Organizations Books

A must read for any activists. Easy to understand and yet effective.

This is the how-to book I wish I had written. It's perfect for activists, charities, government agencies, even PTAs! No one can sell an idea or cause better than the person who believes in it--this book gives you the basics and more on how to get your campaign or event in the news.

The most difficult task for any activist or organization is getting noticed. With an influx of so many news agencies and mediums it's hard getting noticed by reporters and editors.

This book shows you how to make your cause 'interesting' to those who matter in getting your message across: the Media.

You'll learn how to do several things like give speeches, create an identity, use props & mascots and more.

Although it could have probablly included more in-depth detail and 'how-to' it was certainly worth the investment.

Bottom Line: Worthwhile addition for any activist or their organization. Invaluable for the person in charge of making causes and campaigns noticed!

Outstanding on all fronts. No jargon - all facts. Salzman shares his secrets and tells you how to figure out making your work into news. In this image-crazed age, this book is a must.

Gearing up a new issues education/activist organization, I read this invaluable tome. Then I called its author (Jason Salzman) to find proteges of his whom I might hire on the East Coast. After talking with him over a couple weeks, I hired him and have tremendously benefitted from his experience, wisdom and creativity. Not often we can hire the guy "who wrote the book." If you can't hire him yourself (try though), his book lays out the science and art of garnering media for you to tout your cause.

The Origins of Order will be viewed in the future as a milestone in shifting the existing Darwinian paradigm in biology from a "survival of the fittest" (natural selection) to a new paradigm focused on explaining the "arrival of the fittest" through self-organisation.
Using a boolean (NK) network model and a extensive amount of biological facts, Stuart Kauffman demonstrates in a powerful
way the central role of self-organisation in the creative process of life. His vision that biology seems to operate
as self-organised non-linear dynamical systems at the edge of chaos will have as much influence in biology that a similar vision offered by Nobel prize winner Prigogyne in the field of thermodynamcis. The book connects a web of fundamental ideas from the fields of biology, physics, mathematics and computer sciences and requires a strong background in biology that I unfortunately did not possess. The laborious style, the lack of clarity in the writing and the (unnecessary) length of the book should not stop anyone from reading this amazing book.
Stuart Kauffman combines an intellect and a vision that only very few scientists possess. This book is a must.

Kauffman believes that spontaneous self-ordering, which both simple and complex systems can exhibit, must be incorporated into evolutionary biology, along with traditional random variation and natural selection. Certain complex systems will be spontaneously self-ordering. Natural selection then tends to push such systems to the edge of chaos. In addition to advancing Kauffman's theories, this reference provides a good overview the Neo-Darwinian synthesis, a review of origin of life theories, a review of genetic regulatory theory, and a review of cell differentiation.

It took me a whole summer to read this book in 1993 and it is still the most amazing book I have ever read. If you are computer/mathematically inclined, have an interest in biology, and have enough time to digest it, this book will blow you away. It contains the most amazing hypotheses to come out since 1859. Unfortunately, it takes a huge investment in time to really read this book, but an epiphany awaits those who get through it.

Stuart Kauffman has an MD and is a generalist. The book deals primarily with theory and understanding of computer simulations of state driven systems of large numbers of connected nodes. It examines how such systems evolve through mutation and gives a clear understanding of the limited role of natural selection in comparison to the self-organizing forces at work within such systems. It examines the meta-interaction of sub-systems of interacting states (attractor basins) that occur within a system. In English: it gives the first theoretical framework for understanding just how it is that cells which all contain identical DNA express themselves as some number of stable cell types. Normally a cell will react to a perturbation in whatever way will return it to its base stable cycle (attractor loop). One type of cell turns into another type when just the right perturbation kicks the system from one attractor basin into a different attractor basin.

This is heavier reading than his popular science book, At Home in the Universe, but preferable for anyone with the necessary tiny amount of knowledge of genetics and logic operations. There are few equations of any kind. The results apply to more than just biological systems.

The book is long because instead of just presenting a few principles that you can try to remember abstractly, he leads you through all the important steps of his research and gives you a real feel for how complex systems actually evolve and operate. The book raises more questions than it answers, as it should be for a book of such originality and importance.

When you fully grok the contents of this book you'll be so excited you'll want to rush and explain it to someone else, which will be utterly impossible, so you'll probably have to lend them your book, buy them the popular version, or face the fact that you are now relatively alone on a higher plane.

The deep future will see this as a very important book. The first to consider the deepest layer of reality. Anyone interested in GA's or ANN needs to start here. This book is pure foundation. Stand on it and you stand on solid ground.

The book worked very well to get me up to speed quickly without making me read every page and understand every feature of my new Zire.

This is a complete reference for PalmOS PDAs. The form is a step-by-step walkthrough of each function. Each page is cut in half with text on one side explaining the screenshots on the other side of the page. The chapters go through each function from managing contacts, using the calendar, reading and writing email, to surfing the web and synchronizing with your Mac or Windows box. This is very thorough and up-to-date book for Palm users who like the step-by-step approach that is thick with screenshots.

I work in a customer service organization which provides training and online support for Palm OS devices. In my opinion, this book is the best hands-on learning tool you can buy for Palm OS devices; it is a ready-made course on Palm OS Organizers and how they interact with your computer & wireless networks. The book does a great job making the material helpful for both geeks and newbies. It has a great format: 50% visual and 50% text. It differentiates the Palm OS variants very clearly and it presents lots of numbered step-by-step instructions which can be used to describe procedures to clients on the phone. The O'Reilly series of books are good but do not cover all the newer devices and OS variants (Tungsten, Zire, Treo and older handhelds).

This is an excellent book that will transform the reader from novice to near-power user. The author details the product offerings, basic features, more advanced features, and third party offerings that increase the value of the Palm. With this book as a primer, I knew exactly what I was doing when I first picked up a Palm.

I scanned the Palm For Dummies book before settling on this book. In my opinion, the Dummies book was comparatively confusing and overly brief.

Jeff Carlson here. I want to point out that a new 4th edition of the book is now out, but Amazon's search engine doesn't always bring it up (this was a problem with the 3rd edition, too). Look for ISBN #0321287665.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0321287665/

The Performance Connection offers concrete approaches to growing any organization into a leadership and value-driven entity. I have worked with the author, Mr. DeWilde, and the insights I received mirrored the suggested concepts in the book. After working for several years with middle managers, I incorporated many of the book's concepts into my daily interactions with these managers. I can reflect back three years and honestly marvel at how much more responsibility these managers were able to handle, increases in creativity as well as productivity, and true ownership of final products. I am also a less stressed leader, and I can credit The Performance Connection for setting me on a new path.

The Performance Connection accounts itself well with pragmatic advice and examples for improving individual engagement and organization performance. The theme of accountablity is threaded through the chapters and provides straight forward methods for targeting and driving success. Perhaps the greatest value of the book is its application to a wide varity of situations from corporate to small business and from for-profit to non-profit organizations

The Performance Connection describes a philosophy and practice of performance management which readers of Jim Collins will recognise, and many of the themes of the book have been covered at greater length in books on organisational design, performance management, strategic planning and high performance teams. The five main sections of the book take the reader from the individual relationships of people within an organisation - with particular emphasis on how leaders relate - through questions of purpose, vision and alignment of objectives to organisational design, accountability and rewards and finally the business planning cycle.

Underpinning all this is the performance connection - the need for people to connect with each other and the organisation at both an intellectual and emotional level, within a dynamic management system and flexible organisational structure, with true alignment of purpose to achieve extraordinary results.

The strength of The Performance Connection is how it brings together these quite diverse threads of management science- subjects like individual identity within the organisation and its teams, contribution versus position or role, empowerment of individuals and teams, individual development, selection, rewards and motivation, alignment of purpose, strategic planning - into a coherent and internally consistent performance management system.

For me the book demands a second reading. It is quite concise and there's a lot packed onto each page and although not a light read it is practical, with plenty of ideas and guidance how to put The Performance Connection to work. Aspiring leaders and managers who want to transform the performance of their enterprise and are looking for a whole new approach will find a lot to think about in this book.

The Performance Connection offers a new, yet practical model for businesses to engage their most important product..........their employees. DeWilde and Anderson provide a format to inject this philosophy within key areas of a business or a top to bottom revamp of an organization. Read it and reap the rewards. David Johnston President JIC, Inc.

I am a counselor and many of my clients have been employed in various positions in the business world. This book addresses with effectiveness and empathy how to create a successful environment for the individual and the business to thrive while underscoring an employee's happiness and self efficacy. A must read for anyone in the business world or academia striving to create the best atmosphere possible for their work setting. Teaching these principals to business students would provide a needed bridge to ethical and successful companies.

There aren't a lot of really good books about performance management, and performance measurement specifically, available yet. Too many of them are overly prescriptive in what to measure and very light on the details of how to measure (properly).

Because I specialise in performance measurement (and have done for over 14 years now), I've read quite a bit in this field and expected that Gary's book was going to be another one I'd refuse to recommend to my clients and subscribers.

But that's not what happened. I actually really enjoyed Gary's book, and support a lot of his philosophy about performance management. It's got to have strong alignment to strategy, it's got to be well thought through, it's not really about scorecards and technology, it's about making it easier to execute strategy, and it's about reliable and objective data.

It's a great book to give people that really need to take performance management more seriously, particularly senior managers and executives. It's not a book for the operational manager that is new to performance measurement (in this case try "Performance Scorecards" by Chang and Morgan).

From TQM to Balanced Score Cards - this is the book that provides a practical synthesis. Focus on cause and effect relationships and away from abstractions. Must have book.

If execution is the goal these days, then this book brings an interesting perspective -- it's both big picture AND 'how to do it' at the same time. Cokins does a great job of putting the execution imperative into the larger context of "why." A good read for a reminder of basic performance management tools and for exploring how they work best in the context of today's tough business environment.

I met Gary at a SAS conference the other day and we had a discussion on various issues. One of them being the query of why so many strategies to improve performance fail. Is it in the design or the execution of strategy? Gary popped the commonly accepted view that it is failure to execute otherwise sound strategies. And I replied, being a Strategy Consultant for over 16 years, that I haven't seen a sound strategy yet. After some debat we agreed that design and execution are equaly important.

This book is about execution of sound strategies using a series of quantifiable performance management methods. These are most popular in the Anglo-Saxon (US/UK) world and have been exported to the European mainland as well where they compete with qualifiable performance management systems. What is the difference? Quantifiable PMS' are based on measurement and consequences as strategy and tactics are imposed top-down. Qualifiable PMS' however are based upon a 'meeting-in-between' strategy process where productivity is boosted by inspiration, motivation and creativity. Employee involvement is the key. Instead of using fixed targets and bandwiths, one would use waypoints and scenario's, leaving the control of execution to operational teamleaders. (In W.W.II the Germans were 1.7 times more effective than the Allied forces using qualifiable techniques, even though they were outnumbered 3 to 1 by allied forces using quantifiable techniques). Qualifiable techniques are based on the assumption that operational conditions and short term objectives change all too rapidly for a rigid approach of planning & control. But if operational teamleaders understand the strategic and tactical objectives they can easily adapt to new conditions.

However Gary's latest book is the best book on quantifiable PMS' since Maximum Performance Management by Boyett & Conn (that actually tries to combine qualifiable and quantifiable techniques).

Don't just buy it, read it!

Gary's book, on Performance Management published by Wiley, does an excellent job of pointing out there are no "Silver Bullets" or management tools that solve all problems. Combinations of the right techniques is an art. Bold graphics and flow charts in the book do much to stimulate the thought process. Business failure is often a result of inadequate performance management systems. Survival in today's global economy requires many of the better performance management techniques described in Gary's new book. A great addition to any business library. Bill Hass, Certified Turnaround Professional, wjhass@aol.com

I first read this book in 1975 and have read a couple of times, since.

This book tells the facinating story of behind-the-scenes building of the Isreali military. Not only is this book an enjoyable read, but it is a true story that provides details of this building.

A must read.

There are only a few people who can qualify for nomination as "the person most responsible for the State of Israel being". One of those people is Rudolph G.Sonneborn. The only place you will ever read about him and his unique group, "the Sonneborn Institute", is in The Pledge. Leonard Slater "found" him and tells us of his importance in the creation of The State of Israel in this most important, most unbelievable, but absolutely true story. Everyone interested in Israel should read this book and know not only the facinating story, but learn about Rudolf G.Sonnnborn, one of the most important, yet most private of men, in Jewish history.

I just finished this book after having it on my bookshelf for years. I'm glad I did because it was well worth reading --- not because it was a perfect book, but because it fills in important gaps in understanding the reaction of Jews and the world to the Holocaust. In doing my own research for a book, I remembered the Pledge and read the cover. While Joseph Heller might have pointed out the humorous aspects of the book, these paled in comparison to the seriousness of the effort by Americans to support the nascent idea of Israel. It was the serious side that attracted me. What I took from the book was the evolution from the meek, quiet, compliant European Jew to the bold, brash and surviving Israeli. While Hitler unleashed a social plague, from that plague came a people hardened by the fire of war and extermination. These people became survivors in every sense of the word. Israelis remain survivors. But the survival of these people initially rested in large part on the American spirit of innovation and adaptability. And this, to me, fused the encapsulated history of the Jews to the modern world. The most ironic part of the book --- and the most fascinating (because I am a pilot) --- was the use of Nazi Me-109's to win control of the skies during the war of independence. Who could imagine the irony of history --- that the tools of war laid down by a people's killer would become their necessary tools of freedom? This is the real story underlying Slater's book. The book sometimes becomes long on detail --- lists and lists of equipment and parts. It's hard to keep straight all of the various people. Although the Sonnenborn Institute was important, the real heroes were the men and women who actually gave their time, money and lives for their ideal. Despite its minor flaws, the book is well worth reading and excellent as a background resource.

I cannot possibly put into words how much I think anyone with even a passing interest in Israel should read this book. I would suspect that even the average politically active Zionist, even Israelis or Americans, has never heard of Rudolph Sonnenborn, the operation that this book describes, or most of the people in it. And frankly, that's pathetic. Not only is this a great and well-written story, real-life smuggling and covert operations at their very best, but it illuminates a lot of the dry facts that are found in basic histories of the War of Independence. Afterwards I was reading Howard Sachar's massive and bone-dry A History of Israel, and it was great to see mention of smuggled planes or illicit factories now that I actually knew the story behind them. This is quite seriously a must-read; quick, tense, well-written, and fascinating both as a story and as history.

There are only a few people who can qualify for nomination as "the person most responsible for the State of Israel being". One of those people is Rudolph G.Sonneborn. The only place you will ever read about him and his unique group, "the Sonneborn Institute", is in The Pledge. Leonard Slater "found" him and tells us of his importance in the creation of The State of Israel in this most important, most unbelievable, but absolutely true story. Everyone interested in Israel should read this book and know not only the facinating story, but learn about Rudolf G.Sonnnborn, one of the most important, yet most private of men, in Jewish history.

In The Power to Transform, Stephanie Pace Marshall poses the question of what it will take to create a generative and life-affirming system of learning and schooling that liberates the goodness and genius of all children and invites and nurtures the power and creativity of the human spirit for the world. The question stirs deep and often latent passion in those of us who are devoting our professional lives to education. What would it take? How does one even begin to conceptualize the journey let alone chart a course toward such a vision? The Power to Transform offers those who are willing to look beyond the myriad of barriers to the possibility of a very different future.

Books on leadership for systemic reform typically offer direction for aligning and connecting the functions of school systems with visions that often speak eloquently to life-long learning, productive work, and global citizenship. Alignment and connection are complex and necessary steps but they do not go far enough. Marshall is dead on labeling the goal of much of what is characterized as reform and transformation as leading us to false proxies for learning--high scores on high stakes tests. As educators we know these limited snapshots are far from evidence of deep understanding, internal authority for learning, and the ability to apply learning in multiple contexts that are necessary to achieve these visions.

So what will it take? Direction, design, rich and compelling stories that offer evidence that such learning environments are possible, and evidence of success from students who have experienced this fundamentally different approach to learning and schooling. The Power to Transform presents a powerful argument for why leaders cannot accept false proxies for learning and offers an alternative future for learning and schooling that embraces the learning competencies needed to thrive in a complex, interdependent, and continuously changing world. Principles of design offer direction, not prescription, that allow for contextualizing processes and structures to operationalize the vision. Marshall draws heavily from two decades of experience in leading the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy. She describes a learning journey where she and her staff are learning their way into creating a desired future. The stories of her students who have experienced a more generative and life-affirming system of learning at IMSA speak to thriving in schooling, work, and their commitment to work toward a more sustainable future for our world.

Stephanie Pace Marshall takes the time, and makes the enormous effort, to describe the education system our children need now, and in the future.

This is a difficult and valuable task. Her work is based on 40 years of experience, including the creation and administration of the Illinois Math and Science Academy. Her ideas work - the challenge for us as readers is to think about how we are going to implement these ideas in our own schools and communities.

This is an extremely valuable book for anyone who wants to engage in the transformation of schools from their current model to one which will meet our needs for the future. It is especially valuable for educational leaders, administrators and school board members who guide our school systems. It is inspirational for the many of us who wish we knew what to do to help improve education.

However, it is not an easy read. It takes some effort to absorb Ms. Pace Marshall's new language for her ideas, but, it is worthwhile. I found myself taking notes, brainstorming with colleagues and thinking in new ways as I made my way through. I wish you an equally exciting read.

THE POWER TO TRANSFORM: Leadership That Brings Learning and Schooling to Life is a brilliant and compelling book -- must reading for anyone interested in transforming today's educational system into one that truly meets the needs of 21st century children and 21st century society.

Marshall points out that the model upon which most of today's schools are based reflects society's present priorities of practicality and immediate usefulness. Children are looked upon as beings with innate learning deficiencies, and the job of education is to fill their minds with facts and attitudes that will be useful in present-day society. This approach does not equip today's children for the world of tomorrow. As Marshall put it, "A world dominated by excessively competitive and acquiring minds who cannot think holistically, systemically, long term, and wisely is dangerous. ... Exploration, creativity, imagination, passion, wonder, and awe lie at the heart of life and learning. They must also be at the heart of schooling."

The remedy that Marshall proposes is to use the principles of living systems as design principles for creating a "new [educational] story" -- creating "learning communities" that are "naturally autonomous, open, creative, self-organizing, connected and adaptive." Rather that trying to pour dry facts into the heads of bored, disengaged children, the approach is to excite and enthusiastically engage them by having them explore real world issues and problems -- "problems that matter." In the process, the children gather the facts they need, and are receptive to learning new skills (reading, 'riting, 'rithmatic, and more) because they realize that they need these tools to analyze, solve, and report on the problems they care about.

"Great questions" are another focal point in Marshall's approach. She calls them "portals to a future of unknown possibilities." Her advice to students is "Ask questions that matter. Ask questions that make a difference. Ask questions you love so that as you live your life seeking the answers you will find joy." She lists 28 "big questions for deep learning" that relate to her four pillars of learning: learning to know, learning to do, learning to be, and learning to live together.

Marshall stresses that this new approach does not abandon standards, formal curriculum, instruction, evaluation, measurement, or assessment. But old approaches to these matters have been transformed into ones that reflect the changed values which underlie the new schema.

This book is rich and deep, and almost every page had me saying, "Yes, yes, of course!" Marshall ends the book with the following call to action: "Please do not wait for others. Courage is the capacity to claim what we imagine. If you are carrying this new story in your heart, now is the time to step forward. There is a place in the world for your unique voice, and it carries a message that must be heard. Start anywhere, but begin the conversation, and tell the new story that brings learning and schooling to life."

Most education reform today consists of tinkering around the edges of an essentially broken model, of adding more of the same and, inexplicably, expecting things to get better. We are long overdue for a new vision. The Power to Transform provides exactly that.

Stephanie Pace Marshall's impassioned, deeply thoughtful and groundbreaking book on transformative leadership for schooling and learning is easily among the top five books on education currently in print, and the only one I know that gives readers a powerful vision for the future and for true systemic change. It is a guide for those who would lead a revolutionary movement to fundamentally transform American education, even from within their own schools.

Those who have read Thomas Friedman's The World is Flat understand the need for radical change in our nation's schools if the United States is to remain a creative and contributing society among world nations, equal to the challenges that lie ahead. To be successful in this new world, young people need different skills than preceding generations, an engaged relationship to learning (sorely lacking in today's often lackluster and out of touch schools) and ways to connect their capacities and interests to the work that needs doing in the world. Dr. Marshall has tapped the disconnect between what is and what needs to be in education in a powerful and compelling way, through story and through a well-reasoned argument for change. She also provides questions to guide that process at both the grass roots level and within the halls of power.

Endorsements by Howard Gardner, Parker Palmer, Margaret Wheatley and Robert Galvin speak to the importance of this book; it is truly a seminal work and a must read for anyone interested in making schools better for students, for teachers and for the world. I used The Power to Transform last year for a seminar I conduct at Northwestern University, and I plan to use it again this fall. The book was a huge success, and I'm looking forward to the rich conversations and practical school level applications it generates within my next seminar class. I cannot recommend it highly enough! And I love her letter to her grandchildren. I, too, have it up in my office and share it widely.

So many books on school leadership--haven't we all slogged our way through them?--are manifestos from those who tell us with great certainty and authority what we must "know": how to realign building resources, institute new management beliefs, and instrumentally refocus strategic goals. Again and again these books disappoint. They are unreal technical manuals that do not address the deep, dysfunctional paradigms that underlie our current educational system: that students are containable, defined units to be filled with knowledge, that competition and external prodding inspires profound learning, that learning itself is linear and predictable. Using narrative--the power of story--and her own experiences of being transformed through leading, Marshall proposes a new model of generative school learning based on abundance. (So little in our educational system is based on an assumption of abundance, the idea itself is almost startling.) Marshall says that instead of regarding the learner reductively and mechanistically, as we tend to in our day-to-day interactions and in larger educational policy, she invites us to rethink our work and learn to tell a new story about ourselves, one that reflects that:

Learning is shaped by personal purpose
Ability is multidimensional
Holistic engagement of all the learner's senses and feelings is essential for real inquiry (p. 81).

This doesn't sound like many high schools I visit every week, unfortunately, where learning by compulsion, fear, or threat are the veiled order of the day. My hope is that Marshall's book will find its way to many school leaders, those who are ready to look deeply into the fundamental assumptions that underlie their work and the structures of education in America. Especially useful is Marshall's table comparing "current reductive" educational ideas and a new "generative and personalized" vision of learning, teaching and curriculum (pp. 219-225). The table is a remarkably clear, concise analysis of what is, and what might be. Finally, Marshall offers some good words to live by, for any leader anywhere. In a letter to her grandchildren she reminds them that one's life is about:

Your integrity, not your position
Your voice, not your power
Your name, not your title
Your calling, not your career
Your legacy, not your success (p. 214).

I have these words up on the wall of my office, and I visit with them often. Marshall is wise, inspiring and refreshing.

This book is one that all high schools should distribute on back to school night along with their school guidelines. As well, colleges should distribute the book at their first meeting on campus with the kids and families. It is about time someone brought out into the open what most fraternities are about. Schools only tell us the "great news of having fraternities and sororities on campus". Dr. Lipkins tells us the behind the scene actions of these "great boys will be boys organizations". This is an extremely well written book. It is a step by step guide on recognizing hazing, and what actions to take if you find your child involved in it. As parents we all want to protect our children, but how could we have protected them from the danger of hazing when we didn't even know what was going on? This book gives parents the tools we need to keep our kids safe. I highly recommend this very informative book. The author's knowledge of this subject is very visible in her writing and I command her for taking such an interest in a subject that has been swept under the rug for too long, at the cost of our childrens safety.

As a psychologist specializing in teens I highly recommend this book for parents of high school and college-age teens as well as for educators. It contains important advice, practical suggestions and information that can dramatically reduce the risk of a teen becoming the victim of a dangerous hazing experience. It also provides critical tools for how to intervene and heal when hazing is discovered. Don't think that this can't happen in your community or to your child--it can. Dr. Lipkins clearly has the experience and background necessary to help us understand what we need to do to end the devastation of hazing.

As a college student I witnessed countless hazings. I had friends that became emotionally scarred as the result of sorority initiation rites. Even more extreme was the physical abuse of big ten college athletes that took place in my own house. I will never forget how I felt as a bystander watching the most respected athletes of my school drag the newest members of their team through my front door, forcing them to drink until they had no control of themselves and proceed to humiliate them in front of a house full of women. I knew this wasn't right yet I was at a loss of how to handle the situation. I wish I had Dr. Lipkins book twenty years ago to help me through this. Every parent should read Preventing Hazing and discuss it with their children. Hazing is a very serious issue with severe emotional and physical implications. Finally someone has written a book to help all those involved. Please read it!!!!!!!
Deborah Shlafmitz

I am currently a school psychologist, a former high school championship baseball coach and scholarship athlete--this book nails it on the head--full of very useful analysis of the culture of hazing--something that goes on at some level on virually every team and although some think it builds team morale, it really saps the energy from the team as well identified by Lipkins--the book provides a deeper understanding about how to understand and deal with hazing--. Read it!!
James Levering, Ph.D.

I thoroughly recommend this volume to parents of adolescents and young adults who may be embarking on thier college years. Dr. Lipkins astutely points out key elements of the problem and strategies to prevent and deal with the difficulties involved in hazing. A must-read for those with interest in the topic and a need for more information on the subject.
--J. Clive Spiegel M.D., Clinical Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, ALbert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx NY

I knew most companies were listening to someone. This Book mentions who and adds to that body of literature called process improvement. After reading this book I was able to contribute to the on-going process and become a more valuable employee.

Great Book!!! The book is written interestingly and in a very well wording way. The standpoint of the writer integrating naturally into the real life of the reader needs accompanied with a blaze of practical examples which the writer has taken from the real life of his experience. Personally I have done a fascinating use the book to redesign software related process, and I can certainly say that from background in engineering, one can do a tremendously use of this book in any related technical \ business areas and probably more. Recommended!

I must admit that I felt a bit uneasy when I found out that this book, which was recommended to me by a friend, had been written by someone with a PhD. In my experience, books written by PhDs are often very academic, difficult to read, and end up telling me what I already know in a very convoluted way.

This book, however, dares to enter "dangerous academic territory" by, for example, defining "knowledge" and measuring it in different instances of business communication. Even in doing so, its ideas make sense and are logically consistent. It also wraps everything up nicely by proposing a methodology (MetaProi) to put the ideas in the book into practice and showing the results of the use of that methodology.

I think this book might get a "thumbs down" from academic ivory tower dwellers. From me (what do I know?), it gets two thumbs up!

Ned's book is great! I used his nine-step system (MetaProi) to facilitate four Business Process Improvement Teams in a local audio visual supply company. All four teams modeled, redesigned, and developed an implementation plan for at least one business process. Three of the four teams went on to successful implementation of their plans. One dynamo team solved several problems. Other than the kickoff, there were no face-to-face meetings. The widely distributed teams used collaborative technologies for nearly all interactions, resulting in minimal impact to daily operations. Participants were excited about growing with new methodologies and technologies.

Phoenixville, PA

This book will be essential reading for those wishing to develop insight into process improvement methodologies, which span popular business process reengineering and total quality improvement movements, and the use of computer mediated communication (groupware) to support these process improvement efforts. In particular, the marriage of the Metaproi methodology and groupware techniques, presented and illustrated with field experience, will be invaluable for those researching or undertaking process improvement projects.

Excellent modern history of the US military from the Vietnam War up until 1995 or so. The history is told through semi-biographies of officers who began their careers around the time of the Vietnam War and chose to stay in the military, despite all of the problems that were evident in Vietnam. The draft, which brought in sub-standard service members, was a disastrous way to build a military. Thankfully, a number of dedicated people stuck around to see the military made stronger. From the all-volunteer military, to the GI Bill, to the Reagan defense build=up, to the Goldwater-Nichols Act, to the Gulf War, highly motivated and intelligent men helped improve the military so that it could overwhelm the Iraqi forces in the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

One of the officers who was featured quite prominently was Barry McCaffrey. I have come to appreciate his interesting analysis on television, but I never knew his life story. Though it didn't surprise me as I knew he retired as a general, but what an impressively courageous man he has been throughout his military career! What he went through in Vietnam is enough to amaze even the gutsiest American.

Another interesting aspect of the book was the coverage of contentious social issues that the military has had to deal with: race, women, and gays and lesbians. Kitfield pointed out the increasingly important role that blacks and women have played in the US Armed Forces.

Regrettably we are left to wonder what happened since then when our powerful military get sucked into a war in Iraq, starting in 2003 with no end in sight, without a plan to finish it. It's easy enough to point to Tommy Franks, Richard Myers, and others, but maybe there's a larger institutional story to tell about the debacle that is now Iraq. Hopefully Kitfield will tell that story too. He has a book out about Iraq, but since it was written a year or two ago, it can't possibly accommodate for all that has occurred since publication.

James Kitfield has studied one of the most turbulent times in American military history and distilled its lessons into one tightly written narrative that is both engaging and full of tremendous insight. The passage through the ranks of the Vietnam generation officer corps molded our 1980's military into a truly revolutionary force. Their experiences in the muddle of Vietnam and the lessons they extracted colored every decision and every reform they sought in their service. In the end, while not perfect, these able officers forged a doctrine based around rapid, audacious movement, technology and local authority--all things lacking in Vietnam. The payoff came with the tremendous victory in the 1991 Gulf War.

This book needs to be read by every officer in every service. Study this, extract the lessons. Many of the mistakes made during the Vietnam-Era have now repeated themsleves in the War on Terror. Many of the lessons Colin Powell and others taught us during Desert Storm have already been forgotten.

If you are an officer, buy this book. Let it guide you through the many critical decisions you will have to face during the years ahead as you work your way through your own career. And never forget the most important lesson of all: never chose your career and its future over doing the right thing. Prodigal Soldiers pointedly demonstrates that when senior officers do that, men die needlessly.

John Bruning
Author of "The Devil's Sandbox: At War with the 2-162 Infantry in Iraq"
John_Bruning_jr[...]

I first read James Kitfield's book in 2000 and have just finished rereading it. I am recommending it to my sons, an Air Force pilot working on his master's in military science and an Army combat engineer, as one of the four most influential books on the development of the United States military since WW II. The author traces in a very readable style the coming of age of the officers of all branches of service during the Viet Nam and post-Viet Nam eras and how those experiences shaped our ability to win a decisive victory in the 1990 Gulf War. The book also reveals the back room political wheeling and dealing that goes into watershed legislation such as the sweeping reforms of the Goldwater-Nichols Act. It's a "must read" for every professional military leader and student of the art of war.

When you read a book like this and have seen the Army at its best and worst. That and have seen the gradual improvement to where the Army is today, i.e. one of the most trusted institutions and one of the greatest killing machines since the Roman Legions under the early Caesars. I just feel better and safer. That and I want to thank all those who did not turn tail and run away from the wreck of the post Vietnam War Military but stayed and fixed it. God Bless you all!

From the prologue to the epilogue, and everything in between, this book is fantastic reading. Anyone who has ever been associated with the U.S. military will have a much clearer picture of the totality of resurection within all the services after Vietnam. "Duty, Honor, and Country" does not always mean the same thing to different people, to some it means a career that spans over thirty years, to others the words are just something on a recruiting poster. To anyone who reads the book these three words will take on a much clearer meaning. Some chapters will cause tears in even the toughest of old veterans, and even the young generation of future service members will begin to understand some of the major events which have transpired in the military in the decades since Vietnam. James Kitfield tells a story that is not just a chronicle, or a documentary, but a story worthy of telling, and he does it with style.