Reviews (12)

Very Useful
I bought this book for my database class and I found this book to be very useful. If this is your area of study, I would suggest keeping the book as a reference guide. I regret selling mine to a friend, as there were plenty of times where I thought I could refer back to it in other courses and projects.

Up-to-date database technology
This book not only teaches Database Theories, it also keeps up with the lastest IT happenings that involves databases.

The DataWarehouse chapter is one article that i've not seen in other database textbooks

Good Price NEW & USED
YOU WILL NEED THIS BOOK IF YOUR GOING TO TAKE Course Materials - Pace University | Web Assisted, Pleasantville

Very practical.
Indeed, a brilliant rendition of practical information. I am currently working as a chief technical designer in a financial data warehouse project for a fortune 100 company. Chapter 11 (Data Warehousing) unfolded some time-critical points.

IT'S POORLY ORGANIZED AND DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW; NOT INTRO BK
This is a required textbook for an Intro to DB course. Once again, the University of Texas at Dallas has followed a constant pattern of requiring textbooks that are 1) Poorly organized/written books, 2) expensive and 3)The professor haven't read the book themselves AND are not using/following a required book when teaching their course! This said, my review of this book.

IT'S POORLY ORGANIZED AND DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW; NOT AN INTRO DB BOOK!

For example: "Relational Database" - The book begin this topic on "PAGE 11", but does not define nor clearly explain what this is; the book glorify how "...preliminary studies convinced management of the potential advantage of this approach...modern company should implement..." Then, it talks about "Implementing the Relational Database." Ok, but what the f**k is a Relational database! This continues on until finally at "PAGE 259" when it FINALLY defines what this is.

Good luck! ... Read more

Reviews (48)

Management Info you Need
If you're a software manager, and you haven't read "Peopleware," stop reading this, and go read that instead. It's that's good. If you're a developer or engineer on a team that's not getting anything done, read it. This book is filled with practical advice on teams, team building, and getting work done.

"Peopleware" doesn't go in for theory. It puts into words what any contemplative manager already knows intuitively. The benefit of this book, however, is that it provides concise, powerful evidence to support each of its statements on team building and managing creative people. "Peopleware" covers it all -- why you have high turnover, why you have low productivity, and how to get your team to "jell."

The design of the book is excellent. There are 34 chapters in 226 pages. The cover struck me as funny on such a thin book: "Eight all new chapters." How did they fit all that into such a thin book? Simple: each chapter is very focused and short -- an entire chapter on a concept can be read in a single sitting -- even by the busiest manager. I recommend you read a chapter first thing in the morning, keep the ideas in your mind all day, and then read that chapter again in the evening. It will help you get the most out of what the book has to offer.

Part one focuses on managing people. It describes how development is different from manufacturing, what motivates people, and some of the pitfalls. It also focuses on you, the manager, and your role in the success of your project. Part 2 zeros in on environment. DeMarco and Lister single out environment as one of the biggest sources of problems in development. As such, they devote more time to this than any other subject in the book. It can get a bit repetitive, but the points they make are important, so it is easy to forgive them for focusing on it so much.

Parts 3, 4, and 5 address people, teams, and work methods. These areas may be of the most immediate value to a beleaguered manager, as it is here that they have the most opportunity to make changes, and where they typically have the least training. The authors focus on how to work with individuals, move on to making teams "jell," and finally on how to make work more meaningful and dynamic to reduce turnover, which "Peopleware" labels as "a cancer."

Finally, part 6 is the new stuff added to the second edition. As a result, they are a set of unrelated essays, not integrated with the rest of the text. However, they are quite a bit more timely than the earlier chapters, which sometimes feel a bit dated. It would have been nice to see these chapters more integrated with the rest of the book, but that's a minor quibble. The section on Process Improvement Programs (such as CMM) is very insightful, and will strike a chord with many people who question the value of the implementation of these programs in their organizations.

"Peopleware" is simply the best management book I have read for the front line technical manager in a development organization. It is a complete course from the school of hard knocks on what works and what doesn't in the real world.

Hits the Mark
I was asked to read this book for a Master's degree class. Like many textbooks, I approached it with caution, but was pleasantly surprised by what I found within. Though this book was written primarily for software developers who are often backed against the wall to produce, the content is really universal to most business situations. We usually have to work with people, and we usually have to produce in our various fields.

Peopleware is a book you should read if you desire your business team to reach its full potential regardless of the industry you are in. Tom DeMarco and Timothy Lister cover a lot of territory that is totally missed by other leader/manager books. They cover topics such as the workplace environment, the value of fun, and developing a chemistry with your team that is highly productive.

While reading the book it was obvious that they had served in the trenches of American businesses. The universal mistakes that companies continue to make over and over have been catalogued and brought to light in this volume. But they not only highlight the common mistakes, they offer proven techniques to help you avoid these same mistakes.

If you are in the process of forming or leading individuals or a team of people, the ideas found in this book will help you take them the top. You will enjoy the writing style, the humor, and the information contained in this volume.

A must read for software leaders
In his 25th Anniversary Edition of "Mythical Man-Month", Fred Brooks points to PeopleWare as the influential IS book of the 1980's, and says that it was influential for the same reason MMM was: The primary challenges of software development are social, not technical. Companies that forget this are setting themselves up for failure.

If you've seen dilbert style software "management" and want to find a better way, I can't recommend this book more strongly. If you read it, you'll want to find a way to get your superiors to read it as well.

In my experience, a great deal of so-called "management" is really shoft-term optimization: "IF we can eliminate X benefit we can save $Y per year!" and cost control. DeMarco and Lister point out that the real goal is productivity, and suggest numerous ways to treat employees as people to get increased productivity, as opposed to treating them as inhuman "Resources" and managing by spreadsheet.

One story from the book: In my early years as a developer, I was privileged to work on a project managed by Sharon Weinberg, now president of the Codd and Date Consulting Group. She was a walking example of much of what I now think of as enlightened management. One snowy day, I dragged msyelf out of a sickbed to pull together our shaky system for a user demo. Sharon came in and found me propped up at a console. She disappeared and came back a few minutes later with a container of soup. After she'd poured it into me and buoued up my spirits, I asked her hwo she found time to for such things with all the management work she had to do. She game me her patented grin and said "Tim, this _IS_ management!" - TDM

This book is all about the manager's role: Not to make people work, but to make it possible for people to work. How to do that, how teams jell, etc. It's a pleasure to read and it's ... right. And in a field full of false promises, snake oil, and worthless statistics, that's saying something.

Great book, captures office politics to a tee.
This book is well worth reading for both low level employees and managers. Although directed at the software development community, the book presents many ideas which would be useful in a wide range of companies.

It's amazing how many of the situations described in this book are familiar, or are at least situations that I could easily imagine occurring in the office work environment.

Yes, the book was written quite a while ago, but I think it's still very relevant today. Highly recommended reading, and enjoyable too. The authors really have a sense of humor.

Good Overall, But Some Material Is Outdated Or Impractical
This is a good book on software management; however, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. The references to the intercom paging system definitely date the book. I doubt this is really an issue anymore, but I am glad that it is not. Also, most companies are not going to allow the control over office space that is recommended in the book. This is where the book goes a little "pie in the sky" to me.

There is still a lot of good material for managers to consider. The authors make a very good point in the "true story" about the manager that brought soup in to an ill employee who was trying to meet a deadline. Management's job is to make it possible for people to work - not just to make them work.

I also found the information on teamwork to be very true based on my experience. I've seen defensive management at its worst, and how it was terrible to the team environment. Defensive management is a result of not following one of the earlier concepts of hiring the right people. Ultimately if you don't trust people to get the job done, why did you hire them in the first place?

Most of the information is not new nor is it really profound. However, that is the kind of thing that is usually taken for granted. The authors have given the material a good treatment and encourge the readers against this very thing. ... Read more

Book Description

Wayne Cascio's Managing Human Resources, 6/e, is perfect for the general management student whose job inevitably will involve responsibility for managing people. It explicitly links the relationship between productivity, quality of work life, and profits to various human resource management activities and, as such, strengthens the students' perception of human resource management as an important function, which affects individuals, organizations, and society. It is research-based and contains strong links to the applicability of this research to real business situations. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Fantastic - ties it all together
This is a great book. It very nicely ties together all phases of the employment process focusing on making data-driven decisions and linking HR and I/O Psychology functions to the bottom line. Throughout the text it provides 'capsules' on case studies to illustrate the points in each section. A must have for the scientist / practitioner and management generalist! ... Read more

Book Description

• Shows sales people, marketers, and customer service representatives how to harness the power of Salesforce.com to enhance productivity, improve customer relations, and boost sales
• Salesforce.com, which has more than 147,000 subscribers at 9,800 companies worldwide, won InfoWorld’s Best Hosted Application award in 2004
• Covers navigating Salesforce.com, managing leads, understanding customers and competitors, keeping track of contacts, creating a sales forecast, managing users, creating service and support e-mails, working with campaigns, using the report wizard, and more

Book Description

This book centers on business decision-making and managerial problem-solving, consistent with today's best practices' Human Resource Management Practice and Research. Real-life cases and a global focus will hold readers' interest as this book imparts valuable information about the dynamic field of human resources.Expanded coverage of international human resource issues governs this edition of the popular book; it also covers the management of work flows, job analysis, equal opportunity and the legal environment, diversity, recruitment and selection of employees, downsizing and outplacement, performance management and appraisal, workforce training, career development, compensation management, rewards and performance, employee benefits, employee relations, employee rights and discipline, organized labor, and workplace safety and health.The reference resource for human resource directors, managers, and small business owners, as well as others in leadership positions. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Well organized and synthetic
This book contains the basic principles that any HR or General Manager (especially in the US) is supposed to know.

I have been using this textbook as a guide for my MBA studies.
I found it very useful in that it clearly explains and organizes almost every important topic about HR management. It gives practical clues on the kind of considerations a manager needs to be aware in day-to-day operation.

I used this book to find basic, straightforward ideas about HR principles and how this function is changing in the era of globalization. This way, I could use it to organize my own ideas, and if needed, using the enclosed bibliography, I could go to more specialized books on a particular topic of interest.

Good. Breaks down things like Employee Manual
This book is clear and up to date. I found it very useful for our company. It's a keeper! ... Read more

Book Description

107 interactive games and activities can be found in the pages of this easy-to-use book. Each game is fun, experiential, easy to lead, unique, and requires minimal resources. With 65 team challenges and 42 activities that help any team get to know one another, become comfortable with each other, and open up, there is something for every group.

If you work with youth, corporate groups, therapy groups, church groups, scouts, families, school groups, sports teams, at camp, or with any other group who must work together you will find helpful games and activities in this fun, energetic, and purposeful book! ... Read more

Reviews (11)

The best I've seen.
This book was exactly what I was looking for to build teams with my middle schoolers. Many activities would also be useful with high schoolers or adults. I have a lot of the traditional games and team building activity books, but none were as well arranged or easy to use. Activities that use few or no props or items that are easy to find are what work best for me! This book is full of them!

Team-Building Games
What a great book! I am a high school teacher, and I'm not only trying to teach my students about literature and grammar, but also about teamwork, cooperation, and communication skills. This book has lots of activities that are divided into 4 levels from learning peoples' names to really opening up and sharing personal stuff. The instructions are easy to understand, and most require little preparation and supplies that you usually have around (pens, paper, tape, chairs, etc.) The book is well-organized beyond the 4 activity levels as well; for each game, the author clearly states the objective, the needed materials, instructions, and variations on the activities. For the second two levels, she also includes excellent discussion questions. It seems to me that these activities would really work with ANY group. Well worth the investment.

Pretty Good stuff!
Good book with good activities. Some are more involved than others and require some hefty prep and set up (if that's a problem, check out Miller's Quick Teambuilding Activities book, it's similar, but only has short, quick activities for when you are on a time crunch). I especially liked the writing format here, easy to skim the activities and quickly grasp the essense so you can decide if this is the one you wanna use!

Great for Boy Scout Junior Leadership Training!
I purchased this book to supplement the team building games provided by BSA. I was extremely pleased with the games that are offered in this book. We decided to try "Cup Stack" at one of our first training sessions, and since then it has become a staple game for us. The variety of games available has enabled us to create a completely new variation of Junior Leader Training every time out. I have just ordered Alanna's second book to enhance our program even further.

Excellent
Not a bad book... it is easy to follow, very easily adapted to many different audiences and I cant wait to use it this summer. Activities are well organized and practical.

I am so pleased with this book, I am going to order more by Alanna Jones. ... Read more

Book Description

A comprehensive state-of-the-art text on microeconometric methods. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Simply a great text..
If you are frustrated with the presentation in Greene and other econometric textbooks, then you may want to take a look at this book. It's the anti-Greene, full of clear, well-motivated presentations. What I love about this book is that the author clearly intended for it to be used by students -- even though you can find all the formal results that you would expect from an advanced econometrics text, there is so much intuition that can't be found anywhere else (at least in one book). If you plan on doing applied research, get this book!

Simply the best in its field.
Wooldridge fills an enormous gap in the market between applied manuals (which do not deliver enough theory for an academically serious audience), and theory books (that leave you scratching your head as to how one is supposed to implement their results). This is a wonderful book for economic practitioners who want enough theoretical knowledge to support their applied work, but who don't want the theory obscuring the practical issues. An econometric theoretician might find another work more satisfying.

Five stars just because of the other books.
I have bought this book to have a comprehensive intermediate-advanced text on panel data and other approaches. The book is good, but no tables, no datasets, no figures!
Compared to other books on the topic, it is a very understandable book, but only COMPARED to those books. You do not have to be a Mathematician to understand it, but you must be at least intermediate in econometrics (after Gujarati or an intermediate course).

A Gold Mine of Microeconometric Methods
If you are interested in learning the latest microeconometric methods, this book will save you from long hours of sorting through the literature. Wooldridge has brought together in a well organized, clear and concise manner the state of the art techniques in microeconometrics. His book covers all of the core issues involving single equation and simultaneous equation models. The most important aspects of M-estimation, MLE, GMM and minimum distance estimation are carefully presented. Those interested in limited dependent and qualitative variables will find that this goes well beyond Maddala's classic book. In addition to new developments in logit, probit and tobit, Wooldridge explains sample selection, attrition and stratified sampling. He covers research by Heckman et al on estimating average treatment effects using instrumental variables. I found his material on negative binomial regression, binomial regression, exponential regression and fractional logit regression to be especially interesting. He concludes his book with a nice summary of research on duration analysis. Throughout the book Wooldridge shows how to handle panel data with the various techniques he covers. Anyone doing applied work with cross section or panel data runs the risk of being left behind if they fail to read this new classic of microeconometrics. ... Read more

Book Description

Starting An eBay Business For Dummies is the book eBay entrepreneurs have been dying to have -- all the tips and tricks of turning eBay trading into a full-time job are here.

This book covers the essentials an eBay user or budding entrepreneur needs to start a money-making venture by trading on eBay. Discover the essentials not only for maximizing your profits on eBay, but also how to run a smart business. This guide explains the enhanced features of eBay including their new Gallery feature designed to help business pull in customers by displaying their goods in individual online boutiques. ... Read more

Reviews (40)

A Remarkable Business Opportunity
Marsha Collier's "Starting An Ebay Business For Dummies" is your golden gateway to self-relience in a fun business of your own. How about opening a store in a mall with 30,000,000 visitors daily? What would you pay for this opportunity? Marsha shows not only how to open the store, but how and what merchandise to stock, how to manage accounting, advertising, how to get the best site (location), how to price your merchandise, and how to display your wares. I was amazed at the depth of information about what is required to take and post photos and simple explaination about the best methods of being paid.

This is a Dummie book , but only for Dummies who are smart like a fox. Sure it is written with cartoons, tips (with targets and arrows), reminders, warnings (with cutsie bombs), and ancedotes so it's fun and understandable for "the rest of us". Marsha put her years of success making a living on Ebay into this book. It is simple enough for a beginner to follow, but with tips and ideas a computer guru will appreciate.

(...) Marsha, has shown the least expensive with the greatest upside potential of any business I've seen. Start it as a hobby, build it into a business, but do it right with "Starting An Ebay Business For Dummies" This book has my very HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION.

(...)

THE BUBBLE BURST BUT YOU CAN STILL MAKE MONEY ON THE WEB
Although the Internet bubble burst, that does not mean that money can not be made via the Internet. Discounting all those spam e-mails about Making Money Fast, Collier provides solid strategies on starting a business using eBay. One of the best well-written business books I've ever read! I definitely recommend this to anyone who either wants to take full advantage of eBay or even just sells the occassional item. Collier's book reminds me of Guerilla PR: Wired, which details strategies for low-cost, but effective public relations coverage. Both deal with how to maximize your business's efforts and reap the rewards.

Gave me the tools I needed!
There are lots of books on eBay, but this one really helped me get organized for setting up my ebay business. It's written in a friendly authoritative style - it made me feel like I was getting advice from a very knowledgable friend.

I've heard Ms. Collier teach at ebay University, and this book really expands into everything I wanted to know about my business. Like where to get licenses, what to do about taxes, where I can buy merchandise without laying out hundreds of dollars (there will be plenty of time for that as my business on ebay grows).

I reccommend this book to anyone who's been selling on ebay casually and is ready to take the next step.

Bad news Book
I would rate this book lower than one star if there was an option for that. I cannot say this book is a complete loss, you may use it for a door stop. It has not one iota of what people want to know in a book of this type. It doesn't even address the subject, where to find things to sell. If you are looking for a book on starting and on line store forget this book.

So Outdated!
I'm sure this book might have been useful when it came out three years ago, but as a current eBay seller who just read the entire book, I have to say the information is so outdated it's laughable now. eBay has changed so much even in the last six months that many of the things the author discusses don't even exist anymore, and have been replaced by new eBay enhancements. I would estimate that 10% or less of this book was useful to me. A waste of your time and money until an updated version comes out! ... Read more

Book Description

Learn from Hundreds of Top eBay Sellers

• Tap the more than 100 million registered users that make eBay the leading online marketplace
• Determine what sells best on eBay and why
• Find little-known sources for products
• Learn about tools that will make your eBay business more efficient and professional
• Develop auctions that create high traffic and product demand
• Handle end-of-sale payments and protect yourself from fraud and loss
• Manage auctions, inventories, and communications effectively
• Provide superior customer service to get an edge over the competition
• Track incidentals, deductions, expenses, and other tax-related items
• Automate to ease processes such as listings, managing images, e-mail, and shipping
• Learn from hundreds of PowerSellers what it takes to succeed on eBay

Book Description

Hilton/Maher/Selto (HMS) addresses traditional cost concepts, but makes cost accounting functional by focusing on measuring and managing costs. HMS maintains that, “Costs don’t just happen,” and with a pro-active approach toward costs, accountants can add value to an organization. Faculty will appreciate the new and more conventional chapter organization in the first two sections of the text. The real-world approach of this text, including the use of focus companies and the new accompanying focus sites, provides a realistic business environment, and aids in student comprehension and interest in the subject. ... Read more

Book Description

Now ranked the #1 selling Marketing Research book, this edition returns with an abundance of new and updated exercises, coverage, and features. Most notable is a special emphasis on online marketing research. Nearly every chapter includes coverage on how the Internet and new technologies are impacting research methods, for better and for worse. A book cannot succeed on new features and topics alone. With every new edition, reviewers complement these authors for an approach that is innovative yet approachable and reliable. Exercises and cases have been checked for accuracy, and the authors also recruited a Blue Ribbon Panel of marketing research professionals. The Panel explores today's increasingly digital research environment from a practitioner's point of view.Chapter topics include the marketing research process and industry, determining research objectives, research design, measurement, data collection and analysis, interpreting associations among variables, predictive analysis, and preparing and presenting the research report.For an understanding and appreciation of how marketing research works in practice. ... Read more

Book Description

Provides analysis of 650 jobs, based on 20 years of research using the McClelland/McBer job competence assessment (JCA) methodology. Includes generic job models for entrepreneurs, technical professionals, salespeople, service workers and corporate managers. Defines JCA and describes in detail how to conduct JCA studies. Suggests future directions and uses for competency research. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Essential & Exceptional
The phrase 'essential reading is a cliche', however, this is truly essential reading for anyone seeking to understand competencies.

Not bed-time time reading; this is a technical book for HR professionals. Detailed and lucid (although the neophyte may prefer to start with something a little lighter, eg some emotional intelligence work by Goleman).

A good index and bibliography.

Required reading to become a true competency expert
I have studied and used dozens of books on the topic of competencies, and many are useful, but this is the one I return to most often. My copy of this book is ragged, dog-eared, coffee-stained, and marked by many colored tabs for quick reference. Competence at Work changed my approach to human resources, and I actually earned some national honors and recognition for innovations in assessment and workforce planning by using it as a guide. It yields an effective understanding of competencies and how to apply them in processes such as recruiting, selection, development, performance management, succession, and workforce planning.

Some insights and tools in the book are particularly valuable:

Criterion sampling:
Compare high performers to average performers in order to understand how each performance group achieves their different levels of success.

Operant measures:
Measure how people operate in the real world as opposed to how they respond to a list of multiple-choice items. It describes Behavioral Event Interviewing (BEI) as the preferred approach, but you might have to access other sources for a complete understanding of the BEI.

Competency definitions and scales:
These alone are worth the price of the book. Based on behaviors that are empirically related to performance in a wide variety of jobs, they provide a quick-start to comparing performance groups and developing competency models, and they provide a framework for both assessing and developing competencies in people.

The principles and methods outlined in this book allow one to construct and apply competency models and human resource practices that get results. If I could have only one book on human resources, it would be this one! If I could have only three, the other two would also be by Spencer: Reengineering Human Resources and Calculating Human Resource Costs and Benefits.

Good competence guideline
This book present the components of the job competence assessment approach,including the competency dictionary, which lists, defines, and provides scoring criteria that can help you predict superior performance for most jobs,It's provided to step by step guidelines on how to use the dictionary in all types of
job.
You will understand what is competence from this book!I strongly recommendation!

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An Essential Primer on Competence
Lyle Spencer has written a book that is lucid, well-organized, and a concise reference on human competence. If this was history, you would know that he had been there and had not merely interviewed those who were. This is so because his work is informed by original research. Spencer begins the presentation within a framework of competence that is criterion-referenced. The competence dictionary is organized around competency clusters that are well-defined and behaviorally anchored. But theory is not left to wrestle with the reader's experience. Spencer provides the practioner with a guide that takes the user through all steps in the conduct of a competency study. Spencer closes with a set of generic competency models that the practioner can tailor to his or her client before drawing the reader's attention to the variety of applications that study data may serve. Though a bit pricey, you can purchase it with the knowledge that it will stand up well as your single source of reference.

This book changed how I do my job as a trainer.
This book gives a comprehensive competency dictionary using behaviorally anchored rating scales for each competency. It also gives step by step guidelines on how to use the dictionary in all types of HR decision making. It is clearly written and is based on years of extensive research. Using this book eliminates the need to use expensive and dependency creating consulting services. Every HR professional should have it on their shelf. Moreover, as a training professional, if I had to choose 2 books to have on my bookshelf, I would choose this book and Performance Consulting by Dana Gaines Robinson. ... Read more

Book Description

This highly-readable, #1 best-selling HRM book on the market, provides a comprehensive review of personnel management concepts and practices. It focuses on the high-performance organization—building better, faster, more competitive organizations through HR; while continuing to offer practical applications that help all managers deal with their personnel-related responsibilities.A six-part presentation covers the strategic role of human resources, recruitment and placement, training and development, compensation, labor relations and employee security, and international HRM.For human resource personnel—especially managers. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Dessler Knows the Field
Dessler's approach in Human Resource Management is thorough, comprehensive, contemporary, and very readable. The figures, tables, and other visuals are excellent for models and practical use. The cases and application exercises are relevant to the real world and greatly assist in the overall understanding of the main concepts of each chapter. Chapters on employee testing and selection, appraising performance, job analysis, and personnnel planning and recruiting, are particularly well presented. The complexities of establishing pay plans and financial incentives are explained in simple terms for the reader and include revelant examples. The text also comes with supplementary materials which greatly enhance it's use and application. This book can be used for lower as well as upper division courses at the University or College level.

Substantive yet Simple
I found the book indeed a must for "managers". It is essentials-full and highly concise, a product of many years of thought. If not for some minor spelling errors, the book would have been near to perfection.

Disappointment int he Details
I was delighted to learn that Dessler had a new HR management book available August 1999 for an MBA class I was teaching beginning in September 1999. Before selecting the book I reviewed an earlier edition and was pleased with the organization, topics, and simple style. I selected the newest edition without seeing it. Imagine my shock and embarrassment when I started reading it after assigning chapters to my students. I found a few typos in the beginning and laughingly told my students I would give them bonus points for any they found. I thought it would encourage them to read carefully. I had to discontinue the practice after about probably the first dozen were in the first couple chapters. One class we concentrated on writing a resume. The example of a "good" resume that Dessler provided was terrible. Not only was it confusing, it was from the 1980s. I am sorry that my students had to pay $. I am teaching the class again in February so will need to find another book. Mr. Dessler, I hope you encourage those in HR to be more careful in the details of their work than you were in your book.

thorough and detailed
i am a business final year undergraduate taking applied personnel policy, i find this book quite useful, even though it is not the prescribed text but i think it's worth the money.

Out of Date, limited on specific information,
I was extremly disappointed with this book, i am currently completing a diploma in HRM, and this was a set text so i spent the money; however i used it twice only, and have been trying to sell it for 5 months at the 1/4 of retail and i am still stuck with it. I recommend Stones or Robbins. ... Read more

Book Description

Ed Slott’s book The Retirement Savings Time Bomb . . . and How to Defuse It taughtAmericans how to protect their hard-earned cash from the IRS’s coffers. Now, "America’s IRAexpert" (Mutual Funds Magazine) returns with a bulletproof plan for ensuring your IRA’scontinued longevity, tax-favored, for generations.

In Parlay Your IRA, Ed Slott shows you how to make the most out of your retirement plan.Slott's three-step strategy cuts through the tax laws and provides simple, easy-to-followinstructions for managing your IRA and other retirement income. Learn what you can do to parlayit into a fortune during your lifetime, and what you must do now to ensure that yourbeneficiaries will have all the options available to capitalize on the opportunity you've created forthem to keep your money growing.

Packed with strategies, tips, answers to frequently asked questions Parlay Your IRA into aFamily Fortune offers real solutions to making the most of your retirement money.

Learn how to:
* Achieve unlimited tax-free income when you retire.
* Pass more assets on to loved ones and other beneficiaries
* Keep retirement assets in the family for decades, even generations, and pay minimal or notaxes
*Protect your retirement account from creditors, divorce, bankruptcy, lawsuits, or other problemsthat could expose it to loss
*Use a Roth IRA to build a tax-free fortune
* And much, much more
... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent strategic planning
Ed Slott has produced a gem of a book.His message is targeted to those of us who don't plan to use up our entire IRA savings account during our own lifetimes, but plan to leave some of those savings for our heirs. If you can make that money grow by investing wisely, Slott shows you the secret of making that money last (he calls it `stretching') for the lifetime of your beneficiary (and even longer).It really is possible to convert your IRA into a family fortune.

There are three important steps to take.The first is converting to a Roth IRA.The next is to carefully choose the correct beneficiary.It must be one person.More than one beneficiary is OK, but it's crucial to set up a new IRA account for each.Be certain that your beneficiaries understand the steps necessary to stretch their IRAs to last the lifetime of their heirs.

The third step involves hiring an IRA advisor.The laws are tricky and things must be done just right.Fortunately, Slott provides directions on just how to get started.Although I was reluctant to take this step, he points out the importance of hiring an IRA advisor and how to go about finding one who is competent.It's too important to trust just anyone.

By carefully reading this book and following the instructions, you can arrange for your savings to continue to compound - tax deferred - for years.

If I found one fault with the book, it's that it lacks advice on just how to get the money in your IRA account to grow at a satisfactory rate.These are not the 1990's and one cannot simply park money in the stock market and watch it increase in value daily.Fortunately, I recently came across another new book that fills the gap.CREATE YOUR OWN HEDGE FUND describes a method of investing that taught me how to hedge (reduce the risk of owning) a portfolio of index funds (ETFs).The book is a tutorial on how and why this method is suitable for most investors.

I recommend both books as a way to build your IRA account and make it last for generations.
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Book Description

The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Money & Investing initiates you into the mysteries of the financial pages -- buying stocks, bonds, mutual funds, futures and options, spotting trends and evaluating companies. For those who are curious but intimidated by everyday financial jargon, this guide offers a literate, forthright and lively alternative. ... Read more

Reviews (50)

Incomplete and Misleading Basic Definitions
To me a guide from a brand name source like The Wall Street Journal should always elucidate and never mislead. If this book were called a dictionary of money and investing, I would give it a five star rating. For it works well as a dictionary. In fact, it is better than a dictionary because the explanations are clearer, more detailed, and better illustrated.

In the sections on what money, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and economic indicators are, the book functions as that five star dictionary.

Within each section beginning with stocks, the "guide" also begins to guide you in subtle ways that can cause you harm. Let me cite a few examples. The guide seems to suggest that when the market is going up, a company's earnings are doing well, and interest rates are not rising that is a good time to buy a stock. The illustrated graph seems to show other times when it is good not to buy stocks. As such, it suggests the mentality of buying and selling stocks to catch cycles. Yet research has shown that few people can master that process, so those who try will tend to do less well than those who buy and hold.

Another example is in failing to discuss the role of management fees, expenses, portfolio turnover, and diversification on which mutual fund to pick. As John Bogle shows in Common Sense on Mutual Funds, these are very important factors to consider. Yet they are not defined or cited.

The book also teaches people a little about short selling, commodities, futures, and other exotic investments. The book fails to point out that these are well beyond the skill of the average investor, and that many people get hurt in these areas. Basically, this is like a book of definitions about poisonous snakes that fails to mention that the snakes are poisonous if they bite you.

Other obvious omissions included no mention of tracking stocks, ADRs in the stock section (you find the definition in International markets, where to me it fits less well), the differences in discount brokers, electronic trading choices, and how to find information about stocks on the Internet (the only source cited in the SEC).

The focus is overly on the U.S. with only a small section on international securities. The area of interest rate futures, where Europe dominates, is barely referred to in this book.

Some of the information is just plain out of date. NAIC is cited as being the National Association of Investment Clubs. I believe it dropped that name over 10 years ago although it still goes by NAIC. The guide refers to there being 37,000 investment clubs in the U.S. I think that number was exceeded many years ago.

Further, much of the information is basically about how to read economic statistics. Many people would argue technical analysis is at least as important as economic statistics, but nothing about technical analysis is included in the book.

If you want to learn about investing, you need to know investing principles more than you need to know these terms (such as the various aspects of a stock certificate's printing and engraving). You will find most of the relevant terms covered in basic investing books like Louis Engel's book, How to Buy Stocks. You would be far better off reading ChangeWave Investing, Common Sense on Mutual Funds, and Rich Dad, Poor Dad's Investment Guide than this book for getting a sense of what the basic investing issues are.

Overcome your misconception that anything with The Wall Street Journal's name on it is bound to be the best resource. Certainly, that isn't true in this case.

My suggestion is that The Wall Street Journal revise this book and either cut it back into being an expanded dictionary, or expand it into an investing guide worthy of its name.

A foundation for investing.
I purchased this book six years ago so that I could start down the long road of learning how to invest my money. It is far and away the best beginning level investment book that I have ever seen! THE GOOD: 1) It starts from the beginning! It begins by explaining money, the Federal Reserve, and economic cycles. From there it moves on to stocks, bonds, mutual funds and futures & options. 2) It is simple! With its colored charts, simple paragraphs and real world examples even grade school kids can understand the concepts presented here. 3) It is concise! It gives you enough information so that you completely understand the concept, yet it does it in two pages! No more wading through economic textbooks looking for the meaning of "price/earning ratio." THE BAD: 1) It starts from the beginning. If you already know about money cycles, common and preferred stock or U.S. Treasury bonds then this book may bore you. 2) It is simple. Don't go looking for too much detail here. If you want detailed information about which mutual find to buy, look elsewhere. 3) It is concise. Once it covers the basics it ends. If you already know the basics, then you could be considered a graduate of this book. OVERALL: The title really says it all: it is a guide to understanding money and understanding investing. Once you understand the concepts you can move on to more detailed books.

The Best
As many have said in their reviews, this is a great starting point for those new to investing and financial markets. In fact, it's the best I've ever found and I've looked a lot. The simple, plain English explanations are what makes this book stand out. For the nuances and more detailed information regarding the topics in the book, look to a textbook from a college finance class. But for the person who knows very little, start with this.

Good for beginner investors
If you are new to investing and need a simple primer, read this book. It's well organized and written. Those that have invested for a while will find this book simplistic. Nevertheless, I think every beginning investor should get a copy and read it.

This is My Bible
Even now, after much study of investing, I always come back to this book for clarification. Consider this book as the very basic starting point for all other investing knowledge.

YOU CANNOT GO WRONG WITH THIS BOOK!!!! ... Read more

Reviews (10)

very hands-on, practical --- real-life effective ideas
This book was enlightening. I never knew there were so many easy and low cost ways to energize employees --- and Bob shows you all of them plus more. A must-have for today's best managers. A great follow-up to Bob Nelson's best-selling "1001 Ways to Reward Employees."

A must-have for managers and HR folks
I'm an HR person myself, and have found this (and the 1001 ways to reward) to be an essential part of my library. Many people want to look through it, borrow it... some have kept it, so this is probably my fifth version of the book that I've bought! Try to put your name all over the book so they don't forget it's yours.

A fast how-to book on energizing teams... lacks depth
If you are looking to truly turn around your company or department, this is not the book for you. When does this book come in handy? If you are seeking for quick ideas to energize your team, and are short on inspiration: that is where it's a very comprehensive source. But be realistic: true energizing and change is a process that can't be bought with treats or gifts, but rather built through trust and open communication, among other things. If you want to really energize your team, then be ready for a longterm commitment from your part, that will go beyond just getting them perks or giving them awards.

There's a sucker born every minute
Companies are spending so much money trying to inspire employees that they have spawned an industry: the motivation industry. Bob Nelson is cashing in on it for sure. What executive wouldn't buy in to the notion of some pundit who champions "no cost" motivation? I wonder what they pay to hear him say it on his motivational tours??

What inspires people remains vague and elusive. For every reader who is moved by his book, there are likely ten who see it as childish drivel.

Nelson is just repackaging old anecdotes and fictional stories, then reselling them. There is not one shred of proof that any of his methods have any lasting value. Don't waste your time or money on this garbage.

Needed now more than ever!
Creative yet practical ways to motivate and retain staff are needed now more than ever before. Between the sour economy that makes raises and bonuses tougher, the specter of layoffs that's making everyone nervous, the ability of top staff to bail on you at a moment's notice, and the trend toward making managers accountable for employee retention, managers can never let down their guard in this area. Many of the ideas here are common sense, but can never be restated enough. Others are low-cost and can be implemented with the leanest of budgets. My one quibble with the book: the suggestion to have executives spend a day with the staff is, IMHO, insulting to the rank and file and may even be counterproductive, as it comes off as more of a feel-good stunt benefitting the executives than a real motivator. ... Read more

Book Description

The success of Starbucks Coffee Company is one of the mostremarkable business stories in decades, growing from a single retailstore on Seattle's waterfront to a company with more than one thousandstores nationwide and a new one opening every business day. Starbucks haseffected a fundamental change in American life, turning coffee into anational obsession and establishing the coffee bar as a new fixture ofMain Street - a home away from home for millions of Americans. In PourYour Heart Into It, Howard Schultz, the CEO of Starbucks, shares thepassion, values, and inspiration that drive the success of thisfascinating company. Schultz gives credit for the growth of Starbucks toa foundation of values seldom found in corporate America - values thatplace as much importance on the company's employees as they do onprofits, as much attention to creativity as to growth. Schultz tells thestory of Starbucks in chapters that illustrate the principles which havemade the company enduring, such as "Don't be threatened by people smarterthan you," "Compromise anything but your core values," "Seek to renewyourself even when you are hitting home runs," and, most simply,"Everything matters." For entrepreneurs, marketers, managers, andStarbucks' loyal customers, Pour Your Heart Into It gets to the heartof a company that, according to Fortune magazine, "has changedeverything...from our tastes to our language to the face of Main Street." ... Read more

Reviews (81)

An insightful read - much better than the typical CEO tract
I was pleasantly surprised as that number of insights I picked up in Howard Schultz' tale. He and Dori Jones Yang really appeared to have connected in the writing of this book. There's an effortless flow in the telling that gives you a 'fly on the wall' insider's feel without getting bogged down in coffee arcania or management dribble.

Schultz walks you through some of the thought processes and actions that led to important advancements in Starbucks' success with their customers. And, he's not afraid to point out when he's been dead wrong. He's strong enough to admit being dead set against the Frappuccino & totally missing the boat on what ended up being a blowout product for the company.

One comment - it's hard for me to reconcile Schultz' recent fixation on the Internet, going so far as ruminating about buying Williams-Sonoma for its online potential, with the clear-headed thoughts expressed in this book. [Yes, let's see...I'll have a latte and this leather couch, thanks.] Throughout the book, Schultz shows a complete understanding of a company's need to please Wall Street via growing profits, and also is quite clear of having to evaluate each decision by asking "Will it strengthen or dilute the brand?"

You will never look at Starbucks the same way again
This is one of the best business biographies I have ever read. It is truly inspiring. One simple, and telling, output from reading this book on a plane was that as soon as we landed I headed to the local airport Starbucks for a latte. I rarely even drink coffee! So powerful are the imagery and the passion for coffee in his story that you can almost smell the roasted dark beans, feel them running through your fingers, hear the sounds of the espresso machine and taste the coffee itself!

Why is this imagery so important? Because behind the corporate image of a relentless pac-man like machine churning out new locations at a rate slightly above the national birth rate it seems, is a simple vision of passion for coffee combined with Italian neighborhoods and a warm and friendly place where the worlds best coffee and social friendship intermix. That is what Starbucks was all about.

The book itself is a remarkable insight into this journey. It was even more special for me, as I grew up with Starbucks - literally. When Howard talks about the vision he had to treat even his part time employees with full benefits and ownership in the company through stock, I know it was more than just a nice sounding corporate manta, it really worked. Friends I went to high school with in Bellevue in the mid to late 1980's worked at the first stores, and raved about this little coffee company and couldn't imagine working anywhere else. So, from firsthand experience I can tell you that what he says about the passion and vision coming to life in Seattle is all true

While company history is quite interesting, and the book itself just hums and glides without ever getting mundane, the real gems are in the emotional reality Howard displays. He talks about being overwhelmed to tears, about the rejection he faced while trying to get funding for his fledgling company, about the naysayers and others who nearly took it all away, and the struggle with having a hand in everything and slowly letting go. You know that you are reading about a real person, someone who came from a poor neighborhood in Brooklyn with working-class roots, not an image generated by a large corporations PR spin doctors

The value of people, so often lost in corporate bureaucracy, is evident here. Starbucks grew because it struck an emotional chord with people. He knew that in order for the company to be successful he needed people who shared the values. This is often spoken of, and rarely practiced in the corporate world where systems, forecasts, processes and other such tools become the focal point, and the simple fact that all results come through people is lost. He speaks throughout the book of people who helped him, coached him, mentored him, challenged him, and made the company what it was. One quote in particular summarizes his views: "If people relate to the company they work for, if they form an emotional tie to it and buy into its dreams, they will pour their heart into making it better." (Page 6) This theme comes through in every decision.

Overall, this is a wonderful book, and is truly inspiring. I would work for him tomorrow, if it really still is the way it's portrayed here. I encourage you to read this book and see your neighborhood Starbucks in a new light.

Try Working at Starbucks
This is an interesting read if looked at as a fictional account of business. As a frustrated Starbucks employee, there are many an urban legend about how great we are supposed to be treated. Howard should go to work as a barista in one of his own stores, have customers insult him, throw drinks back at him and do all of the cleaning chores expected of the people making him his millions. As for the "One Drink at a Time", I wish that were true. We are expected to whip out drinks within mere seconds of them being ordered. Don't believe all the gospel of Howard. It ain't all that he thinks it is cracked up to be.

A great read
OK. I don't read a lot of books. I am an entrepreneur. This book was great. I always liked starbucks coffee but now I have an in depth understanding of how truly amazing a company Starbucks is. You will not be dissappointed!

Good Book to Read for those who Wish to Develop Own Business
You can see from this book how Howard Schultz upheld his belief in good coffee quality from the begining. Also, he was so committed to bring in new experience to his customers which was a very important marketing strategy nowadays. The book is easy to read and has given the reader a lot of inspirations! ... Read more

Book Description

The premise of the text is that students learn financial statement analysis most effectively by performing the analysis on actual companies. Students learn to integrate concepts from economics, business strategy, accounting, and other business disciplines. The text is designed for courses on financial statement analysis and financial reporting found in accounting, finance, and economics departments. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Good Book for Executives and Students
This is good Financial Reporting and Analysis book. Some chapters have been presented in a bit confusing way, overall it deserves good rating.

Great book for executives-students
A good book and great resource for someone interested in viewing FSA broadly. The authors do not forget the importance of accounting and reporting to analysis, however. Very current.

a really bad and confusing book
Students in search of a good book on financial statements should look at "The analysis and Use of financial statements" from White/Sondhi/Fried. Professor Stickney seems more interested in making money than in writing a decent book

Found the book a nice balance between reporting and analysis
As someone who wants finance, accounting, and strategy all in one book, this does a nice job of integrating things. Current examples are great. Access to solutions to cases would be most helpful

broad, limited illustrations of case problems
For someone with just the basic knowledge of accounting or finance, this book would certainly pose a challenge- especially with the case problems. ... Read more