Reviews (1)

This is not The First 90 Days for business leaders...see also my new book on negotiating.
This is a version of The First 90 Days written for people going into new roles in public-sector organizations. To get the original book for business leaders, The First 90 Days: Critical Success Strategies for New Leaders at All Levels, search for "Michael Watkins" and click on the the book with the bright green and yellow cover.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Civil Service    2. Political Science    3. Politics / Current Events    4. Politics/International Relations    5. Public Administration    6. Public Affairs & Administration    7. United States    8. Management & management techniques    9. POLITICS & GOVERNMENT   

Editorial Review

Chapter 1 of Read more

Reviews (68)

A must
If you're in the software business and you haven't read this book, chances are you don't know what's going on.

An Corporate Information Seller's Handbook
Both authors are professors at the University of California at Berkeley.This book deals with how unchanging principles are being applied to the changing conditions and technologies of information marketing (software).
Very Practical
The arrival of the Internet and the information explosion it created has made it possible for inventors and entrepreneurs to build a business from scratch to worldwide marketing capability in a very few years. The authors of this book take the position that all too often we are deluded into thinking certain and tried and true economic principles have been abolished by this new Internet economy. They argue their position without jargon and with examples taken from the real world.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Information Management    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Management Information Systems    4. Information society    5. Business strategy    6. Computer Communications & Networking    7. Economics - General    8. Information technology    9. Business & Economics    10. Business/Economics    11. Economic aspects   

Reviews (12)

Light, Western-bias, but worthwhile

Book was written for everyone and serves no one
This has all the makings of a good insightful text; yet falls flat.The underlying themes are that we are moving from disconnected to structured to unstructured connected economies of communications and that the authorityfor work completion is being returned from the corporate power at the top to the shared corporate responsibility (my words).Little is said beyond that.There needs to be more; much of the work that has been completed since the 1900s was not considered.
A Misleading Book Title
The book poses a very good question, one that most people are thinking about - "What will the future of work be in an outsourced global environment? "But sadly Malone never risks making any futuristic predictions. This book captures the history of functional organizations and a some recent radical organizational models.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Decision Making & Problem Solving    5. Industrial management    6. Labor    7. Management - General    8. Business & Management    9. General Management   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Employee motivation    5. Human Resources & Personnel Management    6. Motivational    7. Personnel & human resources management   

Reviews (1)

Concise and covers many points in starting up a business
I am at the point to run the first round of non-founder funding for my 5-year-old start-up when I grabbed this book off the bookstore's shelf. The author clearly understood the process of building a business, and knows how to get outside investors interested in a start-up. One interesting viewpoint the author held was that VCs are the most expensive financial aid a start-up can find, and offered alternatives to getting VC's funding. In the end the author addresses ways an entrepreneur can be really paid off for the efforts invested, both by way of IPO and by non-IPO means. In general, I find this book very helpful to help one understand many faces of starting up. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Management - General    5. New Business Enterprises    6. Entrepreneurship   

Editorial Review

"After conducting fourteen formal studies and more than a thousand interviews, directly observing dozens of executives in action, and compiling innumerable surveys, I am completely convinced that most organizations today lack the leadership they need," contends John P. Kotter, the Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership at Harvard Business School. "And the shortfall is often large. I'm not talking about a deficit of 10%, but of 200%, 400%, or more in positions up and down the hierarchy," he writes in the opening essay to Read more

Reviews (11)

A good book on leadership
Kotter, a professor of leadership at Harvard Business School, distinguishes between a leader and a manager. The former is someone who works thru people and culture; the latter works thru hierarchy and systems. Kotter points out the need to nurture leaders, and he writes of the interdependence of leaders and led. What is required to bring about change, he says, is starting with a sense of urgency, developing a team, communicating the vision, etc. A leader works with others to develop a vision as well as strategies to implement that vision. He or she empowers individuals to bring that vision to life. There are executives who don't lead; they thereby fall into predictable traps. Therefore they find themselves unable to bring about good, nonincremental change. More is involved in leadership than giving orders within an authority structure. The vision need not be original, but it must serve the interests of the constituencies.
A 6-pack of Kotter articles
In the reviews below, only Godfrey notices that this book is simply a collection of 6 previously published Harvard Business Review articles (1979-1997).As such, the book is a handy one-stop shop of Kotter's leadership and management writings over the years, and these articles contain nothing new.One might have wished for Kotter's current commentary on each of the individual articles.
Kotter Knows
John knows his stuff. I've worked for P&G, M&M/Mars and The NutraSweet Company and I know the halls, people and thinking Kotter discusses. He is spot on in his examination of what good leaders really do, something that can often seem like a mystery. I found it interesting that people were evenly split on this book between raves and pans. So much of what you get out of a book like this is related to personal experience. I don't know if I changed my paradigm after reading What Leaders Really Do, but I increased my empathy and understanding. Always a good thing, no? ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Corporate Finance    5. Entrepreneurship    6. Leadership    7. Leadership In Business    8. Organizational theory & behaviour   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business And Society    4. Business/Economics    5. Development - Sustainable Development    6. Economics - General    7. Environmental Conservation & Protection - General    8. Environmental Economics    9. Environmental aspects    10. Environmental protection    11. General    12. Green movement    13. Industrial management    14. Reference - General    15. Social responsibility of busin    16. Social responsibility of business    17. Management & management techniques   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Handbooks, manuals, etc    5. Management - General    6. Marketing    7. Marketing - General    8. Marketing Management    9. Strategic planning    10. Sales & marketing   

Reviews (5)

Bower's vision for harmonious and profitable business structure
Bower's resume includes acting as leader of the esteemed consulting firm Mckinsey & Co. for 17 years.He shares an business model ideal based on a leadership structure rather than a pure authority sturcture.Appoaching this ideal, a business would flourish from the increased exercise of initiative, expression of opinions and even disagreement.
Great book on a philosophy and experience of a leader
The Will to Lead greatest benefit is that it is a first person account of a proven business leader in a dynamic business.What is surprising about the book is that it is very non-consulting-ease even through the author isa former Managing Partner from McKinsey & Co. The first person accountand stories contain mulitple nuggets of what it takes to be a real leader. You may have to wade through a few stories that seem a bit self serving ofthe author.However, these are only the recollections of a lifetime ofleadership so they are certainly allowable.Other books on leadership(Kotter et al) provide a more scientific view, however Bower's been thereand this is what its like approach gives the book credibility and value

A good tale and framework for measuring your leadership
Too many book talk about leadership with hyperbole and abstraction.Theyview leadership as a set of mechanical traits that one can possess, or theyperform hero worship by telling stories about various leaders.This bookdoes neither.Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Entrepreneurship    5. Leadership    6. Leadership In Business    7. Management    8. Management - General    9. Management & management techniques    10. Personnel & human resources management   

Reviews (2)

Authoritative and Well Written
Gompers and Lerner have written the best book on venture capital thus far. The authors have done a great service to entrepreneurs, VCs, and the entire business community with this work. Absolutely Phenomenal Book
I can't say enough good things about this book!Gompers and Lerner provide a crystal clear explaination of the role venture capital plays in the economy and offers an insightful view of how venture capital will change in the future.Read more

Subjects:  1. Accounting - General    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Finance    6. Forecasting    7. New business enterprises    8. Small Business - Capital Generation    9. United States    10. Venture capital    11. Budgeting & financial management    12. Ownership & organization of enterprises   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Capitalism    5. Consumer Behavior - General    6. Economic Conditions    7. Economics - General    8. Industries - General    9. Investment Finance    10. Investments    11. Investments & Securities - General    12. Social aspects    13. Business & Management    14. Investment & securities   

Reviews (2)

Basic, Yes, But Invaluable
I read this book when it was first published in 1999 and recently re-read it, curious to see how well it has held up during the past five years. I think it has done so to a remarkable extent, with my only regret being that Theodore Levitt's "Marketing Myopia" is not included among the selections. 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 Review. I strongly recommend all of the volumes in the series. The individual titles are listed at this Web site: www.hbsp.harvard.edu. The authors of various articles are among the world's most highly regarded experts on the given subject. All of the volumes have been carefully edited. An Executive Summary introduces each selection. Supplementary commentaries are also provided in most of the volumes, as is an "About the Contributors" section which usually includes suggestions of other sources which some readers may wish to explore.
A Collection of the best articles from the HBR magazine.
There are now over 20 books in this Harvard Business Review series. All the books are compilations of the best articles from the Harvard Business Review magazine. This book is one of the best books in the series for the quality, relevance, and usefulness of the articles selected for inclusion.Read more

Subjects:  1. Advertising & Promotion    2. Brand name products    3. Business & Economics    4. Business / Economics / Finance    5. Business/Economics    6. Management    7. Marketing    8. Marketing - General    9. Sales & marketing   

Reviews (26)

An interesting read
An interesting read for the serious investor.The central tenet of the book might be stated as "investors do not earn superior rates of return on stocks that are priced fully to reflect future performance - even for the best value-creating companies - which is why great companies are not great stocks."This book posits that investors can read market expectations contained in a stock's price and anticipate revisions in those expectations to achieve superior returns.It book provides a detailed, step-by-step way to accomplish this process.
A Refreshing Look at Market Performance
There is no question stock prices climb and fall based on investors' current perceptions of their future performance.
Is it just me
Seeing the other 5-star reviews makes me wonder, eihter those reviewers are clueless or I might have missed something big.
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Economics - General    5. Finance    6. Investments & Securities - General    7. Stocks & shares   

Editorial Review

According to Dan Ciampa and Michael Watkins, 64 percent of executives hired form the outside won't make it in their new jobs. While executives from within the ranks know the challenges, culture, and politics of a company, newcomers face a corporate minefield. Read more

Reviews (19)

Thanks for saving me money
I read the ebook experiences others had and decided not to purchase the ebook and for that matter the book period today through Amazon.
Be careful downloading e-books!!
I was disapointed when I downloaded it and got 8 pages.
Content of the Digital Version
Thanks to the other reviews I knew I would be buying a summarized version of the book.I was hoping it would still provide the essence and condensed insights supposedly in the full version; however, I was quite disappointed.Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Leadership    5. Management - General    6. Business & Management   

Reviews (1)

Some dated contextual material but rock-solid core concepts

Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business planning    4. Business/Economics    5. Electronic commerce    6. Entrepreneurship    7. Executive Management    8. Human Resources & Personnel Management    9. Information Management    10. Internet    11. Management    12. Strategic planning    13. Business strategy   

Reviews (11)

Master walking before taking up ballroom dancing...
The cool, conventional wisdom says that to succeed in business these days means you have to innovate and think "outside the box".Patrick Barwise and Sean Meehan beg to differ in the book Simply Better: Winning and Keeping Customers by Delivering What Matters Most.Often it's just executing the basics better than everyone else...
A business book for those who hate business books
Messrs Barwise and Meehan have really succeeded in creating a business book that you actually want to read. Their simple idea is explained, illustrated and elucidated with clarity and without the usual repetition and sycophancy which authors of business books use to puff out their oftern half-baked theories. Like all things good and simple, this book organises and articulates things that you should already know - read it with a marker pen and you will find yourself regularly stealing bits to help communicate and simplify ideas that corporate life has complicated beyond comprehension.

A less than average book on marketing
I do not agree at all with all the five star ratings that the book was given on this page.This book is a mediocre book at best with no sound theoretical or practical advice to anyone practicing marketing.What the authors basically say is this:differentiation is a fancy thing; you should first be aiming at providing the basics for the customer.Those who can provide all those basics, which they call something like 'overall category benefits' will arguably conquer the customers' hearts (and arguably wallets).
Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Consumer satisfaction    5. Customer Service    6. Customer satisfaction    7. Evaluation    8. Marketing    9. Marketing - General    10. Customer services   

Reviews (4)

Applicable Framework
More than anything, this book provides an applicable framework to deal with the great majority of succession scenarios in family businesses.I think the author's personal experience helps in providing real examples and makes the running example thougought the book believable.The most important contribution is the idea that there must be a separation of the emotional aspects from the business aspects and that all persons involved should have the maturity to understand and expect that that is the best way to deal with succession in family businesses.

Packed with Knowledge!
Succeeding Generations takes the family business where few dare to venture: into the perilous landscape of succession - the boneyard of many a family enterprise felled by dissension, sibling rivalry, and greed. Ivan Lansberg, co-founder of the Family Firm Institute and your guide through this treacherous terrain, neatly straddles the worlds of academic rigor and real-world experience as he shows you how to pave the way for the generation to come. Case studies of well-known family businesses illustrate Lansberg's observations and bring his advice home. We from getAbstract recommend this book to anyone involved in the complex concern of family business.

A Landmark Book on Family Businesses!
Ivan Lansberg's new book is an excellent resource for anyone living through, or helping to manage, the succession process in a family business! The book is thoroughly scholarlyyetpractical...it is "a mustread," for anyone interested in the subject. It is the best book onthe subject I have read! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Family-owned business enterpri    5. Family-owned business enterprises    6. Leadership    7. Management    8. Reference - General    9. Small business    10. Special Business Operations    11. Business strategy    12. Family & relationships    13. Family Business    14. Small Business & Entrepreneurship   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Human Resources & Personnel Management    5. Management - General    6. Performance Appraisal    7. Performance standards    8. Personnel management    9. Personnel & human resources management   

Editorial Review

The second edition of Read more

Reviews (3)

Excellent source
An amazing book detailing the differences between global, international, and multinational companies while providing a new innovative way to approach business, the transnational way. Great for students and professionals alike.

An appreciative book that looks forward into the future
Now in an updated second edition, Managing Across Borders: The Transnational Solution by Christopher Bartlett (Daewoo Professor of Business Administration, Harvard Business School) and Sumantra Ghoshal (Professor of Strategic and International Management, The London Business School) is an informative introduction to the "transnational corporation", the new corporate phenomena of the interconnected global and digital age, which stretches its competition worldwide and fundamentally rewrites the nature of doing business. A fascinating, appreciative book that looks forward into the future, Managing Across Borders is highly recommended reading for anyone seeking to understand and capitalize on what the 21st century business community is evolving for purposes of international trade in a truly global and increasingly "borderless" age!

Pathbreaking book
This seminal book has been a part of my professional library for almost a decade, now. I am an Associate Professor in International Business and teach the subjects covered in this book. From this book a number ofconcepts have grown which continues to dominate the discussion of globalmanagement. Let me jus mention a few: administrative heritage, which is theidea, that the organisational structure of multidomestic enterprisesreflects the historical period they were established in - especially withrespect to the regime of coordination and communication. For instance,whereas the typical american firm entering Europe after 2ww would follow astrategy of tight operational control (given the business circumstances ofthis firm) Phillips, a multinational from the 19th century would display astrategy of much more delegation and subsidary autonomy.