Amazon.com
Disciplines like strategy, leadership development, and innovation are the sexier aspects of being at the helm of a successful business; actually getting things done never seems quite as glamorous. But as Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan demonstrate in Execution, the ultimate difference between a company and its competitor is, in fact, the ability to execute.
Execution is "the missing link between aspirations and results," and as such, making it happen is the business leader's most important job. While failure in today's business environment is often attributed to other causes, Bossidy and Charan argue that the biggest obstacle to success is the absence of execution. They point out that without execution, breakthrough thinking on managing change breaks down, and they emphasize the fact that execution is a discipline to learn, not merely the tactical side of business. Supporting this with stories of the "execution difference" being won (EDS) and lost (Xerox and Lucent), the authors describe the building blocks--leaders with the right behaviors, a culture that rewards execution, and a reliable system for having the right people in the right jobs--that need to be in place to manage the three core business processes of people, strategy, and operations. Both Bossidy, CEO of Honeywell International, Inc., and Charan, advisor to corporate executives and author of such books as What the CEO Wants You to Know and Boards That Work, present experience-tested insight into how the smooth linking of these three processes can differentiate one company from the rest. Developing the discipline of execution isn't made out to be simple, nor is this book a quick, easy read. Bossidy and Charan do, however, offer good advice on a neglected topic, making Execution a smart business leader's guide to enacting success rather than permitting demise. --S. Ketchum
Book Description
The book that shows how to get the job done and deliver results . . . whether you’re running an entire company or in your first management job
Larry Bossidy is one of the world’s most acclaimed CEOs, a man with few peers who has a track record for delivering results. Ram Charan is a legendary advisor to senior executives and boards of directors, a man with unparalleled insight into why some companies are successful and others are not. Together they’ve pooled their knowledge and experience into the one book on how to close the gap between results promised and results delivered that people in business need today.
After a long, stellar career with General Electric, Larry Bossidy transformed AlliedSignal into one of the world’s most admired companies and was named CEO of the year in 1998 by Chief Executive magazine. Accomplishments such as 31 consecutive quarters of earnings-per-share growth of 13 percent or more didn’t just happen; they resulted from the consistent practice of the discipline of execution: understanding how to link together people, strategy, and operations, the three core processes of every business.
Leading these processes is the real job of running a business, not formulating a “vision” and leaving the work of carrying it out to others. Bossidy and Charan show the importance of being deeply and passionately engaged in an organization and why robust dialogues about people, strategy, and operations result in a business based on intellectual honesty and realism.
The leader’s most important job—selecting and appraising people—is one that should never be delegated. As a CEO, Larry Bossidy personally makes the calls to check references for key hires. Why? With the right people in the right jobs, there’s a leadership gene pool that conceives and selects strategies that can be executed. People then work together to create a strategy building block by building block, a strategy in sync with the realities of the marketplace, the economy, and the competition. Once the right people and strategy are in place, they are then linked to an operating process that results in the implementation of specific programs and actions and that assigns accountability. This kind of effective operating process goes way beyond the typical budget exercise that looks into a rearview mirror to set its goals. It puts reality behind the numbers and is where the rubber meets the road.
Putting an execution culture in place is hard, but losing it is easy. In July 2001 Larry Bossidy was asked by the board of directors of Honeywell International (it had merged with AlliedSignal) to return and get the company back on track. He’s been putting the ideas he writes about in
Execution to work in real time.
Download Description
The book that shows how to get the job done and deliver results... whether you're running an entire company or in your first management job
Larry Bossidy is one of the world's most acclaimed CEOs, a man with few peers who has a track record for delivering results. Ram Charan is a legendary advisor to senior executives and boards of directors, a man with unparalleled insight into why some companies are successful and others are not. Together they've pooled their knowledge and experience into the one book on how to close the gap between results promised and results delivered that people in business need today.
After a long, stellar career with General Electric, Larry Bossidy transformed AlliedSignal into one of the world's most admired companies and was named CEO of the year in 1998 by Chief Executive magazine. Accomplishments such as 31 consecutive quarters of earnings-per-share growth of 13 percent or more didn't just happen; they resulted from the consistent practice of the discipline of execution: understanding how to link together people, strategy, and operations, the three core processes of every business.
Leading these processes is the real job of running a business, not formulating a "vision" and leaving the work of carrying it out to others. Bossidy and Charan show the importance of being deeply and passionately engaged in an organization and why robust dialogues about people, strategy, and operations result in a business based on intellectual honesty and realism.
The leader's most important job -- selecting and appraising people -- is one that should never be delegated. As a CEO, Larry Bossidy personally makes the calls to check references for key hires. Why? With the right people in the right jobs, there's a leadership gene pool that conceives and selects strategies that can be executed. People then work together to create a strategy building block by building block, a strategy in sync with the realities of the marketplace, the economy, and the competition. Once the right people and strategy are in place, they are then linked to an operating process that results in the implementation of specific programs and actions and that assigns accountability. This kind of effective operating process goes way beyond the typical budget exercise that looks into a rearview mirror to set its goals. It puts reality behind the numbers and is where the rubber meets the road.
Putting an execution culture in place is hard, but losing it is easy. In July 2001 Larry Bossidy was asked by the board of directors of Honeywell International (it had merged with AlliedSignal) to return and get the company back on track. He's been putting the ideas he writes about in Execution to work in real time.
Customer Reviews:
Universal truths presented but people views flawed.......2007-10-05
I thought there were many good take-aways in this book. Was it all original? Of course not. Most management books are saying the same things with a slightly different twist. I've got a bookshelf full of them. However, it seems that humans are so often incapable of remembering the fundamentals and have a tendency to overcomplicate things thus history repeats itself over and over.
The tone of the book regarding people gave me a little pause. Although I do think they were spot on in their assessment of how many companies do succession planning (not at all or incorrectly), it does seem to advocate that everyone needs to be a mini-Jack Welch type persona. I've worked in a company managed by ex-GE guys and believe me, they don't have it all figured out. I think organizations will benefit by having a mix of skills. Some people are better doers and others are better thinkers. Some superstars are good at both. It takes all types.
execution 101.......2007-08-22
I did receive this book in an executive seminar; read it over couples of nights, a simple book with day to day tips to make things happen.
A must read for any one how dreams to become a successful executive and a reality check for those already there.
Beyond Talk.......2007-08-20
So many times in this marketing-focused world, we do very well at the talking but not very good at the walking. Many of us have seen amazing sales presentations . . . only to realize that the promises would never be met.
This book engages us in the discussion about how to do what we promise. It helps us to go beyond the sales presentation and really design a process by which we can follow through, build relationships and live a life that is full of integrity and trustworthiness.
Prime Example of Mediocraty .......2007-08-11
This book did very little for me. Largely, the book is unoriginal and simply restates ideas already presented in tons of business leadership books. This book might as well have been written for the sole purpose of patting prominent CEOs, namely Jack Welch, on the back. You would be better served to bypass this one and just go read something by Welch on leadership.
Practical business.......2007-07-27
I teach MBAs. Its well known in the field that MBAs are very competent in analysis but not so good in implementation. The reason for this is that most professors who teach business have never actually worked in business and are research analysts. They teach analysis because they are excellent in that area. I worked in business 10 years before becoming a professor. I teach my students about implementation and they are interested. This is a book about implementation at the CEO level. I'm thinking of using it as a supplementary executive MBA text.
Book Description
You have more information at hand about your business environment than ever before. But are you using it to “out-think” your rivals? If not, you may be missing out on a potent competitive tool.
In Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning , Thomas H. Davenport and Jeanne G. Harris argue that the frontier for using data to make decisions has shifted dramatically. Certain high-performing enterprises are now building their competitive strategies around data-driven insights that in turn generate impressive business results. Their secret weapon? Analytics: sophisticated quantitative and statistical analysis and predictive modeling.
Exemplars of analytics are using new tools to identify their most profitable customers and offer them the right price, to accelerate product innovation, to optimize supply chains, and to identify the true drivers of financial performance. A wealth of examples—from organizations as diverse as Amazon, Barclay’s, Capital One, Harrah’s, Procter & Gamble, Wachovia, and the Boston Red Sox—illuminate how to leverage the power of analytics.
Customer Reviews:
Good primer and sales piece.......2007-10-12
This book is a good introduction to the applications and benefits of business analytics. It focuses on benefits and has minimal coverage of analysis methods.
I am somewhat put off by the subtitle "The New Science of Winning" which probably helps sell the book, and which reflects the extreme culture of winners and losers that dominates business culture these days. History shows that any culture without a better balance of competition with cooperation and ethics will be eclipsed.
Covers the basics of both the what-is and the how-to of fact-based decision making.......2007-10-04
Mark Twain once said something to the effect that it isn't what you don't know that gets you into trouble, it's what you know for certain that isn't so that will get you. Too many businesses are run on assumptions, guesses, and inertia. What we are doing now worked in the past so lets keep doing it. Shareholders lose a lot of money when their businesses are run with that kind of thinking.
This book is about fact-based decision making. It is really more of an introduction to the subject than a detailed text, but it is still quite useful for those wanting to learn the basics of the subject. The first five chapters discuss what analytics are, how you compete using them, and the growth path from wondering what an analytic competitor is through the fives steps to becoming one. They also discuss what it means when using internal data that you completely control, and what it means when you do it using data you control and supplier or customer data that you do not control.
The last four chapters take on the practical side of implementing a road map to becoming an analytic competitor. I particularly enjoyed the chapter emphasizing that all your plans will fail if you don't have the right people. Systems alone won't do it. The next chapter discusses the kinds of systems you need. The last chapter discusses the future of analytics.
For the right audience, this is a fascinating book. The stories about businesses succeeding by using analytics or getting themselves into serious trouble by ignoring them are all good and entertaining. Be careful, though. Some of the stories talk about instances (such as the Red Sox losing the World Series by letting the pitcher go beyond his statistical maximum pitching range) rather than trends and large numbers of events. Statistics don't work on instances. That is, at any given moment a coin might come up heads or tails. Just because there have been ten heads flips in a row does not mean you should take less than 50-50 odds on the next flip. It is still 50-50. That pitcher might have won, might have lost that game and it would have become part of the statistical information. However, for the stats to become powerful, you would have to be able to make a strong prediction over a series of games that he pitched. That is, if he goes beyond X pitches in 10 games he will lose about 8 of them. That means he still wins two (or one or three) and you don't know when in the series the wins will come.
The idea that very small observations can be exploited for big advantage is very important in today's ever more competitive business climate. For example Harrah's learned that moving the odds on slot machines one-tenth of one percent in their favor did not affect customer play at all, but netted them at extra $80 million (company wide). Marriott's hotel management system improves hotel performance by a couple percent. Remember that these improvements incur little cost, so most of the improvement flows quickly to the bottom line.
I thought that might get your attention. Read it so you can learn and profit from it.
Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI
A limited introduction to business analytics.......2007-09-21
MY RATING SYSTEM:
* - if you have to chose between torture and reading this book, then you might want to consider reading the book - although it depends on just how severe the torture would be.
** - if you've lost your job and have quite a bit of free time on your hands, and don't have anything else better to do, then you might want to consider reading this book; don't expect to learn much or really be entertained. It will however, help you pass the time until your death.
*** - meh...I'm indifferent. Reading this book will not alter your life in any significant way, yet it is not so horrendously dreadful that your taking the time to read it will be a complete waste of time.
**** - Good book to great book zone here. You should probably read this book if you have some spare time. This book could be interesting, entertaining, or informative.
***** - Outstanding book! Make time to read this book - you'll learn or be entertained or intrigued. The book might even be good enough to provide original or helpful insights into the world that we live in.
REVIEW:
Competing on Analytics serves as an interesting, albeit limited, introduction to the concept of using complex data collection, management, and analysis techniques to gain a competitive edge in business.
For me, the book served as a useful introduction, but fell far short of satisfying the objectives I had in mind when I first came across it. What I was expecting was a book that provide a detailed guide to developing and implementing an analytical approach to business decision making. While early on the authors acknowledge the limitations of the book, I found what followed to be less than satisfying.
The book contained a variety of examples of companies that were using analytical techniques to improve the quality of business decision making, and discussed a variety of business areas in which companies might want to adopt such analytical techniques but failed to present comprehensive case studies that would provide real guidance to readers. I would have liked to have been led through a few cases, from a diverse set of industries, where the authors describe what information was collected and why, how the information was manipulated, analyzed and presented, and how the entire analytics process was influenced by and/or influenced the company's strategy and performance. Instead, the book left me with the impression that I need to go out an hire a consulting firm to lead me through the development of an analytics program.
One of the most ironic components of the book was that while it touted the use of analytical techniques and objective analysis to motivate business decision making, it's argument was largely based on anecdotal evidence of a handful of companies that have adopted analytical approaches.
Good Overview of Business Analytics.......2007-09-20
Technology & the easy with which information spreads has rendered many products and services easily replicable. Companies need to compete on the basis of something their competitors can't recreate. What companies don't have ready access to is each other's data, i.e., on customers, suppliers, & processes. What companies do with this data is what can set them apart from competitors.
Davenport & Harris describe how data is transformed into competitive advantage by discussing the types of information used in analytics, the stages of becoming a more analytic corporation, and many examples of companies who have applied analytics to successful operations. Problems encountered down the road to becoming more analytical were similar to those described in another recent book on the criticality of enterprise data, Information Revolution by Davis, Miller, & Russell.
This book contains no numeric formulas or specific procedures for using analytics, but it is an excellent as an overall survey of business analytics as used today.
Who Is The Audience.......2007-08-30
This book is meant for those who make things happen and need to gain a fresh perspective. It is not meant for those who know a lot but can't make things happen yet keep looking for more information, while criticizing a good effort, which without doubt could have been better.
Book Description
"The Long Tail" is a powerful new force in our economy: the rise of the niche. As the cost of reaching consumers drops dramatically, our markets are shifting from a one-size-fits-all model of mass appeal to one of unlimited variety for unique tastes. From supermarket shelves to advertising agencies, the ability to offer vast choice is changing everything, and causing us to rethink where our markets lie and how to get to them. Unlimited selection is revealing truths about what consumers want and how they want to get it, from DVDs at Netflix to songs on iTunes to advertising on Google. However, this is not just a virtue of online marketplaces; it is an example of an entirely new economic model for business, one that is just beginning to show its power. After a century of obsessing over the few products at the head of the demand curve, the new economics of distribution allow us to turn our focus to the many more products in the tail, which collectively can create a new market as big as the one we already know. The Long Tail is really about the economics of abundance. New efficiencies in distribution, manufacturing, and marketing are essentially resetting the definition of whats commercially viable across the board. If the 20th century was about hits, the 21st will be equally about niches.
Customer Reviews:
Fabulos... indispensable para entender la nueva realidad de internet.......2007-10-08
Este es un libro estructural. Ayuda a comprender la forma en que trabaja la economia a la luz de los avances de internet.
Pero tambien es un placer leerlo, lenguaje claro, ejemplos relevantes. Un lujo.
Good article, stretched out to a padded book.......2007-09-26
This book started off as an article in Wired Magazine, and it was an excellent one. But Anderson must have decided to cash in, because the book doesn't add anything that wasn't covered in the article itself. It's not a complex concept.
Read the article on the Wired website. Then go spend your money on something from a tiny niche market.
One Trick Pony.......2007-09-09
This is one of those books that has one, keen insight and then takes one hundred + pages to say the same thing over and again. The keen point is indeed interesting. It just does not a complete book make. My $.02 !!
Good book for the startup entrepreneur in the 21-century .......2007-08-20
This is an insightful book into the today's world of retail business. Cool examples of how the Internet has leveled the playing field for many small businesses and artist.
Looking at it from the point of view of the producer and not the consumer or the retailer .......2007-08-16
I am not much of a business mind but I think I get the picture here. Instead of twenty percent of the product bringing in eighty percent of the revenue ninety- eight percent of the product is going to bring in all the revenue. Having so much available, and having ready access to it means sales no longer concentrate on a relatively few items. Freedom of choice abounds, niches multiply, Alvin Toffler is happy, future shock is no longer shocking, customization is here forever, and we all can have anything we want as long as we are able to pay for it.
Good. But I think of this in another way. Does this mean that 'value' also will not be centered as we ordinarily center it in the great works, the masterpeices, the few chosen ones? Does it mean our whole conception of valuing cultural goods will change, and a few big things will be less worshipped while many more appreciated? In other words will deTocqueville be happy here because 'equality' is in the saddle and mankind has many little good things, instead of the aristocracy only having a few?
And what does that mean for creators of culture? As a writer can I now happily post my unpublished writings with the thought that perhaps a few will read them, where before none did. In other words a moneyless long- tail is still a long- tail.
I don't know. But I do sense Anderson has hit on to a new truth here which will have all kinds of implications better business people than me will have to see.
Book Description
Well-suited for the non-statistician, this applications-oriented introduction to multivariate analysis focuses on the fundamental concepts that affect the use of specific techniques rather than the mathematical derivation of the technique.
Provides an overview of several techniques and approaches that are available to analysts today — e.g., data warehousing and data mining, neural networks and resampling/bootstrapping. Chapters are organized to provide
a practical, logical progression of the phases of analysis and to
group similar types of techniques applicable to most situations.
Customer Reviews:
Best general Multivariate stats book.......2007-06-07
This is without question THE BEST introduction to Multivariate Statistics book currently available. It is designed for the user of the techniques, not someone who wants to examine the math underlying the techniques. I have created a collection of the various editions of this book and I have all of them going from the 1st edition to the current one. Personally I really likely the 2nd and 3rd editions but the current one is also very good. Whether you are interested in Exploratory Factor Analysis, Multiple Regression Analysis, Discriminant Analysis [I think that there should have been more on classification analysis in this section], Logistic regression, multivariate analysis of variance, conjoint analysis, cluster analysis, multidimensional scaling, Confirmatory Factor Analysis or Structural Equation Modeling, this book provides a good broad overview as to how to use and interpret the techniques. The key terms for each technique are defined clearly technique by technique. Having taught faculty how to teach multivariate statistics this is the book that I chose to use. It is important to remember that it is BROAD overview and if you are going to do serious analyses that you'd likely want to get additional books about the specific technique or techniques that you are going to use.
Probably the best advanced stats book ever written...GOD bless the authors!.......2007-05-12
Over the course of my undergrad, grad, and post grad, I have read a variety of statistics books. Without a doubt, Hair's Multivariate Data Analysis is THE BEST book of them all. Here is a brief outline of the awesome features of the book:
1. The book itself is very well organized - chapter order and the order within each chapter helps the reader in knowing what is coming next and provides a sense of direction. I think this is a very important feature for any book to have especially when the topics are complex and are discussed over 800 odd pages.
2. The HBAT data set that comes along with the book (or that is provided by the instructor of the course depending on the version of the book you purchase) is really a very good resource. All multivariate techniques in the book can be carried out using this data set. The data set is clearly explained at the end of the first chapter.
3. Tables of examples, the 'Rules of thumb" after each important concept discussion prove invaluable. This is akin to the managerial implication written at the end of lenghty academic articles. This is almost like saying - Here is the deal folks.....Much precise than the summary section, in bullet points, these rules of thumb acts as quick referece that captures the content of the discussion.
4. From chapter 4 onwards till the very end of the book, each chapter is divided into two halves - the first half is the concept dicsussion - in detail, with examples and in very simple and understandable language. The second half is the illustration of the discussed concept through a very elaborate example using the HBAT data set. This arrangement not only helps the reader in better understanding the complex concepts, but also allows the reader to get their hands dirty by actually working out.
5. Keywords at the begining of each chapter provides a list of all the 'jargon' that would be used in that chapter. This list provides a detail definition of each term. Many times while reading the chapter, you would come across a confusing term and in those times the keyword list can prove invaluable.
All in all, this is an invaluable book. If you are a taking stats and you have not read this book, you are missing something. In spite of all the above great things, the best feature of this book is the writing style. I have not come across a book that explains concepts is such easy to understand language but at the same time not over simplifying the subject matter.
My advanced stats became enjoyable because of this book. Really may GOD bless these authors for writing this book!!
Sure it's good, and a good price by the pund too!.......2005-10-26
A pretty good overview and a lot of in-depth material on Multivariate data analysis. Not quite a bed time read though.
I recommend this book as part of your analytical library.
If you liked this book, another good book on multivariate data analysis you may want to check out as well is Sharma, S.; Applied Multivariate Techniques, New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1996.
If you want something easier to read/more practical, and you prefer SPSS over SAS you may want to check out either `Discovering Statistics using SPSS for Windows' by Andy Field, or probably even better/simpler `SPSS Survival Manual' by Pallant.
Tom Anderson
Anderson Analytics, LLC
(...)
Good for a second stats course & reference.......2005-08-03
We used this book for our Stats 2 course in grad school, and although our professor was good enough to eclipse Hair, et al. (he had written his own Stats text), I am most pleased at how much mileage I have drawn from Hair, et al. in the years since I took the course. In my subsequent career, reviewers have often sent me back to Hair, et al. when they have questions about something I'm doing with a data analysis, so it has become an invaluable reference for that reason alone.
The chapters on structural equation modeling, MANOVA, and factor analysis are particularly useful and well-written. I recommend this book without reservations for graduate students and others who work with advanced statistics as part of their daily work.
simple but great!!.......2005-06-02
I used this book as a reference on the topics while I was working on a research project at the university. Because the book does not use complex mathematics to explain the multivariate statistics, it is easy for social sciences students to understand. Each chapter starts with an overview, step-by step procedures and ends with an example from the data set that is used throughout the book.
In addition to the common topics in multivariate, the book also includes the new analysis techniques as CHAID, neural network, and data mining.
Book Description
The Ninth Edition of Operations Management features the latest concepts and applications while not losing focus on the core concepts that has made this text a market leader. This approachable text supports students in applying concepts and methods by providing solved problems, examples, questions, practice problems, and cases. Students learn by doing, and the Ninth Edition continues to offer more support for 'doing Operations' than any other. A Student DVDRom complete with Excel templates; data files; videos from companies like Honda, United Airlines, McDonalds, Disney, and more; self quizzes; weblinks; and innovative 'screencam tutorials' that show students how to use Excel are included in the package. The DVDRom also features six new segments and expanded editions of additional videos.
Customer Reviews:
Required Text for MBA class.......2007-02-08
The text seems ok and is fairly easy to read.
Amazon.com
IDEO, the world's leading design firm, is the brain trust that's behind some of the more brilliant innovations of the past 20 years--from the Apple mouse, the Polaroid i-Zone instant camera, and the Palm V to the "fat" toothbrush for kids and a self-sealing water bottle for dirt bikers. Not surprisingly, companies all over the world have long wondered what they could learn from IDEO, to come up with better ideas for their own products, services, and operations. In this terrific book from IDEO general manager Tom Kelley (brother of founder David Kelley), IDEO finally delivers--but thankfully not in the step-by-step, flow-chart-filled "process speak" of most how-you-can-do-what-we-do business books. Sure, there are some good bulleted lists to be found here--such as the secrets of successful brainstorming, the qualities of "hot teams," and, toward the end, 10 key ingredients for "How to Create Great Products and Services," including "One Click Is Better Than Two" (the simpler, the better) and "Goof Proof" (no bugs).
But The Art of Innovation really teaches indirectly (not to mention enlightens and entertains) by telling great stories--mainly, of how the best ideas for creating or improving products or processes come not from laboriously organized focus groups, but from keen observations of how regular people work and play on a daily basis. On nearly every page, we learn the backstories of some now-well-established consumer goods, from recent inventions like the Palm Pilot and the in-car beverage holder to things we nearly take for granted--like Ivory soap (created when a P&G worker went to lunch without turning off his soap mixer, and returned to discover his batch overwhipped into 99.44 percent buoyancy) and Kleenex, which transcended its original purpose as a cosmetics remover when people started using the soft paper to wipe and blow their noses. Best of all, Kelley opens wide the doors to IDEO's vibrant, sometimes wacky office environment, and takes us on a vivid tour of how staffers tackle a design challenge: they start not with their ideas of what a new product should offer, but with the existing gaps of need, convenience, and pleasure with which people live on a daily basis, and that IDEO should fill. (Hence, a one-piece children's fishing rod that spares fathers the embarrassment of not knowing how to teach their kids to fish, or Crest toothpaste tubes that don't "gunk up" at the mouth.)
Granted, some of their ideas--like the crucial process of "prototyping," or incorporating dummy drafts of the actual product into the planning, to work out bugs as you go--lend themselves more easily to the making of actual things than to the more common organizational challenge of streamlining services or operations. But, if this big book of bright ideas doesn't get you thinking of how to build a better mousetrap for everything from your whole business process to your personal filing system, you probably deserve to be stuck with the mousetrap you already have. --Timothy Murphy
Book Description
IDEO, the widely admired, award-winning design and development firm that brought the world the Apple mouse, Polaroid's I-Zone instant camera, the Palm V, and hundreds of other cutting-edge products and services, reveals its secrets for fostering a culture and process of continuous innovation.
There isn't a business in America that doesn't want to be more creative in its thinking, products, and processes. At many companies, being first with a concept and first to market are critical just to survive. In
The Art of Innovation, Tom Kelley, general manager of the Silicon Valley based design firm IDEO, takes readers behind the scenes of this wildly imaginative and energized company to reveal the strategies and secrets it uses to turn out hit after hit.
IDEO doesn't buy into the myth of the lone genius working away in isolation, waiting for great ideas to strike. Kelley believes everyone can be creative, and the goal at his firm is to tap into that wellspring of creativity in order to make innovation a way of life. How does it do that? IDEO fosters an atmosphere conducive to freely expressing ideas, breaking the rules, and freeing people to design their own work environments. IDEO's focus on teamwork generates countless breakthroughs, fueled by the constant give-and-take among people ready to share ideas and reap the benefits of the group process. IDEO has created an intense, quick-turnaround, brainstorm-and-build process dubbed "the Deep Dive."
In entertaining anecdotes, Kelley illustrates some of his firm's own successes (and joyful failures), as well as pioneering efforts at other leading companies. The book reveals how teams research and immerse themselves in every possible aspect of a new product or service, examining it from the perspective of clients, consumers, and other critical audiences.
Kelley takes the reader through the IDEO problem-solving method:
>Carefully observing the behavior or "anthropology" of the people who will be using a product or service
>Brainstorming with high-energy sessions focused on tangible results
>Quickly prototyping ideas and designs at every step of the way
>Cross-pollinating to find solutions from other fields
>Taking risks, and failing your way to success
>Building a "Greenhouse" for innovation
IDEO has won more awards in the last ten years than any other firm of its kind, and a full half-hour Nightline presentation of its creative process received one of the show's highest ratings.
The Art of Innovation will provide business leaders with the insights and tools they need to make their companies the leading-edge, top-rated stars of their industries.
Customer Reviews:
Kudos to Ideos.......2007-08-28
Excellent book with good insights. If you are in the business of innovation, this is one book that you shouldn't miss. I also recommend EIGHTSTORM: 8-Step Brainstorming for Innovative Managers.
Innovation for All.......2007-06-29
Through anecdotes, Kelley demonstrates how stumbling blocks to innovation can be overcome. He shows an appreciation for experimentation, momentum, and embraces failure as a true path to knowing. Failed prototypes are wonderful learning tools. Kelley's perspective keeps spirits high. He leaves much of the innovative process open ended - nearly encouraging innovation on innovating.
Interestingly, Kelley notes how medicine is becoming personalized and that the future can not be perfectly predicted. Still, he says we must aim at it. This was an important nugget of wisdom for me, a research coordinator at a think-tank-like public health research group, the Healthcare Innovation and Technology lab at Columbia University. On a daily basis we deal with innovation to improve healthcare and need to effectively innovate. Given that we tread a very specific territory - health and technology - and that Kelley's book could be so useful to us, it is obvious that he really has something to offer to everyone.
Innovation and creativity "how-to" guide.......2007-06-07
The Art of Innovation explains many of IDEO's creative techniques and in so doing paints a picture of the physical context in which all that creativity occurs, namely IDEO's office, your average geek's idea of paradise brimming with high-tech prototypes, foam cubes, "tech box" caddies with giant Post-Its and coloring pens ... and yes, it does look more like a playschool than Dilbertesque gray cubicle-land. Teamwork, friendship and a shared passion for helping clients innovate is clearly what binds people together and stimulates their creativity, while a supportive and forgiving management structure doesn't just tolerate weirdness, it actively encourages it. IDEO seems to have taken Tom Peters' advice "If you want to do weird, hire weird people" to the next level. In IDEO-land, "normal" people would probably stand out a mile.
Two creative techniques - brainstorming and prototyping - are particularly well described, in a way that encourages the reader to try something different. I've learnt some new tricks and even started applying them since reading the book.
El arte de innovar estilo IDEO.......2007-06-01
IDEO ha hecho de la innovación un arte, el cual es un proceso sistematizado, con pasos muy definidos, congruentes y faciles de llevar por las personas que conforman dentro sus empresas los equipos de innovacion y diseño.
Skip it and go right to 10 Faces.......2007-03-19
I recently read both this book and the Ten Faces of Innovation. My recomendation is to skip this book. It is written more like an advertisement for IDEO and was left feeling like Tom has crossed the line into arrogance. If you read it as a stand alone book there is a lot of useful information. However most of the concepts are covered in Ten Faces. If you have time read both books but if time is of the essence then jump right into the Ten Faces, you won't be disappointed.
Book Description
Chase, Jacobs and Aquilano: Operations Management for Competitive Advantage, 11/e (CJA) provides a current and thorough introduction to the concepts, processes, and methods of managing and controlling operations in manufacturing or service settings. The text provides comprehensive coverage, from high-tech manufacturing to high touch services with a balanced treatment. Chase, Jacobs, and Aquilano also thoroughly integrates and discusses current issues such as globalization; supply chain strategy, E-business, and ERP. The concepts are illustrated by using abundant real world examples, articles, illustrations, problems and cases. Technology is integral to the success of this course, as such, CJA also provide students and instructors with an innovative array of leading edge technology learning and teaching tools.
Customer Reviews:
COMPLETE MISREPRESENTATION.......2007-04-06
This seller sent the wrong text with the wrong ISBN, even though it is an edition of this text, it's not what was advertised. Also, I paid for expedited shipping and received it non-priority along with making an extra donation who pocketed the difference. BEWARE!!!
If I could import the pics of what I was sent, I would
Excellent survey of operations management.......2007-02-07
This book is comprehensive, up-to-date and well-written. The 'technical notes' appended to some chapters provide a little mathematical underpinning to discussions of topics like queuing theory, SPC, and linear programming, but the emphasis is on practical applications and there are plenty of worked examples.
The target audience deserves to be much greater than aspiring or actual manufacturing managers. By setting OM within a strategic context, by addressing both services and products, and by covering the entire product lifecycle, this book equips anybody concerned with performance improvement in any business with an indispensable toolbox. It's virtually an MBA in a box.
Operations Management for Competitive Advantage.......2007-01-13
I was unhappy with this item because some important product information was omitted from the site, and I was unsure that I was ordering the correct edition of the book I needed.
Operations Management - Chase, et. al........2006-11-14
Great text book. I am very hapy with it.
Operations Mangement for Competitive Advantage.......2006-07-14
Great textbook for OM class. It has DVD and other supplemental applications that are helpful for learning more. I use this book for an online class and reading the materials are easy to understand. The authors are very knowledgeable and their examples are good. I especially like the videos on the DVD.
Book Description
The completely revised and updated "bible"of new product development: The PDMA Handbook of New Product Development, Second Edition.
The PDMA Handbook of New Product Development, Second Edition provides a comprehensive, updated picture of what you as a manager need to know for effective new product development. The book's concise, map-like detail acts as a compass, offering practical information pertaining to every stage of the product development process -- from idea generation to launch to the end of the life cycle.
Whether you're a novice or an expert, this edition is ideal as it provides both fundamentals and reliable information on advanced and emerging concepts such as accelerated product development, new product development globalization and benchmarking, and Web-based concept development.
Customer Reviews:
Second Edition.......2007-04-11
This is the "Bible" for NPD professionals. An excellent addition to the guides by Cooper and Crawford.
PDMA - Handbook for new product development.......2007-01-12
Haven't read from cover to cover, but proving to be an excellent reference. Good examples from industry reinforce key messages. Haven't learnt anything groundbreakingly new, but it has been a good confirmation or fine-tuning reference when needed.
Product Marketing Professionals - BUY THIS BOOK!.......2002-03-14
The PDMA Handbook is one of those rare and valuable books that characterizes a "body of knowledge" for a professional discipline. It was produced by the preeminent industry organization for New Product Development (NPD) professionals, the PDMA .... This text describes current, best practices in NPD and includes contributions from knowledge leaders in academia, consulting, and industry practice. If you are a CEO, COO, CTO, Marketing Manager, Product Manager, Product Planner, Engineering Manager, Project Manager, Program Manager, or any other professional involved in new product development (especially for technically complex products like hardware and software) you really need this book.
Product Managers (should) perform the nitty, gritty, roll-your-sleeves-up: opportunity analysis, business case formulation, and requirements management for new products. Research shows that judicious performance of this critical pre-work is a key determinant in the ultimate market success of new products and is usually performed inadequately. Unfortunately, most professionals in such roles have had no formal training beyond an MBA (sometimes). The PDMA Handbook provides a comprehensive treatment of virtually all the subject areas new product development (business) managers need to understand to drive the success of their endeavors. Want to know the key success factors for new products, understand value proposition, differentiation, features vs. benefits, uniqueness, sustainable competitive advantage, the fuzzy front end, pipeline management, how to plan a new product launch, manage a product portfolio, and more? This is the book you need. The PDMA Handbook is the Gray's Anatomy of product management. Buy it and READ it at least twice.
This book should have been read when it was published!.......2001-08-19
This book seem to be written by persons who really know what NPD (or NPI) really is. All those described mistakes possible to be done is made by me during last five years...this is a good book.
The area of NPD is large. Luckily people in PDMA have come to the right conclution: it is not possible for one person to handle the whole area throughly. Every chapter in this book is written by expert on his/her own area. Unfortunately the maximum size of one book restricts the possible space per one writer to include only the most vital parts into this book.
To whom I can recommend this book? --- To anyone who will to increase his/her own scope of NPD and especially to a person who already have gained some experience on this field and is able to compare his/her own experiece to this book.
Wonderful!.......2000-02-02
I purchased the PDMA Handbook on the strength of a review and have been very glad I did so. After quoting a few passage to my staff they began to borrow it, and now the Handbook has made the rounds of the office. It is worn and dog-eared, and quoted from on a daily basis.
The message of "treating each other with respect and dignity" by author Holahan et al has really struck a chord around here. Many of us believe she must be staunch Christian, one who lives her faith on a daily basis.
The PDMA Handbook has provided guidance in mapping out strategies for new services we hope to bring to market as well as the way our organization is managed. It has changed the way we do business and the way we percieve the world.
Book Description
This book is well suited to a variety of students, including undergraduate and master’s degree students studying compensation. Martocchio provides a framework for understanding strategic compensation that can be used by all business professionals and business majors.
Customer Reviews:
Great book for compensation managers.......2007-09-20
I bought this book as part of a course, am reading it. The text is good for ppl new to this field of compensation and one easily gets the hang of things. The book was much cheaper than if I bought it from the regular store, and it was in great shape, no highlights, no lines, as promised by the seller.
Book Description
An Easy To Read Introduction To The Theory Of Change Management That Focuses On What Works. --This text refers to the paperback edition of this title
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Primer.......2007-09-13
For those that are just beginning their quest of appreciative inquiry - this is a great primer. Good text to share with employees prior to the beginning of a organization orientation.
Raises an interesting idea.......2007-05-12
This book was a required text for one of my graduate school classes. The refreshing thing about it is that it's a quick read and very easy to understand. Hammond raises the very interesting idea that instead of looking at problems from a "how do we remedy our weaknesses" standpoint, she offers that we should capitalize on our strengths. We should figure out what we do well, and then work through our strengths to improve our performance and organizational environment. That's really as far as you need to go with this book. Hammond's explanation of her theory is extremely common sense. If you're still unsure how her theory could be applied in or impact the workplace, perhaps you should read this book. Otherwise, you could probably just use your imagination.
Straight to the point.......2006-03-20
I bought this book on a recommendation of a lecturer at a recent conference. He said that this was the first book to buy if one wants to learn about AI. He was right. The author is straight to the point. The material is easy to digest. The examples are applicable. Because of this book, I can immediately put AI to use in developing better teams and groups.
Quantifiable Appreciation.......2006-02-21
Recently, I attended a monthly meeting for professional coaches where the speaker made a presentation on Appreciative Inquiry. He passed around many books on the subject as he continued his talk. I was impressed enough with Sue Hammond's Thin Book of Appreciative Inquiry to go right home and order it. I am not usually one who cares for national bestsellers, but in this case... I can see why. It is a valuable tool for any coach, mentor or anyone in life who seeks a better, clearer understanding of how to appreciate life, work, people, everything really. Learning to appreciate makes a quantifiable difference in your life and times.
Hammond writes with an easy style, touching on most aspects of positive thinking and behaviors that can and will make a difference immediately in whatever you do and how you work with family, friends, co-workers.
The focus is on "what is working?" not what is the problem. To me, it's a much better place to start, automatically gives us a leg-up to feel good about something that is already positive.
Highly recommended!
Thank you Sue Hammond.
Pie Dumas - Author & Life Coach
Helps Create Possibilities.......2005-09-10
I use this book in my coaching business. The book is a great source of usable information that can be easily understood. Hammond includes tips that can help shift one's thinking in a positive way. If we could all operate in the manner she describes we would be better leaders (at any level).
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- Firebrands: Building Brand Loyalty in the Internet Age
- Firebrands: Building Brand Loyalty in the Internet Age
- Growing Up Digital: The Rise of the Net Generation
- How to Buy, Sell, and Profit on eBay: Kick-Start Your Home-Based Business in Just Thirty Days
- How to Buy, Sell, and Profit on eBay: Kick-Start Your Home-Based Business in Just Thirty Days
- How to Protect Your Family's Assets from Devastating Nursing Home Costs: Medicaid Secrets
Books Index
Books Home
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General
| Organizational Behavior
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't
Know-How: The 8 Skills That Separate People Who Perform from Those Who Don't
First, Break All the Rules: What the World's Greatest Managers Do Differently
The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies
