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Showing posts with label Management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Management. Show all posts

Saturday, January 29, 2011

Shift: Inside Nissan's Historic Revival by Carlos Ghosn ( Nissan CEO)

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The best book of Carlos Ghosn, CEO of Nissan Automobile , carreer before and during Nissan's Turnaround.

Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly

When French auto manufacturer Renault acquired Nissan, they sent Ghosn to engineer the failing company's turnaround, and in short order, interviews and pictures of him were everywhere. The story behind his success is familiar to any reader of business publications, but he gives it here again, along with an extensive recitation of the business strategy that put the failing company back in black. Those who haven't heard the continent-hopping tale of Ghosn's family will be fascinated by the first few chapters, in which he talks about his Lebanese grandfather, who went to Brazil to make his fortune, and reminisces about his own childhood in Brazil and Lebanon. Though some readers may yearn for more details about Ghosn's childhood and his days attending university in Paris, Ghosn is all business. Indeed, his background information seems to have been included largely to establish him as a creature of globalization. The bulk of the book follows his progress at Nissan in dry terms, with short, declarative sentences moving the story efficiently but mechanically. Ghosn sprinkles in occasional passages about his business philosophy, briefly analyzing why Nissan went downhill under the traditional Japanese system and expounding on the necessity of communication, dedication and never hesitating. Nissan's resurgence was doubtless a relief for its shareholders and employees (at least the ones who survived Ghosn's downsizing), but there isn't likely to be a large readership for what, by the end, feels less like a book and more like a company's annual report, complete with history, statistics and vision for the future.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist
In Turnaround (2003), David Magee profiled the dramatic comeback of Nissan Corporation under the leadership of international businessman Carlos Ghosn. Here Ghosn relates the story in his own words, first sharing some of his family background and previous experience in the auto industry working at Michelin and at Renault, where he earned a reputation as "le cost killer." Ghosn was chosen by Renault as the only possible candidate to implement the changes necessary to revitalize Nissan, which was suffering under a decade of decline and unprofitability. The Renault alliance with Nissan injected desperately needed cash and revolutionized the stagnated culture at the Japanese company. Although Nissan had technologically superior products, Ghosn found there was a distinct absence of vision and leadership. His Nissan Revival Plan would become a highly successful cultural intersection that created the most dramatic turnaround in automotive history. Ghosn's rapidly paced narrative concludes with his hopes for the future of Nissan, penetrating new segments of the market in SUVs, pickups, and hybrids, along with a much-hoped-for entrance into the Chinese market. David Siegfried
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.




Saturday, August 14, 2010

Chasing Goldman Sachs: How the Masters of the Universe Melted Wall Street Down . . . And Why They'll Take Us to the Brink Again




From Booklist
Business journalist McGee paints Wall Street as a utility with capital flowing through the system like an electric power grid, noting why it almost failed. She describes the pressure on the U.S. House of Representatives in 2008 to bail out Wall Street firms, why Wall Street was called an “abstraction,” and how Wall Street morphed from an intermediary (raising capital) into a casino. Goldman Sachs was the master of its universe, generating average return on equity of 25.4 percent in the decade before the financial crisis, compared with 15 percent annually for four other firms during the same period. Other firms' CEOs chased Goldman Sachs, considering it their model for boosting their own personal wealth and keeping shareholders happy. The author reports, “When left to their own devices, financial services firms . . . will focus almost monomaniacally on what is in their own best interest, seeking out ways to take earn sichigher returns and recruit top talent by paying the most lavish bonuses and offering the most enticing perks. . . . They cannot help themselves.” Excellent book. --Mary Whaley

Review
"...masterful...exceptionally lucid, well-written"--Washington Post

“…must-read on the venerable Wall Street firm [Goldman Sachs].”— Dow Jones’ FINS

“A disturbing account of how Goldman Sachs Group Inc. became a seductively successful Pied Piper, luring rival banks down a path to destruction.”— Bloomberg

“McGee’s book is full of entertaining and enlightening material.” — Financial Times

“McGee has taken it upon herself to make the case less through assertion or argument than through anecdote and appeal to authority.” — New York Times Book Review

“…a great look at a current event for the general reader.”— Library Journal

Click here to buy Chasing Goldman Sachs from Amazon.com




Turnaround : How Carlos Ghosn Rescued Nissan



Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly

The facts of Magee's account are quite startling. Nissan, once a darling of the automotive world, with its cheap Datsun pickups and stylish, spunky Z roadsters, had, by the 1990s, fallen on hard times. Saddled with billions in debt, the company merged with Renault in 1999, and a Renault v-p, Carlos Ghosn, was named Nissan's new CEO. Routing not only every naysayer in the auto industry, Ghosn, who was born to Lebanese parents in Brazil, also had to overcome an entrenched Japanese business culture that at that time had seemed to stress perks, seniority and relationships over the bottom line. Given complete control over the company, Ghosn slashed costs and laid off employees, as was expected, but also instituted a sweeping reorganization of the entire company, announced an ambitious slate of new vehicles and promised that if Nissan was not profitable in 2000, he and his entire managerial staff would quit. Journalist Magee lays out Ghosn's management style, his mantra of complete transparency and responsibility, and all the tiny victories that went into returning Nissan to the top ranks of automakers. His approach can be hagiographic, but this profile of an astoundingly effective CEO (one of the few who might have actually earned his large salary) is sure to inspire.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

From Booklist
This the story of the dramatic comeback of Nissan under the leadership of CEO Carlos Ghosn. The ultimate international businessman, Ghosn is of Lebanese descent, born in Brazil and raised as a French citizen. He saved Renault first and then Nissan from bankruptcy by using drastic cost-cutting measures and by fully engaging the workforce from the ground up to stimulate creative innovation. In order to do so, he had to implement Western-style changes, such as plant closings and layoffs, and risk alienating a Japanese culture used to life-long job security. In 1999, Ghosn unveiled his Nissan Revival Plan and made headlines by pledging to quit if the ailing company was not profitable within one year. He proved all the doubters wrong when he announced that fiscal year 2000 was not only profitable but had posted the best financial performance in the company's history. Magee's report is a fine lesson in the adage that "there are no problems at a car company good products can't solve." David Siegfried
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

The Ghosn Factor: 24 Inspiring Lessons From Carlos Ghosn, the Most Successful Transitional CEO by Miguel Rivas-Micoud



24 Management Philosophies of Sucessful CEO of Nissan - Renault, Carlos Ghosn
whom revived Nissan from verge of collapse return to state of competitive.
One of the most active CEO and Change Catalyst.
Overview

Get inside the mind and the methods of one of the most innovative leaders in the world-and learn to emulate his success

In 1999, Nissan's market share was plunging, and the company was billions in debt. Carlos Ghosn's successful implementation of his ?Nissan Revival? created record profits-and made him a business legend around the world. Now the CEO of both Nissan and Renault, Carlos Ghosn is a management icon everyone wants to understand.

The Ghosn Factor, examines the life, works, and words of Carlos Ghosn, exploring what principles guide him, what goals drive him, and how he has succeeded where other CEOs have failed.


About Author
Miguel Rivas-Micoud is the co-author of Renaissance, Carlos Ghosn's only official and authorized autobiography. He is a professor of English in the law faculty of Meiji University in Tokyo and author of numerous books and articles on language, society, management, politics, and economics. He is a contributing editor to the Diamond Harvard Business Review.

Click here to buy The Ghosn Factor: 24 Inspiring Lessons From Carlos Ghosn from Abebooks.com

Click here to buy The Ghosn Factor: 24 Inspiring Lessons From Carlos Ghosn from Amazon.com

Click here to buy The Ghosn Factor: 24 Inspiring Lessons From Carlos Ghosn from Barnes & Noble







Wednesday, April 14, 2010

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.

Click here to buy Execution Premium from Amazon.com

Click here to buy Execution Premium from Abesbook.com

Click here to buy Execution Premium from from Barnes & Nobles.Com







Tuesday, February 16, 2010

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




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

Monday, February 15, 2010

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



Friday, February 12, 2010

The Business of Happiness: 6 Secrets to Extraordinary Success in Life and Work by Ted Leonsis




Review

“As Ted shows, the happier the company, the more successful it can become.”
—Maria Shriver, author, journalist, First Lady of California


“A happy team can be a winning team. It is all about following Ted’s belief in happiness and success. I buy into it completely, and it really works; I believe Ted’s book can help you become MVP in your life, at work, and at home.”
—Alex Ovechkin, two-time NHL Most Valuable Player—Washington Capitals

“Ted Leonsis has one of the most creative minds in business. His insights on business, career planning, and how to succeed in today’s 24/7 environment reflect the wisdom of a renaissance man. . . and in The Business of Happiness, he is your personal guide.”
—Ken Chenault, CEO and Chairman, American Express Company

“Ted’s successful path to happiness in life, from the mean streets of Brooklyn to AOL executive to philanthropist, moved him to share his story and his way. Do yourself a favor: read it and be inspired.”
—Mitch Kapor, founder of Lotus Development Corporation and the Mozilla Foundation, which created the Firefox browser

“This wonderful book is as bouncy, ebullient, energetic, and likeable as its author.”
—Don Graham, CEO and chairman of the board, The Washington Post Company

“Read this book. You may not end up with his life. But there’s a good chance you’ll get something even more valuable—his outlook on life.”
—Chris Wallace, FOX News

“Ted Leonsis is absolutely correct that money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you Ted’s book, which will bring you happiness—and success.”
—LeBron James, Cleveland Cavaliers


A Sneak Peek At Ted Leonsis's New Book The Business of Happiness
This weekend, BoomTown got hold of a new book by former AOL exec and longtime entrepreneur Ted Leonsis, which it set to be released on Feb. 8 by Regnery Publishing. Titled The Business of Happiness: 6 Secrets to Extraordinary Success in Life and Work, Leonsis penned the book with former AOL PR head John Buckley. And like the ebullient Leonsis, its entertaining fulcrum is a list he often talks about, one he made after a scary plane experience 25 years ago of the 101 things he wanted to achieve before he died. "At the time, I thought that ticking items off my list would make me happy," he writes in the book's introduction. It seems to have worked, he notes. "I've found that actively pursuing happiness seems to be a driver of success." In the second part of the book, Leonsis offers advice to others on how to get to happiness and success the Ted way. But I especially enjoyed the first part, in which Leonsis tells his story--from humbling beginnings to college at Georgetown University to his start in the tech industry at Wang to his first successful forays into entrepreneurship. Eventually, one of his start-ups--Redgate Communications--was bought by Steve Case of AOL. Leonsis writes about this roller-coaster ride at AOL, which had as many downs as ups--with one of its down-est downs being its moment of glory: The merger with Time Warner (TWX). "Let me state for the record: I was passionately opposed to the merger with Time Warner," he writes. And he was. For the most part in the book, Leonsis is probably kinder to the principals on all sides than is warranted. But--for those who know him well--this is due more his glass-full nature than trying to be willfully opaque about what is now widely considered the worst U.S. business alliance in history....Leonsis left AOL 2007 and moved on--becoming even more involved with his sports teams, forays into filmmaking and investing in new start-ups (sometimes with Case)--and carving out what seems to be a pretty happy life. At the end of his book, Leonsis publishes his list and shows what he has checked off and what he has not. He seems to have made a big dent in it, although he still needs to win a world championship and go into outer space. Also get a hole-in-one. Not that I am keeping track, Ted, but you better get cracking. --All Things Digital, January 19, 2010, Kara Swisher


Product Description
Albert Schweitzer said, “Happiness is the key to success.” In The Business of Happiness, Ted Leonsis—business, sports, and media mogul—proves Schweitzer’s point, explaining that success may or may not make you happy, but happiness will almost always make you more successful. Through research studies, personal stories, and anecdotal evidence from celebrities, famous athletes, and influential businessmen, Ted reveals the six secrets to achieving true happiness—and how they make success almost inevitable. Showing people exactly how they can apply the six secrets to their work, at home, and in their personal lives, Leonsis also reveals how some of the most successful and happy people today—Bono, Michael Jordan, Steve Case—have put these secrets into practice for themselves. Dynamic, inspiring, and unique, The Business of Happiness proves that anyone can be more successful and happier, including you.


Click here to buy The Business of Happiness: 6 Secrets to Extraordinary Success in Life and Work from Amazon.com




Sunday, February 7, 2010

Sir Bobby Charlton: The Autobiography: My Manchester United Years by Bobby Charlton himself




Review

'For anyone who loves football, this book cannot be ignored'
-- Leo McKinstry, The Times

'Beautifully crafted'
-- Daily Mail

'Enthralling'
-- Scotsman

'It is the greatest story of British sport'
-- Sunday Express

'With many autobiographies you wonder what the point was. Not this one. Not only is Bobby Charlton a figure whose life story should be told, but he has done so in a book of at times agonising honesty'
-- FourFourTwo

'It's a fantastic book. I couldn't put it down. It has everything I would want a player of mine to know and feel about the game. Bobby Charlton is a great man and he has told a great story'
-- Sir Alex Ferguson

Product Description

Bobby Charlton is Manchester United through and through. One of the original Busby Babes; he has devoted his career to the club, playing in 754 games over 17 years, and winning everything the game had to offer. He played alongside some of the greats such as Best and Law, suffered devastating defeats and was involved in one of the greatest soccer tragedies of all time. Here, for the very first time, he tells the story of those United years, how he tasted FA Cup victory in the emotional final of 1963, won three First Division championships and in 1968 reached the pinnacle of club success—winning the European Cup. Inevitably, such highs are balanced with no less dramatic lows, such as the 1957 European Cup semi-final, the highly charged 1958 FA Cup loss which followed only weeks after the Munich Air disaster, and the 1969 European Cup defeat by Milan. The legacy that Bobby Charlton gives to United is beyond compare.

About the Author
Sir Bobby Charlton
is an English former professional football player who won the World Cup and was named the European Footballer of the Year in 1966. He played almost all of his club football at Manchester United, where he became renowned for his attacking instincts from midfield and his ferocious long-range shot. His elder brother Jack, who was also in the World Cup-winning team, was a former defender for Leeds United and coach.

He began to play for United's first team in 1956, and over the next two seasons gained a regular place in the team, during which time he survived the Munich air disaster of 1958. After helping United to win the Football League in 1965, he won a World Cup medal with England in 1966 and another Football League title with United the following year. In 1968, he captained the Manchester United team that won the European Cup, scoring two goals in the final to help his team be the first English side to win the competition. He has scored more goals for England and United than any other player. He had made more appearances for Manchester United than any other player (758), a record superseded by Ryan Giggs at the Champions League Final in Moscow on 21 May 2008. However, Charlton still owns the club record for most league appearances with 606, and is considered by many to be one of the greatest English players of all time.

At the time of his retirement from the England team in 1970, he was the nation's most capped player, having turned out 106 times at the highest level. This record has since been eclipsed by Bobby Moore, Peter Shilton and then David Beckham.

He left Manchester United in 1973, becoming player-manager of Preston North End but decided management was not for him and left after one season. After assuming the post of the director at Wigan Athletic for some time, he became a member of Manchester United's board of directors in 1984 and remains one as of November 2009. He set goalscoring records for both the England team and Manchester United, with both records remaining intact some 35 years after the end of his playing career. He was knighted in 1994.

Click here to buy
Sir Bobby Charlton: The Autobiography: My Manchester United Years from Amazon.com



Friday, February 5, 2010

The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience by Carmine Gallo



As the co-founder and CEO of Apple Computer, Steve Jobs has successfully presented many Apple's products into our global community. Jobs has very confident and persuasive characteristic when it is time to do his presentation in front of many audience.
Many people consider this is one of main causes of his sucess in gigantic and dynamic business.
Carmine Gallo has integrated step - by - step of Steve Jobs's presentation skill in this paticular book.

Product Description

“The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs reveals the operating system behind any great presentation and provides you with a quick-start guide to design your own passionate interfaces with your audiences.” —Cliff Atkinson, author of Beyond Bullet Points and The Activist Audience
Apple CEO Steve Jobs’s wildly popular presentations have set a new global gold standard—and now this step-by-step guide shows you exactly how to use his crowd-pleasing techniques in your own presentations. The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs is as close as you’ll ever get to having the master presenter himself speak directly in your ear. Communications expert Carmine Gallo has studied and analyzed the very best of Jobs’s performances, offering point-by-point examples, tried-and-true techniques, and proven presentation secrets that work every time. With this revolutionary approach, you’ll be surprised at how easy it is to sell your ideas, share your enthusiasm, and wow your audience the Steve Jobs way.

“No other leader captures an audience like Steve Jobs does and, like no other book, The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs captures the formula Steve uses to enthrall audiences.”
--Rob Enderle, The Enderle Group

“Now you can learn from the best there is--both Jobs and Gallo. No matter whether you are a novice presenter or a professional speaker like me, you will read and reread this book with the same enthusiasm that people bring to their iPods."
--David Meerman Scott, bestselling author of The New Rules of Marketing & PR and World Wide Rave


About the Author
Carmine Gallo writes a bi-weekly column for Businessweek.com and has been a featured contributor to several other major websites including MSNBC, Military.com, Always On, AOL and Yahoo Finance. Gallo personally coaches leading executives for keynote speeches, media interviews, product launches, and book tours.

Click here to buy The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs from Amazon.com


Wednesday, February 3, 2010

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.

Click here to buy A Sense of Urgency from Amazon.com




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




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



Align CenterAmazon.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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Thursday, December 24, 2009

What the dog saw : And other adventures by Malcolm Gladwell



Photobucket
Volume 4 book of National Magazine Award winner Malcolm Gladwell.
What The Dog Saw.

Review
GREAT PRAISE FOR WHAT THE DOG SAW:


"[Malcolm Gladwell] is one of the brightest stars in the media firmament...Gladwell's clear prose and knack for upending conventional wisdom across the social sciences have made The Tipping Point, Blink and Outliers, as well as his lengthy magazine features on topics ranging from cool-hunting to ketchup, into must reads." (Time.com Alex Altman )

"This evidence of a Gladwell effect helps to predict something larger: that Mr. Gladwell's new book will be as successful as his first three...This book full of short conversation pieces is a collection that plays to the author's strengths. It underscores his way of finding suitably quirky subjects (the history of women's hair-dye advertisements; the secret of Heinz's unbeatable ketchup; even the effects of women's changing career patterns on the number of menstrual periods they experience in their lifetimes) and using each as gateway to some larger meaning." (New York Times Janet Maslin )

"Gladwell is a writer of many gifts. His nose for the untold back story will have readers repeatedly muttering, "Gee, that's interesting!" He avoids shopworn topics, easy moralization and conventional wisdom, encouraging his readers to think again and think different...Some chapters are masterpieces in the art of the essay."
(The New York Times Book Review Steven Pinker )

"Uniformly delightful...Malcolm Gladwell can write engrossingly about just about anything...His witty, probing articles are as essential to David Remnick's New Yorker as those of Wolcott Gibbs and A.J. Liebling were to Harold Ross's...Gladwell has a gift for capturing personalities, a Borscht Belt comic's feel for timing and a bent for counterintuitive thinking. He loves to start a piece by settling you onto a cushion of received ideas, then yanking it out from under you."-
(Bloomberg News Craig Seligman )

"Malcolm Gladwell triumphantly returns to his roots with this collections of his great works from The New Yorker Magazine....Do yourself a favor and curl up with What the Dog Saw this week: It is more entertaining and edifying than should be legal for any book."
(Louisville Courier-Journal Scott Coffman )

"In What the Dog Saw, Malcolm Gladwell leads the reader on delightful side excursions, shows with insightful conversation how one path interweaves with another, and suggests meaning-he is, in short, an interpretative naturalist of American culture." (The Oregonian Alice Evans )



Product Description
What is the difference between choking and panicking? Why are there dozens of varieties of mustard-but only one variety of ketchup? What do football players teach us about how to hire teachers? What does hair dye tell us about the history of the 20th century?


In the past decade, Malcolm Gladwell has written three books that have radically changed how we understand our world and ourselves: The Tipping Point; Blink; and Outliers. Now, in What the Dog Saw, he brings together, for the first time, the best of his writing from TheNew Yorker over the same period.


Here is the bittersweet tale of the inventor of the birth control pill, and the dazzling inventions of the pasta sauce pioneer Howard Moscowitz. Gladwell sits with Ron Popeil, the king of the American kitchen, as he sells rotisserie ovens, and divines the secrets of Cesar Millan, the "dog whisperer" who can calm savage animals with the touch of his hand. He explores intelligence tests and ethnic profiling and "hindsight bias" and why it was that everyone in Silicon Valley once tripped over themselves to hire the same college graduate.


"Good writing," Gladwell says in his preface, "does not succeed or fail on the strength of its ability to persuade. It succeeds or fails on the strength of its ability to engage you, to make you think, to give you a glimpse into someone else's head."What the Dog Saw is yet another example of the buoyant spirit and unflagging curiosity that have made Malcolm Gladwell our most brilliant investigator of the hidden extraordinary.




About the Author
Malcolm Gladwell has been a staff writer with The New Yorker magazine since 1996. His 1999 profile of Ron Popeil won a National Magazine Award, and in 2005 he was named one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People. He is the author of "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Make a Big Difference," (2000) and "Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking" (2005), both of which were number one New York Times bestsellers.

Click here to buy " What the dog saw " book from Amazon.com here.





Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Investment Legends: The Wisdom that Leads to Wealth (Financial Review) by Barrie Dunstan

Posted on http://platinumbooks.blogspot.com/2009/12/investment-legends-wisdom-that-leads-to.html

This book contain stories of 15 legendary investors

The Chronicler and Historian - Peter Bernstein
The Literary Investor - Barton Biggs
Staying the Course - John C Bogle
Calm and Balance - Anthony Bolton
The Corporate Raider - Sir Ron Brierley
Analytical Perspicacity - Gary Brinson
The Prodigies - Warren Buffet and Charles Munger
The Optimist - Abby Joseph Cohen
The Teacher - Ray Dalio
The Contrarian - Marc Faber
The Admired Manager - David Fisher
The Articulate Pessimist - Jeremy Grantham
The Card Counter - Bill Gross
The Nicest Guy in the Business - Martin Leibowitz
The Early Adopter - Lewis Sanders

You will find the content in both profession and personal story of each extraordinary investor with different styles. They have their keys to be successful in this capitalism global investment.

Product Description
Part-philosophy, part-business strategy and part-biography, Investment Legends provides fascinating insight into the key ingredients required for successful investing, as explored through the experiences and tips of fifteen of the world’s leading investors.

Drawing on his forty years in the business, leading Financial Review journalist, Barrie Dunstan has travelled the globe interviewing the cast of characters in this book. Throwing the net far and wide, Dunstan’s subjects include those virtually born into the business, such as Barton Biggs and Peter Bernstein, as well as others who came to investment via the card tables at Las Vegas or the ski slopes of Switzerland. Each interview provides insights about the legends - who are they, how do they think about investment, what do they believe is most important, why these beliefs matter, and when they might change their mind.

In this captivating book, you’ll get to meet some of the world’s leading lights in the investment world. Share in their secrets to success, and follow their dramatic journeys, led by the guiding hand of wise and insightful author, Barrie Dunstan.



From the Back Cover
With over half a century of experience to draw upon, no other journalist cam boast the range and depth of analysis of financial markets. As the elder statesman of Australian financial journalism, Barrie brings to his interviews a depth of understanding that allows him to probe the thinking of some of the best financial minds in a manner that puts his subjects at ease and that delivers rare insights.—Richard Gilbert, CEO, Investment and Financial Services Association

Barrie Dunstan brings both great experience and insight to his writings on the investment industry. Over the years he has sat down with some of the true legends of the investment world and this book offers a unique insight into how some of the best minds in the world approach investing.—Jeremy Duffield, Managing Director, Vanguard Asia-Pacific

Dunstan has produced a book that is as insightful as it is readable. His dissection of these investment veterans’ different ways of thinking is testament to his journalistic prowess…

--David Marvin, Chairman, Marvin & Palmer

Part-business strategy and part-biography, Investment Legends provides a rare insight into the world’s mist influential and successful investor. In this collection of candid, perceptive and engaging profiles, respected financial journalist Barrie Dunstan reveals the people behind the legends and the personal qualities that have seen them dominate the world of investment. Discover what shaped these pioneers during their lives and their education, what brought them into the industry, the people who influenced them during their career and who among their peers they admire.


About the Author
Barrie Dunstan is one of Australia’s most experienced and widely read investment writers, with 52 years of stock market involvement underpinning his craft. He has worked at The Age and The Herald, and since 1987 has been writing for The Australian Financial Review, where he is currently an associate editor.

Click here to buy Investment Legend from Amazon.com



Friday, July 10, 2009

Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling, and Controlling by Harold Kerzner


The Bestbook for the Project Management Professional ( PMP ) Certification Exam preparation. by Harold Kerzner,The Senior Executive Director for Project, Program and Portfolio Management at International Institute of Learning, Inc. (IIL),

Product Description

The landmark project management reference, now in a new edition

Now in a Tenth Edition, this industry-leading project management "bible" aligns its streamlined approach to the latest release of the Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMI's PMBOK® Guide), the new mandatory source of training for the Project Management Professional (PMP®) Certificat-ion Exam. This outstanding edition gives students and professionals a profound understanding of project management with insights from one of the best-known and respected authorities on the subject.

From the intricate framework of organizational behavior and structure that can determine project success to the planning, scheduling, and controlling processes vital to effective project management, the new edition thoroughly covers every key component of the subject. This Tenth Edition features:

-New sections on scope changes, exiting a project, collective belief, and managing virtual teams

-More than twenty-five case studies, including a new case on the Iridium Project covering all aspects of project management

-400 discussion questions

-More than 125 multiple-choice questions




About the Author

Harold Kerzner, Ph.D., is Senior Executive Director for Project, Program and Portfolio Management at International Institute of Learning, Inc. (IIL), a global learning solutions company that conducts training for leading corporations throughout the world.

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Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Jack: Straight from the Gut



Amazon.com Review
It's hard to think of a CEO that commands as much respect as Jack Welch. Under his leadership, General Electric reinvented itself several times over by integrating new and innovative practices into its many lines of business. In Jack: Straight from the Gut, Welch, with the help of Business Week journalist John Byrne, recounts his career and the style of management that helped to make GE one of the most successful companies of the last century. Beginning with Welch's childhood in Salem, Massachusetts, the book quickly progresses from his first job in GE's plastics division to his ambitious rise up the GE corporate ladder, which culminated in 1981. What comes across most in this autobiography is Welch's passion for business as well as his remarkable directness and intolerance of what he calls "superficial congeniality"--a dislike that would help earn him the nickname "Neutron Jack." In spite of its 496 pages, Jack: Straight from the Gut is a quick read that any student or manager would do well to consider. Highly recommended. --Harry C. Edwards --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly
It doesn't matter whether you love or hate Jack Welch. Who can resist hearing the man tell his story? This abridged version of his recently published autobiography, featuring Welch himself, is quite entertaining. With his slightly raspy Boston accent, Welch discusses his childhood and his career. When he proclaims something, he gives examples to illustrate his point. For instance, he says his mother was the strongest influence on his life. He then recalls the time he threw a hockey stick across the ice in disgust after losing a game, and his mother stormed into the locker room as some teammates were changing to exclaim loudly, "If you don't know how to lose, you'll never know how to win." When discussing his long career at GE, Welch is equally detailed. While some listeners unfamiliar with the corporation may find some of the discussions tedious, most will be captivated by what appears to be Welch's brutal honesty. He talks about having to lobby for promotions because he didn't "fit the GE mold," and he's open about making some poor business decisions. He's not as forthright as it appears, though. He talks about his beloved wife, Carolyn, who provided a stable home while Welch was rising in GE's ranks, but barely mentions their divorce. Still, this audiobook will be interesting listening for anyone who has followed Neutron Jack's career. Simultaneous release with Warner Books hardcover.


From Library Journal
In this fascinating personal and business memoir, Welch, recently retired CEO and board chair of the General Electric Company, reveals extensive inside details about his life and his 30-plus years with GE. During his 20 years as CEO, Welch built GE into a highly successful megacorporation, earning a reputation as one of the most admired business leaders in the world. Starting with poignant revelations of the importance of his mother in his life, he carries the listener through his early days of success in GE's Pittsfield, MA, office; his entry into the "big leagues" as CEO; the now famous "Neutron Jack" moniker from the time he reduced GE employment by over 100,000 in his strategy to "fix, sell, or close" each business; and the purchase of RCA to provide a foundation for future earnings. The stories of GE's buyout of NBC, the hard work to globalize the company, and the adoption of quality management principles help relate this powerful tale, read by Mike Barnicle and Welch, to listeners dealing with similar challenges in their own careers. The author's self-effacing personality, down-to-earth delivery, and focus on common sense all greatly add to this collection of Welch's intriguing anecdotes, which will likely be in strong demand. His thick Boston accent will occasionally catch listeners off guard and might steer some to the widely acclaimed hard copy. Highly recommended for all public libraries and university libraries supporting a business curriculum. Dale Farris, Groves, TX
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.


Review
"...a book that almost everyone still interested in business...can't afford to ignore...a very good yarn..." -- Wall Street Journal, 9/21/01

"...will be of interest to anyone who really cares about business..." -- New York Newsday,
10/8/01

"All CEOs want to emulate him...they'll come closer if they listen carefully to what he has to say." -- Warren Buffett, Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway

"An American treasure...teaches us how a leader with keen intellect, guts, and honor can impart courage to people around him..." -- Bernadine Healy, M.D., President and CEO, American Red Cross

"Jack Welch...has finally disclosed his mysteries of management..." -- Nobuyuki Idei, Chairman and CEO, Sony Corporation

"Jack's vision and courage...and, of course, his success, make him the role model of entrepreneurs and managers worldwide." -- Dr. Thomas Middelhoff, Chairman of the board, Bertelsmann AG

"Jack...took an industrial giant and turned it into an industrial colossus with a heart and a soul and a brain." -- Michael D. Eisner, Chairman and CEO, The Walt Disney Company --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description
In his #1 New York Times bestseller, Jack Welch surveys his brilliant career at General Electric, reveals his personal business philosophy, and discusses his life post-retirement in a new afterword.They called him Neutron Jack. They called him the world's toughest boss. And then Fortune(r) called him "The Manager of the Century." In his 20-year career at the helm of General Electric, Jack Welch defied conventional wisdom and turned an aging behemoth of a corporation into a lean, mean engine of growth and corporate innovation. In this remarkable autobiography--a classic business book and runaway New York Times bestseller now updated with a new afterword--Jack Welch takes us on the rough-and-tumble ride that has been his remarkable life.
About Author
Jack Welch began his career with the General Electric Company in 1960, and in 1981 became the company's eighth Chairman and CEO. During his tenure, GE's market capitalization increased by $400 billion, making it the world's most valuable corporation. In 1999, Fortune named him the "manager of the century," and the Financial Times recently named him one of the three most admired business leaders in the world today. Upon retiring from GE in 2001, Mr. Welch published his internationally best-selling autobiography Jack: Straight from the Gut. He now teaches at MIT's Sloan School of Management and speaks to business leaders and students around the world.

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Winning by Jack Welch and Suzy Welch


"When you talk with Jack about management, his energy and passion fill the room."
WARREN E. BUFFETT, chairman, Berkshire Hathaway

Amazon.com Review
If you judge books by their covers, Jack Welch's Winning certainly grabs your attention. Testimonials on the back come from none other than Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, Rudy Giuliani, and Tom Brokaw, and other praise comes from Fortune, Business Week, and Financial Times. As the legendary retired CEO of General Electric, Welch has won many friends and admirers in high places. In this latest book, he strives to show why. Winning describes the management wisdom that Welch built up through four and a half decades of work at GE, as he transformed the industrial giant from a sleepy "Old Economy" company with a market capitalization of $4 billion to a dynamic new one worth nearly half a trillion dollars.
Welch's first book, Jack: Straight from the Gut, was structured more as a conventional CEO memoir, with stories of early career adventures, deals won and lost, boardroom encounters, and Welch's process and philosophy that helped propel his success as a manager. In Winning, Welch focuses on his actual management techniques. He starts with an overview of cultural values such as candor, differentiation among employees, and inclusion of all voices in decision-making. In the second section he covers issues around one's own company or organization: the importance of hiring, firing, the people management in between, and a few other juicy topics like crisis management. From there, Welch moves into a discussion of competition, and the external factors that can influence a company's success: strategy, budgeting, and mergers and acquisitions. Welch takes a more personal turn later with a focus on individual career issues--how to find the right job, get promoted, and deal with a bad boss--and then a final section on what he calls "Tying Up Loose Ends." Those interested in the human side of great leaders will find this last section especially appealing. In it, Welch answers the most interesting questions that he's received in the last several years while traveling the globe addressing audiences of executives and business-school students. Perhaps the funniest question in this section comes at the very end, posed originally by a businessman in Frankfurt, who queried Welch on whether he thought he'd go to heaven (we won't give away the ending).

While different from the steadier stream of war stories and real-life examples of Welch's first book, Winning is a very worthwhile addition to any management bookshelf. It's not often that a CEO described as the century's best retires, and then chooses to expound on such a wide range of management topics. Also, aside from the commentary on always-relevant issues like employee performance reviews and quality control, Welch suffuses this book with his pugnacious spirit. The Massachusetts native who fought his way to the top of the world's most valuable company was in many ways the embodiment of "Winning," and this spirit alone will provide readers an enjoyable read. --Peter Han

From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. One oft-heard comment about Welch's generally praised (and bestselling) 2001 memoir, Jack: Straight from the Gut, was that the book skimped on useful business advice. The respected but controversial former chief of General Electric pays readers back double here. Written with Welch's wife, a onetime editor of Harvard Business Review , the book delivers a brilliant career's worth of consistently astute (and often iconoclastic) business wisdom and knowledge from the man Fortune magazine called "the manager of the century." Welch knows what he's talking about, and here offers an admirably concise primer on how to do business that's a paragon of tough common sense. From practices he employed at GE (e.g., the much-debated differentiation, which includes winnowing 10% of the workforce at regular intervals), to the personal qualities that lead to success (to Welch, candor is essential), to advice on job hunting and how to work with a bad boss, to ways to maximize the budget process (divorce it from performance rewards), Welch comments frankly and by myriad example, with a common touch that will draw readers in ("that was hardly the first time I'd gotten my clock cleaned by the press"). He explains upfront that the book arose as an attempt to codify his beliefs, in response to the many questions he's received at numerous public appearances since he retired from GE in 2001; as such the book has a somewhat lumpy feel, like an overstuffed bag of presents. But the writing, full of personality and ideas, is a model of clarity and insight, even on such dense subjects as the quality control program Six Sigma. It's difficult to think of anyone in business who wouldn't benefit from reading this savvy, engaging cubicle-to-boardroom guide to success; and it's likely, given Welch's reputation and the massive ad/promo HarperCollins is putting behind the book, that enough business people will want to read it to push it toward the top of the charts. (Apr. 5)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
"It’s difficult to think of anyone in business who wouldn’t benefit from reading this savvy, engaging cubicle-to-boardroom guide to success." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Manager of the Century" -- Fortune

"Now is the time." -- New York Times

"When you talk with Jack about management, his energy and passion fill the room." -- WARREN E. BUFFETT, chairman, Berkshire Hathaway


Product Description
WINNING is destined to become the bible of business for generations to come. It clearly and succinctly lays out the answers to the most difficult, important questions people face both on and off the job. Welch's objective is to speak to people at every level of the organization, in companies large and small. His audience is everyone from line workers to college students and MBAs, from project managers to senior executives. He describes his core business principles and devotes most of WINNING to the real "stuff" of work. Welch's optimistic, no excuses, get-it-done mind set is riveting. His goal is to help anyone and everyone who has a passion for success.

About the Author


Jack Welch began his career with the General Electric Company in 1960, and in 1981 became the company's eighth Chairman and CEO. During his tenure, GE's market capitalization increased by $400 billion, making it the world's most valuable corporation. In 1999, Fortune named him the "manager of the century," and the Financial Times recently named him one of the three most admired business leaders in the world today. Upon retiring from GE in 2001, Mr. Welch published his internationally best-selling autobiography Jack: Straight from the Gut. He now teaches at MIT's Sloan School of Management and speaks to business leaders and students around the world.