Hammer observes that, since the publication of his previous book Reengineering the Corporation, "businesspeople have been deluged with books promising simple recipes for eternal victory. Perhaps part of my atonement for this unintentional transgression has been to write The Agenda." In his newest book, Hammer identifies and illuminates "a set of nine emerging business concepts that underlie how the best companies around are mastering today's turbulent environment." He devotes a separate chapter to each of the nine "Agenda Items": 1. Make yourself easy to do business with you (ETDBW); 2. Add more value for your customers (deliver MVA); 3. Create a process enterprise (make high performance possible); 4. Tame the beast of chaos with the power of process (systematize creativity); 5. Base managing on measuring (make managing part of management, not accounting); 6. Loosen up your organizational structure (profit from the power of ambiguity); 7. Sell through, not to, your distribution channels (turn distribution chains into distribution communities); 8. Push past your boundaries in pursuit of efficiency (collaborate whenever and wherever you can); and 9. Lose your identity in an extended enterprise (integrate virtually, not vertically). How to plan and then implement a program once an agenda has been formulated? Hammer responds to this question in Chapter 11. He suggests several strategies for integrating efforts with sharp focus. He explains why it is so important to devote much more attention to "people issues." He offers what he calls a "20/60/20" formula for managing different constituencies differently. He explains why committed executive leadership must constantly be evident. He also shares some ideas about effective communication. And finally, he emphasizes the importance of achieving verifiable improvement throughout each phase of the implementation process. I have learned from my own experience that it is highly desirable to pick the "low hanging fruit" as quickly as possible. He then offers three specific suggestions (create an early warning system, become proficient at responding to change, and create a supportive organizational structure), concluding his book with an especially relevant quotation from the Talmud: "You are not called upon to complete the work, nor are you free to evade it." Any such agenda is (literally) a work in progress. Hammer is correct when asserting that no single source can fully assist that difficult process of planning and implementation. My own opinion is that this book should be included among any essential sources consulted.
There are so many excellent books on the (sometimes elusive) subject of creativity and this is one of the best. Levesque asserts (and I agree) that almost anyone can think much more creatively. That is to say, almost anyone can develop the skills by which to activate and then nourish certain talents which Levesque rigorously examines in this book, one which is intended "to bridge the gap between your knowledge of yourself as creative and those workplace demands and expectations to produce new and different results. [This book] will help you to travel from the land of confusion to a continent of clarification and the security of knowing how you are creative and what you must do if you are to produce even more creative results." Levesque skillfully combines in this book some of the most important ideas developed by Carl Jung in correlation with concepts developed by Katherine Briggs and Isabel Myers for what is now known as "The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI®)" personality inventory. According to Levesque, "The more you learn about this instrument and Jung's theory behind it, the more you'll see its applicability to an understanding of creativity." She devotes a chapter to each of eight dominant personality types: Adventurer, Navigator, Explorer, Visionary, Pilot, Inventor, Harmonizer, and Poet. In Part 3, "Managing Yourself and Others to Enhance Creativity", she shifts her attention first to strategies to achieve effective collaboration and then to a "personal action plan" which her reader must develop inorder to achieve what Maslow characterizes as "self-actualization." Many advocate thinking "outside the box." According to Levesque, creativity is not just "thinking" out of the box. It's feeling, doing, and being out of the box. She asserts not only that almost anyone can THINK much more creatively but also that anyone can BE much more creative, wherever that may be. One of the most important components of "breakthrough creativity" is the realization that creativity is not just a "thinking" phenomenon. It can also be manifested in being a nurturing team leader, connecting differently with associates, strengthening relationships with clients, etc. Levesque's identification and exploration of this component sets her apart from de Bono, von Oech, and others whose work I also admire. Brooking, Davenport, Fitz-enz, Goleman, and countless others have expanded and enriched our understanding of "human capital." With this book, Levesque makes her own unique and substantial contribution to a collaborative exploration of unfulfilled humanity.
According to Paul David, "There will be profitable dot-coms in the long run. The difficulty has been that the Internet was not developed as a platform for business. Radio was created as a way to signal ships at sea. It was taken up for development by the Navy, which released it to the public after the First World War. In much the same way, the National Science Foundation dumped the Internet into the private sector. Fortunes have been made from the Internet, and more will be made with the Internet but [other than] conducting auctions, we still have to figure out how to make money on the Internet." Zyman and Miller think they have done that. In the Introduction, they explain that they will help the reader to understand "the new forces in marketing and how they're being used by some of the most successful companies on the Net." Also, to provide "the fundamental principles of e-marketing and the most important result of e-marketing: building brandwidth." The material is organized within twelve chapters, followed by an Epilogue in which the authors discuss "The Beginning of Marketing as We Will Know It." They conclude Chapters 3-12 with what they identify as "e-Lessons." For example, here's one from the conclusion of Chapter 12: "Destination is the foundation for all planning. You've got to develop strategy with a clear sense of where you're going. Start by defining the future -- and probably more than one possible future....Be objective and use the best available information to define various scenarios. Define your brand's position in the future. That's destination." Most of such lessons are not original but all are at least valuable reminders. To decision-makers, Zyman and Miller offer these suggestions: "Keep your eye on the road ahead. Never let the competition take your focus off your customers and the destination you define as your place in their lives."
Drucker himself chose the material in this from books and articles written during a 60-year career, one which continues in his 93rd year. According to Drucker, this volume has two purposes: "First, it offers, I hope, a coherent and fairly comprehensive Introduction to Management. But second, it gives an Overview of my works on management and thus answers a question that my editors and I have asked again and again. Where do I start to read Drucker? Which of his writings are essential? The material is divided within three parts: Management, The Individual, and Society. In all of what Drucker has published thus far, he either asserts or implies that the profession of management has obligations to society in general (indeed to the global human community) as well as to any one organization. Indeed, he entitles another of his works The Profession of Management. The title of Drucker's first chapter in this volume suggests this: "Management as Social Function and Liberal Art." The title of the final chapter is "From Analysis to Perception -- The New Worldview." As always, Drucker has one eye on the task at hand and the other on the future. All of the material in this volume is first-rate. It remains for each reader to determine which material is of greatest relevance to her or his specific needs and interests.
Oech draws heavily upon the "ancient wisdom of Heraclitus" as he suggests correlations between an ancient Greek philosopher (other than Plato and Aristotle) and the 21st century. Von Oech describes Heraclitus as "the world's first creative teacher." He recalls being "infected" (happily) with the Heraclitean "bug" while studying in Germany 30 years ago. Now von Oech has written a book in which he brilliantly and entertainingly examines concepts such as symbol, paradox, and ambiguity in relation to creative thought. He offers 30 "Creative Insights" of Heraclitus. For example: #2. "Expect the unexpected or you won't find it", #4 "You can't step into the same river twice"; #12 "Many fail to grasp what's right in the palm of their hand"; #26 "Donkeys prefer garbage to gold"; and #29 "Your character is your destiny." Truly creative thinkers are always alert to what I call "the invisibility of the obvious." They are not threatened by or even uncomfortable with symbol, paradox, and ambiguity. On the contrary, their minds are stimulated by them. Throughout his book, von Oech inserts a number of brief puzzles for the reader to solve. (The correct answers are included and explained within the "Final Thoughts" section.) These puzzles are fun to grapple with, of course, and presumably most readers will solve them of them. My point is, the answers to the unsolved puzzles are no less obvious than the answers to the others, no matter which specific puzzles the reader is unable to solve. Von Oech had already convinced me of the value of an occasional "whack on the side of the head" and a "kick in the seat of the pants." As always, von Oech is immensely entertaining. He is an immensely creative thinker in his own right. I strongly recommend this book to literally anyone who wants to put white caps on her or his gray matter. Those who share my high regard for it are strongly urged to read all of von Oech's previous books as well as those written by Guy Claxton, Edward de Bono, Lynne Levesque, and Michael Michalko.
"Festschrift" is a German term for a volume of essays contributed by colleagues as a tribute to a scholar. About a year ago, a "festschrift" to honor Warren Bennis was hosted by the Department of Management and Organization at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California of which Bennis is the founding chairman. It included a day-long conference followed by a banquet attended by more than 400 of his friends and colleagues. Here in this volume are the essays written for that special occasion. Gretchen M. Spreitzer and Thomas G. Cummings have done a brilliant job of co-editing the material, contributing an essay of their own. They and other authors respond to one or more questions which "keep [Bennis] awake at night and challenge his intellect and curiosity." All of the essayists are experts on their respective subjects. (Information about each is provided in "The Authors" section following the Index.) The material is carefully organized within six Parts: Setting the Stage for the Future, The Organization of the Future, The Leader of the Future, How Leaders Stay On Top of their Game, Insights from Young Leaders, and Some Closing Thoughts" which includes Bennis' "Postlude: An Intellectual Memoir." They are not the only questions posed by Bennis nor does any one essayist attempt to address all of them. The objectives of this book not withstanding, these are questions which decision-makers in any organization (regardless of size or nature) should constantly ask and then answer as fully and accurately as possible. Alas, change continues to be the only constant and occurs at an ever-increasing velocity. Most of the questions will remain valid but answers can quickly become insufficient and then flat-out wrong. It remains for each reader, of course, to determine which essays have the greatest immediate value. All are so well-written that, I suspect, each will have special value at some point between now and 2010. And perhaps beyond. My personal favorites include the two essays by Bennis which serve as book-ends as well as Handy's "A World of Fleas and Elephants", Kouzes and Posner's "Bringing Leadership Lessons from the Past to the Future", Lipman-Blumen's "Why Do We Tolerate Bad leaders? Magnificent Incertitude, Anxiety, and Meaning", O'Toole's "When Leadership Is an organizational Trait", and Spreitzer and Cummings' "The Leadership Challenges of the Next Generation." All of the essays are outstanding. Whatever the future of leadership proves to be, it will have been guided and enriched by Warren Bennis as well as by those who honor him with the essays assembled in this book.
Gilman and Berg help their reader to determine, first, what the most important "point" is; then, they help the reader to "get" to it ASAP with clarity and precision. The same principles of the program are relevant to every situation in which there is a need to communicate but it is important to note that this is not a "how to" book for those who need help preparing and then presenting formal speeches. "Rather, we are referring to the relatively short and informal talks with clearly defined objectives that take place most often in a work-related context." The authors prefer the word "presentations" to "speeches" as in a one-on-one situation in which someone must persuade her or his supervisor to make a certain approval decision or take a specific action. I think this book is very well organized. The authors have dozens of key points which they get to in exemplary fashion. Their approach is practical rather than theoretical, based on many years of real-world experience with training all manner of persons who needed to understand how to say what they meant inorder to get what they wanted. Although most of the examples in the book are in a business context, the lessons to be learned are also relevant to presentations elsewhere, such as a committee report to members of a church, a briefing to members of a social organization, or participation in a "Career Day" program at a school. The authors also explain "How to Introduce a Speaker" (Chapter 24). In earlier chapters, they offer some excellent advice on other subjects such as "Clothing: What the Well-Dressed Presenter Wears", "Picture Perfect Videoconferencing", and "The Job Interview." For many people, this may well be the most valuable book they read during the next 12 months.
This is one in a series of several dozen volumes which comprise the "Harvard Business Review Paperback Series." Each offers direct, convenient, and inexpensive access to the best thinking on the given subject in articles originally published by the Harvard Business School Review. I strongly recommend all of the volumes in the series. The individual titles are listed at this Web site: www.hbsp.harvard.edu. In this volume, we are provided with eight separate but related articles in which their authors examine these subjects: "The Organizational Frontier" (Wenger and Snyder), "The Smart-Talk Trap" (Pfeffer and Sutton), "Balancing Act: How to Capture Information Without Killing It" (Brown and Duguid), "What Your Strategy for Managing Knowledge?" (Hansen, Nohria, and Tierney), "Good Communicating That Blocks Learning" (Argyris), "Coevolving: At Last a Way to Make Synergies Work" (Eisenhardt and Galunic). "Organigraphs: Drawing How Companies Really Work" (Mintzberg and Van der Heyden), and "Stop Fighting Fires" (Bohn). All of the articles are first-rate. For me, one of this volume's greatest benefits is derived from various charts and diagrams included such as "How Consulting Firms Manage Their Knowledge" (on page 68). Here Hansen, Nohria, and Tierney juxtapose Codification with Personalization in areas such as competitive strategy, economic model, knowledge management strategy, information technology, and human resources. Another valuable chart is found on page 168. Bohn lists a series of "Rules of Thumb" (rational rules which create irrational results) and suggests why each such "Rule" should be carefully re-considered. Great stuff. Those who share my high regard for this one are urged to read various books written by Peter Senge as well as Working Knowledge (Thomas H. Davenport and Laurence Prusak), Dialogue and the Art of Thinking Together: A Pioneering Approach to Communicating in Business and in Life (William Isaacs), If Only We Knew What We Know: The Transfer of Internal Knowledge and Best Practice (Carla S. O'Dell et al), and finally, The Magic of Dialogue: Transforming Conflict into Cooperation (Daniel Yankelovich).
Quite correctly, Hargadon places great emphasis on the importance of an innovation strategy which seeks to take full advantage of what can be learned from the past inorder to create the future. His core concept is "technology brokering" which he introduces and then rigorously examines in Part I; next, in Part II, he describes the "networked perspective" of innovation, explaining how this strategy influences the innovative process within organizations, regardless of their size and nature; finally, in Part III, Hargadon provides specific and practical examples of how various organizations have designed and then implemented technology brokering strategies. Throughout the narrative, Hargadon explores in depth with rigor and eloquence his core premise: "that breakthrough innovation comes by recombining the people, ideas, and objects of past technologies." Almost all organizations claim that their "most valuable assets walk out the door at the end of each business day." That is correct. Almost all intellectual "capital" is stored between two ears and much (too much) of it is, for whatever reasons, inaccessible to others except in "small change....there is no conclusion to managing knowledge and transferring best practices. It is a race without a finishing line." I agree with Hargadon that innovation must unfold at the ground level, "in the minds and hearts of the engineers and entrepreneurs who are doing the work." Also, that -- meanwhile -- they and their associates must be guided and informed, not only by their own organization's "beds of knowledge" but also by external sources of information concerning prior successes and failures of the innovation process elsewhere. In the final analysis, there is good news and bad news. First the bad news: "New ideas are built from the pieces of old ones, and nobody works alone." Now the good news: "New ideas are built from the pieces of old ones, and nobody works alone."
Connellan creates a fictional situation in which five executives (previously strangers) meet for several days of discussion at Disney World under the supervision of "Mort Vandeleur" (whom none of them had previously known) to learn why 70% of Magic Kingdom guests are return visitors. Vandeleur is a former cast member of both Disneyland and Disney World who now earns his living as a consultant to other companies to improve their customer relationships. Do not ignore the importance of the phrase "cast member" and the word "guest" because both are essential to understanding two of the primary reasons for the success of all of Disney's Magic Kingdoms: the role of each Disney employee, and, how each visitor is treated by all employees. Indeed, both are essential to creating and then sustaining the "magic" of those communities. By design, the five executives are significantly different in terms of their previous business experiences, expectations upon arrival, personalities, initial reactions to Vandeleur, and (most importantly) the process of learning throughout interaction with him, each other, and various guests as well as cast members. As indicated in his previous books and articles, Connellan has a great deal of value to say about how to provide consistently superior customer service. What I found especially beneficial in this book is Connellan's emphasis on the importance of collaboration throughout any organization to provide such service. Most will find this an "easy read" so I conclude with a word of caution: The situation may be fictitious and, on occasion, developments may seem contrived but stay with the narrative to its conclusion. The lessons learned can help to guide and inform the transformation of any organization into a Magic Kingdom. The same lessons may also help to restore much of the "magic" that the Walt Disney Company has lost in recent years.
The Kaizen Blitz Anthony C. Laraia, Patricia E. Moody and Robert W. Hall John Wiley & Sons
The word "kaizen" is a Japanese term meaning "to make better" with the implication that such effort should be continuous, indeed constant. In the Introduction to this volume, Jon Brodeur observes: "We think non-consultant-driven events -- training and on-the-floor work by the experts, the hands-on employees who have experienced the power of the Kaizen Blitz -- will continue to be a welcome addition to any organization's arsenal of improvement approaches. Small- and medium-sized companies can do it as well as larger ones and they may have an advantage if operations are small enough in scope to get their arms around." The Kaizen Blitz offers everything an organization is looking for to improve the bottom line and improve customer service and product quality. However, that result can only be achieved with an appropriate combination of leadership at its highest level, acceptance (indeed enthusiasm) throughout all other levels, and tenacious involvement about attaining 20 percent to 50 percent improvement (or greater) in performance in a short time and in narrowly targeted areas. The effective Kaizen process must be top-down, initiated and sustained by teamwork, and focused entirely on doing "whatever needs to be done" ASAP. The authors of this book explain both how and why. If these brief comments suggest that this is a program your organization needs, I strongly recommend that all decision-makers read it. Then, schedule an offsite meeting during which the book becomes the agenda for collaborative efforts to formulate and implement a Kaizen Blitz appropriate to your organization's specific needs and interests.
Although this book offers "a guide to state-of-the-art of manufacturing", I was surprised and pleased to discover that almost all of the material is directly relevant to processes [that] do not involve manufacturing but do involve production. Of new and better ideas, for example. Also, [relevant is] how to refine and then integrate the best of those ideas within and throughout an organization. Moody has carefully selected and brilliantly organized a series of essays by a diversity of experts. Her objective is quite specific: to provide many approaches to the basic question of how [to][delete: we can] compete more successfully. Each section is preceded by an overview; the book is organized so that each chapter stands alone. When read in its entirety, the presentation of manufacturing strategy proceeds from theory and analysis of company and industry through formulation of appropriate competitive strategy and the tactics required to execute that strategy. Who will derive the greatest benefit from this book? Certainly, any decision-maker who is involved at any level of the manufacturing process but also, not to belabor the point, decision-makers in non-manufacturing organizations with the same objective: to compete more successfully by establishing and then sustaining constant and rigorous process] improvement. I wholly agree with Ciampa's caveats: "Don't believe that yesterday's answers will work on today's questions....Don't believe that people who have done things one way for years will change their behavior easily if at all....Don't believe you can do it all yourself....Don't believe that you can anticipate everything or that you don't need any game plan at all....Don't believe the old adage,'If it ain't broke, don't fix it!' which flies in the face of every principle of preventive maintenance." He concludes, "The wise leader is always looking for opportunities to make things better before they break. The cost of repairing a broken organization is enormous compared to the fine-tuning and constructive change required to keep it sharp." Moody and her associates are to be commended for providing, in a single volume, an abundance of valuable information in combination with wisdom of unique practicality.
There are several outstanding books on the general subject of Six Sigma and Eckes has written two of the best. Previously in The Six Sigma Revolution, he examined major corporations such as Motorola and GE in which Six Sigma programs really did create revolutions which continue as I compose this review. These are properly acclaimed successes. Of course, little (if any) attention has as yet been devoted to those organizations which which initiated and then eventually abandoned Six Sigma programs. The reasons for doing so vary, of course, but most can be classified within two categories of resistance to change: cultural and technical. As James O'Toole brilliantly explains in Leading Change, it is a formidable task to overcome what he characterizes as "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." In this volume, Eckes suggests all manner of strategies and tactics by which to sustain Six Sigma programs, once launched. Correctly, he stresses the importance to an organization of achieving a "balance" between its culture and its technology. Moreover, at a time when change is (literally) the only constant and occurring at an ever-increasing velocity, its is also a formidable challenge to maintain the proper balance of the two. For many years, I believed that most people fear change. I no longer believe that. Rather, I have become convinced that most people fear the unfamiliar. Hence the importance of constant and effective communication between and among everyone involved. Eckes suggests that this book will show his reader how to "Create the need for Six Sigma" but, in fact, the need probably exists already so there is a need to help everyone recognize that need and appreciate the importance of responding to it. Therefore, Eckes also shows his reader how to "Shape a vision of Six Sigma so that employees understand the desired results and new behaviors of a Six Sigma organization." Also, he shows the reader how to "Mobilize commitment to Six Sigma and overcome resistance" which is inevitable. Only then can any organization change its systems and structures "to support the new Six Sigma culture." Next: "Measure Six Sigma cultural acceptance" and "Develop Six Sigma leadership." All of these components are absolutely essential, difficult to integrate, and even more difficult to sustain in appropriate balance. In this volume, Eckes explains how and he does so with precision and eloquence.
Exactly what is "the new new thing"? Your answer may well be wrong by the time you formulate your answer to that question. Really? Yes really. Especially in the Silicon Valley, the next "new new thing" is the 21st century's equivalent of the Holy Grail. The problem is, as Lewis carefully explains, it is often an illusion..and even when manifest, it can so quickly become obsolete. "Silicon Valley to the United States what the United States is to the rest of the world." What is that? Briefly, "the capital of innovation, of material prosperity, of a certain kind of energy, of certain kinds of freedom, and of transience." Wow! As I soon discovered when reading the first few chapters, Lewis has written a literary hybrid: it combines the dominant features of the picaresque novel (featuring a central character who seeks and experiences a series of adventures) with the sequential essay (separate but interdependent discussions of a common subject). Lewis' central character is called "the searcher": He who seeks the "new thing" conforms to no well-established idea of what people should do for a living gropes. Finding the new thing is as much a matter of timing as of technical or financial aptitude, though both of those qualities help." Lewis follows the searcher (indeed several) inorder to examine -- and understand -- a process which creates "fantastic wealth" in the Silicon Valley. The searcher is a "disruptive force" as he gropes his way along, constantly on the move...his mind much more quickly than his feet, preferring to live perpetually "with that sweet tingling discomfort of not quite knowing what what it is he wants to say. It is one of the little ironies of economic progress that, while it often results in greater levels of comfort, it depends on people who prefer not to get too comfortable." The searcher, for example. Throughout this book, as Lewis casually but precisely tells hi own "story", we are introduced to some of the most successful residents of the Silicon Valley. Jim Clark, for example, who proves to be the central character. For Lewis, Clark embodies "a vast paradigm shift in American culture" from conventional models and visions of success toward an entirely new way of thinking about the world and control of it. Central to Lewis' discussion of Clark is Clark's sailboat Hyperion, the world's tallest single-mast vessel. There seems to be a progressive pattern of symbiotic relationships: United States < > Silicon Valley < > the searcher < > Jim Clark < > Netscape < > Healtheon < > Hyperion < > ? Revealingly, in Lewis' Epilogue, we are told that Clark has already begun work on the design of a new sailboat. "Hyperion was nice, but this...this was the perfect boat." At least for now. What Lewis reveals is a restless mentality in constant search of the next "new new thing." His focal point may be Clark but, in my opinion, he is really examining a global economy in the 21st century which will continue to be driven by that mentality. There will always be a newer, better browser...a newer, better sailboat...a newer, better whatever. Men and women unknown to us now are "groping" to find them. And eventually they will...but will not then be satisfied.
In Chapter 10 of Leading Change, James O'Toole discusses Robert Owen (1771-1858) whom he characterizes as "the Thomas Edison of social invention. He was the first to devise or advocate numerous practices in industrial relations, education, and social policy that are still considered progressive today, more than 130 years after his death." In The New Pioneers, Petzinger focuses on the contemporary world in which a "revolution" is now underway in business, "for the most part invisible in the headlines and the boardrooms, but dizzying in its effect on the front lines." Much of what he discusses is directly relevant to Owen's initiatives. He agrees with Abraham Maslow that "the most valuable one hundred people to a deteriorating society" would be entrepreneurs because "the arrow of evolution flies toward the pioneering." The material he shares in this brilliant book is drawn from "the front lines" of companies based in more than 40 cities in 30 states as well as several companies in foreign countries. To succeed in what Petzinger calls "The Age of Adaptation" (the subject of his Introduction), he asserts that organizations (regardless of size or nature) must cope effectively with certain "new realities" which serve as the subtitles of the book's chapters. For example: "Trade and technology are fundamentally human", "Why the new rules favor the small and connected", "The customer is the common denominator", and "Knowledge and self-organization flourish at the edge of chaos." He is firmly convinced that "We, our tools, and the businesses by which we accomplish nearly everything are all products of the natural world." Although granting that "Wrong turns and backsliding will occur from time to time", Petzinger is convinced that each new age will produce another generation of "pioneers" who will continue to transform a global marketplace which is rapidly becoming the same workplace for nearly everyone.
The Other 90% Robert K. Cooper Crown Publishing Group
The title is explained by an opinion, provided in the Introduction, which Cooper's grandfather once shared with him: "We only use about 10 percent of our potential in the course of a lifetime." Cooper was urged to seek out what the grandfather referred to as "the other 90%." Cooper then refers to subsequent studies which suggest that "we only use not one-tenth but one ten-thousanth [italics] of our capabilities!" This book was written to suggest how to locate and then develop the vast underdeveloped potentiality which all of us have. The material is organized within four sections, each of which is a "Keystone" of human fulfillment: Trust, Energy, Farsightedness, and Nerve. No brief commentary such as this can do full justice to the scope and depth of the "journey" of self-exploration which Cooper urges his reader to take. However, it may be helpful if I share these brief but representative excerpts. First, Cooper asserts that each of us has three separate but interdependent "brains", each of which he analyzes. "From a practical standpoint, reaching the peak of your true potential depends on developing and apply an energizing, authentic level of intelligence and bringing it to everything you do. For this to happen, you must combine the perceptions and impressions of the gut, heart, and mind." To conclude his book, Cooper shares a poem he wrote for his and others' children:
"...To lead by example, Love as if you will live forever, Work as if you have no need for money, Dream as if no one can say no, Have fun as if you never have to grow up, Sing as if no one else is listening, Care as if everything depends on your caring, And raise a banner where a banner never flew."
With both precision and eloquence, Cooper offers a variety of strategies and tactics to establish and then strengthen the four "Keystones" and, in process he suggests how to fulfill at least much (if not all) of the potential of each of the three "brains" (gut, heart, and mind). It remains for each reader to absorb and digest all this in ways and to the extent she or he deems appropriate. Ultimately, each reader must embark on what is certain to be a difficult journey to personal fulfillment. In some respects, it is inevitably a solitary journey. But in other respects, it will be guided and informed by what Cooper has so generously shared in this book. Those who share my high opinion of The Other 90% are urged to check out David Whyte's The Heart Aroused and David H. Maister's Practice What You Preach.
Reach for the Top Nancy A. Nichols, Editor Harvard Business School Press
Here is another of the volumes in a series published by the Business School Press which offers articles (previously published in the Harvard Business Review) which examine a common theme such as "Women and the Changing Facts of Work Life." In the Foreword to this anthology, Rosabeth Moss Kanter observes that today, "women must rely on themselves rather than on institutions to create careers. They must be entrepreneurs who make their own opportunities -- either within or outside of a major corporation -- or professionals with portable career assets -- skills and reputations that can be applied anywhere.....While the message of this book -- that women are caught in the midst of unprecedented social and economic changes -- will not come as a surprise to women who cope with these upheavals daily, the advice and solutions within can help women grapple with vast changes in their organizations." In the Introduction, Nancy A. Nichols asserts that "the very first thing that a woman must learn to manage is her femininity. From the moment she enters the work force until the day she leaves the corporate arena, she is judged not just as a manager on the job, but as a woman in the job." For that reason, women find themselves in a "double bind": those who act like a man are forced to act like a man are forced to act in a "sexually dissonant way"; those who act in a "feminine" manner risk being perceived as ineffective, "or worse yet, getting trampled on the way to the top." The material is organized within four Parts: Breaking the Double Bind, Fitting In or Fighting Back, The Balancing Act, and Tales from the Front. To her great credit, Nichols has selected a diversity of perspectives. One of the book's greatest strengths is the variety of real-world situations ("tales from the front" case studies) which illustrate key points. One of the most informative sections is Eliza G.C. Collins' interview with Lore Heap who (literally) launched Vector Graphics on her kitchen table with a $6,000 investment and built it into a $25-million company. As Heap explains, "I'm not a feminist....I feel that most women gain acceptance from peers, male or female, by proving integrity and intelligence -- not by talking about job discrimination and all sorts of other complaints. I just don't have time for that." I highly recommend this book to women either in business now or preparing for a business career. Also to the men with whom they will associate. Finally, to the parents, grandparents and other older relatives of young men and young women (especially those now enrolled in colleges and university degree programs) who also need to understand "the changing facts of work life." Hopefully, those who read and then re-read this important book will help to ensure that changes yet to occur are of substantial benefit to everyone, regardless of age or gender.
Former Marines Dan Carrison and Rod Walsh suggest what the business world can learn from the United States Marine Corps. That is, "Business Leadership the Marine Corps Way." For example: How to attract a greater number of candidates to identify "the few" to hire, use your own "best and brightest" to conduct interviews, determine which candidates are most compatible with your organization's core values, and how to accelerate the orientation of "recruits" (e.g. use of a "boot camp") as well as to measure performance of everyone accurately. Carrison and Walsh correlate specific situations in the Marine Corps with those in the business world. At the end of each chapter, they provide a Leadership Strategies Checklist." Carrison and Walsh suggest that, "If all employees in a company, from the CEO to the line assembler, believe that they work for the best company in the industry, that they are without peer, and that those who work for the competition do so because they are not qualified to work for the best in the business, then an applicant may be motivated to join for reasons other than money." Executives who "command from a forward position" get out from behind a desk and leave the office to walk the shop floor. They visit other facilities, meet with small groups of employees to brief them on company news, attend initial meetings with prospects, call on customers, attend trade shows, and in countless other ways "fight side-by-side with the troops" there in the "trenches"...whatever and wherever those trenches may be. Carrison and Walsh conclude: "Imagine an organization in which the majority of its creative and intelligent people walked around all day with the thought OEI must not fail' in the back of their minds. Such an organization would be formidable indeed." It remains for each reader to determine what is most relevant to her or his own organization. Whenever groups of people are assembled with a common purpose, there will always be a need for leadership. With more than 200 years of experience developing leaders "throughout the ranks", the Marine Corps has suggestions especially worthy of consideration.
Taylor and Archer explain how to prosper "in the shadow of the retail giants." The titles of the twelve chapters suggest how the material is organized. For example, here are a few: Main Street Is Changing, Attracting Customers, Low-Cost Promotion Strategies; Delivering Whatever-It-Takes Customer Service; Who's Minding the Store? Everybody!; Tools for Gathering, Analyzing, and Using Management Information; Purchasing and Pricing for Profit; and, The Kaizen Strategy This is quite literally a "how to" manual, filled with hundreds of specific examples, suggestions, strategies, and cautions which can be of substantial benefit to literally any small-to-midsize retail operation which is currently struggling to survive and then succeed. Of course, the David and Goliath metaphor is invoked. The co-authors stress the importance of courage, ten survival strategies, and "about 500 stones." (David needed only one well-placed stone. Today, he would need more "ammunition" because there are so many different "giants" to conquer.) Interestingly, the "Big Three" (Wal-Mart, Kmart, and Target) all opened their first stores in 1962. They were not the first discounters but they had learned a great deal from pioneers such as Ann and Hope, Korvettes, Zayres, Arlands, and Gibson's. Once "Davids" themselves, they eventually became "Goliaths", demonstrating (in process) the importance of the ten specific strategies recommended. Some readers may respond, "The strategies are pretty basic. The suggestions make sense but I simply don't have the resources to compete against the Big Guys." Hence the importance of Chapter Eleven in which the co-authors provide mini-case studies of 12 entirely different companies throughout the United States which have competed successfully. John Newbern's comment seems especially apt: "People can be divided into three groups: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened." Henry Ford would agree: "Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." Each of "The Wal-Marts" was once essentially no different from the twelve companies the co-authors analyze except for the fact that their founders were determined to "make things happen" and were convinced that they could. The co-authors leave their reader with this final statement: "Many small businesses are going to be successful competing with the giants, and we can't think of any reason why yours should be one of them." Can you?
It is important to understand that this is a fictionalized account of a true story, and, that the twelve "Keys of Visionary Business" will be of greatest benefit to those who are about to begin or have already embarked on an entrepreneurial venture of some kind. My own opinion is that the same twelve "Keys" could be almost as valuable to everyone else in business. I say "almost" because the perils and opportunities of entrepreneurship pose quite unique challenges which almost always must be overcome with limited resources, including (especially) experience. In Allen's fictionalized account, there are two main characters: The narrator and his mentor, Bernie. Allen devotes a separate chapter to each of the 12 "Keys" and then provides an Epilogue, followed by an Afterword in which he includes 25 principles and practices of visionary business. This term has many different, sometimes quite different denotations and connotations. In this context, Allen means (a) being able to envision with absolute clarity what you want your business to be and (b) building the business guided by that vision. I can personally attest to the great value of the "Keys" but it would be a disservice to the author and to you, were I to divulge them here. Each must be shared within the context of the on-going interaction between the two. Bernie asks all of the questions I wish someone had asked me. Of even greater value is the wisdom he shares, sometimes strategically withholding it until the narrator is ready for it. Their rapport reminds me of the rapport which Mitch Albom describes in Tuesdays with Morrie. For those who are about to begin or are now embarked on an entrepreneurial venture, or who are about to assume major line management responsibilities in an organization committed to entrepreneurship, this book may well prove to be an invaluable source of both timeless wisdom and practical advice.
