Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings by Philip A. Fisher

"I am 15% Fisher and 85% Graham" - Warren Buffet

Phillip Arthur Fisher (September 8, 1907 – March 11, 2004) is considered a pioneer in the field of growth investing. Morningstar has called him "one of the great investors of all time". His career spanned 74 years--but was more diverse than growth stock picking. He did early venture capital and private equity, advised chief executives, wrote and taught. He had an impact. For decades, big names in investing claimed Dad as a mentor, role model, inspirations.

Phil Fisher was one of only three people ever to teach the investment course at Stanford's Graduate School of Business. He taught Jack McDonald, the course's current professor. For 40 years Jack has seen to it that you can't get past that class without reading Phil Fisher. Dad last lectured at Stanford for Jack four years ago. He had a knack for getting great minds to think their own thoughts--but bigger than they would have conceived otherwise on their own. Many disciples described this experience to me.


Review
"...written by American Investment genius.... We are delighted to have the opportunity to reproduce an extract from this classic, recently reissued..." (Financial Director, November 2003)
"...these updated classics are packed with investment wisdom..." (What Investment, November 2003)


Product Description
Critical Praise for Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings
"You will find lots of jewels in these pages that may do as much for you as they have for me."
–– Kenneth L. Fisher

"I sought out Phil Fisher after reading his Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings. When I met him, I was as impressed by the man as by his ideas. A thorough understanding of the business, obtained by using Phil’s techniques . . . enables one to make intelligent investment commitments."
–– Warren Buffett

"Little known to the public, rarely interviewed, and accepting few clients, Philip Fisher is nevertheless read and studied by most thoughtful investment professionals . . . everyone will profit from pondering–as Warren Buffett has done–the investment principles Fisher espouses."
–– James W. Michaels
former editor, Forbes

"My own copy [of Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings] has underlinings and marginal thoughts throughout."
–– John Train
author of Dance of the Money Bees

Updated features include a new Preface and Introduction from Kenneth L. Fisher

Widely respected and admired, Philip Fisher is among the most influential investors of all time. His investment philosophies, introduced almost forty years ago, are not only studied and applied by today’s finance professionals, but are also regarded by many as gospel. Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings reveals these timeless philosophies.

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Execution Premium by Robert S.Kaplan and David P. Norton

In this book you will find about

-Why your firm must link strategy with operations
-How to accomplish that goal in six stages
-Why you need a central oversight unit
-Where quality programs like Six Sigma fit in
-Why executive support is vital in aligning operations and strategy

The reason why this book is so special.

Senior executives love to plan strategies. They believe this puts them in the exalted company of Napoleon, Sun-Tzu and Clausewitz. Indeed, for CEOs and their corporate management team, developing strategy is the heart of leadership. Unfortunately, most companies end up with strategies that are not linked to their actual operations. The result? Strategy that is not strategic, since companies are unable to implement it. Strategy experts Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton created the Balanced Scorecard and Strategy Maps and have now developed a versatile, 6-stage program your corporation can use to mesh its strategy with its operations. Their approach already works for numerous top-flight organizations. get Abstract applauds this outstanding book. It is an exceptionally worthwhile read, especially given its invaluable case studies. Readers who are not grounded in sophisticated, strategic systems, such as Six Sigma and Balanced Scorecard, will be in over their heads starting on page one.

Product Description
In a world of stiffening competition, business strategy is more crucial than ever. Yet most organizations struggle in this area--not with formulating strategy but with executing it, or putting their strategy into action. Owing to execution failures, companies realize just a fraction of the financial performance promised in their strategic plans.

It doesn't have to be that way, maintain Robert Kaplan and David Norton in The Execution Premium. Building on their breakthrough works on strategy-focused organizations, the authors describe a multistage system that enables you to gain measurable benefits from your carefully formulated business strategy. This book shows you how to:

-Develop an effective strategy--with tools such as SWOT analysis, vision formulation, and strategic change agendas
-Plan execution of the strategy--through portfolios of strategic initiatives linked to strategy maps and Balanced Scorecards
-Put your strategy into action--by integrating operational tools such as process dashboards, rolling forecasts, and activity-based costing
-Test and update your strategy--using carefully designed management meetings to review operational and strategic data

Drawing on extensive research and detailed case studies from a broad array of industries, The Execution Premium presents a systematic and proven framework for achieving the financial results promised by your strategy.


About the Author
Robert S. Kaplan is the Baker Foundation Professor at the Harvard Business School. He has been a codeveloper of both activity-based costing and the Balanced Scorecard.

David P. Norton is a founder and director of the Palladium Group, a consultancy focusing on strategy execution, and is codeveloper of the Balanced Scorecard.

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Inbound Marketing: Get Found Using Google, Social Media, and Blogs (The New Rules of Social Media) by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah

Product Description
Stop pushing your message out and start pulling your customers in

Traditional "outbound" marketing methods like cold-calling, email blasts, advertising, and direct mail are increasingly less effective. People are getting better at blocking these interruptions out using Caller ID, spam protection, TiVo, etc. People are now increasingly turning to Google, social media, and blogs to find products and services. Inbound Marketing helps you take advantage of this change by showing you how to get found by customers online.

Inbound Marketing is a how-to guide to getting found via Google, the blogosphere, and social media sites.

• Improve your rankings in Google to get more traffic
• Build and promote a blog for your business
• Grow and nurture a community in Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.
• Measure what matters and do more of what works online

The rules of marketing have changed, and your business can benefit from this change. Inbound Marketing shows you how to get found by more prospects already looking for what you have to sell.

From the Back Cover
To connect with today's buyer, you need to stop pushing your message out and start pulling your customers in. The rules of marketing have changed and the key to winning is to use this change to your advantage.
If you've wondered how to get found in Google or why blogs and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter are important, Inbound Marketing is the book for you. HubSpot founders Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shah give you the tools and strategies you need to improve your Google search rankings; build a blog to promote your business; grow and nurture a community on social media sites; and analyze which of your online marketing efforts are working.

Stop wasting money blasting the world with marketing messages that nobody cares about. Instead, learn to get found with Inbound Marketing.

"If you've been looking for a trustworthy primer on getting found online, here's a great place to start. Buy one for your clueless colleague too." --Seth Godin, author of Meatball Sundae

"If you have more money than brains, you should focus on outbound marketing. If you have more brains than money, you should focus on inbound marketing by reading this book." --Guy Kawasaki, cofounder of Alltop, and author of Reality Check


About the Author
Brian Halligan is cofounder and CEO of HubSpot, a marketing software company that helps businesses "get found." He is a former venture capitalist and seasoned sales and marketing executive. He is a frequent lecturer at MIT and Harvard Business School.

Dharmesh Shar is cofounder and CTO of HubSpot. He is a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, and authors the top-ranking blog OnStartups.com. He speaks frequently on the topics of marketing and entrepreneurship.

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Inbound Marketing Abebooks.com

Classic Drucker: From the Pages of Harvard Business Review by Peter Ferdinand Drucker

Review
"You will not get a better chance to read the musings of Peter Drucker."

- Jack Covert -- USA Today

Product Description
For nearly half a century, Peter Drucker inspired and educated managers--and powerfully shaped the nature of business--with his landmark articles in Harvard Business Review. Here, framed by a thoughtful introduction from HBR editor Thomas A. Stewart, is a priceless collection of Drucker's most significant work.

Through his unique lens, Drucker traces the evolution of the great shifts in organizations and the role of managers in the ongoing effort to balance change with continuity. He paints a clear, comprehensive picture of management thinking and practice--as it was and as it will be.

Revealing a celebrated thinker at his best, Classic Drucker offers a wealth of insights and practical guidelines for managers seeking to address today's thorniest organizational challenges. For example, you'll find selections on how to enhance your company's innovative prowess, make effective decisions, raise knowledge workers' productivity, remain engaged and productive during a long work life, know when the assumptions on which your business was founded must change, and get the data you need to execute your company's competitive strategy.

Doing what's right for your company will always be challenging. But thanks to the clear focus, broad vision, and practical wisdom of Peter Drucker, the task is now a little less daunting.

About the Author
Peter Ferdinand Drucker was a writer, teacher, and consultant. His thirty-four books have been published in more than seventy languages. He founded the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management, and counseled thirteen governments, public services institutions, and major corporations.

Click here to buy Classic Drucker: From the Pages of Harvard Business Review from Amazon.com

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1422125920/earssit-20

Click here to Buy this book from www.abebooks.com

Harvard Business Review on Managing Your Career in Tough Times

Product Description
This title offers the advice and strategies you need to keep your career on track in tough times. Managing your career is always important, but it's especially difficult and front-of-mind when times are tough. This collection of HBR articles addresses the top skills, strategies and perspectives you need to thrive, whatever comes your way.

About the Author
The Harvard Business Review Paperback is designed to bring today's managers and professionals the fundamental information they need to stay competitive in a fast-moving world. From the preeminent thinkers whose work has defined an entire field to the rising stars who will redefine the way we think about business, here are the leading minds and landmark ideas that have established Harvard Business Review as required reading for ambitious businesspeople in organizations around the globe.

Click here to buy Harvard Business Review on Managing Your Career in Tough Times from
Amazon.com

A Sense of Urgency by John P. Kotter

A book from professor John P. Kotter, change management and leadership guru. Writer of bestseller change management book Leading Change and Our Iceberg is melting.

From Publishers Weekly
Author and international business consultant Kotter (Leading Change, Our Iceberg is Melting) returns with an engaging look at companies that need to overcome a lack of urgency-or a surfeit of complacency-with a proactive agenda. Kotter dissects well his seemingly simple premise, using his professional experiences to examine the inner workings of real companies. Kotter defines his terms with clear language and bullet lists, convincingly asserting that urgency "is not driven by a belief that... everything is a mess but, instead, that the world contains great opportunities and great hazards"; it is, in fact, "a compulsive determination to move, and win, now." Among suggested tactics: bring the outside world into overly insular work teams; make your deeds consistent with your words; view crises as potential opportunities; and disseminate data that "feels interesting, surprising, or dramatic," as opposed to "information so antiseptic that it flows in and out of short-term memory with great speed." Great examples illustrate real-life frustrations and successes, and a special section on dealing with the nay-sayers is full of practical ploys to overcome dissent and kill complacency.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Change can strike fear in the hearts and minds of businesspeople, whether frontline employee or C-suite executive. Harvard Business School professor Kotter is the master of change, hammering home his eight principles straightforwardly (Leading Change, 1996) and via fable (Our Iceberg Is Melting, 2006). Now Kotter identifies the single biggest factor to successful change, which also happens to be his number-one principle: creating a true sense of urgency. In a way that will resonate with those charged with carrying out new corporate strategies or implementing transformation, he details one streamlined strategy—appeal to the head and the heart—with four supporting tactics: bring the outside reality in, behave with true urgency every day, selectively look for upside possibilities in crises, and effectively confront what he calls the no-no’s. Stories accompany all; unfortunately, a number are repeats from The Heart of Change (2002) and stripped of detail for confidentiality. Charts and chapter summaries help connect theory to the practical question: How do we move people to act? An easy, quick read that provides good elucidation of what makes change work. --Barbara Jacobs

Review
But now a distinguished author says that what so many of us really lack is a sense of urgency. Is this guy for real? He is. John Kotter, emeritus professor at Harvard Business School, has a clear and simple message...This succinct book has a gentle, unhurried tone, but its message is insistent, relentless and urgent. --The Financial Times, September 24, 2008

Instilling urgency in employees is critical to getting organizations to switch directions--it's just that arguing the business case using facts alone won't create that urgency, says Kotter. Rather, you have to tug at people's heartstrings. Instead of showing them your case on PowerPoint, for instance, tell a story. That's one of many on-target suggestions on how to make people truly want change in the latest from this author of several books about leadership. --Entrepreneur.com, September 2008

Kotter's new book, A Sense of Urgency, is excellent. It is stimulating, a thoughtful extension of his work, filled with actionable and practical tools for creating the kind of productive urgency that contributes to successful change. --Fast Company, September 11, 2008

Let's hear professor John Kotter interview with Havard Business Publishing about
his perspective how importance of sense of urgency impact with organization.



Product Description
Most organizational change initiatives fail spectacularly (at worst) or deliver lukewarm results (at best). In his international bestseller Leading Change, John Kotter revealed why change is so hard, and provided an actionable, eight-step process for implementing successful transformations. The book became the change bible for managers worldwide.

Now, in Urgency, Kotter shines the spotlight on the crucial first step in his framework: creating a sense of urgency by getting people to actually see and feel the need for change.

Why focus on urgency? Without it, any change effort is doomed. Kotter reveals the insidious nature of complacency in all its forms and guises.

In this exciting new book, Kotter explains:

How to go beyond "the business case" for change to overcome the fear and anger that can suppress urgency
Ways to ensure that your actions and behaviors -- not just your words -- communicate the need for change
How to keep fanning the flames of urgency even after your transformation effort has scored some early successes

Written in Kotter's signature no-nonsense style, this concise and authoritative guide helps you set the stage for leading a successful transformation in your company.

About the Author
John P. Kotter is Konosuke Matsushita Professor of Leadership, Emeritus, at Harvard Business School, and is widely regarded as the world's foremost authority on leadership and change. His has been the premier voice on how the best organizations actually do change.

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The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey

Posted on http://platinumbooks.blogspot.com/2010/02/7-habits-of-highly-effective-people-by.html

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is bestseller book in 1990. It was sold 10 million copies all around the world.

Amazon.com Review
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change was a groundbreaker when it was first published in 1990, and it continues to be a business bestseller with more than 10 million copies sold. Stephen Covey, an internationally respected leadership authority, realizes that true success encompasses a balance of personal and professional effectiveness, so this book is a manual for performing better in both arenas. His anecdotes are as frequently from family situations as from business challenges. Before you can adopt the seven habits, you'll need to accomplish what Covey calls a "paradigm shift"--a change in perception and interpretation of how the world works. Covey takes you through this change, which affects how you perceive and act regarding productivity, time management, positive thinking, developing your "proactive muscles" (acting with initiative rather than reacting), and much more. This isn't a quick-tips-start-tomorrow kind of book. The concepts are sometimes intricate, and you'll want to study this book, not skim it. When you finish, you'll probably have Post-it notes or hand-written annotations in every chapter, and you'll feel like you've taken a powerful seminar by Covey. --Joan Price

Review
Ken M. RadziwanowskiAT&T School of BusinessPicture someone going through the best experience they've ever had in terms of training -- that's what they say. People credit the 7 Habits with changing their lives, with getting back on track personally and professionally.

The late Skip LeFauvePresident, Saturn Corporation/General MotorsStephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People played a major role in the development of Saturn's operating systems and philosophy. Our commitment to quality and to our customers has its roots in The 7 Habits.

Product Description
In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen R. Covey presents a holistic, integrated, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems. With penetrating insights and pointed anecdotes, Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, service, and human dignity -- principles that give us the security to adapt to change and the wisdom and power to take advantage of the opportunities that change creates.

From the Publisher
The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People is a comprehensive program based on developing an awareness of how perceptions and assumptions hinder success---in business as well as presonal relationships. Here's an approach that will help broaden your way of thinking and lead to greater opportunities and effective problem solving. Be Pro-Active: Take the initiative and the responsibility to make things happen. Begin With an End in Mind: Start with a clear destination to understand where you are now, where you're going and what you value most. Put First Things First: Manage yourself. Organize and execute around priorities. Think Win/Win: See life as a cooperative, not a comprehensive arena where success is not achieved at the expense or exclusion of the success of others. Seek First to Understand: Understand then be understood to build the skills of empathetic listening that inspires openness and trust. Synergize: Apply the principles of cooperative creativity and value differences. Renewal: Preserving and enhanving your greatest asset, yourself, by renewing the physical, spiritual, mental and social/emotional dimensions of your nature. Stephen R. Covey is the most respected motivator in the business world today. Learn to use his 7 Habits Of Highly Effective Por unavaeople--and see how they can change your life. --This text refers to an out of print ilable edition of this title.

About the Author
Stephen R. Covey is a renowned authority on leadership, a family expert, teacher, organizational consultant, and vice chairman of FranklinCovey Co. The author of several acclaimed books, he has also received numerous honors and awards, including being named one of Time magazine's twenty-five most influential Americans. Covey lives with his wife, Sandra, and their family in the Rocky Mountains of Utah.

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Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant

One of bestselling business management book.

Published by Harvard Business School Press since 2005

by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne

From Publishers Weekly
Kim and Mauborgne's blue ocean metaphor elegantly summarizes their vision of the kind of expanding, competitor-free markets that innovative companies can navigate. Unlike "red oceans," which are well explored and crowded with competitors, "blue oceans" represent "untapped market space" and the "opportunity for highly profitable growth." The only reason more big companies don't set sail for them, they suggest, is that "the dominant focus of strategy work over the past twenty-five years has been on competition-based red ocean strategies"-i.e., finding new ways to cut costs and grow revenue by taking away market share from the competition. With this groundbreaking book, Kim and Mauborgne-both professors at France's INSEAD, the second largest business school in the world-aim to repair that bias. Using dozens of examples-from Southwest Airlines and the Cirque du Soleil to Curves and Starbucks-they present the tools and frameworks they've developed specifically for the task of analyzing blue oceans. They urge companies to "value innovation" that focuses on "utility, price, and cost positions," to "create and capture new demand" and to "focus on the big picture, not the numbers." And while their heavyweight analytical tools may be of real use only to serious strategy planners, their overall vision will inspire entrepreneurs of all stripes, and most of their ideas are presented in a direct, jargon-free manner. Theirs is not the typical business management book's vague call to action; it is a precise, actionable plan for changing the way companies do business with one resounding piece of advice: swim for open waters.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"Blue Ocean Strategy will have you wondering why companies need so much persuasion to stay out of shark-infested waters." -- BusinessWeek, April 4th 2005

"Blue Ocean raises pertinent questions… and delivers valuable answers." -- American Way, March 2005

"Companies struggling to stay afloat in the market's...red oceans would do well to look into Blue Ocean Strategy." -- Fort Worth Star Telegram, 14 February 2005

"The book is clearly written, offering many examples of blue-ocean strategies and the techniques to develop such a scheme." -- Globe and Mail, June 8, 2005

Product Description

Winning by Not Competing: A Fresh Approach to Strategy


Since the dawn of the industrial age, companies have engaged in head-to-head competition in search of sustained, profitable growth. They have fought for competitive advantage, battled over market share, and struggled for differentiation. Yet these hallmarks of competitive strategy are not the way to create profitable growth in the future.



In a book that challenges everything you thought you knew about the requirements for strategic success, W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne argue that cutthroat competition results in nothing but a bloody red ocean of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. Based on a study of 150 strategic moves spanning more than a hundred years and thirty industries, the authors argue that lasting success comes not from battling competitors, but from creating "blue oceans": untapped new market spaces ripe for growth. Such strategic moves-which the authors call "value innovation"- create powerful leaps in value that often render rivals obsolete for more than a decade.



Blue Ocean Strategy presents a systematic approach to making the competition irrelevant and outlines principles and tools any company can use to create and capture blue oceans. A landmark work that upends traditional thinking about strategy, this book charts a bold new path to winning the future.


From the Inside Flap
"After reading Blue Ocean Strategy, you will never again see your competition in quite the same light. Kim and Mauborgne present a compelling case for pursuing strategy with a creative, not combative, approach. Their emphases on value innovation and stakeholder engagement alone make this book a must-read for both executives and students of business."

-Carlos Ghosn, President and CEO, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.

"This is an extremely valuable book to read. It examines the experience of companies in areas as diverse as watches, wine, cement, computers, automobiles, and even the circus to shed new light on the development of future strategies."

-Nicolas G. Hayek, Cofounder and Chairman of the Board, Swatch Group

"I recommend Blue Ocean Strategy to any executive in the private or public sector. It shows how to break from the status quo, create a winning future strategy, and execute this fast at low cost. As much a practical guide as an eye-opener."

-William J. Bratton, Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department, former Police Commissioner of the City of New York

"Kim and Mauborgne's strategies are not only original but practical. Our company has used them and obtained powerful results. The authors chart a bold new path to winning the future."

-Patrick Snowball, Chief Executive, Norwich Union Insurance

From the Back Cover


Companies have long engaged in head-to-head competition in search of sustained, profitable growth. They have fought for competitive advantage, battled over market share, and struggled for differentiation.


Yet in today’s overcrowded industries, competing head-on results in nothing but a bloody “red ocean” of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. In a book that challenges everything you thought you knew about the requirements fro strategic success, W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne contend that while most companies compete within such red oceans, this strategy is increasingly unlikely to create profitable growth in the future.


Based on a study of 150 strategic moves spanning more then a hundred years and thirty industries, Kim and Mauborgne argue that tomorrow’s leading companies will succeed not by battling competitors, but by creating “blue ocean” of uncontested market space ripe for growth. Such strategies moves—termed “value innovation”-create powerful leaps in value for both the firm and its buyers, rendering rivals obsolete and unleashing new demand.


Blue Ocean Strategyprovides a systematic approach to making the competition irrelevant. In this frame-changing book, Kim and Mauborgne present a proven analytical framework and the tools for successfully creating and capturing blue oceans. Examining a wide range of strategic moves across a host of industries, Blue Ocean Strategy highlights the six principles that every company can use to successfully formulate and execute blue ocean strategies. The six principles show how to reconstruct market boundaries, focus on the big picture, reach beyond existing demand, get the strategic sequence right, overcome organizational hurdles, and build execution into strategy.


Upending traditional thinking about strategy, this landmark book charts “a bold new path to winning the future”.

About the Author


W. Chan Kim is the Boston Consulting Group Bruce D. Henderson Chair Professor of Strategy and International Management at INSEAD.

Renée Mauborgne is the INSEAD Distinguished Fellow and Professor of Strategy and Management.

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Our Iceberg Is Melting: Changing and Succeeding Under Any Conditions

From Publishers Weekly
Harvard Business School professor Kotter, author of the bestselling Leading Change (1996), teams up with executive Rathgeber to offer his contribution to the "business fable" genre. Kotter presents his framework for an effective corporate change initiative through the tale of a colony of Antarctic penguins facing danger-inspired, perhaps, by today's real-life global warming crisis (or, perhaps, by March of the Penguins' box office). Under the leadership of one particularly astute bird, a small team of penguins with varied personalities and leadership skills implement a thoughtful plan for coaxing the other birds in their colony through a time of necessary but wrenching change. The logic of Kotter's fictional framework is wobbly at times-his characters live and act very much like real penguins except that one carries a briefcase and another ("the Professor") cites articles from scholarly journals-and the whimsical tone will not be to everyone's taste. However, this light, quick read should fulfill its intended purpose: to serve as a springboard for group discussions about corporate culture, group dynamics and the challenges of change.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

Penguins illustrate how to conquer changeBy Michelle Archer, for USA TODAY At first glance, Our Iceberg Is Melting seems easy to dismiss as an attempt to fuse a few hot topics — global warming, marching penguins — into a Who Moved My Cheese? fable-as-business-lesson best seller.
But this penguin parable has a pedigree in the form of Harvard Business School's John Kotter, author of Leading Change, the 1996 business guide that also sported our flat-footed, feathered friends on the cover. The Heart of Change was his 2002 follow-up. This time out, Kotter moves the penguins inside, using how a colony of them copes with a potential catastrophe — yes, their iceberg is melting — to illustrate his eight-step process of successful change. Their story is short and peppered with the personalities organizations inevitably include: the naysayers and nitpickers, the innovators and agitators, the leaders and followers. The idea is that everyone in a group must play a role in navigating change. In that vein, Kotter and co-author Holger Rathgeber write that their goal is to use a good story with visual stimuli (full-color, cartoon-like illustrations) to influence a broad range of people to better handle change and produce results. In other words, companies should buy a copy for everyone from the CEO to the stock clerk. This approach paid off for Spencer Johnson of Who Moved My Cheese?, who writes the foreword. Kotter's process advocates quick action to confront issues, group thinking and the buy-in of the whole organization. The goal: replace old habits with new behaviors and make them stick. Whether you're a fan of lowest-common-denominator reading or not, there's no denying the logic behind Kotter's steps and the at-times clever way they are woven into the penguins' journey.


Product Description

Most of the denizens of the Antarctic penguin colony sneer at Fred, the quiet but observant scout who detects worrying signs that their home, an iceberg, is melting. Fred must cleverly convince and enlist key players, such as Louis, the head penguin; Alice, the number two bird; the intractable NoNo the weather expert; and a passle of school-age penguins if he is to save the colony.Their delightfully told journey illuminates in an unforgettable way how to manage the necessary change that surrounds us all. Simple explanatory material following the fable enhances the lasting value of these lessons.Our Iceberg Is Melting is at once charming, accessible and profound; a treat for virtually any reader.


From the Back Cover

"I came across Our ICEBERG IS MELTING in May, ordered and dsitributed 60 copies in June, evaluated its effect on our change effort, and then ordered 500 more copies in September. This is a gem." -- Heidi King, Program Manager, Dept. of Defense "As a result of the book and my sharing it with a few people in the organization, we have moved quickly on several fronts. We are galvanized to go ahead instead of further studying, more organizing and so on. It is making a difference for us." -- Tom Curley, President and CEO, Associated Press "This is the easiest to read yet most informative book I have ever seen. Setting one of management's biggest challenges, 'what problem, I don't see a problem,' in the context of a melting iceberg and a determined penguin, was a stroke of sheer genius."-- Michael Dimelow, Director of Product Marketing, TTP Communications PLC


About the Author

JOHN KOTTER has been on the faculty at Harvard Business School since 1972. He is the author of eleven award-winning titles and frequently gives speeches and seminars at Harvard and around the world. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

HOLGER RATHGEBER spent his early professional career in Asia. He has worked in industry since the early 1990's and is now with one of the leading medical technology companies, Bectom Dickinson. Raised in Frankfurt, Germany, Rathgeber currently resides in White Plains, New York.

You can see the overview of this book by Prof. John Kotter here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gh2xc6vXQgk

On Competition by Michael E. Porter

The orginal ideas

The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy

What Is Strategy?

Green and Competitive: Ending the Stalemate

The Competitive Advantage of the Inner City

From Competitive Advantage to Corporate Strategy

The new ideas

Philanthropy’s New Agenda: Creating Value
The Competitive Advantage of Corporate Philanthropy
The Link Between Competitive Advantage and Corporate Social Responsibility

Strategy and the Internet

Seven Surprises for New CEOs

Review
A highly respected academic and authority on strategy and competition, Porter draws together his articles on competition, which together provide a rigorous and useful framework for bridging the gap between theory and practice. The book has three sections. The first takes on competitive strategy, evaluating strategies and weaknesses for business, while the second addresses the role of location in competition experienced by government entities. Porter notes that prosperity in both companies and countries depends on the nature of the local environment in which the competition takes place. With an understanding of domestic and international competition, part 3 offers insight into such societal issues as urban poverty, health care, and income inequality. Porter concludes that competition is certain to be evolving, unsettling, and the source of our prosperity. --Booklist's 1998 Review of the original edition

On Competition, a collection of works by Michael E. Porter, is a critical examination of the dog-eat-dog international economy. A Harvard Business School professor, Porter is one of the most respected and innovative economists of his time. Author of 15 books, he advises key elected officials and business leaders in all parts of the world. On Competition features 13 of his best articles over the past 15 years, including 2 new ones. The essence of Porter's message is that every company, country, and person must master competition to thrive in brutal international and domestic economies. Competition is the key to excellence. Worried about losing your job or your services becoming obsolete? Porter believes that a little fear is good for everyone. "Companies that value stability, obedient customers, dependent suppliers and sleepy competitors are inviting inertia and, ultimately, failure," he writes in his 1990 study and essay "The Competitive Advantage of Nations." Porter is a longtime critic of the short-term thinking on Wall Street that often stifles competition and hurts the economy. In "Capital Disadvantage: America's Failing Capital Investment System," he calls for much lower capital-gains rates for people who invest for the long term. He also urges investors and businesses to start thinking together. He contends that pension funds and institutional investors should get a greater say over the companies they own. It's wacky to have company directors with little expertise or financial interest in the company, he writes.

Porter is often unconventional and asserts that businessmen must be, too. In his essay "Green and Competitive," he shows little sympathy for businesses that complain about environmental regulations. Rules to protect the environment don't have to strangle companies--they can actually improve productivity with the right attitude and approach. Rhone-Poulenc, a French chemical and drug company, proved this when it stopped incinerating a certain byproduct and began selling it as an additive for dyes and tanning. Readable and provocative, On Competition is vital for business, government, and financial leaders as well as small-business people and investors. --Amazon.com, by Dan Ring, 1998 Review of the original edition

Twenty years of studying industry performance and competitiveness have convinced Porter, a professor at the Harvard Business School and a noted authority on competition and corporate strategy, that a successful company must not only adopt the best practices available but also differentiate itself from its rivals. In 13 essays, some of which have appeared elsewhere, Porter elegantly lays out a sophisticated analytical framework for assessing the challenges firms face in today's business environment. Although Porter offers no magic formula for success, as a starting point for developing a long-term strategy, he does recommend close scrutiny of "factor conditions," "demand conditions," other competing and supporting industries and existing strategies and structures. Porter shows how companies have bested international competitors by forging integrated global strategies, operating with a long-term outlook, investing aggressively and managing factories carefully. He has also come to see the growing importance of geographical location to specific companies and celebrates the benefits of clustersAsystems of interconnected firms and institutionsAfor increased productivity and innovation. On the societal level, Porter's work, with its emphasis on long-term planning, brings a welcome new perspective to perennially thorny policy issues such as environmental protection, inner-city development and universal access to health care. While this book requires a serious investment of time and effort, its expert dissection of a very complex phenomenon is worth it. Line drawings throughout.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --Publishers Weekly's 1998 Review of the original edition

Product Description

For the past two decades, Michael Porter's work has towered over the field of competitive strategy. On Competition, Updated Edition brings together more than a dozen of Porter's landmark articles from the Harvard Business Review. Five are new to this edition, including the 2008 update to his classic "The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy," as well as new work on health care, philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, and CEO leadership.

This collection captures Porter's unique ability to bridge theory and practice. Each of the articles has not only shaped thinking, but also redefined the work of practitioners in its respective field. In an insightful new introduction, Porter relates each article to the whole of his thinking about competition and value creation, and traces how that thinking has deepened over time.

This collection is organized by topic, allowing the reader easy access to the wide range of Porter's work. Parts I and II present the frameworks for which Porter is best known frameworks that address how companies, as well as nations and regions, gain and sustain competitive advantage. Part III shows how strategic thinking can address society's most pressing challenges, from environmental sustainability to improving health-care delivery. Part IV explores how both nonprofits and corporations can create value for society more effeapplying strategy principles to philanthropy. Part V explores the link between Strategy and Leadership

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael E. Porter is the C. Roland Christensen Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. He is the author of many influential books on competition and strategy, including The Competitive Advantage of Nations, Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance, and Competitive Strategy: Techniques for Analyzing Industries and Competitors

10-10-10: A Life-Transforming Idea by Suzy Welch

Editorial Reviews
Review
"This eloquent, witty, intelligent book is a triumph on several levels. Not only does it provide insightful and instructive lessons for making personal decisions but the intimate life stories illustrating Suzy Welch's decision-making process are endlessly absorbing, captivating the reader's interest from start to finish."-- Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Team of Rivals

"Suzy Welch sparkles with brilliant ideas. In 10-10-10 she offers a profound, easy-to-apply tool for making tough decisions simple, finding clarity amid life's confusions. If you're wondering what to do, which path to follow at the fork, whether to stay or leave -- no matter what it may be -- 10-10-10 will help you find your way."-- Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence

Product Description

Any choice you make -

any decision -

will benefit from

10-10-10.

We all want to lead a life of our own making. But in today's accelerated world, with its competing priorities, information overload, and confounding options, we can easily find ourselves steered by impulse, stress, or expedience. Are our decisions the right ones? Or are we being governed, time and time again, and against our best intentions, by the demands of the moment?

A transformative new approach to decision making, 10-10-10 is a tool for reclaiming your life at home, in love, and at work. The process is clear, straightforward, and transparent. In fact, when you're facing a dilemma, all it takes to begin are three questions: What are the consequences of my decision in 10 minutes?

In 10 months? And in 10 years?

Sound simple? Not quite. Recounting poignant stories from her own life and the lives of many other dedicated 10-10-10 users, Suzy Welch reveals how exploring the impact of our decisions in multiple time frames invariably surfaces our unconscious agendas, fears, needs, and desires -- and ultimately helps us identify and live according to our deepest goals and values.

10-10-10's applicability is uniquely broad. Whether it is used by college students or busy mothers or senior business executives, artists, government administrators, or entrepreneurs, 10-10-10 has shown its effectiveness in decisions large and small, routine and radical, consistently changing lives for the better.

Readers of O magazine discovered this pragmatic and innovative idea when Suzy Welch first introduced it in her column. Now, in this immensely useful and revelatory book, she fully explains the power of 10-10-10, a transformative idea that can replace chaos with consistency, guilt with joy, and confusion with clarity.

About the Author
Suzy Welch, former editor-in-chief of the Harvard Business Review, is a work-life columnist for O The Oprah Magazine. She is the coauthor, with her husband Jack Welch, of the New York Times bestseller Winning and of The Welch Way, published in BusinessWeek magazine and internationally by the New York Times Syndicate. She lives in Boston.

Let's see how Suzy Welch discussing about 10-10-10 here.



credits to
http://www.youtube.com/user/SuzyWelch101010

Harvard Business Review on Talent Mgmt

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
If great talent is hard to find, it's even harder to keep. In today's competitive world, you need the best and the brightest on your team in order to stay ahead of the game. If you lose your key talent, you may find that you're also losing out on crucial business opportunities. This valuable collection offers insights and strategies to make sure you recognize--and retain-- your company's vital talent.

Each article in Harvard Business Review on Talent Management will give you the tools you need to help your most important people stay motivated, happy, and productive--and part of your company.

About the Author
The series is designed to bring today's managers and professionals the fundamental information they need to stay competitive in a fast-moving world. From the pre-eminent thinkers whose work has defined an entire field to the rising stars who will redefine the way we think about business, here are the leading minds and landmark ideas that have established the Harvard Business Review as required reading for ambitious business people in organizations around the globe

Harvard Textbooks NO2:General Managers in Action

Editorial Reviews
Review"A clear, concise, common sense approach to the general manager in international business."--Henry A. Barber, III, Azusa Pacific University"New cases are appealing; old cases were excellent and remain so. The text's three new chapters are distinctive extensions of the first edition and open for the students three consequential vistas in general management."--J.C. Thompson, University of Connecticut"A very good book with excellent cases."--Wallace G. Lonergan, Albertson College of IdahoPraise for the first edition:"A first-class package, universally well-received by my students. The book is a first-rate piece of work. The chapters on the general manager are excellent, and my MBA and executive MBA students have found that they strike a very responsive chord. The collection of cases is outstanding--the prime reason I decided to change strategy after eight years of using my own 'set.' These cases really make it possible to cover a wide range of issues during a strategy course. The tapes are also first-rate and all the students found them to be extremely helpful in understanding process and outcome."--Peter Smith Ring, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities"An excellent book on the general management perspective [on] the complex issue of strategic management."--N. Venkatraman, Sloan School, Massachusetts Institute of Technology"The chapter 'Managing the Quality of Strategic Thinking' is a major contribution to the field not found in any competing text. That and the videos of CEOs commenting on the cases in a free exchange with Harvard students are unique and distinctive advantages that convinced me to adopt."--Jack Young, University of Colorado"An extraordinarily helpful book, integrating concepts, principles and cases."--Joseph C. Bentley, University of Utah"An excellent text utilizing current cases. Well-presented, easy to read, excellent."--Walter W. Smock, Rutgers University"Excellent cases covering the critical managerial junctions with videotape support."--Harry E. Stucke, Long Island University School of Business and Public Administration

Product Description

Revised and expanded to incorporate suggestions from MBA and executive education courses nationwide, the second edition of this remarkably successful textbook features new chapters on financial management, global management and Boards of Directors. Other chapters have been revised to include ethics, strategic alliances, and Europe 1992. Ten new cases for classroom discussion reflect the concerns of the revised text, exploring real situations where concepts can be tested and where the discovery of new ideas can take place. The popular set of videotapes included with the first edition have also been revised and updated. An essential textbook for business policy courses and general management programs, this volume also serves as a comprehensive reference for the active general manager.

About the Author

Francis Joseph Aguilar is at Harvard Business School.

Harvard Textbooks NO.1:INTERMEDIATE MICROECONOMICS Varian

Editorial Reviews
Book DescriptionUnrivaled in its unique combination of analytical rigor and accessibility, Intermediate Microeconomics: A Modern Approach has garnered one of the broadest adoption lists in the market. Now appearing in its Sixth Edition, Professor Varian's hallmark text is better than ever, featuring new treatments of game theory and competitive strategy, and a variety of new illustrative examples. Modern, authoritative, and above all crafted by an outstanding teacher and scholar, Intermediate Microeconomics, Sixth Edition will expand your students' analytic powers and strengthen their understanding of microeconomics.

About the Author
Hal R. Varian is Dean of the School of Information Management and Systems at the University of California, Berkeley. He also holds joint appointments in Berkeley's economics department and Haas School of Business. Professor Varian earned his S.B. from MIT, and his Ph.D. from Berkeley. He has taught at the University of Michigan, MIT, Stanford University, University of Siena (Italy), University of Stockholm, and Nuffield College at Oxford University. His graduate textbook, Microeconomic Analysis, is one of the most widely read graduate textbooks in economics. He is the co-author of a best-selling book on business strategy, Information Rules.