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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.
Average customer rating:
- Did this book even have an editor?
- Very Good.
|
Contemporary Engineering Economics (3rd Edition)
Chan S. Park
Manufacturer: Prentice Hall
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Hidden Order: The Economics of Everyday Life
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ASIN: 0130893102 |
Customer Reviews:
Did this book even have an editor?.......2006-10-21
There may be useful information in this text, but it's hard to trust anything that's so poorly written.
Page 32: ". . . the answer to each question is provided by one of financial statements."
Page 42: "Investment activities include such as purchasing, financing . . ."
I noticed an average of one error per page, although this seemed to get better as I read past the third chapter. (Maybe I just lost the ability to tell!) Now, I haven't noticed any substantive errors, but it's quite possible that one of the frequent mistakes in language caused the meaning of a sentence to change. In addition, the errors are just distracting! Imagine reading along, and not being able to get through a single page without doing a double-take because a sentence doesn't scan. And I'm not even trying to proof-read, just trying to understand the text!
All that being said, this seems to be a thorough treatment of the subject, and I guess I can infer that my professor thinks the content is reliable. But this text reads like a product manual that's been poorly translated from another language!
Very Good........2003-06-23
This is an excellent text for an engineering economics class. It concisely explains and demonstrates basic ideas and financial concepts in a logical manner. The only draw back I could detect was the author's nomemclature, which he introduces at the first of the text. If you don't memorize it early on, it becomes difficult to understand quickly. The professor who taught the Engineering Economics class I took was none other than Chan Park himself (guess what the required text was!).
Book Description
The third volume in the best-selling LogoLounge series provides 2,000 totally new logos from designers worldwide. This book, like the previous titles in the series, is compiled in association with LogoLounge.com, a website that was launched by Bill Gardner in 2002. The site is dedicated to logos. Top designers and design firms supply multiple logos to the site. Each LogoLounge book presents thousands of new logos that have been added to the site, providing designers with a timely and invaluable source for design inspiration and a resource for design solutions. The first portion of the book profiles 10 top designers recent work in the area of logo design; the second part of the book contains almost 2,000 logos organized by logo design (typography, people, mythology, nature, sports, etc.)
Customer Reviews:
A designer's bible.......2007-05-14
This series is a must have for any designer. Not only is it great for ideas, but a nice tool to have when a wishy-washy client just isn't sure what they want. If you are a serious designer, you must own all the Logo Lounge books.
Logo Lounge Strikes Again.......2007-05-14
Always a fan, the assemblage of brands from every corner is impressive and helpful. The Lounge has always been and continues to be a wonderful resource for jump-starting logo block.
An Invaluable Resource for Any Graphic Designer.......2007-04-16
Whether you are fresh out of college or a seasoned Senior designer, you will find this book an amazing resource of ideas, trends and just plain good design.
We actually have purchased every volume and they keep getting better and better. Logo Lounge 3 is no different in terms of the unique talent chosen to be showcased in this edition.
If you need a design spark look no further, this is the book of choice.
[...]
AMAZING.......2007-04-14
Great book for inspiration and search for the right ideas. This time RockPub. is making few more pages showing how the logos work in the graphic design environment.
I was excited to see foreign companies using the latest styles in advertisement, like the russian phone company "BeeLine."
Wold highly recoment this book for a graphic design major and advertisement.
Very inspiring.......2007-03-16
I've used this book a couple times now for inspiration, and it doesn't disappoint. It's organized by theme, which is very helpful since it allows you to consider the myriad different ways of approaching the same challenge.
Highly recommended.
Customer Reviews:
Capture the art of scenario planning in hours .......2006-02-23
Scenario thinking is not science but an "art," which is a disciplined way of foreseeing alternative futures and difficult decisions in this complex and uncertain world. This popular book written by Peter Schwartz, a renowned futurist and business strategist, aims to help readers learn the art and methodology of scenario planning. Scenario is defined as "a tool for ordering one's perceptions about alternative future environments in which one's decisions might be played out (Schwartz, 1996, p.4)." The purpose of scenario building is not a clear picture of tomorrow, but sound decisions about the future. Its method that uses individuals as a filter to study the evolution of the future is able to let individuals, organizations or countries reduce the unpredictability and act with a knowledgeable sense of risk and reward.
Perceiving future in the present, scenario builders write stories that give meaning to multifaceted and complicated events. The storytelling of scenarios is based on both facts and imagination. On the one hand, since scenarios are not fictions, their production process involves rigorous research and skilled information hunting and gathering. For instance, Schwartz encourages scenario researchers to look at "fringes" because new knowledge usually originates there. On the other hand, imagination is the vital ingredient to forecast alternative futures with reasonable gallantry. Writing scenarios, researchers attempt to influence perceptions inside the heads of decision makers and further change their attitudes and/or behaviors toward future.
The key contribution of this book is clearly elaborating the process and method about scenario building. According to Schwartz, the building blocks of scenario creation encompass driving forces (society, technology, economic, politics, environment), predetermined elements (i.e. slow-changing phenomena, inevitable collisions, demographics), and critical uncertainty. There are eight steps to build a scenario: 1) identifying focal issue or decision; 2) listing key forces in the local environment; 3) listing the macro-environment and micro-environment driving forces; 4) ranking key forces and driving trends by importance and uncertainty; 5) deciding the axes to select scenario logics and plots; 6) fleshing out the scenarios; 7) looking at implications; and 8) selecting leading indicators and signposts. Besides, scenario planners have to avoid assigning probabilities to different scenarios, to name scenarios cleverly, and to establish an open-minded and participatory scenario development team.
A good scenario has to be simple, plausible and surprising. The intriguing scenarios that Schwartz uses in this book are not only corporations in western countries, like Royal Dutch/Shell, but also various cases in Asia and Europe. He suggests readers explore two to three alternative scenarios at one time and avoid single prediction. The most common types of scenarios addressed here are: 1) more of the same, but better; 2) worse (decay and depression); and 3) different but better (fundamental change). In later chapter, he provides three scenarios (new empires, market world, and change without progress) as examples to demonstrate how to write scenarios of forecasting about the world in 2005. Although, in reality, it is impossible to know which scenario will take place, the preparation for three let people rehearse the future and look for hints to recognize which drama is unfolding. Accordingly, individuals, organizations, or countries can avoid unpleasant surprises and know how to react to the uncertain happenings shortly.
In sum, "An Art of a Long View" is a reader-friendly book that allows novices to quickly grasp the gist of scenario writing. It concretely depicts the scenario art and the methods to mimic its practices. By reading this book, I obtain the "freedom" to create scenarios for alternative futures, to recognize the unfolding events, and hopefully respond to the unpredictable guardedly. It is valuable to learn scenario planning as it can be extensively used for forecasting futures at micro-level (i.e. individuals, family, community) and at macro-level (i.e. organization, society, nation, globe). Although not everyone is gifted in mastering the art of scenario creation, this great book opens a door for those who are willing to absorb its fundamental principals and polish their skills by practicing. Thus, I highly recommend it!
Pleasant, provacative, and easily read........2005-02-18
There should be only two criteria for the quality of a book: whether it provokes thought, and how easy it is to read. The Art of the Long View is both an easy read, and provocative. It coerces, challenges, and invites you to examine your own perceptual barriers to envisioning the future. It provides a slew of anecdotes, stories, and scenarios that illustrate approaches to future studies, and each person's inherent connection to the field. Finally, it can be thoroughly read in one or two days.
Every human has an innate desire, and skill, at perceiving the future. This pervasive theme is brought up continually, every instance highlighting ways in which the people of the world are often caught unawares of future that, while adjacent to us, we blind ourselves from. Interspersed among Schwartz's easy, conversational style are hard and fast pointers that will probably help even the more detail-oriented readers to figure out what the author is talking about when he talks about the "long view". Additionally, Schwartz discusses ways in which we can increase our capacity to open our perceptions. Some people are born to be brilliant forecasters, but everyone can learn, he contends.
Pragmatic creativity is perhaps the keystone to the long view, with a curiously settling notion that this optimism is central to any successful person, if not forecaster or businessman. The development of this creativity is perhaps one of the other things I found particularly exciting in Long View. When we increase the diversity of our knowledge, we can learn to develop these scenarios that encourage the decisive, robust action that Schwartz seems to genuinely feel will make our world a better place. His notions of optimistic future scenario preparedness, as well as my own enjoyable experience with this book, prompt me to recommend it without reservation.
Denial is the first step.......2004-12-24
A very good friend of mine recommended this book to me, as Schwartz's technique on scenario planning became the backbone of his research topic in urban planning. I was very eager to see what Schwartz had to say about his livelihood.
There are complaints about his examples being outdated. I think they serve the point of illustration. The three thing that are critical, as Schwartz pointed out, are
1) Denial - which drives even the biggest companies to the ground,
2) Strategic conversation - think of it as those "business" meetings that in Godfather (with less blood), and
3) Technological trends - this one is self-explanatory.
The deatils for each area, I will let you find out.
Incidentally, I read Schwartz's "Inevitasble Surprises" before reading this book, so this is contrary to the chronlogical order of publication. Nevertheless, they complement each other, and should be read concurrently.
What a great book?.......2004-02-16
You have to buy The Art of the Long View. I don't know how to explain how great the book is. Don't hesitate to grap one
Open Your Brain and Reperceive the World.......2004-02-16
This book will help you to learn the scenario planning process. At the beginning, the author presents a short but insightful example how scenario playing an important role for starting up a gardening tool company. The author also shares an "information hunting and gathering process" which tell you where to get some helpful data. Various factors influencing the futures are also discussed (including socials, politics, economic, technologies, and environment). In addition, at the end of the book, the author provides a user's guide (eight steps of how to hold a strategic conversation) and eight steps to develop scenarios which I found very useful. The book enables us to use scenario planning as a tool to deal with uncertain futures. Scenarios help us to awake and "reperceive" others possible and impossible alternative futures including both short and long term. The author also believes that a good scenario leads you to ask better questions. The point of scenario-planning is "to help us suspend our disbelieve in all the futures: to allow us to think that any on of them might place. Then, we can prepare for what we DO NOT think is going to happen." (p.195)
However, one annoying thing in this book is that the author keeps referring to chapters (e.g. look in chapter 7) but physically, there are just no chapters number indicated in the book. There are just short titles in the table of content and at the beginning of each chapter. You have to go back and forth between the TOC and chapters to to see which one is actually being referred. However, I consider this is a minor issue comparing to what you will learn from this book.
You may find this book useful if you are preparing for your strategic plans, making decisions having critical impacts to your firm or your personal life, or even you are just an ordinary reader, this book will open your mind to a new level of critical thinking and imagination about unfolding futures. Highly recommend.
Book Description
The Art of M&A, Third Edition, is the leading answer book in today's fast-changing, enormously complex merger world. Written in a handy, easy-reference Q&A format, this no-nonsense handbook covers everything from the early stages of locating a suitable target--or finding that you are a target--through the postmerger trials of turning multiple companies into one.
Synopses of nearly three dozen landmark cases give real life insights into legal rulings from previous high profile mergers. Over the past decade, The Art of M&A has helped thousands of executives make sound decisions. Now, let it provide all the information you will need to buy or sell companies, whether public or private, domestic or foreign.
Download Description
The Art of M
Customer Reviews:
Fourth Edition Due in March 2007.......2006-11-18
FROM THE CO-AUTHOR. Please be advised that a new FIVE STAR edition will be available in or around March 2007. The 1999 edition being sold here will be replaced at that time. Alexandra Reed Lajoux (Co-Author)
Very dated material.......2005-11-28
The Q&A approach adopted in this book is very useful. It would provide for a very useful reference manual on M&A if its content were not so dated. Its discussion of taxes, accounting, and deal structures does not reflect recent changes in rules and M&A practices. It would be helpful if the author would update the material. Other more current and more comprehensive books on the subject that I have found useful include Mergers, Acquisitions, and Other Restructuring activities by Depamphilis and Bruner's M&A book.
Excellent reference for beginners in M&A.......2005-10-11
Easy to use reference, it helped me get the answer instantly.
Great Reference Book.......2003-07-12
This is a fantastic reference tome for anyone involved with M&A. As a private equity Associate, I have found this book to be invaluable on multiple levels as both a reference guide for securities law, as well as for procedural issues such as sample formats for term sheets, DD check lists, etc.
Also, while it is a dense read, I think this would be invaluable for people just entering either Investment Banking or Private Equity to read as an introduction to the rules, regulations and procedures surrounding mergers/acquisitions.
Yes, this is a very focused topic, but it is a great book!.......2002-07-03
The very size of this book on such a specialized topic may seem daunting. However, the writing is so lively and the organization by question and answer is so easy to use that you will find this a very useful and comprehensive handbook.
It is NOT a theory laden textbook. Rather, it is a very useful and practical guide to the field and will help the careful reader avoid many pitfalls. There are many ways to make mistakes in buying companies and this book can open your eyes to quite of few of them. In fact, if you are the target of a buyout, this book can be of special importance and interest.
I admit to being fascinated by this topic so take that into consideration when evaluating what I say about this book. But even so, mergers and acquistions are so much in the news (for good and ill) that it can only help to get more background on what is really going on and how these deals are (or at least should be) put together.
The book reads MUCH shorter than its size and is fairly comprehensive on the subject - from the methods in selecting candidates for acquisition to what to do when you are a target of an acquisition to some very specialized topics. It also deals with M&A issues with both public, private, and even family firms.
Honestly, I am surprised at how glad I am that I bought this book. It is terrific.
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.
Average customer rating:
- Useful to the student and the professional
- Great book!
- Engineering Economy
- A practical guide for the manager
|
Engineering Economy (13th Edition)
William G Sullivan ,
Elin M Wicks , and
James Luxhoj
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Schaum's Outline of Engineering Economics
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Applied Statistics and Probability for Engineers
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Fundamentals of Modern Manufacturing: Materials, Processes, and Systems
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Structural Analysis (6th Edition)
ASIN: 0131486497 |
Customer Reviews:
Useful to the student and the professional.......2007-08-19
Just as engineers must accurately model technical solutions to a problem, they must also model the economic impact of those technical solutions. This is a very good book for both the engineering student and the practicing engineer. Unlike many texts on straight economics, it is not just filled with narrative. It has many well-explained formulas and examples using those formulas throughout. The numerous exercises included throughout the book involve open-ended problem statements and iterative problem-solving skills, which are the real-world skills you'll need on the job. Various engineering disciplines are presented. FE exam-style questions have been added to help prepare engineering students for that milestone examination. Passing the FE exam is a first step in getting licensed as a "Professional Engineer" or PE. A good companion to this book is the Schaum's Outline on Engineering Economics. This is one of those textbooks where having the latest edition is really better, since the laws of finance are man-made and do change over time. The following is the table of contents for the latest edition:
FUNDAMENTALS OF ENGINEERING ECONOMY.
1. Introduction to Engineering Economy.
2. Cost Concepts and Design Economics.
3. Money-Time Relationships and Equivalence.
4. Applications of Money-Time Relationships.
II. ENGINEERING ECONOMY IN ACTION.
5. Applications of Money-Time Relationships.
6. Comparing Alternatives.
7. Depreciation and Income Taxes.
8. Price Changes and Exchange Rates.
9. Replacement Analysis.
10. Dealing with Uncertainty.
III. ADDITIONAL TOPICS IN ENGINEERING ECONOMY.
11. Evaluating Projects with the Benefit/Cost Ratio Method.
12. Engineering Economy Studies in Investor-Owned Utilities.
13. Probabilistic Risk Analysis.
14. Capital Financing and Allocation.
15. Dealing with Multiattributed Decisions.
Appendixes.
Great book!.......2007-05-18
I was pleasantly surprised to have enjoyed this book during my engineering coursework. It gave good insight and practical examples to understanding engineering costs.
Engineering Economy.......2006-03-17
This is a well written book. The examples are very helpful. I have been learning the material with no external instruction, only the book.
A practical guide for the manager.......2001-06-22
I first used this book as a student-I found it useful then, today I insist that all managers reporting to me review, and use, the concepts and techniques provided by the authors.
The book is useful, in that concepts are well explained, the examples are relevant, but most important for me is that it provides managers who have little or no experience in determining project costs with a handy means (including formulae and worked examples) of doing so.
I have tried to get copies of the most recent edition, the popularity seems to be such that the book is sold out. I most readily recommend this to anyone who needs to justify capital expenditure, who needs to do project costing, and who has to prepare proposals for submission to the boss (or the board of directors)in order to obtain funds for capital expansion, refurbishment or simply equipment upgrades.
Customer Reviews:
Provocative Thinking about the Future.......2006-10-11
This book is important for developing long-term strategic visioning through scenario building. With it, you take trends and then not merely extrapolate them, but also examine what might happen if there were significant changes to the trends. In the end, you craft "stories built around carefully constructed plots that make the significant elements of the world stand out boldly" and unlock fresh perspectives about the future.
The Ravings of a Futurist.......2003-08-30
This book has nothing to do with organizational change. It is simply the ravings of a futurist. There are plenty of good books of strategic organizational change, buy those instead.
Review for Art of the Long View.......2000-02-12
The Art of the Long View By Peter Schwartz Peter Schwartz challenges uncertainty by using scenario planning as the tool to predict and prepare for the future. Schwartz suggest that to act with confidence, "[o]ne must be willing to look ahead and consider uncertainties". In his book, Schwartz presents many "rules" to creating scenarios such as: "seeking out truly unusual people...who could see significant but surprising forces for change". Another rule is to view the future with at least three different mindset: as an optimist, pessimist and transitionist. Schwartz also advises the future scenario planners to have a good focus yet practice using peripheral vision (called fringes) to guide direction. What people don't see directly, such as activities happening in another country for example, may interrupt economy, social factors and so on. As an example, Schwartz mentioned the problem of third countries' rise of youth. With the rise of teenage population and little job opportunities in their own country, millions of foreign youth may migrate to countries like U.S. When this happens the stability of U.S. in terms of population, social welfare and minority issues will be affected. In turn these social factors may affect the economic factors. Thus, the readers of this book will learn that awareness will become a strong asset to being a great scenario planner. The advice and guides Schwartz provides are logical and simplistic. Human beings are used to some degree of future planning and Schwartz acknowledges this as he labels people as "scenario-building animal." With the acknowledgment of this innate capability people have for scenario planning Schwartz tries to focus on fine-tuning that innate skill to help people and business plan for their future. By planning for the future one can stabilize uncertainty both emotionally and financially. Schwart's background of having worked at SRI (Standford Research Institute), Shell and Smith & Hawken made the advice of the author more legitimate and provided examples of how scenario building can become a profession to consider. Scenario writing is truly an art that requires open-minded, creative and resourceful thinking. Overall, I enjoyed reading this book. Schwartz understands that though we have no control over uneventful factors that may disrupt our future, we can have the power to prevent disasters from sneaking up on us. By preparing our minds to possibilities, both good and bad, people can learn to adapt to the future. I especially liked the optimistic view of Mr. Schwartz. I ended the book with enlightenment and happy thoughts of my own future.
Book Description
The well-being of any nonprofit organization rests first with its volunteer board of directors. This book offers board members the guidance they need to successfully govern their organizations--no matter what type or size of nonprofit they may lead.
Written by Candace Widmer and Susan Houchin, The Art of Trusteeship shows you how to fulfill ten key trustee responsibilities and includes much-needed detail on defining mission, strategic planning, executive selection and evaluation, fundraising, financial oversight, and board self-assessment. This hands-on guide is filled with illustrative case studies and real-life examples that clearly show how a variety of creative boards have tackled challenges and strengthened their organizations.
"At last, a book that doesn't take a one-size-fits-all approach! The authors recognize that the huge diversity among nonprofits calls for multiple ways of fulfilling basic board responsibilities. The book allows a board member to dive in at any point and find a concise, clear set of options for handling the challenges of trusteeship. It will help even first-time board members find firm footing on the path to effective governance."
--Sara L. Engelhardt, president, The Foundation Center
Customer Reviews:
Art of Trusteeship by Roger.......2005-10-04
This is an excellent study on board leadership and should be read by any person serving on a non-profit board.
A Model for What the Ideal Nonprofit Board Should Do.......2000-11-26
If you are like me, you arrived with no idea of what to do the first time you sat on a nonprofit board. If that board was not well organized, you sat down on your second nonprofit board with about the same level of understanding.
Nonprofit organizations, especially smaller and newer ones, tend to be "amateur hour" operations. They usually have neither good governance nor good management. Unfortunately, they need both much more than most for profit and nonprofit organizations that do have them.
The nonprofit organizations that focus relentlessly on improving governance and management do far more good than those who do not. So these are important subjects. I doubt if you can have very good management without good governance first. Governance creates the organizational direction and the discipline that encourages good management. Unless someone is reviewing how you are doing, even the most talented manager will soon become lazy about learning from experience.
I recommend that anyone who is on a nonprofit board or is considering joining one should read this book. You will have a much more rewarding board experience if you do. You can also share this book with others on the board, and challenge them to work with you to make the needed changes. I certainly plan to do this with the board I sit on now.
By the way, chances are that your board will never quite get to this "gold standard" described here. But at least you will know what you are and are not doing, and can focus on the more important steps.
The book breaks the board's responsibility down into mission, responsibility for money, and for management.
Top priority is "establishing the mission and monitoring the organization's progress in achieving that mission." This may involve modifying the mission from time to time. This is very critical, because you either have a mission that gets volunteers and donors excited or you are dead in the water. Habitat for Humanity and the Girl Scouts have done this well.
The board next needs to create a "vision for the future of the organization and [develop] a plan for achieving that vision."
After that, the board needs to ensure "progress in serving the mission of the organization . . . [in meeting] the needs of clients" and in the effectiveness of programs.
The board also needs to be sure that the mission and programs are communicated "effectively with its various publics."
The money side all fits under being a "steward for organizational resources." The tasks include having a formal development plan, making an annual contribution to the organization, and participating in fund-raising activities. In addition, risks should be identified and ensured and insured against as best as one can.
In the area of management, the board has to select, support, evaluate, (and terminate, when necessary) the CEO. The board has to evaluate its own effectiveness at each meeting, as well.
If your board isn't willing to start working on this items, I suggest you consider looking for another board that is. Certainly, you may be in for a lot of heartache if you a join a board that is going to ignore these areas.
Create more good by having a more effective board!
Book Description
Authoritative and completely up-to-date, the Fourth Edition of The Art of M&A is an unsurpassed, one-stop guide to every facet of mergers and acquisitions that enables you to make winning deals with complete confidence.
This definitive resource retains its popular Q&A format, offering quick access to all the changes that have occurred in the field since the merger wave of the 1990s. The book explores every key aspect of winning M&A transactions, and presents advice on avoiding common M&A pitfalls.
The Fourth Edition of The Art of M&A features vital information on:
- Getting Started in Mergers and Acquisitions --learning the basic M&A process, requirements, negotiating skills, and objectives
- Planning and Finding --deciding what to buy and then locating it
- Valuation and Pricing -- using multiple valuation methods to discover the true value of an acquired company or unit
- The Art of Financing and Refinancing -- mastering funding sources and issues
- Structuring M/A/B Transactions -- managing general, tax, and accounting considerations
- The Due Diligence Inquiry -- looking into the past, present, and future risks of the business to be purchased
- Negotiating the Acquisition Agreement and the Letter of Intent-- understanding two vital documents in the M&A process
- Closing -- synchronizing the many individual items to produce a harmonious transaction
- Postmerger Integration and Divestitures -- following through after the M&A deal to capture the economic value of synergies
- Special Issues for M&A in Public Companies_examining the unique legal and business considerations of public entities
- Workouts, Bankruptcies, and Liquidations -- handling specific financial problems that arise in M&A transactions with entities in the zone of insolvency
- Structuring Transactions with International Aspects -- developing the necessary skills and knowledge to do M&A deals across national borders
Filled with detailed examples and case studies, this updated classic also includes discussion of purchase accounting, Section 404, new legal cases with M&A implications, and more.
Books:
- The Art of Portrait Drawing
- The Bedside Book of Birds: An Avian Miscellany
- The Best American Essays
- The Big Book of Painting Nature in Watercolor (Practical Art Books)
- The Book of Kells: An Illustrated Introduction to the Manuscript in Trinity College Dublin
- The Complete Calvin and Hobbes (Calvin & Hobbes)
- The Complete Crumb Comics Vol. 8: The Death of Fritz the Cat
- The DC Comics Guide to Inking Comics
- The Draw 50 Way: How to Draw Cats, Puppies, Horses, Buildings, Birds, Aliens, Boats, Trains and Everything Else Under the Sun (Draw 50)
- The Elephant's Secret Sense: The Hidden Life of the Wild Herds of Africa
Books Index
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The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization
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