the end, you find that you have whole-heartedly embraced his belief in the Learning Organization, in fact, you find yourself yearning for it!

The Book that began a fad
This book was written quite a long time ago (in 1990) and shifted the boundaries of management from concentrating on silos (marketing, HR, finance, production) to looking at organizations as open systems which interact with outside systems and put into motion forces that may not be easily understood using traditional systems to assessment. This ability of Systems Thinking Senge called the "Fifth Discipline" , the other four being:
1) Building Shared Vision.
2) Mental models .
3) Team Learning.
4) Personal Mastery

The field of Systems Thinking was developed in MIT under Prof Jay W. Forrester, but Senge gae it the 'managerial' flavour, cross-fertilising it with folk beliefs , spirituality and scientific thought from around the world.

The belief being, once an organization has mastery of all the five disciplines, the organization can become 'a learning organization'. This book, therefore triggered the craze and fad on part of organizations to become 'learning organizations' and the rise of the 'knowledge economy' was perfect timing for it. Now when the hoopla has settled, it is time again to revisit the true essence of Senge's work and what he REALLY means.

Being a consultant who works in the areas of creativity and knowledge creation, Senge's work is like an ocean , which I visit time after time. And come up with an occasional nugget and pearl. It's not an easy book to read, but well worth the effort.

UWM Book Analysis
Most best sellers are based on some concept that they create their argument off of - Senge's concept is systems thinking. Unlike other best sellers out there, it is not just a personal journey the author has taken; Senge's book has a multitude of research and analysis behind his theories that makes the reader more willing to "buy in" to systems thinking. A little long winded but worth the read. Make sure to jump around to those chapters that appeal to you more.

Too Good For the Planet Earth
Senge is a demigod to many people. I spent in excess of $50.00 on this book and The Fifth Discipline Fieldbook. Having read them both, I have no doubt that Senge in a smart guy. But there are some deeply problematic issues here.

Let's take a look at one of his pearls of wisdom. One of his central points is "today's solutions are tomorrow's problems." Some say that statement is powerful. But people can easily use such thinking as an excuse for inaction. A friend of mine (who never seems to accomplish anything) is always referencing this quote. If people in organizations are always worried about whether today's actions are going to cause problems, no action would be taken. The organization would constantly be spinning its wheels.

He also says that learning from experience is a "delusion." You pretty much have to believe that in order to believe this book. Much of this stuff flies in the face of what most of us have experienced.

Moreover, he insists that authoritarian leadership should be replaced with "team learning." But how can team learning exist without being enforced (by an authority figure)?

This book has good ideas- GREAT ideas. Too great for this blue ball we call the planet Earth.

positively excellent
All too often, I find myself acting cynically about my field and ready to dismiss just about anything as mediocre, no matter how popular or praised. Well, this is one book that I think is really excellent - for content, for clarity, for sincerity, for the stories reported in it.

When I plow through a business book, I try to see if I can remember the central ideas, the essence of what the author has to say from the mass of details and stories that make up every business book. Most often, they are appalingly banal and pathetically over-applied, touted as able to solve just about every problem, in particular if a fee is paid to the authors to come and talk about it in person. I was preparted to treat this book the same way, and was simply delighted to find a truly excellent and useful book. And gee, I am glad that I can get inspired by a book in my chosen field, rather than bored!

As I see it, this book has three principal ideas. First, we must think of organizations and their missions as complex systems rather than as conglomerations of isolated problems. It is pitch for the development of a holistic view - how everything interacts and what factors act upon what other factors. This is an analytical tool that can pinpoint what should be done, breaking mental habits of looking only at the bottom line of sales revenues, for example, rather than the need to provide better service or delivery times. Second, employees must be empowered to make their own decisions locally, requiring honesty and openness throughout the organization as standard practice. This enables them to question and learn, not just individually but as part of a unified team, hence the subtitle of a learning organization. Mistakes are part of this process and should be allowed as valid experiments. Third, the task of a leader is to design an organizational system within which this can all be accomplished. Rather than control all decisions in a centralized manner in accordance with a rigid plan, the leader must develop a vision of where they organization should go and then allow his employees to pursue that vision as a team with great autonomy.

I have wanted to read this book for almost ten years. It was first pointed out to me by a remarkable business leader in mainland China, Zhang Ruimin, the founder of the Haier Group, as a seminal text for him. He said that he had built a learning organization in accordance with Senge's prescriptions, and after so many years, I see that indeed he did. What this book did for me was to give me a better idea of Zhang's mind and what went on in it. But it has also given me a clearer idea of many other remarkable entrepreneurs whom I have had the pleasure and honor to meet over the years in my work. As Senge explained, these men had a vision, but used the gap that existed between their vision and current reality to inspire their workers to achieve remarkable things. And they created self-reinforcing systems to do so.

Another fascinating aspect of this book is that, in spite of being nearly 15 years old, it felt fresh and its examples did not feel stale and in need of updates. Many books that old extoll Japan as the model to emulate and explain why that country does everything better than everyone else. Just take a look at Porter's books! While this book has some examples from Japan, it does not fall into that trap - for me, that means its analyses have stood the test of time.

This is one of the best business books I ever read - and I have read way way too many of them! Warmly recommended. ... Read more

Book Description

Business and Professional Ethics for Accountants points students in the right direction! This text focuses on practical development of the skills needed to deal with ethical issues specific to accounting. Interesting, real-world situations provide students with an understanding of appropriate values, ethical pitfalls, applicable codes of conduct, and sound ethical reasons where codes do not apply. ... Read more

Book Description

A contemporary survival guide for future managers, this #1 “how-to” book on supervision explores the basic principles of management—planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling people and operations—with a strong emphasis on their application to real on-the-job situations.Avoiding confusing jargon, it talks to learners one supervisor to another—discussing the specific tools of supervision in detail (explaining which tool is right for each task), and focusing on the development of strong interpersonal skills and on supervising a diverse workforce and teams. It comes completely updated with new examples and fresh insight into a variety of dynamic issues affecting management today. Examples are taken from well-known U.S. and international companies such as General Electric, Honda America, Harley-Davidson, Motorola, GM, Bell South, and Merrill Lynch.For anyone contemplating a career in management. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This authors clinical experstise is unrivaled.
As a front line supervisor with twenty years experiance under my belt I am very impressed with the authors ability to teach several new and effective people skills in every chapter. I have enjoyed several management texts in the past dozen years and found valuable tools in each and everyone. Whether it was "Reinventing the Warehouse" or "The Goal" these large scope versions of the self help books of the seventies all seem to fall victim to the same flaw as thier predacessors. While technically adept, they all start with the assumption the clay of human flesh with has no self determination. No sense of "Natural Law" that is searching for expression in a positive direction. When one of these very talented authors reaches outside of thier technical area and embraces a more holistic approach they will strike gold. Maybe Plunkett is just the guy to do it. in any case it was a superb effort, for what it was. ... Read more

Amazon.com

A remarkable range of examples for the idea of visual thinking, with beautifully printed pages. A real treat for all who reason andlearn by means of images. -- Rudolf Arnheim ... Read more

Reviews (34)

A superb, inspiring book!
Envisioning Information is Tufte's best work. It is a catalog of world class information design examples, culled by the author. He has collected examples from sources as diverse as Gallileo's observations of Saturn, a 3D map of a Japanese shrine, a visual "proof" of Pythagoras' theorem, color studies by the artist Joseph Albers, and a New York train schedule.

This is not a "how to" book, but rather a group of inspiring examples showing any would be information designer the concepts behind the execution of these superb examples.The concepts are painstakingly argued and illustrated. Tufte is obsessed with quality - the book is printed on 100% rag paper using old fashioned lead type because he believes this yields the highest quality results. One of the best books I have ever read when it comes to visual design!

A Tour De Fource of Information Design
To me, this is Tufte's best book, although they are all really good. Although its visually gorgeous, its not a coffee table book to just flip through. You have to be willing to spend time with it, and if you do the rewards are tremendous.

Tufte presents a collection of some the best examples of information design ever invented, and some of the worst examples. And then he goes into the underlying principles that make the great ones sing out.

This book will be really helpful to any web page designer, UI designers, statisticians, cartographers, scientists, or anyone concerned with presenting dense information in a clear way.

There is a chapter on presenting multiple dimensional data on a flat, 2D paper that all by itself is worth the price of the book. Then there's the chapter on "Small Multiples" which presents wonderful examples of how to show patterns and changes. But then there's the chapter on layering of information, so the key pieces of data appear first, and the less relevant ones reveal themselves later. And on and on and on. Its just a great book.

To add to it, Tufte is obsessed with quality like nobody else I can think of in the book business. Its printed on 100% rag paper using real lead type because he thinks that all other methods are inferior. Which means the book is costly to make, but its of heirloom quality.

The Second Coming of the Prophet of Presentation
In "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information", Edward Tufte put forth a theory of graphical excellence which taught his disciples how to present complex data crisply, clearly, and concisely while preserving data integrity.

With "Envisioning Information", Tufte tackles a bolder objective: displaying multi-dimensional data effectively within the two-dimensional space of paper or screen.

To do this, Tufte employs his successful formula from "Visual Display"---outlining the general concepts of his theory and illustrating these principles with many and varied examples.

Tufte's approach to "escaping Flatland" (as he calls it) is simple but richly-illustrated:

- Employing the concept of micro/macro readings to add resolution to data displays, conveying more information in a smaller space

- Using layering and separation to foster comprehension of multivariate data

- Utilizing small multiples to convey change over time

- Leveraging color to convey information

- Weaving narratives of space and time

The effect upon the reader is staggering and transformative. Tufte has revised and extended his theory of graphical excellence with a handful of simple yet powerful techniques for improving our presentation graphics.

Anyone involved in graphics design or in the communication of complex information should have this book on his shelf---it is simply too valuable to keep having to borrow it from your public library.

Don't buy it until you see it. You may be disappointed.
I know that I am a contrarian here but... I didn't like the book at all - I was initially so excited to see the book, but when I finally did see it, I was very disappointed. I recommend that you actually see the book before buying it. You may be disappointed too.

Everyone doing UI design or implementation should read this
As in all Tufte books, this is beautifully presented and wonderfully content-filled. In particular, you'll learn:
- All about the tasteful use of color in the design of interfaces
- How to maximize data visibility in interfaces, as opposed to the widgets, frames, and borders around the data

The only bad side is that some of the chapters end just when you feel like they're about to wrap up in a statement of a best practice, leaving you to sit around and solve the puzzle yourself. While I'm all in favor of mental exercise, I would've liked to at least have a solution to double-check against. ... Read more

Book Description

All day, every day, we negotiate: with our friends, spouses, children, boss, customers, and co-workers. A Woman’s Guide to Successful Negotiating builds on women’s innate skills in professional and personal situations. Drawing upon their considerable experience, as a top corporate negotiator and as an investment banker, Lee and Jessica Miller have developed proven strategies, tactics, and techniques that tap into women's abilities to convince, collaborate and create. The authors feature innovative strategies for negotiating with aggressive men and competitive women. The authors also explore the ten common mistakes women make during negotiations and how to avoid making them. In addition, the book will teach you 3 keys to successful negotiating. Whether negotiating for a raise or where to go to dinner with your boyfriend, this book shows you how to get what you want.

What others are saying about A Woman's Guide to Successful Negotiating:

"Breakthrough perspective. Every woman can benefit from this indispensable guide to getting what you want."--Cathleen Black, President, Hearst Magazines

"No matter what the situation, this book provides you with the negotiating techniques and the overall confidence to deal with the issue."--Rose Marie Bravo, Chief Executive Officer, Burberry Ltd.

"Whether you are in the boardroom or at home with your kids, this book shows you how to get what you want and do it with style."--Lisa Hall, Chief Operating Officer, Oxygen Media

"Lots of practical advice on how to win with a woman's touch."--Jan Hopkins, Anchor, CNN Street Sweep

"A useful book for women on the art of negotiating . . . in business, in personal relationships, in every area of life."--Donna Lagani, Publishing Director, Cosmopolitan Group, publisher of Cosmoplitan magazine and CosmoGirl

"An invaluable source of wisdom for woman,young and old, who want to take their place in the world."--Christine Baranski, Emmy and Tony Award Winning Actress

Reviews (4)

Saw This On Good Morning America
Then I picked it up and read it. An amazing book. I was able to use the advise immediately and found that it helped me get what I want at work and at home with my husband and children. I don't expect to need the chapters on cars, houses or divorces but the other chapters are directly applicable to things I have to deal with every day.

Taught me how to negotiate in all aspects of your life
After reading this book, I learned that everything really is negotiable, all you have to do is ask. It taught me how to approach negotiating in my daily life. Now, I can get what I want and it is fun! I didn't realize how often I was negotiating, but now I can control the deals I make. It is easy to read and very empowering. I highly recommend reading it.

A great read for anyone looking to improve their negotiating
The book is a great read for any woman and can be especially helpful for those just starting out in today's business world. With a straight to point the narrative and candid anecdotes and interviews, the book offers a fresh perspective to negotiation for a woman's point of view. A great read for anyone who is trying to improve their negotiating techniques!

Every Woman Really Can Benefit From This Book.
I never thought I could negotiate but after reading this book I find that I am able to get what I want, not only at work but from from my husband and from my friends as well. The techniques described in the book even work with my children. I expected to find advice about negotiating at work but I was surprised to learn how the same techniques work at home as well. Learning to negotiate truly is empowering. ... Read more

Book Description

Translated by V. Harris.Japan's answer to the Harvard MBA...Written over three centuries ago by a Samurai warrior, the book has been hailed as a limitless source of psychological insight for businessmen-or anyone who relies on strategy and tactics for outwitting the competition. ... Read more

Reviews (88)

Places Musashi in an Historical Context
What I prefer about Victor Harris's translation of Musashi Miyamoto's book is the fact that Harris has gone through exacting lengths not just to present an accurate translation in the context of a 17th-century samurai, but to present Musashi in his proper historical context. As opposed to every other English translation I have read, this one includes a chapter which gives a biography of Musashi, and shows many of his creations, such as paintings (including a self-portrait), tsuba (swordguards), etc. We can see where Musashi stayed, and what his grave looks like, etc. For clarity in understanding, this volume, along with the translation by Thomas Cleary, are the best. I should justify that by explaining that I practice martial arts--for those of you looking for a business oriented edition, there are several translations and interpretations out there which are geared towards your needs. For those of you involved in the practice of martial arts, sports, or with an interest in historical strategy texts, I heartily recommend this translation!

Whay does this book discuss? Musashi's masterpiece eschews practice, and decries vanity, ego, and "secrets". Musashi was a practitioner of Zen Buddhism, and the influence of Zen philosophy can be seen everywhere in his writing. This is however, definately a book on the strategy of swordsmanship, and not a treatis on religion. Musashi Miyamoto fought in a number of duels--back in the era of true challenge matches--when usually the victor was the man left living! The realities of his times, the fact that life was so cheap and had to be guarded fiercly, and that Musashi succeeded in doing this is what makes his writing even more precious. This was the book Musashi passed on to the students of his school, the unusual two-bladed Ni-to Ryu (two-sword school). For more on the historical Musashi Miyamoto, read Makoto Sugawara's excellent (non-fiction) "Lives of Master Swordsmen".

Lacking Commentary
Many of these books are difficult to understand because they are meant to be used as study and reference guides along with a teacher. The Book of Five Rings (of which I've read 3 of the 5, and am just a few pages away from finishing) is a treatise describing Musashi Miyamoto's personal school of fighting - the school of two skies. He eschews other schools as too this or too that. They concentrate, he says, on technique rather than what swordfighting is all about - killing your opponent.

The text is dry, and the sections are short. They are intended (a) for swordfighters, and (b) to be meditated on. The principals in this book would take a swordfighter years to master. In fact, at one point he says one should study for about 3 years (he gives a specific number of weeks) and then practice for 30 or so more years.

How does this translate into my life? I'm not sure. I don't have enough of a background in swordfighting, the culture, etc. to know how these concepts apply to my life. If perhaps I had a guide, in the form of commentary, I could more easily integrate these concepts into my life. As is, however, this book isn't of much use to me, except as reference for the day when I do have commentary.

I reccomend, instead, Cleary's Classics of Strategy and Counsel. This trilogy of books includes the Art of War, Mastering the Art of War, The Lost Art of War, The Silver Sparrow Art of War, Thunder in the Sky, The Japanese Art of War, The Book of Five Rings, Ways of Warriors, Codes of Kings (which includes several works), The Art of Wealth, Living a Good Life, The Human Element, and Back to Beginnings.

In addition to the text, there is often commentary, and supplementary material that can put the text in context and aid the student on his or her journey. Amazon lists several of these as the same book...

Like poetry it suggests more than it says
Okay, so I really have no clue as to what compelled me to buy this book. I hate to admit it but it looked "pretty" and it looked "historical," so I got it. I also love the Japanese film classics starring Toshirô Mifune as the ultimate samurai warrior. Many of them illustrate a combination of charm, sophistication, humor, even comedy, with violence, ruthlessness, and arrogance. The comparative lack of graphic bloodiness tends to focus the viewer on the human dynamics and art of the situation, and while some of these classics have been translated by the Hollywood film industry for Western tastes, what transpires still has a "foreign" feel. One sees the action and senses that something going on here is different, uncomfortable. Upon reading a few paragraphs of the Book of Five Rings : The Classic Guide to Strategy, I understood why.

For one thing, I had not understood that the character in the samurai collection that Mifune had been portraying had actually been an historic individual living in a unique period of Japanese history. Why I should have been surprised, I don't know, since the exploits of the likes of Pat Garret, Wyatt Earp, and Doc Holiday became the basis for a good deal of 19th and 20th Century pulp fiction, TV series, and movies in the United States. In fact, the period in Japanese history that the translator describes sounds not unlike the "Wild West." The sod busters and the ranchers have made their peace, leaving hundreds of gunmen unemployed. The lucky ones find work as lawmen while the unlucky wander the country looking to enhance their reputations by lethal confrontations to see who's "fastest on the draw." The winner may ultimately find a job as a peace keeper; the loser finds a spot on boot hill. In the case of the American western, the contestants use guns; in the case of the Japanese samurai, they use swords and other equipment. Still there seems something more to it. The something more, I think, is a philosophy, a school, an etiquette, even an art that leaves the Western mind a little uncomfortable.

With some of the techniques of sword work and battle strategy, I think that as Musashi himself informs the reader, it is very difficult to "write" how to do a mechanical task. One can only convey the "feeling" that performing such a task has for the expert writer on the subject. In modern times this facet of the learning process is overcome by photo illustrations, but even then only to a very limited extent. As the author points out, there is no substitute for experience with the process and practice, practice, practice. Even the very limited experience I acquired years ago when I took fencing lessons helped me picture more clearly some of the moves the author described.

Part of the difficulty in connecting with the author's experience as he performs the various actions of sword fighting may be that this book is a translation from the Japanese, was originally written in an older version of the language, and embodied an ancient version of the culture itself, one that is no longer available even to modern Japanese let alone a Western translator. A warrior of Musashi's time may well have connected far better with the similes he uses than a modern person. The unique benefit of this fact, however, is that a great deal can be read into the work. Part of this is the author's intention, but part of it is due to the very ambiguity of the work. Just as the author himself suggests, the reader who does not concentrate on the words but allows the mind to float over them makes all sorts of interesting discoveries. For instance a book on dealing with problem people suggested a technique much like Musashi's "To Know the Times," essentially to match the rhythm and intensity of the subject until one can gain control of that rhythm to de-escalate it. His "To Become the Enemy" immediately brought to my mind the individual characters of Civil War generals Robert E. Lee and his opponent George McClelland. As Musashi suggested, the enemy always feels he is outnumbered which means that a few may defeat many if they are trained in The Way. Or as Lee is reputed to have said before a battle, "The Army of the Potomac is a very good one, unfortunately General McClelland brought himself along." Lee understood The Way. He knew that McClelland's personality, or lack of The Way, produced vast armies of the enemy in his mind.

In all a very interesting and surprising book, one I expect to read again and again to mine for concepts. For a slender 95 pages, the author, like a good poet, has packed each word with a maximum of information because they encapsulate concepts and principles.

Valuable for the Martial Artist
The Shambala Dragon Edition of Musashi's Book of Five Rings was passed on to me several years ago by a close friend and fellow martial artist after the death of our teacher, who had given it to him. I have kept it and read it numerous times as a reference that is applicable to my own martial arts studies. Throughout, Musashi gives insight into his theories and strategies regarding what he describes as "his" martial art, namely the art of Kenjustu (Japanese Swordsmanship), specifically his own "two-sword" or "Two Heavens" school. Although it is an interesting and insightful look into Musashi's strategies for individual and collective combat, the Book of Five Rings is short on technical details, and therefore difficult to apply to one's own martial arts studies in any specific and systematic manner. This being said, Musashi's writings are still very applicable to any martial art in a generalized way. With its lack of specifics, it is easy to see how publishers and readers alike could make the stretch that the Book of Five Rings is an excellent book on personal or business strategy-- rather than trying to sell it as an outstanding treatise on martial arts. After all, there are a lot more business people and self-help readers to sell books to than there are serious students of martial arts. However, these claims are more wishful thinking and skillful marketing than actual truth. If one wants to apply Musashi's strategies to business or the non-martial life, they will have a tough time trying to translate techniques such as those "on footwork" or "stabbing the face" into effective business management or personal growth strategies. One could certainly apply Musashi's techniques metaphorially, but to do so would be to take the author's instructional commentary entirely out of context. It must be understood that Musashi's Book of Five Rings was not written for business people, or those interested in self-help techniques. It was written about martial arts, for martial artists, by an undisputed master of martial arts, and must be read with this fact in mind to be truly appreciated and understood. Every serious martial artist should own it, and study it and apply its general lessons throughout his or her martial arts career. The Shambala Dragon Edition, includes Yagyu Munenori's masterful "Book of Family Traditions and the Art of War" which is an added bonus for serious students of Japanese martial arts.

Multi-layered
On the surface this book appears to be about the martial arts, warfare, swordplay. However, a careful reading with an open mind will surprise the reader not particularly focused on those aspects. Readers who've trained themselves to read complexity and symbolism as an overlay for everyday life experiences will find a strategy for the human life experience hidden here barely beneath the surface. It's only one strategy, and not necessarily the one you'll choose to lead your own life, but it's still worth studying and comprehending. In fact, readers completely unfamiliar with martial arts will find many 'lessons in life' worth digesting.

I believe it's worth the time and effort for study in the same sense as classic Chinese and European works of similar ilk. ... Read more

Book Description

Don't let the conservative nature of many fixed income intruments mislead you! These are complex, potentially risky investments, and Fixed Income Mathematics is required reading if you are to maximize both income and capital growth from fixed income investing. An expert, thorough analysis of this volatile market's latest developments is presented in the straight-forward, comprehensive style that has become a Fabozzi trademark. It will leave you with a greater ability to utilize and take advantage of basic strategies as well as the newest advances in fixed income analysis and research. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

Classic, but dated.
This book covers the territory of fixed income as it existed 4 to 5 years ago. Now credit derivatives trade relative to the bond markets, and have a pricing structure all their own. First-to-default baskets and credit derivatives are important fixed income products. There has been a paradigm shift in the market in the past 4 years. Credit default swaps came out of nowhere and are now $2 trillion in size and continue explosive growth, and that's just one product in credit derivatives land.

I highly recommend Tavakoli's book: "Credit Derivatives and Synthetic Structures" (2nd Edition).

Good reference
Ok, so Fabozzi is the ultimate in reference material and general fixed income awareness. The book is good, it provides most of what you need to understand fixed income valuations, particularly essential bond pricing. However, the book really serves well mostly as a reference. There are few true explanations of formulas. With a little effort you can figure out the derivations yourself, but still, is not the point of buying a book with "mathematics" in the title to have something to guide you through that step? Again, worth having, but not the ultimate to explain the nitty gritty, though not sure that that text exists.

A good bridge between math and fixed income products
Even though this is not really a advanced book on fixed income products analysis/modeling. It is, for technical background, a good induction book for basic fixed income products with basic analysis tools.

This is a real beginner's guide
The book was a great disappointment to me. The title and subtitle (Analytical and statistical techniques) led me to think that the book covered fixed income securities at a sophisticated and advanced level. Not so. If you need to learn how to calculate a PV, FV or IRR, this is the book for you...otherwise probably not!

The ¿Perfect¿ Book For Me
Many of us will be retiring in the next few years, or may already be retired. Fixed income from our financial investments will be an important part of our lives. How many of us really know what Yield To Maturity (YTM) means? Or, for that matter, the myriad of other measurements associated with fixed-income instruments? As a retired engineer with a propensity for computational mathematics, it is my natural desire to optimize my fixed-income portfolio. This "Perfect" book gives me a good head start in my endeavors. The text is logical and easy to understand. The mathematics is "cookbook" simple. As a minimum, I will better equipped to determine the correct price for most fixed-income investments. With enough effort, I should be able to manage my own near "Perfect" portfolio. Fabozzi picks up where most writers stop, namely, the quantitative analysis.
Thank you Frank. ... Read more

Book Description

This book provides the essential foundation necessary for the aspiring professional.It covers personal appearance, money management, job campaigning, values, ethics, and other key topics. ... Read more

Book Description

Who says nice guys finish last? In today's competitive business environment, good sense and everyday manners can make the difference between getting ahead and being left behind. In The Etiquette Advantage in Business etiquette authorities Peggy Post and Peter Post show you how to meet the challenges of the business world with the kind of self-confidence and poise that will propel you to the top.

Written for business people across the board, from the junior and mid-level range to upper management, from the home office worker to the overseas traveler, this comprehensive resource addresses all of the pressing issues in today's workplace. The Posts show you how to use personal skills to manage workers more effectively, make longer lasting contacts, win clients, and close deals--everything you need to know to get ahead in your career. In addition, they offer up-to-the-minute advice on such hot button issues as sex in the workplace, worker privacy, hiring and firing, and the relaxed standards on formality that are sweeping across many industries.

You'll also find practical advice on everything from writing persuasive business memos, letters, and e-mails to choosing the appropriate dress for both casual and formal offices; from planning and leading productive meetings to getting results at conventions and trade shows. There are tips on interviewing and conducting successful job searches; guidelines for business entertaining, from the company picnic to formal dinner parties; advice on using the latest technologies effectively--and courteously--and much more, including a detailed primer on the social customs you need to know when doing business abroad.

The CEO interview. the sales presentation to the board of directors. Dinner with the boss. Your assistant's annual review. The company picnic. The first meeting with a new client the start-up of your own business. The gift for your overseas host.

No matter the situation in which you find yourself, The Etiquette Advantage in Business will help you face the challenges of the corporate world with confidence. As today's workplace becomes increasingly more competitive, personal skills can make all the difference. Peggy Post and Peter Post will show you how to use everyday manners to get the results you want--and put yourself on the road to success.

Reviews (11)

A great read
A friend gave me this book, and I could barely stop browsing. Some of the information may be old hat, but the book works as a comprehensive guide to business etiquette. Also, the witticisms buried here and there gave me a good laugh.

Best in Class
We provide this book to undergraduate students enrolled in a business-engineering program to prepare them for situations they may encounter in their first jobs. These situations frequently fall into the "what you don't know you don't know" category of student knowledge.

Besides preparing them for their first encounters with formal behavior in "informal" business situations (often in job interviews), this book we believe will serve as a useful reference for them as they advance into management. The book is well-organized and well-written. It covers a number of very specific situations that, even if they never occur in one's direct experience, convey the elements of common sense and consideration that underly all etiquette.

The authors thankfully avoid spending time on how to arrange the seating at a state dinner or how to address the Belgian ambassador, a common mistake in books of this genre. What they offer is practical, useable advice on the types of real social interactions that occur in business. A very useful book and well worth the price. Definitely five stars.

A real winner
The Posts cover business etiquette so well that anyone will benefit from the information in this book. A terrific job in every respect!

A definite career booster!!
This book is very informative! It contains many practical applications that we all take for granted from time to time. Subjects such as non-verbal communications, eye contact, introducing acquaintances...this book has it all! And it's appicable to every aspect dealing with people, both socially and in a business setting! A true survival guide...it boosted my confidence, and has boosted my career to new heights!!!!
A++

An excellent all-around etiquette book.
This book is filled with practical advice for practically every occasion. I bought The Etiquette Advantage years ago, and it helped me tremendously. Now, I work in Career Counseling and have passed along the information to many grateful people. ... Read more

Book Description

Presented in a clear and visually appealing fashion, THE WRITER'S WORKPLACE breaks down the difficult writing concepts into easy to read, step-by-step explanations. All elements of writing, from grammar through the writing process, are covered in this text making it the most comprehensive yet easiest book on the market for the beginning writing student. ... Read more

Book Description

The Hudson Highland Center for High Performance recently completed the largestand most in-depth global study ever done of the factors that accelerate orstifle high performance. The alarming conclusion: only 10 percent of knowledgeworkers are part of a high-performing workgroup, one that makes money for thecompany and is creating a new product or service.

Contagious Success reveals Susan Lucia Annunzio’s proven strategies foridentifying, nurturing, and replicating business units that are already highperforming. These workgroups tend to be ignored while senior management focuseson fixing its lowest performing units. But Annunzio argues for the oppositestrategy: Focus on the groups that are doing the best work in the organization,learn their secrets, and help spread their expertise to the average groups.

Annunzio focuses on groups, not individuals, because even a great individualcan’t succeed in a weak environment.By using the high-performing groups toimprove just the top 20 percent of the average performers—what Annunzio calls"moving the middle"—a company can achieve dramatic, sustainable growth inrevenue and profits.

This is a book for leaders who want to unleash the hidden potential in theirorganizations. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Lessons from King Arthur for the 21rst Century
This is a wonderful book that lays out effective tools, techniques, and strategies for working with geographically diverse teams. This book is so appropriate for our virutal organization that my entire management team will have copies soon!

So wonderful, we use it as a sales & team training tool
We loved this book so much that we have all our team members read it AND we give it away as sales gifts to potential clients.

This book was so helpful and easy to read. It was unique because of the fabulous story it told (with a really cool twist of an ending) ... a how-to storybook for today's virtual world.

I couldn't put it down, read it in one sitting and have benefitted from it every day since. It really helped me straighten out my virtual leadership nightmare. Thanks so very much!

Virtual teaming for the 21st century!
First of all, I enjoy "instructional fiction" as conveyed in business quick-reads like "Virtual Leadership." This type of business novel is fun to read! Also, this contemporary business text covers an important topic in the age of virtual organizations and e-businesses -- how to establish and manage virtual teams. Enjoy!

A compelling story and quick read, -full of useful lessons.
I just finished reading this book today, and strongly recommend it to managers and project leaders who are struggling with the human side of how to make geographically distributed teams work. The lessons in this book are equally valid for achieving results with team members whether they are two floors or two time zones away.

Essential Project Manager reading for a dispersed workforce
This book does well in choosing a fictional vehicle to deliver an important message to managers of remote teams. There is a tendancy within the technology industry, and management in general, to think that VOICEMAIL, EMAIL, and WEB SITES etc. are in themselves the solution to managing staff spread across various workplaces. By drawing the comparison between a modern day project and King Arthur's building of Camelot, this book goes a long way to teaching the human element in making teams cohesive across cultural and geographic divides. ... Read more

Book Description

A proven program for turning effective listening into a powerful business tool Managers and other employees spend more than 40 percent of their time listening to other people but often do it so poorly that the result is misunderstood instructions, misdirected projects, and erroneous actions—millions of dollars’ worth of mistakes just because most people don’t know how to listen. In this new edition of her classic guide to the art of effective listening, Madelyn Burley-Allen shows you how to acquire active, productive listening skills and put them to work for you—professionally, socially, and personally. With her time-tested techniques, you’ll learn how to:

• Eliminate distractions and improve your concentration on what is being said
• Locate key words, phrases, and ideas while listening
• Cut through your own listening biases
• Interpret body language clues
• Ask constructive, nonthreatening questions that elicit real information
• Get others to listen to you
• Master a whole range of listening skills that you can use on the job and in your personal life

Reviews (6)

A Good Guide
An easy to understand and implement guide to the art of listening. Some great advice and I recommend this book to anyone interested in improving their listening skills.

Excellent reference and guide
This book is written mainly for the business audience, but all the principles are applicable to every situation. The author is very good at explaining scenarios and solutions. Other authors spend the bulk of their time explaining why we need to listen, but Burley-Allen spends the bulk of her time explaining how to listen. That alone places this book on a more productive plane than most books on this topic. You'll be impressed with how things change in your inter-personal communication at work and at home with the adoption of even a few principles from this book.

What good is listening, if it's not effective?
With this exciting new Millenieum upon us, most all of us have had classes, lectures, and read books on expressing ourselves more effectively, public speaking and the list goes on. The problem now is "No One is Listening." Madelyn Burley-Allen's book Listening the Forgotten Skill is the perfect tool for helping us get back to the true meaning of listening. What good is all of this teaching, until you are taught how to listen. With this book you are taught how to communicate effectively and listen effectively as well. This is an excellent book for improving your lifestyle through listening.

Listening the Forgotten Skill-Something for Everyone
I just recently read this book, and was amazed at what I needed to learn, for professional and personal reasons. This book shows you areas where people, businesses and organizations are lacking in communication skills due to the fact that we don't listen and we are not being heard. In this book, the Author Madelyn Burley-Allen, with her years of research and teaching on this subject, she gives you ways of improving your listening communication skills as well as how to speak effectively so that you are listened to. This book provides vital solutions for improving your listening and communication skills. I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It is very informative and helpful and will continuely be a source of information in the future.

Great Book
I strongly recommend this book. To be quite honest I just fell in love with this book, it tought me things that I never knew about myself.

I've heard all this time and never really took the time to listen.Now, I understand what listening is and how it helped me enchance my abilities to communicate better and better. Everyone should read this book, great asset.

I have met Ms.Madelyn Burley-Allen and she is quite a charming lady. You learn when she speaks. ... Read more

Book Description

This book provides readers with a clear, straightforward writing style, an abundance of examples, detailed real-life cases, and current data and statistics. It aims to 1) introduce ethical concepts that are relevant to resolving moral issues in business, 2) develop the reasoning and analytical skills needed to apply ethical concepts to business decisions, 3) identify the moral issues involved in the management of specific problem areas in business, and 4) examine the social and natural environments within which moral issues in business arise.Chapter topics cover ethics and business, ethical principles in business, the business system, ethics in the marketplace, ethics and the environment, the ethics of consumer production and marketing, the ethics of job discrimination, and the individual in the organization.For anyone in business. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

The book with show the ethical in doing business
This book will provide you with the ethic activities when doing business. You can learn from the various cases in this book that show you how good & bad to doing you business. Ethic its about do right or wrong that much depend from the social standard. From this book we can learn much enough how to threat your customers in the ethic way. In much case in this book will show you the unethical activities that doing by the company finally they have to face the lawsuit or crash down. Just read this book first before you serve your customer in ethic way.

Up to Date Ethical Situations
This book is very up to date on the ethics surounding business today. It thougholy explains the different theories and concepts of business ethics. I rate this book high on content, but low on context. This is a good book but is long and dry, this author repeats himself and does not always get to the point directly.

Concise and well-written, although not perfect
I read this book as part of the first year of my MBA program and, in general, would recommend it to others with questions about business ethics. The book is quite well-written and a worthwhile read, although I would argue with some of Mr. Velasquez's conclusions.

Excellent text book
This book is our text book for the first year of MBA program. The author discusses the nature and significance of ethical standards and identifies four kinds of moral principles for resolving ethical dilemmas in business. We all learn a lot from this book. ... Read more

Book Description

This text presents balanced treatment of both the theory and applications of managerial communication.Content includes strong coverage of ethics, cross-cultural communication and the newest technological influences in communication.Unique, practical chapters on visual support of written and oral presentations are provided in addition to coverage on how to write and deliver a case analysis, meeting management, and report writing.Strong integrated coverage of technology continues throughout this edition.While communication concepts remain largely the same -- the technology that is used to communicate has changed and these changes are reflected in the fifth edition.Coverage of listening skills, intercultural communication, e-plagiarism, developing PowerPoint presentations, and writing instructions has been extensively enhanced. ... Read more

Amazon.com

Responding to the familiar observation that what you don't know can and will hurt you, American Productivity and Quality Center leaders Carla O'Dell and C. Jackson Grayson Jr. have countered with a contention that the "hidden reservoirs of intelligence that exist in almost every organization" can, with work, be efficiently tapped "to create customer value, operational excellence, and product innovation--all the while increasing profits and effectiveness." If Only We Knew What We Know is their detailed examination of the resultant groundbreaking but common-sense methodology they have dubbed "knowledge management," along with their analysis of several companies such as Amoco, Arthur Andersen, Buckman Laboratories, and Xerox that are successfully employing it today. By studying the execution and evolution of this practice in over 70 companies involved with their non-profit management organization, the two have observed how top practitioners are turning internal information that's already selectively available into dynamic improvements that are apparent throughout the companies. They describe how to implement knowledge management in your own firm and describe the "enabling context" (including infrastructure, culture, technology, and measurement) that help or hinder the process. --Howard Rothman ... Read more

Reviews (13)

One of the best knowledge management book I've ever read
The authors of this book will not try to seduce you with another 'management recipe' or fad. Knowledge will ultimately become the only sustainable advantage for companies of the future. Unfortunately, most companies do not realize that they internally possess unexplored knowledge on their own human, customers, and structural capital. This book will clearly demonstrate on how to extract out and share our internal knowledge and best practice, so we can use them to create our value propositions. In addition to rich case analyses and stories, this book will also guide you to start your own knowledge program. Read this book and put it into action. Also recommended: The Knowledge-Creating Company by Nonaka and Takeuchi.

Very Relevant and Excellent Read
This book provides a terrific introduction to knowledge management and so much more. The authors have gone well beyond the theoretical treatment that most have provided on the subject and provide real world examples and processes for implementing knowledge management in your own company. The authors did not spend much time talking about applications that support KM, since the market is still growing, instead they touch upon the concepts that the software applications address. Although it was written in late 1998, the information presented is very timely and still accurate.

-- Highlights --
The first section of the book (3 chapters, 30 pages or so) get you up to speed on what knowledge management is and is not. It also addresses some barriers and benefits of KM.

The second section of the book makes you think about the reasoning behind a KM initiative. This should be standard management-type thinking, but I've found it to be often overlooked in today's IT environment. Why are we doing this? The authors give you three reasons (customer intimacy, time-to-market, and operational excellence) and tell you the type of data to focus on for each of the three reasons.

The third section talks about enabling the enterprise to effectively use a KM system. The authors note that it is vital for the processes to be aligned witht he strategy of the company and the job tasks people currently undertake. To that end, they look at the cultural, technological, infrastructure, and measurement requirements of the KM initiative.

The fourth section gives some case studies of Texas Instruments, Buckman Laboratories, and Sequent. The text refers to these case studies throughout the earlier chapters of the book and now gives them each a chapter to overview how they went about building a successful knowledge sharing infrastructure.

The fifth and final section of the book gives a framework for pursuing the sharing of knowledge and best practices. This is the "What do I do on Monday?" section, according to the authors. It gives a 40 page prescription for the planning, designing, implementing, and scaling phases of a knowledge management program.

The next several years will be very interesting in the I.T. arena. These authors were somewhat ahead of their time in writing this book. Companies across the globe have been storing knowledge in their silos for the past decade as they have taken products to market, built disconnected customer information systems, and as employees have given feedback on internal business processes. The coming business intelligence revolution will seek to organize that information and put it in the hands of people who can create value and grow the business based on the intrinsic knowledge it contains. This book provides a great framework for those who have to conceptualize, design, and build information systems to meet those needs.

Solid Theory, But More Execution Tasks Needed
This book focuses on making the case for a knowledge management system. If you're already convinced and need specific, measurable steps, try a different book.

Good and to the point
This book is the best for understanding and applying KM in a company environment. It defines what you need and does not make you waste time with elaborated theories that are not useful.

An effective approach for consultants
I think the best recommendation I can give for this book is to show how it has helped me. As a consultant one of my biggest struggles is efficiently extracting information from clients. Although this book is about finding, aggregating and disseminating internal knowledge, the approach has proven invaluable to finding where my clients' pools of knowledge are and using this to efficiently craft solutions that are based on best practices that have been developed by my clients. I have too often dscovered that my clients have best practices and other knowledge artifacts that are not known throughout their organization.

An example of how difficult organizational knowledge is to ferret out is shown by one consulting engagement where the client needed problem management processes. All of the "identified" stakeholders and points of contact claimed that there were no written definitions of severity levels, which are an important part of the process. After developing a complete set of definitions and circulating them for stakeholder review out of the blue an unidentified stakeholder emerged and produced a set of definitions that was written years before. Had I read this book before this particular engagement I would have approached it differently and would have identified the *real* stakeholders and pools of knowledge using the cultural enabler of knowledge transfer described in chapter 9. I would have also saved a significant amount of billable hours to the client in the process because what they already had (but just didn't know they had) met their exact requirements.

I gained a whole new perspective on analysis from this book. I now approach this task by identifying (or eliciting) value propositions from clients, and employing to the extent allowed by each consulting engagement the four enablers of knowledge transfer.

This book woke me up to some refined techniques and has influenced my thinking and approach on a number of levels. While it provides organizations with a valuable tool set with which to find and collect the valuable knowledge within, it is also a valuable tool for consultants who are always under pressure to gather data and information from clients as a prelude to findings and recommendations. I cannot emphasize strongly enough its value to both audiences. ... Read more

Book Description

Why do Americans' vacations range from "none" to "not much" when other industrialized nations mandate breaks of four to six weeks or more? More importantly, what can you do about it? The founder of the Work to Live Campaign strives to set all Americans on the path towards a happy, healthy balance between work and life-and in this lively book, he offers tips on...

€ Breaking out of the burnout trap
€ Increasing vacation time (it can be done!)
€ Working fewer hours
€ Dumping that work guilt
€ and Getting a Life! ... Read more

Reviews (11)

Read this book!
I decided last year that I would like to learn the Spanish language. Like many such wishes, this one has fallen victim to a lack of time... But now there is a wonderful motivational book on making time for such things -- and for our families and communities. Joe Robinson's "Work to Live: The Guide to Getting a Life" ... pulls out all the stops, from the stories to the numbers, in making the case for less work and more time, tells us how to do this personally, and ends with a roadmap for achieving legislation making a few weeks of vacation each year a right. Much of the writing is very funny, and some of the stories of folks who 'saved' their vacations for periods of years only to lose them in a corporate takeover, or due to ill health, are heartwrenching. My favorite stories involved those courageous souls who did go to the boss and ask for some time off, either in the form of a reduced workweek or for that most unAmerican of events, the month-long vacation. These stories are inspiring; indeed, I now have Joe's suggested list of "things I'm going to do before it's all over" on the refrigerator (and, yes, it starts with "learn Spanish" :-). Great stuff, and many thanks to Joe for writing the book! See the ...worktolive...web site for more.

Work to Live
Take time off work and read this book. It will change your life!

Work to Live Works
At a time when the relentless drive of the corporate profite-imperative has swept up so many of us in a mindless labor habitrail-whose only reward seems to be more and faster-paced work-Joe Robinson has done some hard thinking and insightful research and come up with a number of unique solutions to help us break the dysfunctional employer-worker relationship that's quickly eroding life in this country. (If you're the type who blames MTV and other red herrings on societal woes, stop and think how much time away from family mothers and fathers are forced to spend these days just to hang on to their paychecks.) It's interesting to me that an author calling for basic rights in the workplace-things that labor unions supposedly won for the work force decades ago-can be viewed in some quarters as an extremist. I've read some of the reviews that equate Robinson's ideas with socialism or that accuse him of somehow being oposed to "the American way." This is knee-jerk reaction at its worst: "Robinson wants fairness so be must be socialist!" "Robinson enjoys vacations so he must hate work!" Granted, debate in this country has become dangerously polarized, Still, it's depressing to see how easily people can twist nuanced, reasoned argument into black and white polemic. I can't say I agree with everything Robinson says in this book, but I do recognize much of what he describes in the fact that I work harder than my father ever did, with far less time off, and probably a slightly lower overall quality of life. I certainly live in a smaller house and spend less time with my family than he did. Americans are fond of believing we have "the highest standard of living in the world." Guess what? We don't, even though we now work more and have less time off than even the famously workaholic Japanese. Check the health stats-this country's human machines are breaking down. And if you think our current obesity problem is simply a lack of self-control and an insidious fast-food industry, ask yourself when the last time you said, "I'd love to get in shape, jog every night after work, but I just don't have the time." That's the point. Fewer and fewer of us have the time any more to take care of our basic human needs for mental and physical and spiritual rest and improvement. Robinson doesn't want a life of vacation. He doesn't advocate the end of capitalism. He just wants us to fix the machine, so we can improve our lives, keep our economy strong before our own ignorance and insatiable demands for more, more, more break it down completely. This is an important book, a step toward a more prosperous and fulfilling United States.

Work to Live
This is a fabulous, must read book that shows what you can do to make changes in your own life so that you've actually got one. "Work To Live" offers specific ways to create hope and freedom for dazed,confused and burnt out Americans. Highly recommended.

Rather work than Hunt
Whatever happened to personal responsibility and self-determination? The reason people work so much is because they feel that it is a means to satisfy their wants. In a voluntary society, people exchange their resources because they see themselves better off afterward. I have a socialist friend that says he is a slave because he has to work. I fail to see how working in America is harder than trying to "live off the land." We have the highest standard of living in the world because we've earned it. I will continue to work and enjoy the fruits of my labor. I want the freedom to be able to work overtime if I need more money. I don't want the government limiting the amount of work that I'm "allowed" to do. This is my life and your life is yours. Make your own choices and decisions, and take responsibility for the results. Peace Out ... Read more