Book Description

THE HARVARD BUSINESS REVIEW PAPERBACK SERIES is designed to bring today's managers and professionals the fundamental information they need to stay competitive in a fast-moving world.Here are the landmark ideas that have established the Harvard Business Review as required reading for ambitious business people in organizations around the globe.

Information Technology (IT) influences all aspects of business today, and this wide-ranging resource will help managers understand the key concepts and terms, and to envision the strategic potential of their IT assets.The articles provide a candid dialogue on the issues surrounding outsourcing, and take a look at planning for connectivity and control in the year 2000 and beyond. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Hopelessly out of date
Although I am a fan of HBR collections in general, this one is now out of date. Most of the articals are from the early 1990's, and in IT, 10+ years is an eternity.

Nice collection of articles
I really liked the article on Enterprise Systems, it gives a good understanding of what you are getting into when buying solutions like SAP.

Value on IT valuation
The IT heavy hitters weigh in here in this neat little volume of "classics" in IT management from the 1990's. Starting with the rallying call from guru Tom Davenport on the limits of IT, this collection of essays and insights ponders not only the new challenges of the internet age, but also, the more fundamental issues and problems that have plagued the IT arena for decades. The role of the CEO, management alternatives for the IT infrastructure, and how to manage IT as a connected, strategic resource all recieve good attention here. The book is a bit heavy on outsourcing, devoting 3 of its 8 chapters to this one management option. There is also the constant and somewhat prosaic refrain centered on speed and flexibilty as the corporate challenge for which IT can step in and create value. The final chapter on the Y2K problem is today, out of date, and not so valuable as other chapters. It lacks a connecting transition to the next decade in IT and fails to present lessons learned from dealing with the problem. But for general managers, business students, and for those aspiring to understand what all the shouting is about, this volume from the Harvard Business School is a fine treatise on what we have learned about using and managing IT in our organizations, and on our expectiations for this technology to be the one best answer to all the ills that plague organizations. ... Read more

Reviews (13)

Excellent foresight
Mr. Drucker is probably the most experienced Management Consultant, teacher and Guru who has traveled through business transformations of the twentieth century. In his characteristic style of narration, with exceptional command over facts and the English language, he is once again at his best in this book - a collection of his recent articles on the new economy and the future of Society. Starting from the invention of the steam engine ( James Watt - 1776), the steam boat ( 1807) to the first railroad ( 1829), the first article "Beyond the information Revolution" describes similarities between the Industrial revolution and the Information Revolution. Moore's law is applicable to the computer's processing power today. A similar phenomenon happened to the cost and productivity of textiles in the Industrial age. Since then, the global economies have transformed completely and today we have a knowledge-based society. The decline of Agriculture during the Industrial age is similar to the decline of Manufacturing in the last four decades.

What lies ahead, in terms of demographic, social, economic and business scenarios, during the next three decades makes fascinating reading. If you are in a hurry to find out what is in store, you may visit the last chapter directly. But the journey is more exciting than the destination. Please take the railroad powered by the steam engine and enjoy the lovely trip.

Prepare Yourself for the Challenging Changes
It is a sobering thought.

In his latest book, Peter F. Drucker, writer, lecturer, business philosopher, argues convincingly argues the greatest technological changes of the Information Revolution lie ahead and most of them will have little to do with information.

To illustrate, Drucker retreats to the dawn of the Industrial Revolution. James Watt improved the steam engine in 1776; it was not until 1785 when the engine was harnessed to an industrial operation - the spinning of cloth, that society appreciated its benefits. During the following half century, Drucker notes, output increased and the price of cotton textiles fell 90 per cent.

In short order the great majority of manufacturing processes were mechanized. Yet it was not until the 1820s with the adaptation of the steam engine to land based transportation - the railroad - that society witnessed its first new product. It was without precedent and it transformed the economy, society and politics of its day.

The Information Revolution is standing today at the same doorstep where the Industrial Revolution in 1820, Drucker believes.

Some of the chapters of the book, which are essays or articles that have been previously published, deal with management topics; some do not. Although none offers a cure-all, it remains a management book. The societal and social changes will dominate the executive's thinking for the next 10 to 15 years. His or her response, Drucker says, may be more important for the success or failure of their organizations than their response to any economic event.

The grimm perspectives for Latin America
What makes me think deeply from this book is the criticism Mr. Drucker writes about the first world modern states. According to his point of view, they are already lagged in the race for being fitted to the new society and the social changes coming up from the new technological wave. If this is the present situation of the best national states, what could we say about the perspectives of the latin american nation-states?.

The globalization creates ties among many firms and people who don't have their national states as a major intermediation. But the other face of the same process is the fragmentation that happens inside the countries. Mr. Drucker does not outline ideas about the fragmentation process, the other side of the coin, the shadow of the globalization process. This reality does not include all people. The exclusion of some from the benefits of the new model of creation of wealth has political consequences. In the fisrt world, with their bureaucracies, long stablished political parties and rich welfare-states, it will be possible the handling of all undesirable consequences of globalization. With the political ground stable enough, the first world should be able to continue allocating its resources, public and private, well, in an ever changing environment. But what about the latin american nation-states?, they don't have political systems with sufficient legitimacy to produce major consensus and improve the performace of the public policies, at the same time that petty private interests are hold back. And, in addition, they lack the financial resources that come from a fully industrialized economy to face the same kind of problems, but at a higher scale.

I recommend this book to every top latin american politican. The future of business and society will depend more than ever on good enough national states and public policies.Every latin american political elite has the opportunity to show how useful they are. And please, don't blame markets, nor selfish and shy investors, neither unfair trade policies. We know that there are some troubles about them, but they are not as important as the flaws of our national states.

Good, solid book.
This book is the second full text that I have read from Drucker. During my MBA days I was also exposed to/emersed in many of his articles and theories. I have always found him to be insightful and thought provoking. For some reason, particularly with this text, I found his style and delivery to be long-winded and somewhat arrogant. Reading between the lines, his message is clear -- we are at the beginning of the revolution...there is so much more to come.

Good book -- a step above most authors. Middle of the road for Drucker however.

Drucker strikes gold again!
Mr. Drucker has done it again. This books dispels all those olde management rules and tells you how to manage for sucess. Drucker continues to guide us to higer heights with this book. Truly amazing. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

One of the most disappointing books I have ever read.
This book looked very promising; the format and premise of a history book written from the year 2025. Unfortunately, the book is so superficial in its treatment of the subjects that I found myself falling asleep whenever I attempted to read it. The book reads like a collection of facts or sidebars; there are no stories, fiction or non, to pull you through the chapters. Read Probable Tomorrows instead.

2025--a masterful scenario
"The future is now present," claims Bill Clinton. We need to "honor the past" and "imagine the future." Here is a book that helps millennial planners do the later part well.

Coates is a regular feature at World Future Society conferences. Last year I heard him give an 8-part lecture series last year on scenarios of life and business in 2025, and later bought the cassette series.

Now he and his colleagues have brought out the book on the subject. It taps the worlds of science, technology, and engineering to look at the thirty year period of 1995 to 2025. Written in the form of a history book in 2025, Coates gives fifteen scenarios which reflect what life will be like in the United States as well as other societies (both affluent and less prosperous).

* Smart Living / house and home of the future * Information: The Global Commodity / integration of telecommunications * Harvesting the Fruit of Genetics / biotechnology * Powering Three Worlds /energy technology and efficiency * The World of Things/ materials technology * Working Toward a Sustainable World /environmental strategies and tools * Managing the Planet/ macroengineering the environment * Putting Space to Work /cooperation and commercialization of space * Our Built World/ infrastructure and construction * People and Things on the Move / transportation * The World of Production / custom manufacturing * A Quest for Variety and Sufficiency / food and agriculture * Striving for Good Health / disease prevention and life enhancement * Our Days and Our Lives / quality of life movement * Balancing Work and Leisure / lifestyle and entertainment

One added feature to *2025* is that at the end of each chapter, Coates lists the "Critical Developments, 1990-2025," plus the "Unrealized Hopes and Fears" of each field he covers.

*2025* is the best information rich and researched mid-range scenario for the future I have read. It also is enjoyable reading. I have sharing bits and pieces with my son ! and daughter who will be 41 and 39 in the year 2025. They get a kick out of hearing about computer "knowbots," toys made with "smart materials," or machine "language coaches." But *2025* is far deeper than just a preview of future gadgets.

This book could be a veritable field guide to your next 30 years, especially if you are in business, an entrepreneur, a person responsible for planning, or engaged in scientific and technical issues.

I am using it right now as a help in writing radio commercials which illustrate futures thinking for upcoming millennial celebrations. ... Read more

Book Description

Incorporating 25 years of sales forecasting management research with more than 400 companies, Sales Forecasting Management, Second Edition is the first text to truly integrate the theory and practice of sales forecasting management. This research includes the personal experiences of John T. Mentzer and Mark A. Moon in advising companies how to improve their sales forecasting management practices. Their program of research includes two major surveys of companies’ sales forecasting practices, a two-year, in-depth study of sales forecasting management practices of 20 major companies, and an ongoing study of how to apply the findings from the two-year study to conducting sales forecasting audits of additional companies. The book provides comprehensive coverage of the techniques and applications of sales forecasting analysis, combined with a managerial focus to give managers and users of the sales forecasting function a clear understanding of the forecasting needs of all business functions.  

New to This Edition:   

• The author’s well-regarded Multicaster software system demo, previously available on cassette, has been updated and is now available for download from the authors’ Web site
• New insights on the critical area of qualitative forecasting are presented
• The results of additional surveys done since the publication of the first edition have been added
• The discussion of the four dimensions of forecasting management has been significantly enhanced
• Significant reorganization and updating has been done to strengthen and improve the material for the second edition.

Book Description

What manager is not anxious about the future? We live in a white-knuckled age of rapid technological change and global instability. But uncertainty is not the enemy, says management expert Paul J. H. Schoemaker. It is where the greatest opportunities are. To unlock these opportunities, however, requires a very different approach to strategy and implementation. In this pioneering book, Dr. Schoemaker presents a systematic approach that combines concepts such as scenario planning, options thinking, and dynamic monitoring to create novel strategies for profiting from ambiguity.

Building on his experience with more than one hundred consulting projects in fields ranging from health care to manufacturing, from utilities to financial services, Schoemaker shows how major corporations throughout the world have used his pathbreaking methodology to prepare for an un-certain future and profit from it. In this first comprehensive approach to the subject, Schoemaker shows the reader (1) how to develop and analyze multiple industry scenarios, (2) craft nimble strategies with just the right amount of flexibility, (3) implement them using an options approach, and (4) make real-time adjustments through dynamic monitoring. As a leading academic thinker and practitioner, the author draws on the frontiers of decision science, organization theory, strategy, and cognitive psychology to integrate the most practical contributions these various fields have made to navigating uncertainty.

One need only follow the news to see the risks of being unprepared for change. And yet the rewards for actively pursuing new opportunities are greater than ever. More than any other capability, skill in seizing initiatives in shifting, unpredictable circumstances is the key to success. Profiting from Uncertainty provides a road map to do just that. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Helpful review
The best thing going for this book is that it is in fact well-written not like most of the dreck in business books. The ideas here are not revolutionary and you're not likely to find anything you hadn't at least heard before. It does however organize all of these disparate thoughts and bring them together in a way to help motivate action.
Along the way I'd also recommend Tony Murphy's Achieving Business Value from IT as a book that effectively does the same thing -- organizes information well to help you move toward positive action and improving process and performance (as oppossed to strategy which is this books forte). ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Excellent book
This is not an introductory astrology book, but it is an excellent book for intermediate-level astrologers. The reader should definitely have an idea of what planets, houses, signs, transits, progressions, etc. are before buying this book. Rushman explains these terms well, but not extensively because the book is not really aimed at beginners in astrology.

This book is excellent because Rushman presents her system for doing astrological readings in a lucid and well-organized manner. She has clearly been doing professional astrology for quite some time (30 years), and it shows.

She sums up the book well in the introduction when she writes, "This is my system, and it has served me well for three decades. I follow a logical order, which helps me feel organized and comfortable... While this system is not complicated, it is thorough, and a competent astrologer can get what is needed for a good astrological reading." As an intermediate-level astrologer myself, who has done readings for family and friends and is preparing to make the transition to professional astrologer, I appreciated her simple and well-presented system greatly.

In terms of the criticisms given under the "Another average astrology book" review, it has been several months since I read this book but I don't remember it being horribly edited. There may have been editing errors but I don't recall them getting in the way of understanding the text.

As to the "old twelve-letter astrological alphabet", that is certainly a valid criticism and an excellent observation by that reviewer. I think I missed it because I assumed she did it that way for the sake of brevity, rather than adherence to an over-simplified system that makes planets = signs = houses. The book is not meant to be a cookbook astrology text, but she does try to insert some of that material in order to help people who are more at the beginner end of the spectrum. An argument could be made that by simplifying things that way in those portions she made them inaccurate, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt and assumed she did so for space reasons and to strike a balance between including enough cookbook material to help more novice astrologers and not so much that more experienced astrologers would be annoyed by a rehash of the basics. As I wrote above, this is another reason that this is an intermediate-level book, as moderately experienced astrologers will already know that planets, signs, and houses are different things and how to interpret things differently accordingly.

My only other criticisms, and these are minor, are that 1) there is no material on the solar arc direction method of prediction, and 2) there is too much material on progressed house cusps. Both of these are personal opinions of mine, however. I have read enough about solar arcs and used them enough to find them effective for predictions (and even just birth time verification). Similarly, I find progressing the house cusps to be excessive and tedious, generally not worth the extra work involved. However, this book isn't about what I like, it's about what Carol Rushman has found effective in her 30 years of astrological practice, and from that perspective the book achieves its stated goals admirably.

As I said, this is generally an excellent book. If you know the basics of astrology and would like one professional astrologer's time-tested system of doing readings, I highly recommend this book.

Astrology in Action
Carol Rushmans's book is full of little gems and tidbits from her 30 years as an astrologer. She brings everyting together regarding prediction. Critical degrees, progressed moon and other progressed aspects, eclipses and transits are highlighted along with true experiences from her practice. Her chaper on the "natal promice" is a must read for all astrologers! The idea of the squares and opositions in the a chart as a "driver" that creates the motivation to succeed is a good one!

This book was a delight to read!

very useful information from a practicing astrologer
This book gives a very good overview of the art of predictive astrology. The author returns to the astrological basics: what is the psychological profile of the client ? (the elements and modalities, stelliums, configurations, etc..). Only with this information at hand you can better pinpoint when something is going to happen. The natal promise is extremely important too: if something is not promised in your natal chart, it's not going to happen. From the natal promise Carol Rushman goes to the key of all predictive astrology: the (secondary) progressions. Her rules and delineations of the progressive planets as well as the interpretations of the aspects of the progressed moon (most important in predictions !) are a must read. Next come the transits (and stations), lunations and eclipses. Throughout the book Carol Rushman speaks from her own practice. Though the book is not as revealing as Celeste Teal's books, you will find very useful information in it. Beginning and intermediate astrologers will find very much knowledge in this very readable book. Experienced astrologers will be glad to know that with the right methodology and basic principles you can better time your predictions. Recommended reading.

Another average astrology book...
Pros:

Beginners are often overhelmed by the vast array of astrological predictive techniques. Ms. Rushman does a good job of presenting a coherent system that beginners can use to manage all the information.

Cons:

* On a superficial level, this book is just badly written and edited. There are all sorts of language errors that could easily have been picked up by the grammar checker of a decent word-processing program. My favorite was the paragraph that simply ended with a comma,

* Less superficially, a good editor could have helped Ms.Rushman to organize and tighten up her presentation a bit. She has a tendency to get caught in anecdotal stories and ramble, making it difficult to hold on to the thread of her presentation.

* Sadly, Ms.Rushman espouses the mistaken notion that a sign, a planet, and a house are all roughly the same thing. This is basically the old twelve-letter astroglogical alphabet first proposed (I believe) by Zip Dobyns, and it goes against literally hundreds of years of astrological practice.

For example, this system would have you believe that the Moon combined with ANY "letter-10" element (Capricorn, Saturn, 10th house) produces roughly the same result -- which is clearly not true.

- Moon in the 10th: Your career involves the public.
- Moon in Capricorn: You're painfully shy, or perhaps
you just like living in the mountains.
- Moon conjunct Saturn: Your mother was an ice cube...

So, all in all, an okay book if you need help organizing all the data used in prediction, but not a great source of information about astrological interpretation. ... Read more

Book Description

Cutting-edge financial advisers go far beyond giving comprehensive client service. They are the profession's theorists and practical pioneers, developing new practice models that attract the kind of clients they want most and that help their businesses to grow.

In Search of the Perfect Model profiles some of the most creative minds in the planning field and explains how they turned their practices into distinctive businesses—offering instructive lessons to their peers. Beginning with an overview of how the profession has evolved in recent years, Mary Rowland analyzes how planners define and structure their enterprises—from big firms to sole proprietors, from national to regional operations, from generalists to niche players, and from those collecting annual retainers or hourly fees to those who charge by assets under management. Rowland concludes with a special focus on important issues related to managing a practice.

Financial advisers are perpetually in search of the perfect business model. This fascinating overview will awaken planners to the many unique practice structures available and will help you find one that matches their strengths, personalities, planning philosophies, and lifestyles. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Excellent Profiles of Various Business Models for Planners
Ms. Rowland has covered the financial planning beat for quite a while, and has benefited from watching carefully how the leading firms have developed. Anyone who thinks they need a different business model for their firm, or is about to start a new financial planning firm will benefit from reading and thinking about this book.

What kind of financial planning practice do you want? What kind of life style do you want? What kind of clients do you want to serve? What aspects of service do you want to do yourself, which parts have a staff to do and which parts do you want to outsource? How do you want to be compensated for your work? These are all pertinent subjects that are thoroughly explored in this book through detailed profiles of more than three dozen planners who span the gamut from single practitioners charging by the hour to occasional clients to larger firms that do everything for a single family throughout its many generations.

The book also looks closely at fees, expenses, and income attached to these different structures. No two planners do it the same way, and it looks like you have more choices than you think.

I found it refreshing to find that there's field where top performers can survive and prosper without working in large organizations. I was also impressed by the lifestyle advantages of offering limited, by-the-hour services.

I agree with Ms. Rowland's conclusion that life planning is not so new, and that large firms will not swoop up the whole industry. It wasn't clear where the efficiencies are that would make that possible . . . unless it would be to offer bare-bones planning for those with few assets by using software. But that's not the type of planning that most people in the industry want to do.

The book would have been improved if it had offered more analysis and a process for someone trying to pick a business model. Otherwise, the profiles were quite revealing and interesting. Although I operate as a management consultant, I find myself drawn into financial planning related issues (and yes, even life planning) when I work with entrepreneurs. So I felt it was valuable for me to learn from this book as well.

Required Reading
In Search of the Perfect Model is the most important practice management book of the year for independent financial advisors. It is well written, insightful, and thoroughly enjoyable! ... Read more

Book Description

Exotic methods refer to specific functions within general soft computing methods such as genetic algorithms, neural networks and rough sets theory. They are applied to ordinary shares for a variety of financial purposes, such as portfolio selection and optimization, classification of market states, forecasting of market states and data mining. This is in contrast to the wide spectrum of work done on exotic financial instruments, wherein advanced mathematics is used to construct financial instruments for hedging risks and for investment.

In this book, particular aspects of the general method are used to create interesting applications. For instance, genetic niching produces a family of portfolios for the trader to choose from. Support vector machines, a special form of neural networks, forecast the financial markets; such a forecast is on market states, of which there are three — uptrending, mean reverting and downtrending. A self-organizing map displays in a vivid manner the states of the market. Rough sets with a new discretization method extract information from stock prices. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

I want my money back !
I hadn't read the clumsy book description, or I would have chosen another book. Now I own a booklet in which a description of three data mining methods, having been applied to finance, which is what I was looking for. The articles however, seem to have been written in a hurry, and contain just too little information to enable me (econometrician with ample statistical and programming knowledge) to apply the methods myself. Useless ! I want my money back ( d'you hear, World Scientific ? )!

Any one buy it from me for 40 $ ?? ... Read more

Amazon.com

At a time when business bestsellers such as Six Sigma are touting scientific management, The Visionary's Handbook desires to be different. Authors Watts Wacker, Jim Taylor, and Howard Means forgo the nuts-and-bolts approach for a philosophical look at management, examining nine broad trends, or "paradoxes," they say are shaping business today.

At the heart of these paradoxes lies change--change that is occurring at an increasing rate. The more certain we are of the future, say the authors, the more likely we are to be wrong. To support their argument, they cite both online and real-world examples, including Xerox, eBay, Kodak, and Cisco. Their observations, if not groundbreaking, are certainly accurate. For instance, the Paradox of Size--the bigger your company, the smaller it needs to appear--has been explored at length in Customers.com. Similarly, the need for continual innovation--even to the detriment of your core business--is a paradox that merits attention and one that readers of The Innovator's Dilemma will recognize.

The Visionary's Handbook is about more than just paradoxes, though. Interspersed throughout its pages are exercises challenging readers to pencil in the future they want to see, to visualize and outline their success. Some may find these exercises a valuable and practical addition to the text. Broadly conceived and thought-provoking, The Visionary's Handbook will be an eye opener for many readers. --Demian McLean ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Snake Oil
Thought provoking yes, but not for its marketed reasons. While reading Wacker and Taylor's work, one's train of thought turns to how could they possibly churn out another 254 pages of mindless drivel (after "The 500 Year Delta"), spun around one or two interesting blips of thought? Wacker and Taylor's underlying advice to question "What am I?" and "What will I be?" offers little more than a sophomoric therapy session - hardly visionary. ...

The Visionary's Handbook
In "The Visionary's Handbook," Watts Wacker and Jim Taylor lay out a vision of the future where change is the only constant and decision-making is shrouded by various paradoxes that often contradict each other. The stated goal of this "handbook" is to help readers identify nine paradoxes that they deem critical to understanding the future and managing business activity.

The so-called Age of Uncertainty that Wacker and Taylor describe picks up where their popular 1998 book, "The 500-Year Delta: What Happens After What Comes Next?", left off. In that book they argued that The Age of Reason was rapidly coming to a close after 500 years, and that the shift would force businesses to increasingly rely on chaos-based logic rather than traditional reasoning and economics.

In "The 500-Year Delta," Wacker and Taylor called the current business model an Age of Possibility, and established that an overabundance of possibilities was leading to a crises for decision-makers, an embarrassment of options that leaves chaos and confusion in its wake.

The nine paradoxes presented here are a guide to cutting through this clutter, providing clarity in a sea of chaos and a mechanism for managing decisions based on a well-defined vision of the future. Wacker and Taylor open with the Paradox of the Visionary, which states: "The more you are right, the more wrong you will be." The idea being that as we experience higher levels of success, we are faced with greater and more frequent "collisions with chaos." Ultimately, the authors conclude that we are no longer in control of outcomes, and the more successful we become, the more poignant that becomes.

They caution, "All we can do is attempt to influence our own future or the future of our own business, absorb the paradoxes that our personal and professional life presents us with, and be prepared for whatever tomorrow does arrive." In order to do that, they insist throughout the book, organizations and individuals must constantly ask themselves two fundamental questions: "What am I?" and "What will I be?"

While this may echo James Stockdale's--Ross Perot's 1992 Presidential running mate--befuddled debate question ("Who am I, and why am I here?"), Wacker and Taylor relentlessly pursue those questions throughout the book and meticulously apply them to each paradox. Every chapter features "future exercises," where they ask readers to define themselves, their company and products and how they visualize them in the future, according to the paradox in question.

Readers may find each chapter's command to soul-search and to put it in writing to be somewhat annoying. Who really relishes the idea of writing "the resume of the person you want to be in X number of years" or composing an exhaustive list of "all the qualities ascribed to you, and all the stories you have reason to believe are told about you by your colleagues?"

However, the paradoxes themselves are thought provoking and cleverly grounded with solid historical and anecdotal examples. The Paradox of Time, for example, illustrates the concept that at the speed of light, nothing happens: "To succeed in the short term, you need to think long term, yet the greater your vision and the longer the time interval over which you predict results, the greater the risk you will be unable to take the steps necessary in the short term to achieve long-term ends." While this almost sounds like theoretical doubletalk, they do provide concrete analogies, in this case ranging from Kodak's difficult transition into digital imaging to Apple's rollout of the new G-4 chip.

A couple of other paradoxical gems are to be found in the Paradox of Competition ("Your biggest competitor is your own view of the future") and the Paradox of Leadership ("To lead from the front, you have to stay inside the story").

In the end, Wacker and Taylor have some interesting ideas and an unusual historical approach, but don't expect their technique to be taught at Harvard's School of Business anytime soon. They themselves admit upfront, "We don't know if we are right about the future--how can we until it happens?"

(This review originally appeared on Notara.)

When was the Future?
It was great to get another fix of Watts - Matter on Fact is good but does not really allow a theme to really develop.

I though the book will be great. The discussion on Brand is tremendous - the best I have ever read. This should be required reading for anyone entering business let alone those who seek to specialise in Brand Marketing like I did once, a long time ago. The theme of Paradox is also well handled throughout. Will be great? Greatness is a property acquired over time...I need to muse on the stuff for a little while longer...

To pick holes seems a little churlish, but these are the observations I have:

· The overall concentration on business and the use of money to value things was not where I thought the book would be. Whilst the authors did a brilliant job of dismantling the present business model for Harvard, maybe the value of a Harvard Education is priceless? What could be applied to the failing inner city schools who can't seem to get kids to read or write let alone count money?

· Were they able to charge anything out to Kodak? (After all they benefited considerably from the wisdom therein).

· Jon Krakauer's 'Into Thin Air' is a good book, Anatoly Boukreev's 'The Climb' (same subject, professional guide's point of view) is better. I've been long fascinated by the indomitable nature of the human spirit - other suggestions are 'Touching the Void' by Joe Simpson and 'South' by Sir Ernest Shackleton.

· I found the main thrust a little bit US centric - I know there were bits and pieces from the rest of the world - but they did feel like bits and pieces.

· I also found the future exercises and exams a little distracting.

I'd also be fascinated to know how to write a book in a threesome, and what is fascinating the authors now? (where does a futurist who's done Paradox go next?) For me I'm thinking on applying complexity thinking to business (I thought that Howard Sherman's book was a bit disappointing - Stu Kauffmann / Chris Langton are still the standard bearers); and, what after money? I still see the pursuit of wealth as the biggest human preoccupation - shame on us. Is this general, or national/ regional? Zen Bhuddists and Taoists seem to get it. All the .com millionaires and VCs jetting off to Tibet definitely don't get it.

Thanks for a great book

Food for thought
I enjoyed the subject matter of this book though stylistically it did strike me as a little strange. If you haven't read the top 10 recent bestsellers (Innovator's Dilemna, Serious Play and books of that ilk) then this book will serve you well in getting you rapidly up to speed. Think of it as a exceutive summary of those. If you have read them, there is something to be gained in seeing all the 'paradoxes' placed side by side to consider. This would be excellent if you are in a scenario planning type exercise or want a better treatment on how you should 'model' the future. The authors attempt to engage the reader through a series of thought exercises about yourself (life, career etc) in order to give you some material to apply the paradigm shifts they detail. Though I wholeheartedly applaud them trying to use something other than the 'usual' case studies of Dell, Amazon etc etc, I don't think this 'personal' approach works. I just found it annoying but others who are looking to evaluate themselves might not. However those sections are easily skipped over and key points are succintly and well written for a quick and thought-provoking read for the business audience.

Must We Put Up With More of This?
Aren't these the same guys who were quoted in AdWeek or Ad Age or somewhere like that blithely confessing that all the predictions made in their first book were wrong? Maybe not, but I seem to recall. So, they said, just throw the first book out and buy their new book instead. Come on. Visionary, smisionary. More hypotheticals and made-up stuff. If you want to be provoked, Faith Popcorn is about as much of this kind of fluff as you need. ... Read more

Book Description

In today's global economy, small to medium-sized companies increasingly depend on computer-aided planning and control. And rightly so, for the large amounts of data these tasks involve cannot be handled quickly - and accurately - enough by other methods. The success of magic formulas, catchwords, and simplifying theories in logistics management depends upon the people using them.An exhaustive understanding of logistics forms the basis of this book. It emphasizes integral analysis and design covering logistics networks through the entire production process to the end user and back again. The author examines business objectives and methods in detail. Along with the familiar concepts of production planning and control systems, he discusses the integration of planning and control in research and development.Integral Logistics Management: Planning and Control of Comprehensive Business Processes provides a comprehensive understanding of logistics. The book handles both classical and novel approaches to nonrepetitive (one-of-a-kind) production. You will find not only the most recent trends in supply chain management, virtual organizations, and agile companies, but also the concepts of Just-In-Time (JIT) Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), and Materials Resource Planning II (MRP II). ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Best, honest, and most important approach
This book has the goods and delivers. Great practical content that can be implemented today. This is a must read.

Excellent guide for startups
When we purchased this book, the rating was 5 star & we feel it exceeds this. As a start up we tried many books without comfort. This is not just a book to read, it is a workbook that really helps you analyze and then build your sales and marketing program. We have over a dozen innovative products, any one of which could stand alone as a major company. Profit RX helped us analyze each product, put them in the proper introduction order, and then create an effective sales & marketing program.

Dr. Revenue has the cure.
>I read almost the whole book in one weekend! We have already started planning to do the workshop. I have read many marketing books in the past, including having written a video script for Jay Conrad Levinson, but none of them walk you through the process like Dr. Revenue does. It really is interactive and has taught me as much this weekend what I need to get done as any work I have done in the past 6 months.

Grow your business
I have seen Haskell's ideas and program work. I am in a unique position in that my company sells this program to our dealers and I have seen our studios implement these ideas into a well thought-out sales and marketing plan. I have seen increased sales and better management as a result. I am a student of Dr. Revenue, having attended his clinics and listened to his tapes, so I was eager to read "Profit Rx" when it was published. I was amazed at what a quick and easy read it was. Intertwining his time-proven tactics with success stories helped to vary the books pace, showcase Haskell's extensive experience and prove how effective a sales and marketing plan can be. As a young businessman, I found "Profit Rx" to be an invaluable tool for my business/professional life. I also found the marketing roadmap Dr. Revenue gives to the reader has multiple uses. In my personal life, I use Dr. Revenue's plan in matters of money management. Having devised a calendar and budget, I am better able to react to unseen circumstances. This tested, proven approach is a must read for everyone interested in growing their business, from the sales and marketing manager, to the sales and marketing student. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

For over 15 years, New York Times bestselling author Harry S. Dent, Jr. has been uncannily accurate in predicting the financial future. In his three previous works, Dent predicted the financial recession of the early 90s, the economic expansion of the mid-90s, and the financial free-for-all of 1998-2000.

The Next Great Bubble Boom offers a comprehensive forecast for the next two decades, showing new models for predicting the future behavior of the economy, inflation, large and small cap stocks, bondsd, key sectors, and more. Dent gives advice on everything from investment strategies to real estate cycles, and shows not only how bright our future will be, but how best to profit from it.

Dent gives us something to look forward to, including:

• The Dow hitting 40,000 by the end of the decade
• The Nasdaq advancing at least ten times from October 2001 lows to around 13,500, and potentially as high as 20,ooo by 2009
• Another strong advance in stocks in 2005 with a significant correction into around September/October 2006
• The Great Boom willl resurge into its final and strongest stage in 2007, and even more fully in 2008, lasting untill late 2009 to early 2010

In The Next Bubble Boom, Dent reveals how the economic growth of the late 1990s was a prelude to the great boom around the corner and how all of us can reap its benefits. ... Read more

Book Description

The latest new product management strategies and techniques, to reach your market faster, and to reap greater profit.This comprehensive guide contains practical and realistic information for managing new products from original concept to market launch - with an eye on profit throughout the whole cycle.The book's eighteen chapters and 100 illustrations address the most critical new product management issues, including screening of product ideas, business models, market strategies, speeding up product development, partnering, lessons from the dot-com boom and bust, simple but effective business and marketing plans, and launching products in the Internet Era. The content includes examples from 20 companies. CEOs, product managers, entrepreneurs, investors, marketing professionals and business development executives will find this book valuable for making decisions and managing new products every step of the way. The CD included with the book contains customizable tools and templates that will help the reader put these principles into action. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Awesome! Another indispensable opportunity management guide!
Following my personal review of the latest opportunity management book, Harnessing the Unicorn, by Pat O'Reilly, I came across this wonderful book, actually by accident, while surfing through the www.amazon.com website for other books in the same genre. Again, I was very happy to have obtained - and perused - the book.

This book is for any business professional who is involved in conceptualising, developing and/or launching new product ideas. The entire new product development cycle is well-captured. It is based on the author's personal/professional experiences and also her interviews with 20 other professionals.

This book contains a potent, streamlined, idea screening process, with six most important criteria: strategic fit, customer, competition, market, resources and profit. Each criterum is illustrated extensively, with examples, guidelines and discrete steps, by a separate chapter of the book. These chapters are worth the cover price of the book. To me, these areas are the most critical part of the new product development cycle.

The author also shares her many business models, which give you a refreshing look at strategy and planning for new products.

In the remaining chapters, the author touches on launching your new products and maintaining the momentum in the marketplace.

The accompanying CD contains many customisable templates, checklists and other tools. The author also has a website.

Throughout the book, the author emphasises two strategic parameters: agility (in the decision-making processes) and profitability, without which new product ideas are simply useless! All her evaluation frameworks and screening tools in the book are designed for this purpose in mind.

My only complaint about this book: it has a very scanty bibliography. To others, this may seem trivial but to me, it is important as I often like to know more about what or who has influenced the author's thinking processes.

Nevertheless, I like this book very much, particularly for all the realistic process frameworks. The author's writing style is crisp and succinct. I will rank this book in the same genre with all my other books on opportunity management. ... Read more

Book Description

In Australia you can register a business in 2 days, in Haiti, you need 203. In Denmark, you don't pay anything to start a business, while in Cambodia you pay 5 times income per capita. In Tunisia, you can enforce a contract in 7 days, while in Guatemala it takes more than 4 years.Credit information systems contain credit histories on almost every adult in New Zealand, Norway, and the United States, but cover less than 1 percent of the population in China, Nigeria and Pakistan. Resolving bankruptcy takes half a year in Ireland but more than 11 years in India.

These dramatic differences are found in a new, annual publication from the World Bank Group, Doing Business in 2004: Understanding Regulation, which provides readers with both qualitative and quantitative information on the business climate in over 130 countries.

New indicators on the regulatory environment for private sector development plus informative case studies of real-life exerpience make this a comprehensive resource on business environments throughout the world, the factors that influence them, and how conducive they are to private sector development.

Doing Business collects and analyzes data in over 130 countries, including OECD countries. The analysis is based on assessments of each country’s laws and regulations, with input from and verification by local experts who assist entrepreneurs in starting a business, hiring and firing workers, enforcing contracts, getting credit, and closing a business.

Doing Business in 2004 covers the fundamental aspects of a business life cycle from starting a business to bankruptcy and offers answers to these critical questions:

Which is the most expensive country for starting a business?
Which countries have the most rigid regulations on hiring and firing?
Which countries have themost extensive business entry procedures?
Why does heavy regulation lead to inneficiency and corruption?
What countries are most efficient in the area of contract enforcement?
How do clearly-defined property rights enhance prosperity?
What are the most successful regulatory models? Why?

An ambitious effort to study the determinants of private sector development, Doing Business is an invaluable reference for investors, economic advisers and policymakers, as well as scholars and students of international business and development economics. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Why are poor countries poor?
If you want to know the answer to this question, Doing Business in 2004 is your book.

Various eminent scholars have put forth theories as to why the rich countries get richer and the poor stay poor, including theories about culture, religion, geography, climate, trade openness, political regimes, and even accidents of history. Doing Business puts forth a compelling, and much simpler, story. Poor countries stay poor because their governments intervene excessively in business activity, driving entrepreneurs into informality. Growth is retarded, as is democracy, since many people are left in the fringes of economic and social life.

Lots of statistics on starting a business, hiring and firing workers, getting credit, and the like. Makes you appreciate how easy we have it here! ... Read more

Book Description

The globalization of business and the ubiquity of available data in the information age are the driving forces behind the increasing importance of economic forecasting. In order to remain competitive, private and public organizations alike must employ forecasting techniques effectively. Hoshmand emphasizes the application and practical use of such techniques rather than their theoretical grounding. Decision makers and students who have a solid background in economics and statistics will find this book eminently useful. After discussing the role of forecasting in business decisions, the author moves on to smoothing techniques, regression models, and the advanced time series models of Box-Jenkins. Of particular help to practitioners is the concluding chapter on how to communicate forecasts to management. ... Read more