How maverick companies have passed up the growth treadmill -- and focused on greatness instead. It's an axiom of business that great companies grow their revenues and profits year after year. Yet quietly, under the radar, a small number of companies have rejected the pressure of endless growth to focus on more satisfying business goals. Goals like being great at what they do, creating a great place to work, providing great customer service, making great contributions to their communities, and finding great ways to lead their lives. In Small Giants, veteran journalist Bo Burlingham takes us deep inside fourteen remarkable companies that have chosen to march to their own drummer. They include Anchor Brewing, the original microbrewer; CitiStorage Inc., the premier independent records-storage business; Clif Bar & Co., maker of organic energy bars and other nutrition foods; Righteous Babe Records, the record company founded by singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco; Union Square Hospitality Group, the company of restaurateur Danny Meyer; and Zingerman's Community of Businesses, including the world-famous Zingerman's Deli of Ann Arbor. Burlingham shows how the leaders of these small giants recognized the full range of choices they had about the type of company they could create. And he shows how we can all benefit by questioning the usual definitions of business success. In his new afterward, Burlingham reflects on the similarities and learning lessons from the small giants he covers in the book. From the Hardcover edition.
More than 5,000 terms related to stocks, bonds, mutual funds, banking, tax laws, and transactions in the various financial markets are presented alphabetically with descriptions. The new ninth edition has been updated to take account of new financial regulations and recent dramatic swings in equities, credit, and other financial developments. Readers will also find a list of financial abbreviations and acronyms, as well as illustrative diagrams and charts. Here's a valuable, thorough dictionary for business students, financial professionals, or private investors.
Leading innovation expert Alec Ross explains what's next for the world: the advances and stumbling blocks that will emerge in the next ten years, and how we can navigate them. While Alec Ross was working as Senior Advisor for Innovation to the Secretary of State, he traveled to forty-one countries, exploring the latest advances coming out of every continent. From startup hubs in Kenya to R&D labs in South Korea, Ross has seen what the future holds. In The Industries of the Future, Ross shows us what changes are coming in the next ten years, highlighting the best opportunities for progress and explaining why countries thrive or sputter. He examines the specific fields that will most shape our economic future, including robotics, cybersecurity, the commercialization of genomics, the next step for big data, and the coming impact of digital technology on money and markets. In each of these realms, Ross addresses the toughest questions: How will we adapt to the changing nature of work? Is the prospect of cyberwar sparking the next arms race? How can the world's rising nations hope to match Silicon Valley in creating their own innovation hotspots? And what can today';s parents do to prepare their children for tomorrow? Ross blends storytelling and economic analysis to give a vivid and informed perspective on how sweeping global trends are affecting the ways we live. Incorporating the insights of leaders ranging from tech moguls to defense experts, The Industries of the Future takes the intimidating, complex topics that many of us know to be important and boils them down into clear, plainspoken language. This is an essential book for understanding how the world works now and tomorrow; and a must-read for businesspeople in every sector, from every country.
Stroll through the past and learn the fusion of pop culture and business. One of the legends of both writes fondly about the others. From Walt Disney to Bill Gates, from Burt Bacharach to Howard Hughes, from Steven Spielberg to John D. Rockefeller, and from Col. Harland Sanders to Steve Jobs, this is the comprehensive study of pop icons, historical innovations and business pioneers. "Pop Icons and Business Legends" embraces the past, with direct relationship to the future. Enjoy this first hybrid book, and embrace the excitement of society's next new plateau. This is history, cultural enlightenment and business innovation, all rolled in one, plus a dynamic panorama of non-profit and humanitarian contributions to society. "How can one person with so much insight into cultural history and nostalgia be such a visionary of business and organizations? Hank Moore is one of the few who understands the connection." --- Dick Clark, TV icon "Hank Moore's Business Tree(tm) is the most original business model of the last 50 years." --- Peter Drucker, business visionary "Always ahead of the trends, Hank Moore's insights are deep, applicable beyond the obvious." --- Lady Bird Johnson, former First Lady of the United States
"Reading Originals made me feel like I was seated across from Adam Grant at a dinner party, as one of my favorite thinkers thrilled me with his insights and his wonderfully new take on the world." --Malcolm Gladwell, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Outliers and The Tipping Point "Originals is one of the most important and captivating books I have ever read, full of surprising and powerful ideas. It will not only change the way you see the world; it might just change the way you live your life. And it could very well inspire you to change your world." --Sheryl Sandberg, chief operating officer of Facebook and #1 New York Times bestselling author of Lean In The New York Times bestselling author of Give and Take examines how people can champion new ideas--and how leaders can encourage originality in their organizations With Give and Take, Adam Grant not only introduced a landmark new paradigm for success but also established himself as one of his generation's most compelling and provocative thought leaders. In Originals he again addresses the challenge of improving the world, but now from the perspective of becoming original: choosing to champion novel ideas and values that go against the grain, battle conformity, and buck outdated traditions. How can we originate new ideas, policies, and practices without risking it all? Using surprising studies and stories spanning business, politics, sports, and entertainment, Grant explores how to recognize a good idea, speak up without getting silenced, build a coalition of allies, choose the right time to act, and manage fear and doubt; how parents and teachers can nurture originality in children; and how leaders can fight groupthink to build cultures that welcome dissent. Learn from an entrepreneur who pitches his start-ups by highlighting the reasons not to invest, a woman at Apple who challenged Steve Jobs from three levels below, an analyst who overturned the rule of secrecy at the CIA, a billionaire financial wizard who fires employees for failing to criticize him, and a TV executive who didn't even work in comedy but saved Seinfeld from the cutting-room floor. The payoff is a set of groundbreaking insights about rejecting conformity and improving the status quo.
What is the connection between literature and leadership? Are leaders born or are they made? Elizabeth D. Samet, the author of the award-winning Soldier s Heart and a professor of English at West Point, brings to this anthology her profound experiences as a teacher of soldiers, her discerning ear for excellent writing, and her belief in the vital role of the humanities in cultivating leaders. Great writers and thinkers in conversation that is what makes Samet s approach distinctive. Samet organizes the writings around the essence of leadership the insights, skills, and actions that effective leaders, with time and experience, learn to live by. What are these insights, skills, and actions? Newcomers to any organization must first study the system, then find and emulate models, risk change, cultivate trust, negotiate, take responsibility, learn from failure, learn to resist, innovate, discipline desire, and eventually let go. These ideas, brought to life in selections written by or about unforgettable leaders be they heroic, quixotic, or villainous shape the book. Machiavelli, Macbeth, and Milosz, Ghandi and Gawande, Douglass and Didion are just a sampling of the 102 writers and works included. Readers of Leadership will enjoy its sheer variety at the same time that they enter a thought-provoking, often moving conversation that is both ancient and crucially current."
Paul Silberberg worked exclusively in the ultra-high net worth market. "Inc. Magazine" once called it "The Ultimate Investment Club for Entrepreneurs." For almost five decades, this "club" included hundreds of successful entrepreneurs, including some of the most prominent in the United States. Most of these entrepreneurs attribute a large part of their success to good luck, fortuity, and being at the right place at the right time. They recognize opportunity when it knocks, and follow their instincts with passion. They take risks. They persist. They capitalize on certain innate talents, and practice skills that do not come naturally to them.These Entrepreneurs have amazing stories, which they allow Silberberg to share with you in Ethical Entrepreneur. Their stories are part of his story, and these stories should help illuminate for you the "right" path to build entrepreneurial wealth. Both Silberberg's experience, and research, indicate that it's in your own self-interest to do it the right way, right from the beginning.
This essential handbook offers art professionals and collectors an accessible legal analysis of important principles in art law, as well as a practical guide to legal rights when creating, buying, selling and collecting art in a global market. Although the book is international in scope, there is a particular focus on the US as a major art centre and the site of countless key international court cases. This authoritative but accessible and wide-ranging volume is essential reading for arts advisors, collectors, dealers, auction houses, museums, investors, artists, attorneys and students of art and law.
(Berklee Guide). Organize and manage your music projects! Whether you are a performer, writer, engineer, educator, manager, or music maker, these time-tested charts, plots, diagrams, checklists, and agreements will help make your work easier and better. These forms will help you clarify your work, track critical details, and maintain quality control. Each one includes explanation about how it is used, a key to related symbols and terms, and any common variations. You will find forms for: * Performance, to help you book, organize, and manage concerts and gigs (stage plots, set lists, booking request sheets) * Touring (tour itinerary, checklist, assets inventory) * Technology, to help you manage recording sessions, track gear, and label media (archive sheets, mic input diagrams, take sheets) * Writing songs, compositions and film scores, supporting both creative and business dimensions of the work (split sheets, spotting notes, cue sheets) * Business, including agreements, project management tools, and financial management (booking sheets, tour budget, profit/loss form) * Teaching (audition rating sheet, practice log, lesson plan) Also included are different types of notation formats, and some tips for creating your own forms.
From formal reports to everyday e-mails, The Business Writer’s Handbook uses smart, accessible language to spotlight and clarify the ways we write today. Hundreds of topic entries, 90+ sample documents, at-a-glance checklists, and dynamic videos break down the best-practices, models, and real-world skills that successful writers use to communicate clearly and persuasively.Developed by a legendary author team with decades of combined academic and professional experience, the book’s intuitive, alphabetical organization makes it easy to navigate its extensive coverage of grammar, usage, and style. Plus, updated, in-depth treatment of pressing issues like the job search, the writing process, documenting sources, and social media resonates both in class and on the job. With a refreshed, integrated focus on the ways technologies shape writing, the Eleventh Edition of the Handbook is the indispensable reference tool for writing successfully in the workplace.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER WALL STREET JOURNAL BESTSELLER From the visionary head of Google's innovative People Operations comes a groundbreaking inquiry into the philosophy of work-and a blueprint for attracting the most spectacular talent to your business and ensuring that they succeed. "We spend more time working than doing anything else in life. It's not right that the experience of work should be so demotivating and dehumanizing." So says Laszlo Bock, head of People Operations at the company that transformed how the world interacts with knowledge. This insight is the heart of WORK RULES!, a compelling and surprisingly playful manifesto that offers lessons including: Take away managers' power over employees Learn from your best employees-and your worst Hire only people who are smarter than you are, no matter how long it takes to find them Pay unfairly (it's more fair!) Don't trust your gut: Use data to predict and shape the future Default to open-be transparent and welcome feedback If you're comfortable with the amount of freedom you've given your employees, you haven't gone far enough. Drawing on the latest research in behavioral economics and a profound grasp of human psychology, WORK RULES! also provides teaching examples from a range of industries-including lauded companies that happen to be hideous places to work and little-known companies that achieve spectacular results by valuing and listening to their employees. Bock takes us inside one of history's most explosively successful businesses to reveal why Google is consistently rated one of the best places to work in the world, distilling 15 years of intensive worker R&D into principles that are easy to put into action, whether you're a team of one or a team of thousands. WORK RULES! shows how to strike a balance between creativity and structure, leading to success you can measure in quality of life as well as market share. Read it to build a better company from within rather than from above; read it to reawaken your joy in what you do.
Create real change in the new social movement paradigm Social Movements for Good is a guidebook for driving change, by taking advantage of the social "currency" that makes movements go viral. Author Derrick Feldmann has spent a career showing organizations how to best reach donors, activists, and employees, and engage a new generation of supporters. In this book, he shares his secrets alongside the stories of today's most successful social good movements by companies and nonprofits. You'll learn about the leaders behind these movements, the individuals who responded, and the approaches that made it work. Modern social movements operate within a new paradigm, and this informative guide walks you through how these movements are created, why people get on board, and the strategy and support network that must be in place for it to succeed. Just going viral isn't enough to make a movement successful-there must be a plan, and the right people with the right skills to follow through with the execution. This book shows you who you need on your side, what they need to do their jobs, and which tools and methods are proving most effective every day. Read the stories of today's most successful social good movements Understand how modern social movements are created Learn how to truly activate a new generation of activists and supporters Formulate an approach that makes the public respond to your issue Effective social movements don't arise by accident. People don't spontaneously come together and effect real change. If you want your movement to succeed, you need a solid strategy and the tools to follow through. Social Movements for Good is your roadmap to viral success and the advancement of your cause.
Plunkett's Companion to the Almanac of American Employers is the perfect complement to the highly-regarded main volume of The Almanac of American Employers. This mid-size firms companion book covers employers of all types from 100 to 2,500 employees in size (while the main volume covers companies of 2,500 or more employees). No other source provides this book's easy-to-understand comparisons of growth, corporate culture, salaries, benefits, pension plans and profit sharing at mid-size corporations. The book contains profiles of highly successful companies that are of vital importance to job-seekers of all types. You'll see the financial record of each firm, along with the impact of earnings, sales and growth plans on each company's potential to provide a lucrative and lasting employment opportunity. Tens of thousands of pieces of information have been researched for each corporation and are presented in a format that can be easily understood by job seekers. Includes employer research tips, employment trends and job market statistics. Purchasers will find a form in the book enabling them to register for 1-year, 1-seat online access to tools at Plunkett Research Online, including the ability to view the market research/industry trends section and industry statistics. You have access, at no additional charge, to the very latest data posted to Plunkett Research Online. Online tools enable you to search and view selected companies, and then export selected company contact data, including executive names. You'll find a complete overview, industry analysis and market research report in one superb, value-priced package.
Looking for jobs and careers with top American employers - the companies that are recruiting and hiring today? Job seekers rely on our complete profiles of the 500 fastest-growing, major corporate employers in America today - companies creating the best job opportunities. This reference book includes hard-to-find information, such as benefit plans, stock plans, salaries, hiring and recruiting plans, training and corporate culture, growth, new facilities, research & development, fax numbers and Internet addresses. We rate over 100 firms as "Hot Spots" for advancement opportunities for women and minorities. In addition, The Almanac of American Employers includes a job market trends analysis and 7 Keys For Research. We give indices by career type, locations, industry and more. Whether you're a new college graduate seeking the best salaries, training and advancement opportunities, or an experienced executive, this will be your complete reference to today's hottest companies. Purchasers will find a form in the front of the book enabling them to register for 1-year, 1-seat online access to special tools at Plunkett Research Online, including the ability to view the market research/industry trends section and industry statistics. In this manner, you have online access, at no additional charge, to the very latest data posted to Plunkett Research Online. Online tools will enable you to search, filter and view selected companies, and then to export selected company contact data, including executive names. You'll find a complete overview, industry analysis and market research report in one superb, value-priced package.
Just because you're not a born writer doesn't mean you should settle for less than perfect business documents. After all, every piece you write reflects directly on the quality of the product or service your business offers. Now, this helpful guide takes the guesswork out of more than 50 commonly used business documents, including: Reports; Proposals ; Business plans; Presentations; Press releases; Memos; Email; Newsletters ; Collection Letters; Sales materials; And more Arranged alphabetically and cross-referenced for easier use, the book presents clear examples of how to (and how not to) create winning materials every time. The authors' step-by-step instructions begin with an overview of the writing process, from preparation and research right through to final review and publication. Sample documents show you how your pieces should look and read, and close to 300 individual entries cover key points of grammar, style and spelling, and present strategies for writing more clearly, avoiding bias, eliminating cliches, and much more.
CEOs and business leaders share their top picks in business books and reading.
The cofounder of Microsoft, Bill Gates helped transform society by ushering in the era of ubiquitous personal computing. This book examines the life and achievements of this standout American inventor and philanthropist.
From the author of the bestselling biographies of Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein, this is the exclusive, New York Times bestselling biography of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs. Based on more than forty interviews with Jobs conducted over two years;as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues.
Following his blockbuster biography of Steve Jobs, The Innovators is Walter Isaacson's revealing story of the people who created the computer and the Internet. It is destined to be the standard history of the digital revolution and an indispensable guide to how innovation really happens.
The personally revealing and complete biography of the man known everywhere as "The Oracle of Omaha."
Amazon.com's visionary founder, Jeff Bezos, wasn't content with being a bookseller. He wanted Amazon to become the everything store, offering limitless selection and seductive convenience at disruptively low prices. To do so, he developed a corporate culture of relentless ambition and secrecy that's never been cracked. Until now.
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and board chairman Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company's early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.