The authors are very aware that no generalizations apply to all residents of a nation, and are careful not to stereotype or judge. Highly recommended to any business traveler--or any student of the diversity of human cultures.
(Note: a great companion volume for this book is Gestures, which is devoted entirely to explaining the varieties of hand gestures in 82 countries!)
Additional chapters on Austria, Belize, Ireland, South Africa, and Vietnam
The most comprehensive, authoritative text of its kind, the first edition of this invaluable reference guide has won a following among high-ranking military officials, influential corporate executives, and business school professors alike. This new edition, with its wealth of revised material and discussions of current hot topics, is proof that such a classic only gets better with time.
Customer Reviews:
Understanding.......2007-06-18
This is an excellent resource to assist those of us who live in the United States to better understand and relate to individuals from other countries. Behaviors are very often driven by culture. I use this with Homestay families when I place students from other countries in their homes.
A Quick Reference on Cross Cultural Sensitivities.......2007-05-19
I run leadership programs for high potential Fortune 500 women in NYC, Boston and NJ and I meet so many talented men and women from Eastern Europe, Europe, South America, Asia, South America and even Iceland. This book gives me a quick reference on business culture, mores, traditions and social culture. I know these get out of date quickly but it's sure better than not knowing and allows you to be more responsive.
Dubious advice at best.......2007-04-25
I lived in South East Asia for nearly 12 years including over 8 of them in Indonesia. From tiny villages in Java with just under 30 families to the skyscrapers of Jakarta, running industrial projects and developing business. I even gained a native level fluency of the language.
At no time during that entire period did I EVER find an Indonesian who would hesitate to tell me "no". They can say it, do say, and even have a few different words for it. The only time I've ever seen someone suck air between their teeth is when they've eaten something really hot.
It's naive to think a single book or individual can cover the customs of 60 countries. Having spent considerable time in one geographic region with my feet on the ground for years in nearly a dozen countries, I couldn't even begin to start to explain the cultural traits and habits of maybe four or five of those countries.
Find yourself a real cultural etiquette book that focuses on the specific country you want to visit, and forget this superficial treatment that looks like a rehash of every other general cultural etiquette book I've ever read.
Another inaccuracy .......2007-03-30
Perhaps many of the people who are rating the book so highly did not take the "cultural IQ" quizzes. I took the one for Spain, a country I have visited. The answers were correct in identifying the Prado as being in Madrid, but the last time I visited the Alhambra, it was in Granada, not Toledo (where the book puts it). That's quite a distance to move a major cultural landmark!
Kiss Bow or Shake Hands.......2007-01-12
Excellent reference book. Especially useful if you do international business of any kind.
Book Description
For event planners, there's no such thing as a dress rehearsal!
Any event you plan and stage is a reflection of your company's image — from the initial invitation to onsite operations. Whether you're planning a product launch, conference, sales meeting, an incentive event, or a gala fund-raiser, remember that the magic of a truly memorable event is in the details, but so is the devil. Special events are fraught with thousands of details, and have to come off without a hitch. Whether your event is for 50 or 2,000 people, whether it has a budget of a few thousand dollars, or hundreds of thousands, planning and executing the project is like a high-wire act without the safety nets. Event Planning gives you a blueprint for planning and executing special events with flair and without any unexpected surprises and expenses. This unique book is loaded with practical advice on every aspect of organizing and managing special events:
- Choosing the best venue
- Preparing and managing the budget
- Scheduling and staffing
- Coordinating food and beverage, décor, entertainment, and themes
- Working with professionals, such as public relations firms and creative directors.
What you don't know or know to ask can have a major effect on the success of your event and on your budget. Event Planning takes you through every aspect of organizing and executing a successful event: the planning stages, timing and logistics, budget preparation, operations, and on-site management. Event Planning:
- Includes sample costing forms to help you generate a detailed project plan and budget.
- Explains what you need to ask before you contract with suppliers.
- Is loaded with practical tips and examples that will help you avoid expensive mistakes.
- Features a companion website with forms from the book, additional forms, author Q&A, and more.
Event Planning takes you behind the scenes, and provides practical tools for anyone who has to plan and execute a truly special event:
- Corporate in-house event planners
- Public relations and communications companies, and their clients
- Marketing and corporate communications professionals
- Fundraisers and not-for-profit organizations
- Professionals in the hospitality and entertainment industries
Customer Reviews:
Not for beginners and not for professionals.......2007-05-03
It is hard to tell who this book is geared towards. A novice should not take on any event that is as over their head; as most of the event situations that are listed in the book are. A professional would know from experience the answers to most of the questions or they would have the common sense to take care of any odd situation that arose. The book may be helpful to assistant managers or banquet captains, but most houses have their own way of doing things. Interesting read and a good refresher, buy used.
Very useful Hand Book.......2007-03-10
It was very useful to me as I used it to brak into the wedding/event business. It presents a very corporate approach, yet it seems to uncover all kinds of secrets of the event world that are hidden to the public eye.
This Book is Alright.......2006-08-09
Being an avid reader of Event Planning literature, I must say that this book is alright.
Packed with Knowledge!.......2005-10-14
Details, details, details. That's really what successful event planning is all about, and that's the key to this very successful event-planning manual. Author Judy Allen notes, lists, copes with and gives an example of virtually every detail in planning anything from a sedate corporate event in a major city to a huge celebration on a remote island. She provides examples galore plus tips, questions and answers, sample cost sheets and schedules. How much floor space does a person need to be comfortable in a tent? Answer: 20 square feet. How many bathrooms should be available for a party? Answer: One per 75 guests. And don't forget to ask about the stemware, adequate parking and even the photographer's back-up camera battery. This author seems to have thought every contingency, as the book's ambitious title promises. Her one glaring omission is that she does not include the party planner's fee - our guess is that she'd be worth it. We highly recommend this well-organized, very practical book to all event planners. Don't send out press releases for your party without consulting Judy Allen.
Great book.......2005-10-01
This is a great book for anyone interested in working in the event planning field.
Amazon.com
Social phenomena happen, and the historians follow. So it goes with Google, the latest star shooting through the universe of trend-setting businesses. This company has even entered our popular lexicon: as many note, "Google" has moved beyond noun to verb, becoming an action which most tech-savvy citizens at the turn of the twenty-first century recognize and in fact do, on a daily basis. It's this wide societal impact that fascinated authors David Vise and Mark Malseed, who came to the book with well-established reputations in investigative reporting. Vise authored the bestselling The Bureau and the Mole, and Malseed contributed significantly to two Bob Woodward books, Bush at War and Plan of Attack. The kind of voluminous research and behind-the-scenes insight in which both writers specialize, and on which their earlier books rested, comes through in The Google Story.
The strength of the book comes from its command of many small details, and its focus on the human side of the Google story, as opposed to the merely academic one. Some may prefer a dryer, more analytic approach to Google's impact on the Internet, like The Search or books that tilt more heavily towards bits and bytes on the spectrum between technology and business, like The Singularity is Near. Those wanting to understand the motivations and personal growth of founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin and CEO Eric Schmidt, however, will enjoy this book. Vise and Malseed interviewed over 150 people, including numerous Google employees, Wall Street analysts, Stanford professors, venture capitalists, even Larry Page's Cub Scout leader, and their comprehensiveness shows.
As the narrative unfolds, readers learn how Google grew out of the intellectually fertile and not particularly directed friendship between Page and Brin; how the founders attempted to peddle early versions of their search technology to different Silicon Valley firms for $1 million; how Larry and Sergey celebrated their first investor's check with breakfast at Burger King; how the pair initially housed their company in a Palo Alto office, then eventually moved to a futuristic campus dubbed the "Googleplex"; how the company found its financial footing through keyword-targeted Web ads; how various products like Google News, Froogle, and others were cooked up by an inventive staff; how Brin and Page proved their mettle as tough businessmen through negotiations with AOL Europe and their controversial IPO process, among other instances; and how the company's vision for itself continues to grow, such as geographic expansion to China and cooperation with Craig Venter on the Human Genome Project.
Like the company it profiles, The Google Story is a bit of a wild ride, and fun, too. Its first appendix lists 23 "tips" which readers can use to get more utility out of Google. The second contains the intelligence test which Google Research offers to prospective job applicants, and shows the sometimes zany methods of this most unusual business. Through it all, Vise and Malseed synthesize a variety of fascinating anecdotes and speculation about Google, and readers seeking a first draft of the history of the company will enjoy an easy read. --Peter Han
Book Description
"Here is the story behind one of the most remarkable Internet successes of our time. Based on scrupulous research and extraordinary access to Google, the book takes you inside the creation and growth of a company whose name is a favorite brand and a standard verb recognized around the world. Its stock is worth more than General Motors’ and Ford’s combined, its staff eats for free in a dining room that used to be
run
by the Grateful Dead’s former chef, and its employees traverse the firm’s colorful Silicon Valley campus on scooters and inline skates.
The Google Story is the definitive account of the populist media company powered by the world’s most advanced technology that in a few short years has revolutionized access to information about everything for everybody everywhere.
In 1998, Moscow-born Sergey Brin and Midwest-born Larry Page dropped out of graduate school at Stanford University to, in their own words, “change the world” through a search engine that would organize every bit of information on the Web for free.
While the company has done exactly that in more than one hundred languages, Google’s quest continues as it seeks to add millions of library books, television broadcasts, and more to its searchable database.
Readers will learn about the amazing business acumen and computer wizardry that started the company on its astonishing course; the secret network of computers delivering lightning-fast search results; the unorthodox approach that has enabled it to challenge Microsoft’s dominance and shake up Wall Street. Even as it rides high, Google wrestles with difficult choices that will enable it to continue expanding while sustaining the guiding vision of its founders’ mantra: DO NO EVIL."
Download Description
David A. Vise is a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter for the Washington Post and the author of three books, including the New York Times bestseller The Bureau and the Mole. Mark Malseed, who has contributed to the Washington Post and the Boston Herald, has won high praise for his research efforts on Bob Woodward’s recent books, Plan of Attack and Bush at War.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
A modern business story that is both unusual and topical.......2007-09-13
This founding and growth of Google is a fascinating story. While this book is very boosterish in its approach, that is fine. We understand what is going on and it is inevitable that the "dark side" of Google will come out elsewhere. Still, at its core and in the surrounding landscape, it is a pretty happy story.
Larry Page, a Ph.D. student at Stanford, wanted to download the Internet to his computer and thought he could do it quite easily and quickly. He met Sergey Brin, also a doctoral student at Stanford, was also interested in working with vast amounts of data, what could be learned from it, an how to organize it. Page came up with the PageRank algorighms that ranked the searches in ways that made them more useful to the person doing the search. (The name is a pun on Larry PAGE and web PAGE).
Stanford approached a number of organizations and venture capitalists to sell the technology, but there were no takers. So, Brin and Page dropped out and started their own company, which became Google. They have always focused on their corporate culture being innovative, oriented towards small teams, doing interesting things and only later worrying about how to make money with whatever comes of the research, and doing the best to live by their motto "Don't Be Evil".
They didn't follow the normal rules for raising money from the Venture Capital community, but were able to raise $25 million. They promised the VCs they would hire a CEO, but put it off for more than a year and when they did accept Eric Schmidt (because the three of them got along) they would not ever report to him nor would they cede control to him. When they finally had to go public (the VC stuff, again), they didn't follow the prescribed and traditional methods the investment banks use and only paid them half their usual fees.
Yes, going into China caused them real spiritual difficulties, and still does. And their goal of gathering all the information in the world and making it available does raise serious questions about personal privacy and freedom that they have not adequately addressed. However, they have great technology. I do use it and love Google Desktop. The book provides some tips about ways to use Google you may not know. Do you know that you can simply type in a math problem and it will solve it for you? That you can type in an address and it will pull up a map? Do you know about Google Book or Google Scholar? Take a look!
Way cool.
Reviewed by Craig Matteson
Excellent business book.......2007-08-15
Very interesting read. The author clearly loves Google but that aside, he covers the story from the start of Google as a research project at Stanford University through to their IPO and after. The best parts of the book for me was the incubation phase where they thought it was a good idea but needed to figure how to make money off it and turn it into a successful business. Lots of details on the key decisions made along the way but not too many details where you'd get bored reading it.
I appreciated how the author covered this as a business story covering the early investors who believed in the value of the idea to the immensely successful branding of the Google name. If business and technology companies in interest you, I don't think you'll be disappointed reading this book.
Great read!.......2007-08-13
This book was a true delight to read! This was so much more than just how two guys from college created a successful company. It was more than that. Those guys were turned away from Alta Vista, Excite, and Yahoo and had suffered disappointment after disappointment but never gave up. Their product (almost overnight) grew to be a massive empire once they got an investor to give $100k to their company. What I LOVED about this book was watching two easy-fun loving guys (who skateboard at their office in jeans and t-shirt) who continued to look to the future in the face of defeat. These guys never gave up and I, for one, was truly inspired after reading the book.
The back-story of how google came to be can be described as the underdog finally reaching the top and overtaking those who turned him down.
Great company summary.......2007-07-31
This book does a wonderful job of explaining that Google's success comes from great timing, great leadership, having a solution to a specific problem, and a bit of luck. A worthwhile read for sure.
Good Book.......2007-07-29
Dear All,
Its very good book, i have never seen before. its good and it needs really a very good time to read about it & to get in touch with that one.
My name is Mohammed Tantawi & in case of you need any thing to return back to me, please feel free & here is my E-mail as well.
[...]
Book Description
The Copyeditor's Handbook is a lively, practical manual for newcomers to publishing and for experienced editors who want to fine-tune their skills or broaden their understanding of the craft. Addressed to copyeditors in book publishing and corporate communications, this thoughtful handbook explains what copyeditors do, what they look for when they edit a manuscript, and how they develop the editorial judgment needed to make sound decisions.
This revised edition reflects the most recent editions of The Chicago Manual of Style (15th ed.), the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.), and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (11th ed.).
Customer Reviews:
Copyeditor's Handbook.......2007-08-27
I was very pleased with the way this purchase was handled from start to finish.
Writers can learn from this book .......2007-07-20
As a professional writer, I like to believe that my work does not need copyediting. But of course, there are always some improvements that a copyeditor can bring to any text. And as a writer, I can learn from the guidelines in this comprehensive, clear, and very readable book. It will likely gain a place next to the Chicago Manual of Style as a secondary reference to check for questions about grammar, punctuation, etc. The book's exercises and the explanations that accompany the answers will help you develop your writing skills and understand why copyeditors make certain changes in your work.
Great update.......2007-07-12
I had used the earlier edition, and find this to be a much welcome update, with valuable information on electronic editing.
Very helpful.......2007-03-31
This a great guide for anyone new to the publishing scene. No matter how great your writing and grammar skills are, you will need a book like this to help you learn how to prepare a manuscript properly. It is also very nicely written and enjoyable to work through.
Great resource for copy editors.......2007-03-09
A copy editor does not need much else besides this book. Not only is it full of those mechanical issues that trip up even good writers, but this book also offers practical suggestions for approaching copy editing job (especially important for the newbie in the field). This is an extremely user friendly book, including quick reference charts, many examples, and practice exercises.
Book Description
In Hardball for Women, Pat Heim shows women how to break patterns of behavior that have put them at a disadvantage in the business world of men. Whether the arena is a law firm, a medical group, a corporation, or any other work environment, Hardball for Women decodes the male business culture and gives readers strategies on how to use its rules to get ahead—and stay ahead. Readers will learn to:
• Be assertive without being obnoxious
• Display confidence
• Engage in smart self-promotion
• Lead both men and women—and recognize the differences between them
• Use “power talk” language to your advantage
Customer Reviews:
Hardball for Women.......2007-10-10
I first read this book in 1993. I was one of 3 team leads on a large project and we were just getting started. This is straight, no nonsense talk. Within 3 months, the other 2 team leads read it as well as the project lead, the project manager, our division administrative assistant and our pruchasing agent. Only 1 of these persons was a male. He got just as much out of it as the women.
My extremely well-worn copy gets perused at least once a year. This is a must read for both genders.
Excellent guide to communication, power, and perception in the workplace........2007-07-28
I enjoyed this book and have recommended it to my executive coaching clients-- both men and women who have also benefited from it. As a psychologist I appreciate the thorough research references and developmental lifespan approach (the authors discuss how difference communication and behavior patterns are formed based on how girls and boys play).
The only reason that I gave the book 4 instead of 5 stars is that it had a slight flavor of how to be more like men to be successful in the corporate world. I believe that it is important to be aware of cultural variables and how they impact the way you are perceived and your power in the workplace. However, there is a great body of research that shows that the way people are *most* successful is to capitalize on their natural strengths and talents.
My concern is that women may become focused on how to play hardball (i.e., act differently than how they have been socialized to act) and neglect to harness their true inherent or learned strengths. We as women need to focus more on how we can use our house and doll lessons to our advantage instead of always focusing on how to play hardball. That said, this is an excellent book that every business person needs to read.
A useful guide for men, too........2006-12-20
OK, so I'm pretty secure in my masculinity -- I eat woman-specific Luna Bars and think they're delicious! This book could equally be titled "How to Play Hardball," as the truly woman-specific sections on dress and biology are few and far between.
As someone coming into a management role from a male-dominated but "softball" field (engineering academia/research), I needed to understand what the game *was* and how to play it right. This book is especially worthwhile for men if you don't have a childhood background in competitive sports or you're a man more inclined towards collaboration than competition.
Insightful.......2005-12-31
This book points out a lot of things women might be aware of but don't really think about. It really changed my perspective and the whole office politic games. I bought this book are a couple of women friends in management and would recommend this to anyone in a supervisor position.
Learn to play hardball--woman style.......2004-08-15
This review is a collaborative writing project completed by a ENGL/227 class at DeVry University in beautiful Colorado Springs, Colorado.
This book teaches you how to be a team player as well as a leader. Playing hardball doesn't mean being ruthless or heartless. Highlights include using nonverbal cues to your advantage, using "power talk" to come across as confident, and making the most out of criticism. The only thing we would change is the book's cover design. It is very outdated. All in all we would recommend this book to all professionals, men and women. :)
Book Description
As a concept, storytelling has won a decisive foothold in the debate on how brands of the future will be shaped. Yet, companies are still confused as to how and why storytelling can make a difference to their business. What is the point of telling stories anyway? What makes a good story? And how do you go about telling it so that it supports the company brand? This book is written for practitioners by practitioners. Through real life examples, simple guidelines and practical tools, the book aims to inspire companies to use storytelling as a means of building their brand - internally as well as externally.
Customer Reviews:
The best how-to book on storytelling.......2005-09-05
I have been through a number of the most popular books on corporate storytelling, and this is by far the most useful of them. While they all contain a number of case studies, this book goes one step further and actually provides the reader with clear step-by-step guidelines on how to start using storytelling within your own organisation. Budtz, Fog and Yakaboylu evidently have a lot of real-world experience with their subject matter.
Highly informative.......2005-07-03
It's rare that a European book on branding is endorsed by American gurus such as Philip Kotler, Kevin Kelly and Tom Peters - even marketing guru Seth Godin calls this book "one of the very best marketing books of the year".
The strength of this book is not only its message, but in the simple way it delivers this message - through a range of anecdotes and good illustrations.
Addressing professionals working in management, sales, marketing, PR and human resources "Storyteling - Branding in Practice" is probably the first of its kind to provide a practical, hands-on set of tools for companies to apply storytelling strategically as a source to competive power.
In a few hours the book will give you insights into:
- how storytelling can be applied in a business context
- how and where to find stories about your company or brand
- how to tell these stories in a way that benefits business
Book Description
Two of the nation's most successful corporate leadership consultants now reveal their proven, systematic program for using the power of "high-integrity" politics to achieve career success, maximize team impact, and protect the company's reputation and bottom line.
Each day in business, a corporate version of "survival of the fittest" is played out. Power plays, turf battles, deceptions, and sabotages block individuals' career progress and threaten companies' resources and results. In Survival of the Savvy, Rick Brandon and Marty Seldman provide ethical but street-smart strategies for navigating corporate politics to gain "impact with integrity," helping readers to:
- Identify political styles at work through the Style Strengths Finder, and avoid being under or overly political
- Discover the corporate "buzz" on you, and manage the corporate "airwaves"
- Decipher unwritten company rules and protect yourself from sabotage and hidden agendas
- Build key networks to promote yourself and your ideas with integrity
- Learn to detect deception and filter misleading information
- Increase your team's organizational savvy, influence, and impact
- Gauge the political health of the company and forge a high-integrity political culture
In addition, Survival of the Savvy helps individuals discover and overcome their own political blind spots and vulnerabilities. They learn step-by-step methods to avoid being underestimated or denied full recognition for their achievements. It shows them how to put forward their ideas and advance their careers in an ethical manner, with a high level of political awareness and skill.
After reading this book, you will never have to say, "I didn't see it coming." Organizational savvy is a mission-critical competency for the complete leader. This timely and timeless book provides cutting-edge strategies and skills for surviving and thriving as you build individual and company success.
Download Description
"Two of the nation's most successful corporate leadership consultants now reveal their proven, systematic program for using the power of ""high-integrity"" politics to achieve career success, maximize team impact, and protect the company's reputation and bottom line. Each day in business, a corporate version of ""survival of the fittest"" is played out. Power plays, turf battles, deceptions, and sabotages block individuals' career progress and threaten companies' resources and results. In Survival of the Savvy, Rick Brandon and Marty Seldman provide ethical but street-smart strategies for navigating corporate politics to gain ""impact with integrity,"" helping readers to: Identify political styles at work through the Style Strengths Finder, and avoid being under or overly political Discover the corporate ""buzz"" on you, and manage the corporate ""airwaves"" Decipher unwritten company rules and protect yourself from sabotage and hidden agendas Build key networks to promote yourself and your ideas with integrity Learn to detect deception and filter misleading information Increase your team's organizational savvy, influence, and impact Gauge the political health of the company and forge a high-integrity political culture In addition, Survival of the Savvy helps individuals discover and overcome their own political blind spots and vulnerabilities. They learn step-by-step methods to avoid being underestimated or denied full recognition for their achievements. It shows them how to put forward their ideas and advance their careers in an ethical manner, with a high level of political awareness and skill. After reading this book, you will never have to say, ""I didn't see it coming."" Organizational savvy is a mission-critical competency for the complete leader. This timely and timeless book provides cutting-edge strategies and skills for surviving and thriving as you build individual and company success. "
Customer Reviews:
Useful, sensible, unexceptionable.......2007-10-23
This readable volume fills out useful details on how the moden corporate citizen can take stock of their devices for getting on and pick up many hints and tips that should improve their game.
None of it is really exceptional. Much of it feels very calculated and non authentic, but I did find it useful to highlight my habitual practice.
Its worth completing the questionnaire on line as a way to focus your reading.
Abort your aversion- you should be doing this already!.......2007-10-22
We all shudder at the work politics and rightly so- who hasn't been threatened by unethical behaviors. This book illustrates and enlightens those of us who have been avoiding this arena.
It is straightforward and clearly states how you can be successful without compromising values. It demonstrates how ethics play a strong role in success. It places in perspective how to be savvy and true to yourself and your goals. READ IT! You will use it as part of your portfolio for a long time
This is the only book that tells it like it is in business .......2007-10-21
Finally someone has spoken about "the elephant in the room." This book frankly and intelligently talks about the true measures of success in business and how, with integrity, to have the ultimate influence. The book has changed my life in terms of my attitudes and actions in the business world. I love the pracitcal and real life examples. A must read for anyone in the work world!
Innovative and Essential Strategies to Build Your Political Skills!.......2007-10-21
Innovative and practical ideas to assist those of us who believe our work should speak for itself vs. dealing with the political realities of corporate life. I've found the managing perceptions strategies extremely valuable in solidifying positive impressions and changing inaccuracies. The political style insights and self- assessment have assisted me in influencing more effectively in both my sales and coaching work. Leading change within organizations is supported by the ethical lobbying chapter. Add this book to your "read soon" list if you need to become more comfortable dealing with political obstacles that seem to interfere with getting the results you want for both your organization and your career.
A must read for anyone working in the corporate world.......2007-10-19
Survival of the Savvy is a must read for anyone working in the corporate world. It will open your eyes to the reality of politics and change your perspective on how to view them. Learn how your under-political "I am above all these politics" perspective is nieve and can hurt both your career and ultimately your company if you cannot get the important issues and projects you champion implemented. There are also plenty of tips for the over-political personalities. I especially like the emphasis on integrity throughout the book and the smart tactical strategies offered. I think this book has great value for anyone looking to advance, and get their ideas heard, in the corporate workplace.
Book Description
A former Human Resources executive blows the whistle on the corporate secrets that can hold backor even torpedocareers. In Corporate Confidential, Cynthia Shapiro unmasks some startling truths, and what employees can do about them, including: Theres no right to free speech in the workplace Age discrimination is alive and well Why being too smart is not too smart HR is not there to help you, but to protect the company FROM you And forty-five more! Shapiro pulls no punches, giving readers an inside look at a secret world of hidden agendas they would never normally see. A world of insider information and insights that can save a career!
Customer Reviews:
Don't Review this Book!!!.......2007-08-24
Oh my god!! Don't review this book or you may get fired! Ahhh!!
This book is so paranoid it will make you feel crazy. This book is like a conspiracy theory for offices, which is mildly entertaining, except for the fact that I work in the office.. and they might be reading this.. shhhh..
All in all, I think this book would be informative to people who have not had fatherly advice or instruction on conformity and how to act appropriate in an office. Otherwise it's a rehash of annoying but helpful parental advice.
A Must for Corporate Life.......2007-06-23
This book is definitely a must-read for anyone working in a corporate atmosphere, whether it is a small company or a large one. In fact, I would like to go one more step forward, and suggest that this book may be one of the best investments you can make in your work life ever. No exaggeration here, just plain simple truth.
Great gift.......2007-04-10
I have purchased well over 20 books. They make great gifts, especially for graduation.
Valuable read for those in the corporate world.......2007-04-03
While you may not always like what you read in this book, nearly all of the advice is on target based on my 19 years of experience in the corporate world. The contents ranges from the fairly obvious(don't make your boss look bad)to the more subtle landmines that should be avoided at all costs.
This book will be especially valuable to someone at an earlier stage in their career as experienced folks may have learned many of these lessons through the school of hard knocks. Even though much of the content did not come as a surprise to me personally, I still found valuable tips, a few new insights, and if nothing else the book provided a clear and concise reinforcement of career learnings that I've gained up to this point. The book is a relatively brief read and I would recommend it to anyone seeking to earn a living in a corporate environment.
Reads like a corporate manual.......2007-02-20
If you work anyplace that has a lot of managers or is big enough to have an HR department, you should buy and read this book.
Amazon.com
James Stewart has done it again. The author of the mega-bestselling Den of Thieves, about the 1980s insider-trading scandals on Wall Street, and Bloodsport, the 1990s tale of the Clintons' Whitewater affair, now gives us another epic story, this one culminating in late 2004. With DisneyWar, Stewart turns his investigative and storytelling lens on Michael Eisner and the corporate intrigue which has overtaken the Walt Disney Company in the last decade. He explains how this once-proud institution, long one of America's most admired and well-known businesses, has stumbled in recent years amid a disastrous swirl of egos, personalities, and bad business decisions.
Like one of the roller coasters at DisneyLand, Stewart's epic book takes readers through a wild up-and-down ride as it describes Eisner's regime as CEO. The tale begins with Eisner's early successes rejuvenating Disney's live-action movie franchise and theme parks, the kickoff of the modern animation era with blockbuster hits like The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast, and the cultivation of a highly talented cadre of lieutenants, which reads like a Who's Who of executive talent now dispersed across the Fortune 500: Stephen Bollenbach (Hilton Hotels), Steve Burke (Comcast), Geraldine Laybourne (Oxygen Media), Richard Nanula (Amgen), Joe Roth (Revolution Studios), and so on. Stewart makes clear that Eisner has had a major eye for strong creative content himself, both as a young executive in his pre-Disney years at ABC and at Paramount Pictures and more recently in building partnerships like Disney's extremely lucrative one with Pixar.
Just as he credits Eisner for various Disney successes, though, Stewart assigns blame for the failures, too. The thoroughly researched 534 pages of DisneyWar make clear that his overall verdict on the CEO is negative. Much of the book describes detailed and specific interactions between Eisner and his rivals. Readers interested in the entertainment industry or in the personalities which drive it will not be disappointed. The blow-by-blow accounts of Eisner's feuds with Dreamworks SKG founder Jeffrey Katzenberg, who was his chief aide for nearly two decades, and Michael Ovitz, the superagent from CAA who had been friends with Eisner for even longer than that, are amazingly detailed. They show Eisner to be creative, funny, and charming when he wants to be--and devious, dishonest, and horribly Machiavellian when he doesn't.
Though dispassionate in his writing, Stewart assembles a withering portrait of Eisner as a grasping, self-centered, manipulative, and ultimately self-destructive executive. He shows how the Disney CEO has consistently undercut his potential successors within the company, in many cases drawing on Eisner's own writings and conversations with board members. He shows how Eisner's erratic attitude towards paying severance to former employees--in some cases being overly stubborn (as with Katzenberg, to whom he had a chance to close out for $90 million, but whom Disney ended up paying $280 million) and in others being shockingly lenient (as with Ovitz, who received a $140 million golden parachute after one relatively ineffective year at the company). He shows the overreach of grandiose projects like Euro Disney, and the missed opportunities like Lord of the Rings, Sopranos, and Survivor, on all of which Disney passed.
In the end, Stewart has returned with DisneyWar to what he does best: drilling into a murky and complex subject, capturing an enormous amount of detail through personal interviews, emails, memos, court records, and other data sources, and then weaving together a rich tapestry of people and events to bring others to the same conclusions he has clearly reached himself. Though some readers might tire of the reams of detail Stewart offers--at certain points, the book reads like a gossip rag, with intricate he-said, she-said accounts of individual meetings--most will enjoy it. Beyond the entertainment value, this book also has serious value to students of corporate governance, as it presents a scathing portrait of Disney's captive board of directors and shows what happens with the lack of proper CEO oversight. --Peter Han
Book Description
"When You Wish Upon a Star," "Whistle While You Work," "The Happiest Place on Earth"—these are lyrics indelibly linked to Disney, one of the most admired and best-known companies in the world. So when Roy Disney, chairman of Walt Disney Animation and nephew of founder Walt Disney, abruptly resigned in November 2003 and declared war on chairman and chief executive Michael Eisner, he sent shock waves through the entertainment industry, corporate boardrooms, theme parks, and living rooms around the world—everywhere Disney does business and its products are cherished.
DisneyWar is the breathtaking, dramatic inside story of what drove America's best-known entertainment company to civil war, told by one of our most acclaimed writers and reporters.
Drawing on unprecedented access to both Eisner and Roy Disney, current and former Disney executives and board members, as well as thousands of pages of never-before-seen letters, memos, transcripts, and other documents, James B. Stewart gets to the bottom of mysteries that have enveloped Disney for years: What really caused the rupture with studio chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg, a man who once regarded Eisner as a father but who became his fiercest rival? How could Eisner have so misjudged Michael Ovitz, a man who was not only "the most powerful man in Hollywood" but also his friend, whom he appointed as Disney president and immediately wanted to fire? What caused the break between Eisner and Pixar chairman Steve Jobs, and why did Pixar abruptly abandon its partnership with Disney? Why did Eisner so mistrust Roy Disney that he assigned Disney company executives to spy on him? How did Eisner control the Disney board for so long, and what really happened in the fateful board meeting in September 2004, when Eisner played his last cards?
Here, too, is the creative process that lies at the heart of Disney—from the making of The Lion King to Pirates of the Caribbean. Even as the executive suite has been engulfed in turmoil, Disney has worked—and sometimes clashed—with a glittering array of stars, directors, designers, artists, and producers, many of whom tell their stories here for the first time.
Stewart describes how Eisner lost his chairmanship and why he felt obliged to resign as CEO, effective 2006. No other book so thoroughly penetrates the secretive world of the corporate boardroom. DisneyWar is an enthralling tale of one of America's most powerful media and entertainment companies, the people who control it, and those trying to overthrow them.
DisneyWar is an epic achievement. It tells a story that—in its sudden twists, vivid, larger-than-life characters, and thrilling climax—might itself have been the subject of a Disney animated classic—except that it's all true.
Download Description
"""When You Wish Upon a Star,"" ""Whistle While You Work,"" ""The Happiest Place on Earth"" -- these are lyrics indelibly linked to Disney, one of the most admired and best-known companies in the world. So when Roy Disney, chairman of Walt Disney Animation and nephew of founder Walt Disney, abruptly resigned in November 2003 and declared war on chairman and chief executive Michael Eisner, he sent shock waves through the entertainment industry, corporate boardrooms, theme parks, and living rooms around the world -- everywhere Disney does business and its products are cherished. DisneyWar is the breathtaking, dramatic inside story of what drove America's best-known entertainment company to civil war, told by one of our most acclaimed writers and reporters. Drawing on unprecedented access to both Eisner and Roy Disney, current and former Disney executives and board members, as well as thousands of pages of never-before-seen letters, memos, transcripts, and other documents, James B. Stewart gets to the bottom of mysteries that have enveloped Disney for years: What really caused the rupture with studio chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg, a man who once regarded Eisner as a father but who became his fiercest rival? How could Eisner have so misjudged Michael Ovitz, a man who was not only ""the most powerful man in Hollywood"" but also his friend, whom he appointed as Disney president and immediately wanted to fire? What caused the break between Eisner and Pixar chairman Steve Jobs, and why did Pixar abruptly abandon its partnership with Disney? Why did Eisner so mistrust Roy Disney that he assigned Disney company executives to spy on him? How did Eisner control the Disney board for so long, and what really happened in the fateful board meeting in September 2004, when Eisner played his last cards? Here, too, is the creative process that lies at the heart of Disney -- from the making of The Lion King to Pirates of the Caribbean. Even as the executive suite has been engulfed in turmoil, Disney has worked -- and sometimes clashed -- with a glittering array of stars, directors, designers, artists, and producers, many of whom tell their stories here for the first time. Stewart describes how Eisner lost his chairmanship and why he felt obliged to resign as CEO, effective 2006. No other book so thoroughly penetrates the secretive world of the corporate boardroom. DisneyWar is an enthralling tale of one of America's most powerful media and entertainment companies, the people who control it, and those trying to overthrow them. DisneyWar is an epic achievement. It tells a story that -- in its sudden twists, vivid, larger-than-life characters, and thrilling climax -- might itself have been the subject of a Disney animated classic -- except that it's all true. "
Customer Reviews:
fantastic.......2007-10-06
I love biographies, and once again Stewart is the tops. Eisner's reign seem s too strange to be true, but it was.
INSIDE DISNEY.......2007-07-28
I am a HUGE Disney fan and even a passholder to Disney World. However, I knew that Eisner was not someone I liked. I did during the final few years the book cover had stock in Disney and was one that voted to without my vote from Eisner. After reading this book I am glad I did.
This is some of the best investigative written with facts to back it all up. You find out how the magic begun and how it got all turned into making money over the people that worked so hard for the company. I could not put the book down and had to run to work and tell all the other Disney fans the news from my read the day before. You will also find out due to Eisner hiring and firing people whenever he likes is what ended up leading to the creation of DreamWorks.
The only thing I would say is it is hard to maintain who everyone is and what they do and where they placed as they do pop in and out throughout the book. This is not the writers fault as this is just due to the players being changed and moved so often. I would recommend this book as a business education and corp corruption book.
Great book, why the suprise?.......2007-07-14
I thought that this book was outstanding. What I dont understand is why everyone seems to be so shocked that Disney is a cut throat corporation. You dont become one of the most powerful companies in America by being nice.
The whole "Magical" aspect of Disney is simply an illusion used to sell, and they are great at preserving that image. People say "if you read this book you will never look at Disney the same way again". Well, anyone that has ever bought a Disneyland admission ticket within the last 5 years should know full well that Disney is a company that is indeed strictly profit driven. I like Disney and I enjoy Disneyland, but lets face it, Disney wants to be as powerful and wealthy as any other company, this is not breaking news, rather this book is a fantastic insight into the rise of power of Disney and the behind closed doors politics and greed.
If Walt Disney were alive, this story might kill him.......2007-05-21
After reading "War," I felt I needed to take a shower. The company once known for its wholesome family images seems to have been run for the last twenty or so years by people wholly unlike Wal Disney, bright and egomaniacal people who might know how to do lunch but not people I'd want to sit down to share lunch - not that they'd share lunch.
In retrospect, much of the financial boom of Disney they owe to leveraging well-established assets. I remember going to Disney World in Florida in 1973 for $4. Today it's more like sixty dollars. The Eisner dynasty got off to a good start simply by rapidly tapping the highly inelastic demand for Disney theme parks by jacking up prices considerably, then mining its warehouse of Disney characters and movies, and realizing the power of the video market.
Disney made some good animated features under Eisner, only Disney did not make them, Pixar did. And Eisner so enraged Steve Jobs that Disney lost that gold mine. Disney also thought that they could open another equally profitable amusement part outside Paris, ignoring the fact that France is the center of anti-Americanism and Paris weather leaves a lot to be desired. Disney made some great movies but also a lot of duds. One good film can balance ten or twenty bad ones; such is the economics of moviemaking.
What was most revolting was the self-serving, narcissistic, egomaniacal behavior of the main players in this very expensive, very bad melodrama. Disney officials threw around tens of millions of dollars paying off fired, disgruntled, and even more egotistical former employees. Even a late attempt to embrace Sarbanes-Oxley governance legislation was twisted, misused and misconstrued; the definition of independent and dependent directors seemed to be arbitrary. George Mitchell may have been a good senator, a great diplomat, and a nice guy, but he comes across as a gullible, unsophisticated dupe among this cast of egos.
Stewart assembled a long, tiresome if highly readable book. It's a sad story just the same.
A fantastic insight of corporate America...........2007-05-15
A rather lengthy book (over 600 pages), but I found that I went through it much quicker than I ever imagined I could. Both me and my wife read it and just couldn't put it down. There really wasn't any boring parts to it and thats simply because Eisner did so much backstabbing and just plain afwul things to his underlings, you are constantly turning to the next page to see what happens next.
About the only "complaint" overall is that there are just too many names to keep track of and what jobs they performed within Disney. This is no fault of the author's and actually a direct result of Eisner's non-stop turnstile of corporate executives. Eisner would hire/fire anyone at anytime (actually, he would never do it himself. He always would get some poor schmuck to carry out his dirty work even after he directly told the person getting fired that they were safe, etc).
Having grown up watching Disney classics and visiting the parks, this book certainly raises your blood to the boiling point seeing how Eisner asserts himself as Walt Disney's equal, if not better. Stewart does clearly point out that although the Eisner/Wells team vaulted Disney from rags to riches in 10 years, the death of Wells pretty much spelled the end of Eisners good fortunre. However, that death of good fortunre makes for a great story and a superb job by Stewart to put it into book form. Anyone that can drive off the beloved namesake of the very company he works for certainly gives you an idea of the no questions asked power Eisner held over Disney's Board, the company, and its shareholder.
Who else can not honor a contract, say you won't pay, reneg on a $90M settlement, and then have to pay $300M in court when you are found guilty?? Who could hire their best friend as President, fire them after 14 months, pay $140M in severance pay? Who could purchase a cable network with no real advisement, buy it at $5.2 BILLION, afterwards have your accounting dept. realize it is only worth $1.75 BILLION, and then not do a tax write off in order to save your shareholders MILLIONS of dollars? Who could do all of that and STILL remain Chairman and CEO of ANY company?Its pretty simple when you are Michael Eisner. These are just some of the things he did in this book that keep you wanting to read more.
The book ends just as Eisner is asked to step down as Chairmen of Disney's board, but still keeps his CEO title. Its a shame that Eisner hung on awhile longer and that didn't make it to book. Even without it, I found it unbelievably fascinating and shocking that this kind of behavior finds a home in the board rooms and companies of America. But look no further than Enron to even worse, which is probably why Stewart picked that topic for one of his books, too.
Book Description
The evidence is in--to solve Windows crime, you need Windows tools
An arcane pursuit a decade ago, forensic science today is a household term. And while the computer forensic analyst may not lead as exciting a life as TV's CSIs do, he or she relies just as heavily on scientific principles and just as surely solves crime.
Whether you are contemplating a career in this growing field or are already an analyst in a Unix/Linux environment, this book prepares you to combat computer crime in the Windows world. Here are the tools to help you recover sabotaged files, track down the source of threatening e-mails, investigate industrial espionage, and expose computer criminals.
* Identify evidence of fraud, electronic theft, and employee Internet abuse
* Investigate crime related to instant messaging, Lotus Notes(r), and increasingly popular browsers such as Firefox(r)
* Learn what it takes to become a computer forensics analyst
* Take advantage of sample forms and layouts as well as case studies
* Protect the integrity of evidence
* Compile a forensic response toolkit
* Assess and analyze damage from computer crime and process the crime scene
* Develop a structure for effectively conducting investigations
* Discover how to locate evidence in the Windows Registry
Customer Reviews:
In a world with few Windows-specific options, this is a helpful forensics book.......2006-10-10
I decided to read and review three digital forensics books in order to gauge their strengths and weaknesses: "File System Forensic Analysis" (FSFA) by Brian Carrier, "Windows Forensics" (WF) by Chad Steel, and "EnCase Computer Forensics" (ECF) by Steve Bunting and William Wei. All three books contain the word "forensics" in the title, but they are very different. If you want authoritative and deeply technical guidance on understanding file systems, read FSFA. If you want to focus on understanding Windows from an investigator's standpoint, read WA. If you want to know more about EnCase (and are willing to tolerate or ignore information about forensics itself), read ECF.
In the spirit of full disclosure I should mention I am co-author of a forensics book ("Real Digital Forensics") and Brian Carrier cites my book "The Tao of Network Security Monitoring" on p 10. I tried to not let those facts sway my reviews.
WF is a great guide to forensic investigation of Windows. By this I mean WF presents Windows from the perspective of the important directories, files, and registry entries that help an analyst discover malfeasance. WF also covers some of the core applications one would expect to review during host-based forensics, like email, Web browsing history, and P2P application usage. I expected coverage of popular Windows application formats relevant to investigations, like .doc, .ppt, and .xls, but those were missing.
WF addresses the core operational aspects of host-centric forensics, like forming a team and acquiring evidence from live and dead targets. I did not think these sections were as good as material from what I consider the book best suited for all-around hands-on forensic use -- "Incident Response: Computer Forensics, 2nd Ed" by Mandia, Prosise, and Pepe. Live response is one area where I thought WF didn't shine too brightly. I did like the frequent mini-case studies which shared stories from the author's investigative experiences.
A few other aspects of WF resulted in me offering a four star review. I thought the discussion of "vampire taps" on p 157 revealed a real lack of contact with modern network monitoring methods. I don't know anyone who uses or recommends such a contraption in an era of network taps. I continue to question the need to build so-called "sniffing cables," especially when proper interface configuration serves the same purpose. Furthermore, a remotely managed sensor will not be able to hide its traffic on the network anyway, so savvy intruders can usually find them (unless a completely separate management network is run out-of-band). "Chapter 7" was also way too short -- 2 pages!
Although I liked the case studies, I thought there were far too many "gray box" entries. These contain useful hints, but their frequent appearance sometimes interrupted flow of the book. This indicates a need for better organization. Finally, I felt the recent Syngress book "Winternals" did a decent job explaining how to analyze malware, rootkits, and rogue processes on Windows. WF didn't explore this key aspect of Windows incident response.
Overall, however, I would recommend reading WF if you need to understand data sources from Windows systems. I suggest concentrating on the sections that explain where you'll find quality information on Windows, and rely on other sources for generic forensics guidance. I could see readers using WF as a primer for learning about key Windows artifacts, then searching for them in the image files in "Real Digital Forensics."
Finally, the right book for Windows forensics.......2006-06-03
I have to say, like the next geek, I get frustrated by the lack of Linux/Unix use on the desktops of the corporate world; however, the fact is that Windows desktops outnumber Linux/Unix desktops by way more than 100:1. For this reason, it has been very frustrating to me that so many security books focus on Linux/Unix. I don't care if it's the best platform (though I agree); it's not the most common and we need tools on and for Windows.
This book tells you how Windows file systems work and how to perform forensic analysis on these systems. However, it's more than this - it is a great all around book on forensics analysis and the computer crime investigation process. I highly recommend this resource.
Tom Carpenter - Author: CWSP Certification Official Study Guide
Excellent focus on corporate security.......2006-05-24
Just read through my copy of this book. I do Cisco work as a CCSE and SANS certified network security specialist, but have been called on to do some investigations at work as the resident "security geek".
I read Brian Carrier's book on file system forensics, which is much deeper into data structures and is a very good book, but this book gives a better holistic look at investigations. We run a mostly Windows shop, and I'm happy to see a book that doesn't just cover Unix stuff. I want to pick up Windows Forensics and Incident Recovery next and see how they compare.
Definitely recomment!
Books:
- Leading in Black and White: Working Across the Racial Divide in Corporate America (J-B CCL (Center for Creative Leadership))
- Leading with Questions: How Leaders Find the Right Solutions By Knowing What To Ask
- Learning and Motivation Strategies: Your Guide to Success
- Managing Assertively: How to Improve Your People Skills: A Self-Teaching Guide, 2nd Edition
- Managing Enterprise Content: A Unified Content Strategy
- National Electrical Code 1999
- National Electrical Code 1999
- Never Be Boring Again: Make Your Business Presentations Capture Attention, Inspire Action and Produce Results
- Novel & Short Story Writer's Market 2007 (Novel and Short Story Writer's Market)
- Pocket Guide to Managing Contraception 05-07
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective
- The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid: Eradicating Poverty Through Profits
- Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify and Energize Your Life, Your Home and Your Planet
- Effective Writing: Handbook for Accountants
- Micromotives and Macrobehavior
- The Elephant Vanishes: Stories
- Project Planning Using Primavera SureTrak for Windows Version 2.0
- Cloud: Study Guide & Working Papers T/A Colleg E Accounting Proc Chap 1-16 2ed
- Knowledge and Social Capital: Foundations and Applications
- HOW TO KNOW THE TREES. AN ILLUSTRATED KEY TO THE MOST COMMON SPECIES OF TREES FOUND EAST OF THE ROCK
Communications
| Skills
| Business & Investing
| Subjects
| Books
Do's and Taboos Around the World for Women in Business
Gestures: The Do's and Taboos of Body Language Around the World
Do's and Taboos Around The World (Do's and Taboos Around the World)
Kiss, Bow, or Shakes Hands Asia: How to Do Business in 12 Asian Countries (Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands)12
Multicultural Manners: New Rules of Etiquette for a Changing Society
