AMA Edgewise

Bruce Tulgan on How to Manage Generation Y

klee — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:32:41 +0000

Now is the perfect time for business leaders, managers, and other so-called grownups to give a much needed reality check to the Generation Y employees that are on their staffs, those born between 1978 and 1990. This is the argument posed by Bruce Tulgan in his new book Not Everyone Gets A Trophy: How To Manage Generation Y.

Bruce Tulgan is internationally recognized as the leading expert on young people in the workplace, and one of the leading experts on leadership and management. Bruce is a best selling author and advisor to business leaders all over the world, and a sought after keynote speaker and management trainer.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Coaching and Counseling for Outstanding Job Performance
* Igniting Commitment: Engaging Employees for Breakthrough Performance
* Fundamentals of Human Resources Management
* Responding to Conflict: Strategies for Improved Communication
* Successfully Managing People

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Age Curve by Kenneth Gronbach

Jill Griffin on Earning Loyalty in a Search and Switch World

klee — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:24:11 +0000

The ability to compare price and product created by Internet search engines coupled with our insatiable desire for instant information have created a volatile new breed of buyer, the search and switch customer. In these bruising economic times, businesses unprepared to address this buyer are losing market share by the minute.

In her book Taming The Search and Switch Customer: Earning Customer Loyalty In A Compulsion To Compare World, loyalty guru Jill Griffin, advisor to Microsoft, Dell, Toyota, Marriott, HP, Days Inn and Western Union, provides a fresh, new arsenal of loyalty solutions uniquely calibrated for today’s compulsion to compare planet of buyers.

Jill Griffin is known to her clients as the loyalty maker. And since 1988 she’s led Austin based Griffin Group, helping firms worldwide build fierce, loyal customers. Her clients include Microsoft and Dell, as we heard before, Toyota, Marriott, HP, Western Union and Sprint. Her previous book, “Customer Loyalty” was named to Harvard Business School’s Working Knowledge list, and has been translated into six languages.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Leveraging Web 2.0 to Engage Customers and Build Your Brand
* Fundamentals of Marketing: Your Action Plan for Success
* Customer Service Excellence: How to Win and Keep Customers
* Principles of Professional Selling

John Goodman on the Future of Customer Service

klee — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 12:00:51 +0000

Most executives still view customer service as a cost center, a necessary nuisance that drains funds from other more strategic investments. But for companies with a strategic approach, the customer service function itself is an unbeatable marketing machine, a word of mouth monster that directly drives sales, repeats business referrals, and increases the bottom line.

John Goodman is one of the originators of the customer experience industry. His new book is entitled Strategic Customer Service. John is the Founder and Vice Chairman of Arlington, Virginia based TARP Worldwide Incorporated, the organization Tom Peters called, “America’s premier customer service research firm.”

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Customer Service Excellence: How to Win and Keep Customers
* Aligning Marketing and Sales: Achieve Success Through Collaboration

Charles Jacobs on Why Feedback Doesn’t Work

klee — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:16:53 +0000

Business people are taught to make decisions with facts and logic, and to avoid emotional bias. But according to the latest research, we almost never decide rationally, despite thinking that we do. Our experiences carry an emotional charge encoded in the synapses of our neurons. And when we try to deny what our emotions tell us, we lose what we’ve learned from the past. That’s just one of many recent discoveries that help explain why management is so challenging.

As author Charles Jacobs explains in new book, Management Rewired: Why Feedback Doesn’t Work and Other Surprising Lessons From The Latest Brain Science, much of the conventional wisdom taught to managers is not only inadequate; it produces the opposite of what was intended. The better path is frequently counterintuitive.

Charles S. Jacobs is managing partner of 180 Partners and an advisor to Fortune 500 companies, and was also the founder of the Amherst Consulting Group in the 1980s. He has worked in Europe, Asia, and the United States. His clients include Verizon, CitiGroup, Exxon Mobil, and over 50 of the Fortune 100.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Moving from an Operational Manager to a Strategic Thinker
* Critical Thinking
* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Smarts by Chuck Martin, Peg Dawson, Richard Guare

Tom Redman on Using Data to Drive Results

klee — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 11:57:11 +0000

In Data Driven, Thomas Redman, the “Data Doc,” shows how to leverage and deploy data to sharpen your company’s competitive edge and drive its profitability.

Thomas C. Redman is a Senior Consultant with Cutter Consortium’s Business Intelligence Practice and president of Navesink Consulting Group, which he founded in 1996. Among the first to recognize the need for high-quality data in the information age, Dr. Redman established the AT&T Bell Laboratories Data Quality Lab in 1987 and led it until 1995. There he created the Applied Research Program that produced many of today’s methods for improving data quality. Known by many as the “guru of data quality,” Dr. Redman has written numerous articles and authored the seminal book on data quality. He is the leading inventor of practical techniques to help organizations improve amidst the explosion of data (and data quality problems) created in the information age. He is the author of numerous papers, including “Data Quality for Competitive Advantage” (Sloan Management Review, Winter 1995) and three books, Data Quality: The Field Guide, Data Quality for the Information Age, and Data Quality: Management and Technology.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* AMA’s Financial Modeling and Forecasting Workshop
* Process Management: Applying Process Mapping to Analyze and Improve Your Operation
* Market Research: How to Get the Right Data to Make the Right Decisions
* Managing Projects Using Microsoft® Project
* Critical Thinking

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Blissful Data by Margaret Y. Chu
* Identifying and Managing Project Risk by Tom Kendrick
* Project Management That Works by Rick A. Morris, Brette McWhorter Sember

Aaron Sandoski on How the Wise Decide

klee — Fri, 29 May 2009 13:26:04 +0000

How do the wise decide and lead businesses and organizations to great success is the question Bryn Zeckhauser and Aaron Sandoski posed to themselves after landing their first jobs as managers. Despite the best training the world could offer—Harvard MBAs and stints at McKinsey & Company, the elite powerhouse consulting firm—they felt unprepared when faced with the pressure to make critical decisions. So they set out on a three-year quest to discover how people with remarkable success and experience in both corporate and public life—“the wise”—went about making crucial, often make-or-break decisions. They share their discoveries in their book How the Wise Decide: The Lessons of 21 Extraordinary Leaders.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Critical Thinking
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success
* Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead
* Developing Executive Leadership

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* John F. Kennedy on Leadership by John A. Barnes
* Leading with Kindness by William F. Baker, Michael O’Malley, Ph.D.
* Lead by Example by John Baldoni
* 78 Important Questions Every Leader Should Ask and Answer by Chris Clarke-Epstein
* Preparing for Leadership by Donna J. Dennis, Ph.D., Debbie Meola

Paul Krugman on Staring Down Depression Economics

klee — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:42:42 +0000

Edgewise is pleased to bring an extended conversation with Dr. Paul Krugman, Professor of Economics and International Affairs at Princeton University, a regular columnist for the New York Times, and the 2008 recipient of the Nobel Prize in Economics. In this interview Dr. Krugman provides a concise account of the events that led to the current economic crisis, and offers a prognosis for recovery. Dr. Krugman shares insights from his book The Great Unraveling: Losing Our Way in the New Economy. In this book, Dr. Krugman chronicles how the boom economy unraveled: how exuberance gave way to pessimism, how the age of corporate heroes gave way to corporate scandals, how fiscal responsibility collapsed; and offers a road map for recovery.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* AMA’s Course on Financial Analysis Seminar
* AMA’s Financial Modeling and Forecasting Workshop Seminar
* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program Seminar
* Strategic Agility and Resilience: Embracing Change to Drive Growth Seminar

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Riches Among the Ruins: Adventures in the Dark Corners of the Global Economy by Robert P. Smith, Peter Zheutlin

Paul Teutul, Sr. on Doing Business the Orange County Choppers Way

dsohn — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:00:56 +0000

If you think cruising down the highway on a custom chopper is the ultimate thrill ride, try running your own business. The same outlaw spirit that drives some people to strap on a helmet and hit the road drives other people to risk it all and build a business from the ground up. Bikers and entrepreneurs share at least one trait. They do it their way without compromise. That’s the opening liner note of a book entitled The Ride Of A Lifetime, written by Paul Teutul Sr.

Paul is the founder of Orange County Choppers, one of the world’s premier builders of custom motorcycles. He formerly ran a family-owned steel fabrication shop before he began building custom bikes as a hobby, eventually founding Orange County Choppers in 1999. Since 2002, he, his family, and his business have been the subject of the hit TLC reality TV show American Chopper.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Successfully Managing People
* Creativity and Innovation: Unleash Your Potential for Greater Success
* Developing Executive Leadership

Blythe McGarvie on Making Courageous Decisions in a Changing World

klee — Fri, 08 May 2009 12:00:09 +0000

If the 20th century was the American century, the 21st century may well be the global century. Globalization spreads wealth across the world, opens new consumer markets, and reorients the dynamics of the American market. In a new book, Shaking The Globe: Courageous Decision Making In A Changing World, Blythe McGarvie guides readers on how to absorb the world’s diversity and to build upon his or her global citizenship by using the “FISO Factor:” skills to transform themselves from a conventional leader into a courageous one.

McGarvie is Chief Executive Officer of LIF Group, and serves on the boards of Accenture, the Pepsi Bottling Group, the Travelers Companies Inc., Viacom, and Wawa. In 1995 she was one of only 10 female CFOs in the Fortune 500.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Critical Thinking
* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program
* Developing Executive Leadership
* Strategic Planning

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Transnational Leadership Development by Beth Fisher-Yoshida, Kathy D. Geller
* Global Sourcing Logistics by Thomas A. Cook
* Riches Among the Ruins:
Adventures in the Dark Corners of the Global Economy by Robert P. Smith, Peter Zheutlin
* Investing in a Sustainable World by Matthew J. Kiernan
* The Power of Strategic Commitment by Josh Leibner, Gershon Mader, Alan Weiss, Ph.D.

Marshall Goldsmith on Influence in All Directions

klee — Fri, 01 May 2009 12:00:42 +0000

One of our most popular podcast and webcast guests is executive coach, Marshall Goldsmith, author of the New York Times Bestseller What Got You Here Won’t Get You There as well as the new book Succession. In this podcast, Goldsmith coaches on how to exert your influence in today’s tough times. The topic is related to an upcoming AMA program, The Secrets of Managing Up. It will broadcast live on May 19 at 1PM, and it’s part of AMA’s new line of premium webinars. To find out more about this special 90 minute webinar, please visit amanet.org/events.

Dr. Marshall Goldsmith is corporate America’s preeminent executive coach and the New York Times best selling author of 22 books, including What Got You Here Won’t Get You There - a Wall Street Journal #1 business book. Dr. Goldsmith’s Ph.D. is from UCLA. He teaches executive education at Dartmouth’s Tuck School and frequently speaks at leading business schools.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Getting Results Without Authority
* Mastering Organizational Politics, Influence and Alliances
* Advanced Leadership Communication Strategies
* Communicating Up, Down and Across the Organization

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Maximum Influence by Kurt Mortensen
* Persuasion IQ by Kurt Mortensen
* Lead by Example by John Baldoni
* Results Without Authority by Tom Kendrick

Sylvia Lafair on Breaking Family Patterns That Limit Success

klee — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 12:00:46 +0000

You know the type. Maybe he’s the office cut up or the woman who manages to look busy but avoids work or the guy who was the long suffering victim. There’s one in every office. Perhaps you or someone you know fits one of these profiles. These behaviors are painfully annoying and start conflict in the office.

Sylvia Lafair is author of Don’t Bring It To Work: Breaking The Family Patterns That Limit Success. Sylvia is an expert on leadership, workplace behavior, and relationships, and helps clients from top companies navigate difficult conflicts with board members, employees, associates, and even family. Unlike other executive coaches, Lafair began her career as a family therapist and is fine tuned to the reverberations of family lives that play out in the workplace. Lafair is the Founder and President of Creative Energy Options.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Moving Ahead: Breaking Behavior Patterns That Hold You Back
* Assertiveness Training
* Improving Your Managerial Effectiveness
* Responding to Conflict: Strategies for Improved Communication

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Working with Difficult People by Michael S. Dobson, William Lundin, Ph.D., Kathleen Lundin
Leading with Kindness by William F. Baker, Michael O’Malley, Ph.D.
Lead by Example by John Baldoni
Winning Behavior by Terry R. Bacon, David G. Pugh

Steve Kerr on Performance Rewards Systems That Really Work

klee — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:00:28 +0000

It’s one of the thorniest management problems around: dealing with unmotivated, low-performing employees. It’s easy to point the finger of blame at them. But in most companies, it’s the reward system, not the workforce, that’s causing poor attitudes and performance: many reward systems actually discourage desired behaviors while rewarding the very actions that drive executives crazy.

In Reward Systems: Does Yours Deliver? Steve Kerr describes the steps you must take to create an effective reward system:

- Clarify what you mean by “performance” — in ways that help employees understand how they can support what you’re trying to accomplish
- Devise an effective performance-measurement system that distinguishes between metrics used for control and those used for employees’ development
- Design a reward system that motivates people to do what you want them to do while also meeting their needs

Steve Kerr is the former Chief Learning Officer of Goldman Sachs and General Electric. He is a former professor of management and has served on the faculties of the University of Michigan business school, Ohio State University, and the University of Southern California, where he was faculty dean. He has authored numerous academic articles and coauthored the bestselling business books The Boundaryless Organization and The GE Work-Out.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Essentials of Human Resources Management
* Human Resources Measurement and Metrics
* Coaching and Counseling for Outstanding Job Performance

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

How to Recognize and Reward Employees by Donna Deeprose
Effective Executive Compensation by Michael Dennis Graham, Thomas A. Roth, Dawn Dugan
More ProActive Sales Management by William “Skip” Miller
Keeping the People Who Keep You in Business by Leigh Branham

Jason Jennings on How New Leaders Can Hit the Ground Running

klee — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 12:00:37 +0000

You have to hit the ground running— diagnose the situation, pull together a strong team, decide on a strategy, and inspire everyone to execute it.

Jason Jennings and his research team searched for the new CEOs who had pulled off the most impressive transformations of this decade. He interviewed ten who, on average, had doubled revenues, doubled profit margins, and more than tripled earnings per share, at companies such as Staples, Goodrich, Humana, and J. M. Smucker.

Jennings’ new book, Hit the Ground Running, lists ten new “golden rules” that can help leaders balance the short term and the long term, and the competing needs of shareholders, employees, customers, and the community.

Jason Jennings is the bestselling author of It’s Not the Big That Eat the Small . . . It’s the Fast That Eat the Slow; Less Is More; and Think Big, Act Small. In 2006, USA Today named him one of the three most in-demand business speakers, alongside Jim Collins and Tom Peters.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Developing Executive Leadership
* Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead
* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results
* The 21st Century Global Leader

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Preparing for Leadership by Donna J. Dennis, Ph.D., Debbie Meola
The Leadership Training Activity Book by Lois B. Hart, Ed.D., Charlotte S. Waisman, Ph.D.
Assimilating New Leaders by Diane Downey, Tom March, Adena Berkman
Leading with Kindness by William F. Baker, Michael O’Malley, Ph.D.
Lead by Example by John Baldoni

Forrest Breyfogle on Taking Six Sigma to the Next Level

klee — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:00:50 +0000

Problem-solving or assessment methodologies such as Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma, or ISO may not provide a business framework so that organizations can move toward achieving the three Rs of business: everybody doing the Right Things the Right Way at the Right Time.

In The Integrated Enterprise Excellence System: An Enhanced, Unified Approach to Balanced Scorecards, Strategic Planning, and Business Improvement , Forrest Breyfogle introduces a new organizational governance system that integrates analytics with innovation. The IEE system shows business leaders what to measure and report; when and how to report it; how to interpret and use the results to establish goals; how to orchestrate work activities; and how to develop strategies that is consistent with established goals. These strategies ultimately lead to specific projects that enhance organizational focus and success.

Forrest W. Breyfogle III is the author of eleven books and over 90 articles on the topic of quality improvement. He is the President and CEO of Smarter Solutions, Inc.; and the winner of the 2005 American Society for Quality Crosby Medal for his book, Implementing Six Sigma, 2nd edition (ISS2). The Crosby Medal is presented to the individual who has authored a distinguished book contributing significantly to the extension of the philosophy and application of the principles, methods, or techniques of quality management.

Beth Fisher-Yoshida and Kathy Geller on Transnational Leadership

klee — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:00:16 +0000

Transnational Leadership Development by Beth Fisher-Yoshida and Kathy Geller acquaints readers with the paradoxes and mental processes leaders need to relate successfully to people with different backgrounds, cultures, and societal identities. The book advises readers on how leaders may learn to see, feel, and experience the world with different lenses; take the necessary amount of time to reflect on what they know and what they need to know; find new ways to communicate; and be resilient in the face of this unique challenge.

Beth Fisher-Yoshida, Ph.D., is the Founder of Fisher-Yoshida Inter national, LLC, consulting globally on organizational development and intercultural competence and diversity. She lives in Teaneck, New Jersey.

Kathy D. Geller, Ph.D., is presently Director of Organization Effectiveness at Stanford University. Prior to joining Stanford in 2008, she was Managing Director of Areté Leadership International, Ltd., an international consultancy working with Fortune 500 leaders in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. She lives in Palo Alto, California.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader
* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program
* Successfully Managing People
* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Manager’s Guide to HR by Max Muller
Global Sourcing Logistics by Thomas A. Cook
Transnational Leadership Development by Beth Fisher-Yoshida and Kathy Geller

Michael Dulworth on The Connect Effect

klee — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:00:35 +0000

Beyond merely widening the circle of people you know, strong networks foster deeper learning and broaden your exposure across a range of issues. Effective investments in your networks can make you smarter, more knowledgeable, and better grounded, as well as a more agile learner and collaborator.

In The Connect Effect, author Michael Dulworth identifies three distinct kinds of networks: personal, professional, and virtual, exploring their specific characteristics and offering strategies, tools, and resources for building up and making the best use of each one. Stories from Dulworth’s over twenty years of experience running networks, as well as interviews with top executives, researchers, and thought leaders, provide insights and advice about how networks function in the real world.

Michael Dulworth is president and CEO of Executive Networks. Before acquiring Executive Networks in late 2003, he was Vice President of Learning Services at The Concours Group. Prior to that, he was a Founder and CEO of Learning Technologies Group, Inc. He is the author, coauthor or a contributor to seven books on executive development, learning, and high-performance organizations, including The Connect Effect: Building Strong Personal; Professional and Virtual Networks; Corporate Learning: Proven and Practical Guidelines for Building a Sustainable Learning Strategy; and Strategic Executive Development: The Five Essential Investments.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Building Better Work Relationships
* How to Communicate with Diplomacy, Tact and Credibility
* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Art of Connecting by Claire Raines and Lara Ewing
How to Succeed in Business Using LinkedIn by Eric Butow and Kathleen Taylor
The Voice of Success, A Woman’s Guide to a Powerful and Persuasive Voice by Joni Wilson
The Virtual Handshake, Opening Doors and Closing Deals Online by David Teten and Scott Allen

Max Muller on HR Issues That Managers Need to Know Now

klee — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 12:00:40 +0000

Managing people is a tricky business—and managers and small business owners can no longer get by without understanding the essentials of human resources. New questions abound. In our increasingly legal-minded age, how much documentation do we need to keep on each employee? What’s the best way to confront complicated personnel issues, and even workplace violence?

Plus there are regulatory changes … like implementing the new I-9 form … that every manager needs to be aware of to remain compliant. The Manager’s Guide to HR by Max Muller provides readers with a straightforward, step-by-step guide to human resources topics.

Max Muller an attorney, began his involvement in human resources law in 1976 when he became house counsel for Isis Foods. He has presented thousands of seminars on the topic of human resources, including many for the American Management Association.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Coaching and Counseling for Outstanding Job Performance
* Responding to Conflict: Strategies for Improved Communication
* Successfully Managing People
* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results
* Cross-Functional Communication: Strategies for Workplace Effectiveness

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Manager’s Guide to HR by Max Muller
101 Tough Conversations to Have with Employees by Paul Falcone
Finding & Keeping Great Employees by Jim Harris, Ph.D., Joan Brannick, Ph.D.
The First-Time Manager’s Guide to Performance Appraisals by Diane Arthur
The Trouble with HR by Johnny C. Taylor, Gary M. Stern

Dr. Matthew Kiernan on How to Successfully Invest in a Sustainable World

klee — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 12:00:16 +0000

For businesses and investors, there’s no doubt about it. The smart money is going green. And the growing movement towards ecologically forward thinking companies is quickly becoming bigger and bigger. What may be surprising to some is that the socially responsible organizations aren’t just doing the right thing for the environment. They’re also paying off financially, making their investors money and increasing the bottom line.

Investing in a Sustainable World (AMACOM) by Dr. Matthew J. Kiernan offers clear proof, through facts, figures, and hard documentation, that “going green” leads directly to better stock market performance…and that investors and companies who ignore it will, in fact, lose money. The book reveals the most powerful global megatrends—from the ongoing focus on emerging markets to natural resource depletion—which are transforming the very basis on which companies will compete, and offers an approach to sustainability-enhanced investing beneficial to both investors and companies.

Dr. Kiernan is Founder and Chief Executive of Innovest Strategic Value Advisors Inc. It’s the number one rank sustainability investment research firm in the world with office in New York, Tokyo, London, Paris, Sydney, San Francisco, and Toronto. He previously served as a Director of the World Business Council for sustainable development. And in 2008 Dr. Kiernan spoke to the second time at the … for the second time at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Investing in a Sustainable World by Matthew J. Kiernan

Paddy Miller on Mission Critical Innovation

klee — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 12:00:37 +0000

Paddy Miller is professor of Managing People in Organizations at IESE Business School. Dr. Miller is the author of a recent book, Mission Critical Leadership. Dr. Miller’s specializes in leadership, change management, and innovation, with a focus on multinational organizations. Dr. Miller has become extensively involved in the challenges faced by organizations during the transition to globalization.

Dr. Miller has written and contributed to several books and articles that have appeared in publications ranging from the Financial Times to the Journal of Management Education. His case studies have won awards in various international forums. Last year he was awarded by the American Academy of Management for his work in the field of globally distributed teams.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Fundamentals of Purchasing for the New Buyer
* Import/Export Procedures and Documentation

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

International Logistics by Donald F. Wood, Anthony Barone, Paul Murphy, Daniel L. Wardlow
Export/Import Procedures and Documentation by Thomas E. Johnson
Global Sourcing Logistics by Thomas A. Cook
Rebuilding Brand America by Dick Martin

Tim Sanders on How Companies Profit from Doing Good

klee — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 12:00:55 +0000

In a follow-up to his popular 2008 Edgewise interview , Tim Sanders talks about how the “make a difference” factor is revolutionizing brand building, and how companies not paying attention to this change in marketing and mission branding are at the verge of obsolescence. Sanders offers practical advice every individual and company can use to make the world a better place–now and in the future.

In Saving the World at Work, Tim Sanders offers concrete suggestions on how all of us can help our companies join the Responsibility Revolution. Drawing on extensive interviews with hundreds of employees and CEOs, and illuminated by countless stories of people who are making a difference in the workplace and in the world,

Tim Sanders is the author of Love Is the Killer App and a top speaker on the lecture circuit. He was the chief solutions officer at Yahoo!Inc. from 2001to 2005, where he worked on next-generation business strategies. He has been featured in Time and USA TODAY, and has appeared on Today, CNN, Fox and Friends, Tucker Carlson, and on national radio.

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook Edited by Jeana Wirtenberg, PhD, William G. Russell, David Lipsky, PhD

J. Byrne Murphy on the Best Ways to Do Business Overseas

klee — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 12:00:10 +0000

When J. Byrne Murphy moved to France in the early 1990s to launch the European division of MacArthur Glen, a company that operates high fashion outlet malls, he was sure the venture would be a slam dunk. The MacArthur Glen concept had been a tremendous success in America, and the fashion loving European market seemed like a natural fit. But, as he describes in his new book, Le Deal: How a Young American, in Business, in Love, and in Over His Head, Kick-Started a Multibillion Dollar Industry in Europe, what Murphy didn’t realize was that he was walking into a political, perfect storm of anti American sentiment and protectionist policies that included the Prime Minister of France declaring a moratorium on all new retail development across the country.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Fundamentals of Purchasing for the New Buyer
* Import/Export Procedures and Documentation

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

John Quelch on Best Marketing Practices in a Recession

klee — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 12:00:03 +0000

John Quelch is the author of Greater Good: How Good Marketing Makes for Better Democracy. John was one of ten marketing experts profiled in the 2007 book, Conversations with Marketing Masters, authored by Laura Mazur and Louella Miles. A professor at Harvard Business School since 1979, he is known worldwide for his research on global marketing, global branding and marketing communications.

John is a non-executive director of WPP Group plc, the world’s second largest marketing services company, and of Pepsi Bottling Group. He served previously as a director of Reebok International.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Fundamentals of Marketing: Your Action Plan for Success
* Measuring and Maximizing Marketing ROI
* AMA’s Advanced Course in Strategic Marketing
* Market Research: How to Get the Right Data to Make the Right Decisions

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Powerhouse Marketing Plans by Winslow “Bud” Johnson
Effective E-Mail Marketing by Herschell Gordon Lewis
Be a Network Marketing Superstar by Mary Christensen, Wayne Christensen

Cass Wheeler on How to Achieve Purpose Beyond Profit

klee — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 12:00:18 +0000

We all know that the definition for success in the corporate world is fairly straightforward. To be considered great, companies first need to turn a profit. For organizations in the social sector, however, the challenge is much bigger. To be truly effective, they must stay relevant and, above all, stay true to their mission. For the past thirty-five years, Cass Wheeler has ensured that the American Heart Association has fulfilled its calling to save lives and educate the public about heart disease by adopting some of the same strategies used in the for-profit sector.

In You’ve Gotta Have Heart, he shows people at all levels of a nonprofit how to make sure their hard work really pays off. Using examples of some of the American Heart Association and others, Wheeler reveals the leadership skills that will help employees, volunteers, and board members excel at their jobs, become good role models, and build a more visionary, creative, and disciplined nonprofit organization.

Cass Wheeler is the longtime Chief Executive Officer of the American Heart Association. Mr. Wheeler is currently on the boards of Partnership for Prevention, NationalCenter for Tobacco-Free Kids, and Research!America. He has been with the AHA for 35 years and served as CEO for 11 of those years.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Developing Executive Leadership

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

You’ve Gotta Have Heart by Cass Wheeler

Geoff Colvin on Why Talent is Overrated

klee — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 12:00:27 +0000

Why are some people – Tiger Woods, Warren Buffett, Yo-Yo Ma – so incredibly accomplished at what they do, while millions of others in those same fields never become very good? Why are some people so extraordinarily creative and innovative? Why can some continue to perform great at ages when conventional wisdom would deem it impossible?

Those are the questions Geoff Colvin set out to answer in Talent is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers From Everybody Else.

Geoff Colvin is a leading thinker, writer, broadcaster, and speaker on today’s most significant trends in business. As a longtime editor and columnist for Fortune Magazine, he has become one of America’s sharpest and most respected commentators on leadership and management, globalization, shareholder value creation, the environmental imperative, and related issues.

Geoff is heard daily across America on the CBS Radio Network, where he reaches 7 million listeners a week and has made more than 10,000 broadcasts. As anchor of Wall Street Week with Fortune on PBS for three years, he spoke each week to the largest audience reached by any business television program in America.

Geoff is an honors graduate of Harvard with a degree in economics, and he holds an MBA from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Developing Executive Leadership

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Becoming an Extraordinary Manager by Leonard Sandler
Working Longer by William J. Rothwell, Harvey Sterns, Diane Spokus, Joel Reaser
Bench Strength by Dr. Robert W. Barner

Ralph Sink on How to Bring Back High-Performance Management

klee — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 12:00:14 +0000

“The high-performance systems approach — also known as self-organizing teams and participative management — endows people throughout an enterprise with the skills, understanding, processes, and authority they need to make their own decisions on behalf of quality and business success, instead of having all the ideas and commands flow from the top,” writes Ralph Sink in his thought-provoking article “My Unfashionable Legacy,” published in Strategy+Business. “Despite the successes of high-performance systems, the concept is less fashionable in management circles than it used to be… The next generation of managers, particularly on the operations and shop-floor side, don’t always have the skills and training to design, create, and lead high-performance systems, and there’s a real danger that this knowledge could be lost entirely. Now is the time for my colleagues and me to cast our minds back and distinguish, once and for all, the factors that made us succeed.”

Ralph Sink is a consultant on high-performance systems who has worked extensively with Charles Krone and is currently an associate with Generon Consulting in Cambridge, Mass. He is a former manufacturing executive and new product development manager at DuPont and the former head of human resources at CPFilms, a division of Solutia.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Coaching and Counseling for Outstanding Job Performance
* The 21st Century Global Leader

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Performance Management Activity Pack by Terry Gillen

John Baldoni on How to Lead by Example

klee — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:00:10 +0000

Taking over the top job, whether it’s the CEO of a company or the manager of a department, is never easy. When done the right way, it results in inspired leadership; when done the wrong way, it can lead to disaster. To be effective, the people in charge must give their team a reason to believe in their talents and their ability to get people to work together.

In Lead by Example, recognized leadership guru John Baldoni reveals the traits and abilities leaders need to know to inspire others to follow them.

John Baldoni is an internationally recognized leadership consultant, speaker, and author of seven books, including Great Communication Secrets of Great Leaders. In 2007, he was named one of the “30 Most Influential Leadership Gurus” by Leadership Gurus International. John’s leadership writings have appeared in BusinessWeek.com, FastCompany.com, and Harvard Business Publishing. He has been featured or quoted in many publications, including the New York Times, USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, and Investor’s Business Daily. Visit him at www.johnbaldoni.com.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program
* Developing Executive Leadership
* Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead
* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Leadership Advantage by Robert M. Fulmer, Jared L. Bleak
The Nature of Leadership by B. Joseph White, Yaron Prywes

Alex Kjerulf on How to Love Your Job, Love Your Life and Excel All Year Long

klee — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 16:27:01 +0000

When people love their jobs, they are more productive, creative and motivated. They’re also happier in life. Similarly, happy companies find they are more efficient, innovative and make more money than their unhappy competitors.

Alex Kjerulf is one of the world’s leading expert on happiness at work. He is the author of Happy Hour is 9 to 5 - How to Love Your Job, Love Your Life and Kick Butt at Work

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Moving Ahead: Breaking Behavior Patterns That Hold You Back
* Igniting Commitment: Engaging Employees for Breakthrough Performance

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Enjoy! 101 Ways to Add Fun to Your Work Every Day by Gini Graham Scott
A Life in Balance by Dr. Kathleen Hall

Marvin Davis on a Take No Prisoners Approach to Excellence

klee — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 12:00:38 +0000

Now more than ever, American companies are experiencing a nagging feeling that they could be doing much better. Globalization, digitization, and the development of cellular technology have increased competition by leaps and bounds. As a consequence, skating by on marginal performance isn’t enough. It’s time for businesses to find the tools that will help them excel. A turnaround expert, Marvin Davis has made a career out of transforming underperforming companies. He assesses their mistakes, issues a diagnosis, and has helped allay the fears of many CEOs across the country—leaving businesses more efficient and ultimately more competitive.

In Take No Prisoners, he gives hard-line, tough-love solutions to the real and difficult problems that hinder profitability. By addressing issues that may at first seem too messy or dangerous, companies can learn how to truly improve performance, increase profits, and boost cash flow. Companies shouldn’t wait until they are in dire straits to make changes; they can alleviate many problems if they act now and meet them head-on. Through real-life examples of corporations who have made these solutions work successfully, Take No Prisoners tells American companies the truth about the state of their business, and how to make it even better.

Marvin A. Davis, CTP is the author of Turnaround , the classic how-to manual on returning businesses to profitability. He has chaired the boards of Simplicity Patterns, Datamax Corporation, and Folger Adams Corporation, and his clients include Advent International Corp., Polaris Capital, and Liberty Partners International Corp., and Liberty Partners.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Planning and Managing Organizational Change
* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Managing Chaos: Tools to Set Priorities and Make Decisions under Pressure

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Take No Prisoners by Marvin Davis
Leading with Kindness by William F. Baker, Michael O’Malley, Ph.D.

Living Rewired and Defeating Distraction

klee — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 12:00:36 +0000

For your holiday listening enjoyment, Edgewise presents a double episode featuring two outstanding interviews on a critical issue: how our ability to think and focus is being radically altered in the Information Age.

Hooked up to the Internet’s global computing grid, massive information processing plants are pumping data and software code into our homes and businesses. It’s a revolution of the kind that hasn’t been seen since electricity became a household utility. Nicholas Carr’s new book The Big Switch examines the promise and the perils of this transformation.

In Distracted, Maggie Jackson warns that modern society’s inability to focus heralds an impending Dark Age—an era historically characterized by the decline of a civilization amid abundance and technological advancement. Jackson posits that our near-religious allegiance to a constant state of motion and addiction to multitasking are eroding our capacity for deep, sustained, perceptive attention—the building block of intimacy, wisdom and cultural progress and stunting society’s ability to comprehend what’s relevant and permanent.

A former executive editor of the Harvard Business Review, Nicholas Carr writes and speaks on technology, business, and culture. His 2004 book Does IT Matter?, published by Harvard Business School Press, set off a worldwide debate about the role of computers in business. His widely acclaimed new book, The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google, examines the rise of “cloud computing” and its implications for business, media and society.

Maggie Jackson is an award-winning author and journalist known for her penetrating coverage of U.S. social issues. She writes the popular “Balancing Acts” column in the Sunday Boston Globe, and her work has also appeared in The New York Times, Gastronomica and on National Public Radio.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Time Management
* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Managing Chaos: Tools to Set Priorities and Make Decisions under Pressure

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Real-World Time Management by Roy Alexander, Michael S. Dobson
Take No Prisoners by Marvin Davis

Quint Studer on Getting Results That Last

klee — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:00:32 +0000

Quint Studer has built a thriving career on helping healthcare companies achieve maximum effectiveness and consistent bottom-line results. Now, in Results That Last, he brings his ideas to the rest of the business world. Studer teaches leaders in every industry how to apply his tactics and strategies to their own organizations to build a corporate culture that consistently reaches and exceeds its goals.

Quint Studer is an acclaimed leadership and healthcare consultant and the founder of the Studer Group, an outcome firm that coaches some 300 hospitals and health systems on achieving operational excellence. He is also the author of the self-published hit Hardwiring Excellence, a book that has more than 200,000 copies currently in circulation.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Strategy Execution: Getting It Done
* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Kirkpatrick’s Four Levels: Increasing Training Effectiveness Through Evaluation
* Planning and Managing Organizational Change

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Lead by Example by John Baldoni
Keeping Employees Accountable for Results by Brian Cole Miller

Dan Carrison on Management Secrets of the FBI

klee — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:44 +0000

In its one hundred-year fight against the ever-changing tactics of organized crime and terrorism, the Federal Bureau of Investigation has learned invaluable lessons about powerful leadership and management. Like many organizations, the FBI must succeed on a global playing field with limited resources; it must deal with unforeseen challenges and long-term strategic threats. Former Marine Dan Carrison has had unprecedented access to the inner workings of the FBI. In his book From the Bureau to the Boardroom, he offers an insider’s look at the Bureau, taking readers behind the scenes of some of the FBI’s most important missions—from infiltrating a world-wide drug cartel to closing in on a terrorist cell.

Dan Carrison is a partner of Semper Fi Consulting (SemperFiConsulting.com) and is the founder of ghostwritersinthesky.com. He is a nationally recognized speaker and business writer and is the coauthor of the best-selling Semper Fi: Business Leadership the Marine Corps Way.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success
* Igniting Commitment: Engaging Employees for Breakthrough Performance
* Improving Your Managerial Effectiveness
* Successfully Managing People

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

From the Bureau to the Boardroom by Dan Carrison
Lead by Example by John Baldoni

Paul Carroll on Learning from the Worst Business Failures

klee — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 12:00:10 +0000

The current conventional wisdom in the business world holds that execution is the key to a successful business strategy. Many experts have gone so far as to say that execution is more important than strategy. But, according to Paul Carroll, the coauthor of Billion-Dollar Lessons and a former Pulitzer Prize nominated journalist for The Wall Street Journal, looking back at the history of business failures teaches us that there are some strategies that are prone to disaster no matter how well they’re executed.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Strategy Execution: Getting It Done
* Launching and Managing Strategic Alliances and Partnerships
* Strategic Planning
* Fundamentals of Strategic Planning

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

Making Sense of Strategy by Tony Manning
The Power of Strategy Innovation by Robert E. Johnston, J. Douglas Bate
Building, Leading, and Managing Strategic Alliances by Fred A. Kuglin, Jeff Hook
Corporate Agility by Charles Grantham, Jim Ware, Cory Williamson
Early Warning: Using Competitive Intelligence to Anticipate Market Shifts, Control Risk, and Create Powerful Strategies by Benjamin Gilad

Jack Mitchell on Why You Should Hug People at Work

klee — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 12:00:33 +0000

We work in a 21st century world where email has replaced conversation, call centers have decamped to India and help lines have turned into a series of automated messages. And while many of us are habitually reaching for our cellphones and blackberries, there remains a part of us that longs for a little, old fashioned human interaction.

Jack Mitchell, co-owner of several well-known and family owned clothing stores is on a crusade to bring back the good, old fashioned hug. His new book, Hug Your People, is poised to continue the revolution that his first title “Hug Your Customers” began five years ago when it became a Wall Street Journal bestseller.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Expanding Your Influence: Understanding the Psychology of Persuasion
* Interpersonal Skills for Managers
* Building Better Work Relationships: New Techniques for Results-oriented Communication
* Successfully Managing People
* IGetting Results Without Authority

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* People Styles at Work by Robert Bolton, Dorothy Grover Bolton

Jack Miller on How to Recession-Proof Your Business

klee — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 12:00:49 +0000

Jack Miller is a prominent Chicago area entrepreneur and philanthropist. He is the founder and former President/CEO of Quill Corporation, which became the nation’s largest independent direct marketer of office products, employing over 1,300 people with annual sales in excess of $630 million before being acquired by Staples, the giant office supply company, in 1998 for $680 million. After the sale of Quill, Mr. Miller became chairman of the Board at Successories Inc. (www.successories.com)a business-to-business mail order firm which he subsequently acquired. He also focuses on real estate development and investment at Millbrook Properties and The Benida Group. Mr. Miller graduated from the University of Illinois with a degree in Journalism.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Igniting Commitment: Engaging Employees for Breakthrough Performance

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* One Foot Out the Door by Judith M. Bardwick, Ph.D.

Michael Lee Stallard on How to Fire Up Your Team’s Passion, Creativity and Productivity

klee — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 12:00:50 +0000

Employee disengagement is a widespread malady in today’s organizations, causing the loss of billions of dollars, hours of dissatisfaction and work lives lacking true value. Scientific research has validated the powerful effect of emotional connections on human beings. When individuals feel a connection with their organization’s identity, their colleagues and their day-to-day tasks, it fires them up.

Michael Lee Stallard, president of the consulting firm E Pluribus Partners and primary author of Fired Up or Burned Out, explains the ins and outs of Connection Cultures. “Connection Cultures” meet universal human emotional needs and they are ultimately grounded in the character values positive psychologists have identified as being universal. To attract, engage and retain the employees needed to meet growth opportunities, organizations must unleash the force of connection.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead (Course #2536)
* AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program (Course #2104)
* Leading with Emotional Intelligence (Course #2133)
* The Voice of Leadership (Course #2130)
* Igniting Commitment (Course #2276)

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

The Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook Edited by Jeana Wirtenberg, PhD, William G. Russell, David Lipsky, PhD
* Leading with Kindness, by William F. Baker and Michael O’Malley
* Myself and Other More Important Matters, by Charles Handy
* The Nature of Leadership: Reptiles, Mammals, and the Challenge of Becoming a Great Leader, by B. Joseph White with Yaron Prywes

Leonard Berry and Kent Seltman on Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic

klee — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 12:00:45 +0000

The Mayo Clinic is one of the world’s most prestigious organizations, one that fosters a culture that exceeds customer expectations and earns deep loyalty from both customers and employees.

Service business authority Leonard Berry and Mayo Clinic marketing administrator Kent Seltman had the rare opportunity to study Mayo Clinic’s service culture and systems from the inside by conducting personal interviews as well as observing hundreds of clinician-patient interactions. The result is Management Lessons from Mayo Clinic, a book about how the Clinic’s business concept produces stellar clinical results, organizational efficiency, and interpersonal service.

Leonard Berry, PhD, is Distinguished Professor of Marketing, and holds the M.B. Zale Chair in Retailing and Marketing Leadership in the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University. He is also Professor of Humanities in Medicine, College of Medicine, Texas A&M Health Science Center. Dr. Berry is the author of several service quality bestsellers and the recipient of the 2007 American Marketing Association/Irwin/McGraw-Hill Distinguished Marketing Educator Award and the 2008 Paul D. Converse Award.

Kent Seltman, PhD, served as director of marketing at Mayo Clinic from 1992 through 2006. With more than 25 years of experience in healthcare marketing, Dr. Seltman writes and lectures frequently on marketing and branding. He also served as editor of Marketing Health Services, published by the American Marketing Association.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence, and Achieve Results (#2130)
* Igniting Commitment (#2276)
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success (#2239)
* Leading with Emotional Intelligence (Course #2133)

Tim Sanders on How to Save the World From Your Office

klee — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 12:00:36 +0000

Every one of us, regardless of title or position, can inspire our companies to change the way they do business, helping them to become a positive force for enriching people, communities, and the environment. When this happens, not only do we help save the world, we help save our companies from becoming irrelevant. Companies that don’t participate in this revolution risk becoming obsolete.

In Saving the World at Work, Tim Sanders offers concrete suggestions on how all of us can help our companies join the Responsibility Revolution. Drawing on extensive interviews with hundreds of employees and CEOs, and illuminated by countless stories of people who are making a difference in the workplace and in the world, Sanders offers practical advice every individual and company can use to make the world a better place–now and in the future.

Tim Sanders is the author of Love Is the Killer App and a top speaker on the lecture circuit. He was the chief solutions officer at Yahoo!Inc. from 2001to 2005, where he worked on next-generation business strategies. He has been featured in Time and USA TODAY, and has appeared on Today, CNN, Fox and Friends, Tucker Carlson, and on national radio.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* AMA’s Green Leadership

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook Edited by Jeana Wirtenberg, PhD, William G. Russell, David Lipsky, PhD

Bill George on Finding Your True North

klee — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 12:00:54 +0000

As former President and CEO of Medtronic, now a professor at Harvard, Bill George has paved his own path to success. If you ask him what’s his secret, he’ll tell you it’s about “finding your True North,” which also happens to be the title of his new book. A companion guide to his best seller True North, Finding Your True North offers methods for personal reflection and includes targeted exercises that help leaders hone in on the purpose of their leadership and the development of their authentic leadership skills.

Bill George is Professor of Management Practice at Harvard Business School, where he is teaching leadership and leadership development along with several executive education programs. His previous two books, True North: Discover Your Authentic Leadership and Authentic Leadership: Rediscovering the Secrets to Creating Lasting Value, were also best-sellers.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

Advanced Leadership Communication Strategy
Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead
AMA’s Advanced Executive Leadership Program
Leading with Emotional Intelligence
The Voice of Leadership: How Leaders Inspire, Influence and Achieve Results

For related reading from AMACOM Books:

The Nature of Leadership: Reptiles, Mammals, and the Challenge of Becoming a Great Leader

Jim Champy on How to Outsmart Your Competition

klee — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 12:00:33 +0000

Jim Champy inspired legions of business leaders with his bestseller Reengineering the Corporation. In his new book Outsmart!, Champy describes nine companies that have achieved breakthrough growth by consistently outsmarting the competition. Champy tells their fascinating success stories, revealing powerful, counterintuitive strategies for finding distinctive market positions and sustainable advantages for growth rates.

Jim Champy is chairman of Perot Systems Corporation’s consulting practice and head of strategy for the company.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Driving Organic Growth
* Selling Your Competitive Advantage
* Strategic Planning

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Leadership Advantage, by Robert M. Fulmer, Jared L. Bleak

Marilyn Carlson Nelson on How We Lead Matters

dsohn — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 12:00:17 +0000

As a daughter, wife, mother, and grandmother, Marilyn has always put people first. This multi-faceted woman also happens to be one of the most successful CEOs in the world. In this conversation, she shares her thoughts on the role of women in leadership and the importance of believing in yourself.

Marilyn Carlson Nelson is chairman and CEO of Carlson, a global group of companies providing travel, hotel, cruise, restaurant, and marketing services, including such brands as Radisson® and Regent® hotels and resorts, Country Inns and Suites By CarlsonSM, Park Inn® and Park Plaza® hotels, Regent Seven Seas Cruises®, Carlson Wagonlit Travel®, Carlson Marketing®, and T.G.I. Friday’s® restaurants. She is the author of How We Lead Matters, Reflections on a Life of Leadership.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

Preparing for Leadership: What It Takes to Take the Lead
AMA’s 5-Day “MBA” Workshop
Communication Strategies for Women
Assertiveness Training for Women in Business

For related reading from AMACOM Books:

The Girls’ Guide to Building a Million-Dollar Business By Susan Wilson Solovic, Michael E. Gerber
The Girls’ Guide to Power and Success By Susan Wilson Solovic
Don’t Think Pink By Lisa Johnson, Andrea Learned

John Mariotti on Conquering the Complexity Crisis

klee — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 12:00:35 +0000

In the quest to grow their business in flat or declining markets, many companies have created dozens of new products and services to increase their customer, vendor, and marketplace relationships. But even as top-line revenues go up, this rising tide of complexity is drowning bottom-line profits.

In his book The Complexity Crisis, management consultant John L. Mariotti looks at how companies can truly evaluate their cost and management systems in order to clear away complexity–and conquer the competition.

JOHN L. MARIOTTI is president and founder of the Enterprise Group, a coalition of executive advisors. As the former president of Rubbermaid Office Products Group, he led a multinational group of nine divisions in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia. He’s also a former management consultant and contributing editor for Industry Week magazine.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* The 21st Century Global Leader

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Bigger Isn’t Always Better, by Robert M. Tomasko
* Going Lean, by Stephen A. Ruffa

Adam Gordon on Being Future Savvy

klee — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 12:00:10 +0000

In order to succeed in their industries, decision-makers today need to anticipate the future outcomes not only in their own industry but also in society and technology as well. Futures analyst Adam Gordon has spent a lifetime deciphering changes and trends in a variety of industries. His book Future Savvy (AMACOM) is a hands-on guide for how to evaluate the business, social, and technology forecasts in both the mainstream media and specialized reporting.

Adam Gordon MS, MBA (INSEAD) is an acknowledged and credentialed expert in the field of industry foresight and future studies. He has been an analyst, consultant, facilitator, and teacher in this field during the past dozen years, during which he has developed various foresight projects to help private and public-sector organizations anticipate and respond to emerging opportunities. Gordon has appeared on NPR’s Morning Edition and CNN World Report, in addition to a number of radio shows worldwide. He has written many op-ed pieces and has been featured or serialized in various newspapers, including, most recently, The Times (London). As the director of The Future Studio, he facilitates industry foresight seminars, and teaches strategic planning in various prominent executive and MBA programs around the world. He was previously a Senior Associate at Coates & Jarratt, Inc., a future strategy consulting firm in Washington, DC., and before that, a journalist at Business Report.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Strategic Agility and Resilience: Embracing Change to Drive Growth
* Planning and Managing Organizational Change
* Green Leadership

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Future Savvy, by Adam Gordon
* Future, Inc., by Eric Garland
* Shaping the Future, by William P. Belgard, Steven R. Rayner

John Kotter on Using Urgency to Your Advantage

klee — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 12:00:04 +0000

Most organizational change initiatives fail spectacularly (at worst) or deliver lukewarm results (at best). In his international bestseller Leading Change, John Kotter revealed why change is so hard, and provided an actionable, eight-step process for implementing successful transformations. The book became the change bible for managers worldwide. Now, in his new book, A Sense of Urgency, Kotter shines the spotlight on the crucial first step in his framework: creating a sense of urgency by getting people to actually see and feel the need for change.

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

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Strategic Agility and Resilience: Embracing Change to Drive Growth
* Planning and Managing Organizational Change
* Time Management

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Why Some Companies Emerge Stronger and Better from a Crisis, by Ian I. Mitroff

Nancy Tennant Snyder on Unleashing Innovation at Whirlpool

dsohn — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 12:00:34 +0000

Nancy Tennant Snyder’s new book Unleashing Innovation tells the inside story of one of the most successful innovation turnarounds in American history. Co-written with Deborah L. Duarte, Snyder reveals how Whirlpool undertook one of the largest change efforts in corporate history and show how innovation was embedded throughout the company, which ultimately led to bottom-line results.

Nancy Tennant Snyder is corporate vice president for leadership and strategic competencies for Whirlpool Corporation, reporting to the chairman and CEO, Jeff M. Fettig. BusinessWeek named her one of twenty-five Innovation Champions in the world.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Creativity and Innovation: Unleash Your Potential for Greater Success
* Planning and Developing New Products
* High-Impact Decision Making: Reducing Risks, Maximizing Results
* Moving from an Operational Manager to a Strategic Thinker

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Getting to Innovation: How Asking the Right Questions Generates the Great Ideas Your Company Needs, by Arthur B. VanGundy
* The Power of Strategy Innovation: A New Way of Linking Creativity and Strategic Planning to Discover Great Business Opportunities, by Robert E. Johnston, J. Douglas Bate
* The Innovation Killer: How What We Know Limits What We Can Imagine — and What Smart Companies Are Doing About It, by Cynthia Barton Rabe
* Something Really New: Three Simple Steps to Creating Truly Innovative Products, by Denis J. Hauptly
* The Seeds of Innovation, by Elaine Dundon

Howard Guttman on Building High-Performance Teams

klee — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 12:00:40 +0000

Standout performance is what it takes to be a top business team. In Great Business Teams, Howard Guttman examines the inner workings of over 30 business teams, at top-management, business-unit, and functional levels, to offer a radically new vision of the emerging horizontal organization and of the high-performing teams that are the cornerstone of its success. Using an impressive array of real-life examples drawn from his extensive consulting experience and research, Guttman isolates five key factors that drive up team performance and, in the process, challenges prevailing notions of team leadership, membership, accountability, decision making, and conflict, replacing them with a fresh and dynamic approach to achieving better results.

Howard M. Guttman is Principal of Guttman Development Strategies, Inc. (GDS), a New Jersey-based management consulting firm specializing in building high-performance teams, executive coaching, and strategic and operational alignment. GDS works primarily with senior management at companies such as Chico’s FAS, Inc.; Colgate-Palmolive; John Hancock; Johnson & Johnson; Liz Claiborne; L’Oreal USA; Mars Inc.; Novartis; PepsiCo; and Philip Morris USA.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success
* Project Team Leadership: Building Commitment Through Superior Communication
* Leading Virtual and Remote Teams
* Leadership Skills and Team Development for IT and Technical Professionals
* Motivating and Coaching Your Sales Team: The Tools for Success

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* Team Workout, by Glenn Parker, Richard Kropp
* The Team-Building Tool Kit, by Deborah Mackin, Deborah Harrington-Mackin
* The First-Time Manager’s Guide to Team Building, by Gary Topchik

Robert Bloom on Finding Your Company’s Inside Advantage

klee — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 12:00:53 +0000

Every enterprise has at least one strategic asset-one existing strength-that can form the foundation for future growth. Finding this hidden potential and becoming well known for it will grow the business. Robert H. Bloom calls this the Inside Advantage, which happens to be the title of his new book.

As US Chairman and CEO of Publicis Worldwide, the centerpiece of the $4.6 billion global marketing services company, Bloom helped craft and implement the growth strategies of some of the world’s largest companies and brands. At Publicis, Bloom managed over 1000 employees, 12 US offices, and a roster of clients including BMW, L’Oreal, Nestle’, TGI Friday’s, Whirlpool, Zales Jewelers, and T-Mobile.

He directed the launch of numerous brands that have become household names such as Southwest Airlines, Nestle’ Juicy-Juice, T-Mobile US, Novartis’ Theraflu and Triaminic.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Selling Your Competitive Advantage
* Strategic Planning
* Planning and Managing Organizational Change

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Leadership Advantage, by Robert M. Fulmer, Jared L. Bleak

Terrence Gargiulo on Taming Difficult People

klee — Fri, 15 Aug 2008 12:00:35 +0000

From Tibet to Mexico to the Balkans, every culture has its own cherished folktales. While originally made up to reinforce morals and good behavior, these stories aren’t just for kids. Many fables featuring whimsical creatures and talking animals have much to teach grownups about handling slackers, connivers, ogres, and other dreaded real-life figures in our workplace.

In the Land of Difficult People: 24 Timeless Tales Reveal How to Tame the Beasts at Work (AMACOM 2008) by Terrence L. Gargiulo and Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D. presents 24 fables taken from around the world, each exemplifying the best methods to use when dealing with the different kinds of difficult people at work. Gathered from around the world—China, Japan, Persia, Morocco, Denmark, Germany, France, Russia, and other countries, as well as Celtic and Native American traditions—these treasured yarns offer valuable lessons for anyone with interpersonal troubles on the job. After each tale, Gargiulo and Scott provide a brief analysis, drawing parallels between the fable’s animals and real world behavior that wreaks havoc on organizations. They wrap up with a list of practical tips and proven tactics for dealing with domineering supervisors, destructive colleagues, and overly independent employees. The book introduces eight common types of personalities who make work a nightmare.

Terrence L. Gargiulo, President of MakingStories.net, is a speaker and consultant on the role of narrative in organizations, whose clients include Coca-Cola, GM, the Harvard Business School, and the US Coast Guard. He is also the author of On Cloud Nine: Weathering the Challenge of Many Generations in the Workplace. He lives in Monterey, California. Gini Graham Scott, Ph.D., is the founder and director of Changemakers. She has written numerous books, including A Survival Guide for Working with Humans and A Survival Guide to Managing Employees from Hell. She makes her home in Oakland and Santa Monica, California.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Standing Strong in Difficult Workplace Situations
* Responding to Conflict: Strategies for Improved Communication
* Leadership and Team Development for Managerial Success
* Interpersonal Skills for Managers
* Successfully Managing People

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* In the Land of Difficult People, by Terrence L. Gargiulo, Gini Graham Scott
* Working with Difficult People, by Michael S. Dobson, William Lundin, Ph.D., Kathleen Lundin
* The Boss from Outer Space and Other Aliens at Work, by Patricia J. Addesso
* A Survival Guide for Working with Humans, by Gini Graham Scott
* No!: How One Simple Word Can Transform Your Life, by Jana Kemp

Beverly Kaye on Keeping Ideal People in the Workplace

klee — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:38:35 +0000

With every employee who walks out the door costing the company up to 200 percent of their annual salary to replace, retention is one of the most important issues facing businesses today. Because finding the ideal person for every workplace position has become an increasingly difficult task, the retention of top employees has become every manager’s concern. Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em, by organizational-development specialists Beverly L. Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans, proposes that this “race for talent” can be effectively run only by those who adopt programs and policies that truly support their personnel.

Beverly Kaye, president of Beverly Kaye & Associates, Inc., is an organizational consultant with over 20 years of experience in career development, management training, and human resource planning. She is also the president of Career Systems International, a career development publishing company, the author of Up Is Not the Only Way, and the coauthor of Designing Career Development Systems. She is coauthor, with Sharon Jordan-Evans, of Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Igniting Commitment: Engaging Employees for Breakthrough Performance
* Talent Management
* Essentials of Human Resources Management
* Employee Retention Strategies: Fighting Turnover
* Successfully Managing People

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Loyalty Advantage, by Dianne Michonski Durkin
* Bench Strength, by Dr. Robert W. Barner
* The Leadership Advantage, by Robert M. Fulmer, Jared L. Bleak
* Strategic Staffing, by Thomas P. Bechet
* The Employee Recruitment and Retention Handbook, by Diane Arthur

Edward Lawler on Making People Your Competitive Advantage

klee — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 12:00:00 +0000

In today’s global business environment, it’s more and more difficult to gain a competitive edge, but it’s not impossible. Talent, potentially the most powerful source of competitive advantage, is available. In Talent: Making People Your Competitive Advantage, the follow up to his best selling book, Built To Change, Edward Lawler shows how organizations can combine the right organization design, management practices, and talent to gain a critical performance edge.

Edward E. Lawler III is Distinguished Professor of Business at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business and founder and director of the University’s Center for Effective Organizations (CEO). CEO has been recognized by Fortune and other publications as one of the country’s leading management research organizations.

BusinessWeek has proclaimed Lawler one of the top six gurus in the field of management, and Human Resource Executive called him one of HR’s most influential people. Workforce magazine identified him as one of the twentyfive visionaries who have shaped today’s workplace over the past century.

Professor Lawler is the author and co-author of 43 books. His most recent works include Talent: Making People Your Competitive Advantage and Built to Change: How to Achieve Sustained Organizational Effectiveness, which was co-authored with Christopher G. Worley.

Professor Lawler is the recipient of many awards including SHRM’s Michael R. Losey award for which he was the first recipient. He is also a consultant to many governments and corporations including the majority of the Fortune 100.

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* Talent Management
* Essentials of Human Resources Management
* Employee Retention Strategies: Fighting Turnover
* Successfully Managing People
* Planning and Managing Organizational Change

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The AMA Guide to Management Development, by Daniel R. Tobin, Ph.D., Margaret Pettingell
* Bench Strength, by Dr. Robert W. Barner
* Working Longer, by William J. Rothwell, Harvey Sterns, Diane Spokus, Joel Reaser
* Strategic Staffing, by Thomas P. Bechet

Peter Senge on the Necessary Revolution in Business

klee — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:19:29 +0000

Imagine a world in which the excess energy from one business would be used to power another. A world in which environmentally sound products and processes would be more cost-effective than wasteful ones. A world in which corporations forming partnerships with environmental and social justice organizations to ensure better stewardship of the earth and development of societies all over the world. Now, stop imagining – that world is already emerging.

As Peter Senge and his co-authors reveal in The Necessary Revolution, companies around the world are boldly leading the change from dead-end “business as usual” tactics to transformative strategies that are essential for creating a flourishing, sustainable world.

Peter Senge is senior lecturer at MIT and the founding chair of the Society for Organizational Learning. He was named as one of the 24 people who had “the greatest influence on business strategy over the last 100 years” by the Journal of Business Strategy. Senge is an author or co-author of several bestselling books, including The Fifth Discipline, Schools That Learn, and Presence. BRYAN SMITH, coauthor with Senge of The Dance of Change and two other Fifth Discipline fieldbooks, is a member of the faculty at York University’s Sustainable Enterprise Academy, and president of Broad Reach Innovations, Inc..

For additional training on this topic, consider these AMA seminars:

* AMA’s Green Leadership: Implementing Sustainability Strategies

To learn more, read these AMACOM Books:

* The Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook by Jeana Wirtenberg
* Investing in a Sustainable World by Matthew J. Kiernan