Competitions Books

i like the poetic value of this book it makes it so you want to read it more than once .deffinitly a good buy.

Having read a number of translations of Sun Tzu, I have to say that this translation by Gary Gagliardi is the one of most practical use.
Every page provides a clear business translation of the Sun Tzu principal . The Art of Management translation will provide any business person with a full range of practical strategies that can be put to use immediately.

This is an interpretive book, written and presented by Gary Gagliardi, loosely based on Sun Tzu's classic material.

One of the marketing angles used in this book is a "two for one" aspect, in which the Chinese and English texts are presented side-by-side. The author asserts this is the most accurate translation of Sun Tzu's work ever attempted. This description of the text is highly debatable, based on the merits of the text itself.

Mr. Gagliardi achieved his translation using an internet encarta program, in which a person can do a simplified character search in Chinese, and see some of the interpretive meanings of each pictogram. A close review of this internet text that served as the basis for the author's translation shows that the resulting "translation" contains a number of errors; both large and small. Some examples of this are as follows:

In several areas of the book, you can spot minor typographical and spelling errors. Interestingly, the first one appears on the first page of the book, where it reads "It translator, Gary Gagliardi..." instead of "Its translator,...". Some additional examples of these types of minor errors are as follows:

On page 16 (Chapter Two), the English word he uses for SHI in the Chinese text section is misspelled as "ttroops" instead of "troops"

On page 28 (Chapter Four), the English word he uses for YE in the Chinese text section is misspelled as "bvalso" instead of "also"

Normally, things like this would not bother me. But within his book, and on his website, Mr. Gagliardi makes some very bold claims regarding the accuracy of his translation. As he notes in his "foreward" [sic]:

"Even for those who cannot read Chinese, the internet makes it easy to translate the original Chinese characters. Sites display the Chinese text with links tying each character to Chinese-English dictionaries. Using the context and other translations to select the appropriate meaning for each character, I created my own character-by character translation." (p. ix)

"After I translated the characters, I discovered that every English translation embellished some of Sun Tzu's ideas while simultaneously ignoring others.... " (p. ix)

"To share the richness of the text with others, I offer two translations of Sun Tzu. The first is the character-by-character translation I developed in my study of the text. The second is a line-by-line translation of those Chinese phrases into English." (pp. ix-x)

"Through these techniques, we preserve the ideas of Sun Tzu's Chinese in an English translation that comes as close as humanly possible to capturing Sun Tzu's own words..." (p. x)

Unfortunately, Mr. Gagliardi's translation methods fail to account for certain Chinese concepts; including concepts that had a significant role and effect within Sun Tzu's writing. Some examples of this are the Chinese concepts of the DAO, and YIN and YANG. In Mr. Gagliardi's translation, the DAO is oversimplified as "philosophy" (pp. 2, 4, 8, 32, etc) and YIN and YANG are simply expressed as "North, shady hillside" and "South, sunny hillside" (p. 4). Effectively, the interplay of these Taoist concepts within the Art of War are ignored, in favor of streamlined text. This is somewhat ironic, given Mr, Gagliardi's earlier concerns, where he thought other translators ignored important ideas within Sun Tzu.

In certain areas, Mr. Gagliardi appears to have copied the wrong Chinese characters (lexemes) from the Taipei compilation, which he used as the basis for his translation. This is readily apparent, based on a line-by-line comparison of the characters themselves. Some examples of this are as follows:

On page 20 (Chapter Three), he appears to have erroneously copied the Chinese character BING (War), instead of the correct term JUN (Army), in two of the stanza.

On page 22 (Chapter Three), he appears to have erroneously copied the Chinese character YONG (use) instead of the correct term YUE (month) in two of the Chinese stanza.

In addition to the above translation problems, Mr. Gagliardi's single-word English choices are often debatable; occasionally, they appear wrong. For example:

On page 8 (Chapter One), in the last stanza, he translates the Chinese character ZHUAN as "pass." This leads him to mistranslate the entire stanza; BU KE XIAN ZHUAN YE, as "Don't pass it by." A more correct reading of ZHUAN, in this lexeme coupling, is "transmit." As other authors have noted, this Chinese stanza translates more closely to "Don't transmit your true intentions in advance."

This is certainly not a definitive work. It is far from it.

Gary Gagliardi is considered by many to be a leading expert in understanding and using the competitive methods embodied in Sun Tzu's treatise on the Art of War. A short visit to the Clearbridge web site is all it takes to understand why. Still, I wonder what I might be missing in the translation of the book. In this particular book (the author has written several based on Sun Tzu's work), the left hand pages have each Chinese character with the translated word next to it so that you have a word for word translation. The right hand pages contain a translation of the words into everyday English.

The problem with a translation of this style is one that has plagued translators for centuries and is the reason why there are so many slightly differing translations of Sun Tzu's work. If the author sees one Chinese character and wants to indicate the English word that this character translates to then what word does he pick? After all we have a Thesaurus because there are often many words that mean the same thing or almost the same thing such that choosing one over the other automatically colors the translation. What if there is no exact word in the English language? Well, you have to choose the closest one and that affects the translation. Sometimes words, even if translated exactly, do not give the whole essence of the concept in the original language due to cultural or other differences. Translators can't even seem to agree on something as simple as Sun Tzu's name! Is it Sun Tzu or Sun Tsu? You will find it transliterated both ways. With this in mind I was glad to see that the purchase of the book gets the reader access to the Clearbridge web site where they can see much more exhaustive analysis on the treatise.

Sun Tzu's treatise on The Art of War is really a treatise on competitive advantage that applies not only to actual war but such things as getting a job, marketing, and any other competitive situation that you might come across. A deep understanding of competitive advantage, it is still the definitive text for understanding the concepts of how to come out on top in such situations. An easy book to read and understand on a basic level, it can take a lifetime to truly appreciate in on all levels and apply it to the various areas of your life. This translation still seems to be one of the best that I have seen. It is internally consistent between the translated concepts and so shows a level of knowledge and detail that is not present in some other translations. As a translator the author obviously sees the big picture.

How can you possibly improve upon this timeless piece of literature? Well, Gagliardi seems to have done it! His translation is concise and to the point; none of the usual vague references found in much of the translations.This book is hot!

I previously read "Jack Welch and the GE Way", also by Slater and published in 1999, but I never read the original version of "Get Better or Get Beaten". This newer version of "Get Better..." contained a substantial amount of material that was already covered in more detail in "the GE Way" book. Except for some of the material covering events since 1999, I think "the GE Way" was a better choice of the two, especially if you're looking for more detail and analysis. In many ways I felt like I was just re-reading the other book. On the other hand, if you're looking for sort of the 'Cliff Notes' version and want some good insight into Six Sigma, this newer, smaller work by Slater is certainly satisfactory. There's only marginal benefit to reading both of these.

This is one of the few best books on leadership I have read in a long, long time. The others, which compliment this book are Jack Welch's book, "Jack", and Norman Thomas Remick's book on the philosophy behind all the good advice from Mr. Slater and Mr. Welch called "West Point". Read "Get Better" to get better, then read the others to get even better yet. And what's nice about it, they're all available right here on Amazon.com.

The best thing about this book is that it quotes extensively and piquantly from the writings and speeches of Jack Welch. The intriguing list of "29 leadership secrets" (which could have been reduced to ten) is more selective than secret, given that Welch has been preaching them loudly from a very prominent platform for more than 20 years. However, the book will be valuable to Welch neophytes and to fans who want more Jack, or the essence of Jack. Author Robert Slater assumes a certain familiarity with GE's history and initiatives, and sometimes refers to them without explanation. Welch long ago transcended management to become sort of a leadership prophet, and his utterances are sometimes paradoxical, if not contradictory. He says nurture people, but downsize; he says cut bureaucracy, but implement a paperwork intensive Six Sigma program. We promise that somewhere in here, you'll find a managerial principle to fit almost any occasion. What more can you ask of a handbook?

This is the first book about GE's Jack Welch I ever read. I bought it because the title is so far the most attractive amongst its keens. "Get Better or Get Beaten" is certainly the norm in today's competitive world. Remarkably, the content is of the same quality as its title. It is so well written that I finished it in 1.5 day.

In fact, the core concepts or the secrets are nothing new. Quality and Re-engineering gurus like Peter Drucker, Philip Crosby, Tom Peters etc had stressed the importance of quality, customer orientation, corporate culture, employee involvement blah blah blah for decades. It's just that Jack Welch had been so successful a real life practitioner and advocate that nobody can neglect. Think about the 6 sigma phenomenon and you know what I mean.

In case you just want to know the secrets without the elaboration, or that you cannot afford one, go to the table of content (Thanks to Amazon) and have a look. All the secrets are already there. (Sorry, Mr. Slater). However, I still think it is a good collectible for your personal library.

p.s. I had worked in an acquired subsidiary of a Fortune 20 company. I am sorry that what happened there was far from what Mr. Welch preached. The result is: The leader five years ago (when it was acquired) is now the fifth in the market.

I picked up this book in a bookstore and I did not know what to expect. I was amazed at the wisdom that this man posses when I began to read this book. He is very straightforward and very cool. All the principles are appliable to any kind of business I think. One of the best business books I ever seen, and its based on a man who practice what he preaches. BUY IT !!!

Having worked for 475+ lawyers in 3 states and the District of Columbia, I've seen the critical need for the insights in this book.

Too often, people with disputes want to place blame or take revenge rather than find a way to be whole again. Particularly during my tenure as a paralegal in family law, I saw how the legal system fanned the flames of pain and frutration. This wasn't just a waste of time and money -- it made the pain worse.

Stewart begins by having people tell their stories, then grieve, create an attitude of resolution, and work from a vision of healing. It's powerful, but it's also practical.

I're recently recommended the book to family therapists because it lays out practical methods for dealing with disputes among parents and teens. I cannot recomend this book too highly. Now I would like to see more. When is the sequal coming out?

Pat Sullivan, president, Visionary Resources, Oakland, CA.

The books "Getting to yes" and "Getting past no" gave me hope that I could take steps toward an agreement with my daughter's mother, instead of mearly waiting for the lawyers to work toward an agreement or waiting for time to heal the wounds we both inflicted on each other.

When I read reviews for this book, it seemed like maybe I could also get some more ideas of how to resolve our conflict, and this book seemed to be pointed more at a conflict such as mine instead of the business and international conflicts addressed in "Getting to Yes" and "Getting past no". So, I got it and discovered that the above two books seem to give a better road map toward resolution.

I suggest not buying this book, but buying the other two that I mentioned. THEN, if you have $15 to throw away, buy this book.

Reluctant attorney, Stewart Levine, provides a rational framework to justify spending his life avoiding conflict and confrontation. Even in the business world, he takes a pass on legal action and other logical ways of fighting back in a conflict. Instead, when opinions differ and arguments flourish, he seeks a higher course of reconciliation and collaboration. His seven-step resolution process saves time and money, launders egos, and advances clarity. Although each chapter is summed up almost too tidily in a final paragraph, or even a final sentence, Levine does not stint. In each chapter, he shares real world examples from his life and career. We at getAbstract recommend this book to anyone who wants to rationalize a business deal based solely on trust, to anyone searching for a deal-making scenario where lawyers are not invited, and to people who are looking for the words to express their desire to just get along.

Stewart Levine, lawyer and management consultant, has a unique view on resolving conflict. He spent 12 years settling conflict in court, and has spent the last 19 years teaching business people a less costly, more collaborative way to resolve conflict. Conflict is unavoidable, says Levine, but learning to deal with it in a more productive way is not. In Getting To Resolution, Levine has outlined a step-by-step plan for turning conflict into collaboration.

· Get in the right frame of mind. The first essential step to resolving conflict is to want to resolve it. Open up and be truthful. You must commit to and invest yourself in the process.
· Stop thinking of conflict as a win/lose proposition. Arguing over who's right often does not lead to a resolution that anyone wants. When you are committed to collaboration, you will disarm those who are committed to a fight. Focus on what the conflict is costing everyone and what everyone can gain from a resolution.
· Tell your story and listen to the story of the other side. Resolution arises from sharing information, while conflict arises from withholding it.
· Test out your preliminary vision about how the conflict can be resolved. As you get more information, check to make sure that your vision meets the concerns of all the parties involved.
· Get current and complete information on the issues. You must be up-to-date in order to move forward with a resolution.
· Reach an agreement in principle. Come to a broad understanding of what the resolution will be.
· Create a template for agreement including the following elements: Intent, specific vision, roles, commitments to action, timeline, measurements of satisfaction, concerns and fears, renegotiation, dissolution, consequences, dispute resolution, and management of the process.

One of the wisest sayings in history said that 'one will never know true happiness unless they have experienced true sorrow.' It is this idea that drives our lives, that keeps it interesting and worth living. Conflict is what makes the joys in life so beautiful, but it is also one of the most misunderstood facts of human existence. Conflict is not bound by negative or positive. Conflict is the act of "engagement, learning, creativity and the opportunity for creative value," (xiii) according to Stewart Levine.

It is he who wrote Getting to Resolution: Turning Conflict into Collaboration. It is this book that we will now consider. From its definition of conflict to its detailed process on how to turn conflict into collaboration, Stewart Levine simply presents what role conflict should play in each of our lives.

Stewart Levine defines conflict as a process of creation and discovery. He criticizes many sects including law, government and other business groups that view a good resolution to conflict as being one sided. Levine argues that a true resolution has not been reached until both sides are satisfied. That is why he has developed a 7-Step model for conflict resolution. It goes as follows:

1. The attitude of resolution

2. Telling your story

3. Listening for a preliminary vision of resolution

4. Getting current and complete

5. Reaching agreement in principle

6. Crafting the new agreement

7. Resolution

Levine states his points very eloquently and simply, which is his greatest strength. He eliminates a lot of the corporate jargon and disciplined mumbo-jumbo from his rhetoric, which simply leaves the meat of the subject - how to resolve conflict. Levine begins his text by showing the costs of conflict, both physical and intangible. He points out that time wasted in conflict can cost a company or organization thousands, whereas a quick and efficient resolution can move an organization forward at an even greater rate. He then presents a model on how resolution is attained and ten principles necessary to finding that resolution. They include such traits as creativity, vulnerability and responsibility.

Later in the book, Levine even presents a short section on where to go to find assistance in resolving conflict. He discusses the law community, not specifically but in a broad sense that shows what could happen in a court setting, arbitration or a mini-trial. Levine also discusses the attributes of an arbitrator or resolutionary as he calls it.

All of his definitions and processes make a considerable amount of sense and could be easily applied to every day conflict. Whether in the home or workplace, these processes should be strictly adhered to. When you consider the seven steps above, one can see the obvious need for each. Firstly attitude. One must be in the right mindset in order to seek resolution. Then you must tell your story - frankly and unbiasedly. Next you must listen to the other side and consider possible points of resolution in what you both said. The fourth step would be to clarify your understanding, or becoming current and complete as Levine puts it. Then you reach a preliminary agreement, then solidify it and finally implement the resolution. It is simple and if done efficiently, could take but moments to work through. Levine should be congratulated for his work with this book. Its simplicity and frankness made it extremely enjoyable and with little time to spare, it was nice to take up a book that read so quickly. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who is seeking a more definite way to find resolution in all the conflicts of life. Ultimately, finding that resolution will make your life more gratifying and complete.

As an independent Fort Lauderdale small-business CPA and Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, I have a very justifiable pro-Intuit bias. I often refer to this outstandingly interesting and informative Inside Intuit book. It tells the inspiring story about how many, who have become my friends, quickly built a truly unique and innovative world-class company that keeps revolutionizing our lives.

Fortune Magazine says Intuit is America's Most Admired Software Company and has long been one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For. Intuit has many very dominant products and should soon have more. All this seems to be the direct result of a commitment to the almost noble Intuit Mission and Operating Values. That is why top graduate schools study Intuit and you should too.

I began using Quicken soon after the initial 1983 release. In 1992 I became one of many QuickBooks specialists. There are now 50,000 QuickBooks ProAdvisors. My amazing (but far from unique) relationship with top Intuit executives and managers began when I won the top prize for beta (pre-release) testing QuickBooks 6 and QuickBooks 1999. This made me take two days off, from family visits, to drop in unannounced at Intuit California headquarters. A series of very friendly and informative conferences, with many managers and executives, culminated in a very large group discussion. There was nothing like Inside Intuit then, so I did not know why the opinions and practices of a small-business CPA were of such supreme importance to everyone I met. Today you can read Inside Intuit and learn that Intuit relies mainly on customer driven innovation, even if you cannot easily make top Intuit managers and executives your friends.

The Inside Intuit tag line and beginning are completely unlike other corporate biographies. "How the Makers of Quicken Beat Microsoft and Revolutionized an Entire Industry. Inside Intuit is a tale of missionaries, not mercenaries." The book is supremely entertaining and informative, even if you know many of the top Intuit people and much of their story. The Intuit missionaries often beat Microsoft and more than 100 other software companies. Actually, Inside Intuit omits some of the worst Microsoft beatings. A Microsoft income tax program died before its first April 15. Microsoft also spent more $2+ billion to buy and carry a big-business accounting software company, so it could produce a small business "QuickBooks killer." However, major innovations still let QuickBooks increase its share of retail small business accounting software sales from 88% to an amazing 94.2%. Mighty Microsoft cut its killer price by 2/3 or more, but never even became #2 in this type of software sales. The division manager and CEO heir-apparent soon left, so you need Inside Intuit to help you better understand this phenomenon.

It is too bad Amazon did not display some of the "Intuit Mission and Operating Values." (see the Inside Intuit Appendix or Google "Intuit Mission and Operating Values") Here is a tiny part. "Revolutionize how people manage their financial lives... Many companies say their most important job is satisfying the customer. We don't. We believe that satisfying the customer is simply the minimum requirement for staying in business. Therefore. we don't seek merely to satisfy our customers; we seek to wow them... Integrity Without Compromise ... never approaching what could be considered questionable behavior... Do Right by All Our Customers... treat each other, our business partners, and our shareholders with the same care and respect with which we treat our customers... Customers Define Quality... Intuit has triumphed in part because we actively solicit input and invent new ways to solicit that input from our customers..."

You can then see humility and genius in "Afterward... What about results -- things like market share, growing our revenue, profits? We barely mention them in our values. Don't we care about results? We do. Market share is a measure of how well we are serving customers. Long-term earnings growth creates shareholder value, which also helps us attract and retain the best people... Do we have to sacrifice our Operating Values to meet financial goals? By no means... Attention to the financial implications of our actions is simply an aspect of making these tradeoffs well... Simply put, living and working by our operating values will create customer wow and shareholder value."

Clearly, the full Inside Intuit story is far better than anything I can write. However, I should mention that Inside Intuit omits my conflicts with Intuit. I twice got others to successfully protest and reverse bad decisions, which would hurt users and Intuit. One cost Intuit lots of money. Instead of dumping me from a QuickBooks Advisory Council, former CEO Steve Bennett wrote, "Keep raising hell when Intuit does something wrong." He then let me use this private note on my [...]. That is the type of universal Intuit approach that let Steve triple sales and quadruple earnings in 6 years, with few price increases. It also is why I would love to have an update to Inside Intuit. It is far too soon for that but, as Steve and I say, the best is yet to come.

The first half of the book is great, if a little light on details. However, the book loses steam about half-way through. The company conquered all of its interesting challenges within the first half of the book, and there was no compelling reason to keep reading after the company passed its hyper-growth stage.

This book has a compelling start and middle but tails off towards the end. I will read it again soon though....I liked it.

Being an Intuit supporter for 15 years as well as an alpha tester of Quickbooks for windows I admit with no hesitation I am biased when it comes to Intuit related things. This book exceeded my already high expectations as a great inside view of the start, sputtering and surge of Intuit. The Microsoft connections were very interesting to read as well. Being a business owner it showed how culture dedicated to providing excellence to the customer can pay off as well even though it looks like it might cost alot to perform. It was an easy read and I strongly recommend it....

The book is written by insiders. They make the new CEO out to be quite a hero. Better ask some Intuit customers about that.

To do something without understanding it is a sure recipe for failure. Now in an updated and expanded second addition, "Performance Consulting: A Practical Guide for HR and Learning Professionals" is an informed and informative guide for avoiding commonly encountered Human Resources failures. Drawing upon their years of experience and expertise, co-authors Dana Gaines Robinson and James C. Robinson offer a more complete understanding designed to assist Human Resource personnel to better use their skills in evaluating employees and performances within the context of corporate needs. "Performance Consulting" is a must for HR people and anyone who must look to Performance Consultants on a regular basis.

If you are looking for a practical, how-to approach to being an effective consultant, internal or external, this is a high-value book for you. The authors explain, in considerable, concrete detail, how to get at the real issue(s) and shape your approach to make a targeted and valuable outcome. The book provides clear guidelines and models, plus helpful tips and other resources. It is also a great book for managers who hire and work with consultants. Performance consulting is not new--it is: "a process in which a client and consultant partner to accomplish the strategic outcome of optimizing workplace performance in support of business goals." The book shows how to do this by guiding you in how to:

- effectively partner with a client
- establish the necessary "mental model"
- ask the powerful, focused questions
- get at root causes of the problem
- identify the right solutions
- avoid scope creep
- keep focused for maximum impact
...and much more. A host of pragmatic insights await you in this highly valuable work.
The book is ideal for OD/HRD consulting. Consultants in other areas are also likely to derive value from this work. Very highly recommended.

OK..right up front you need to know I have a "dog in this hunt". Over 5 years ago I had the privilege of attending a 4-day workshop delivered by the author of the book.

The book and workshop changed my entire outlook on training. At the time, with over 25 years experience developing training, I thought I was doing things right. Boy, was I wrong!

I quickly realized that all the folks that I was designing training for never wanted nor needed training...they really wanted people to do their jobs better. And that's what this book is about; focusing on the factors that affect job performance then looking enterprise wide as to why performance suffers. I discovered that rarely was there a true need for training; the people already knew what to do but were not doing it.

Uncovering the root cause of poor performance and then "fixing" the cause is what this book is about. However, if training is the root cause, it shows you how to develop an intervention that actually gets results, not just butts in seats.

Warning--you may (likely?) find others in your organization thinking you are crazy when you try to initially talk them out of traditional training. Stick to your guns and it will pay off. You will eventually be a hero.

Consider the book carefully...if you follow the guidelines given, it can make a tremendous increase in job performance.

Many of the concepts in this book are not new, but it was spun in a new way. This book would be particularly useful for anyone in an HR-related training consultant role.

In this book provideing both a conceptual framework and practical tecniques relevannt to the role of performance consulant.It's describe what to identfy performance requirement that are directly linked to the operational and business goals of an organization.This book suitable for Trainer and Consulting to read...

This book IS for you if:

1) You are involved with B2B, complex solutions that typically have longer sales cycles, higher contract value and involve multiple individuals or departments within an organization
2) You enjoy good stories that are detailed enough to provide salient examples yet are not too industry specific
3) You are searching for benchmark strategies for strategic selling

This book is NOT for you if:

1) If you are involved with transactional, typically one-time sales with limited complexity
2) Your sales involve only one obvious decision-maker
3) Your sales are generated online

Although it is easy to argue that this book is applicable to all sales situations, those involved in transactional, one-time sales - especially of a perceived commodity - rarely have the time or resources to go strategically deep within an organization.

To save yourself valuable time and money, be sure to honestly and accurately understand your sales model. If you're looking for a book to provide understanding and insights into the nuances of enterprise sales, this book is well worth your investment in time and money.

From the get-go, the book sets the stage - you only lose sales to the next best alternative by being outsold. Everything else is an excuse.

Having read several books on the topic of sales strategy, as well as taking training on the subject, this book really nicely summarizes everything I've seen covered on the topic of strategy (and then some).

Highly recommended.

Almost all sales books have two major flaws: 1) They give you high level advise, such as "have a strategy" without giving you the "rubber-meets-the-road" actions to take. 2) They expect you to operate within a vaccuum where their selling system or methodology will work every time.

Power Base selling does not contain the first flaw and does an admirable job of trying to avoid the second. It is the first and best book I have read attacking the problem of organizational politics and the human dynamics in a corporate or complex selling environment. It gives very practical ideas on what to do in most political/selling situations to tilt the decision in your favor.

What this book does not do, nor attempt to do, is discuss the importance of a value proposition and the solution you are trying to sell. This is a great book to complement other famous sales books such as "Solution Selling."

I recommend this book highly to anyone that sells in a complex sales world.

Forget all the Zig Ziglar-type sales technique books! This is the real deal; It's about methodology, not how to glad hand or do an end run around the CFO or purchasing manager. If you want to understand the nature of truly competitive selling read this book, then watch the movie "Glegarry Glen Ross" for contrast. We trained the worldwide sales force of a F500 company on the Holden methodology. Results speak for themselves

The first time I read Power Base Selling, I thought it was great. Now that I have just re-read it, I am blown away by points that I missed the first time around. I recommend that everyone read it, apply it and then read it again -- it not only sharpins your political skills in selling, but in life.

To me, this book by Yossi Sheffi was an eye-opener, not so much for it's academic value, but for it's "entertainment" value, "entertainment" as in "stop-you-in-your-tracks-and-make-you-think"-value. Excellently written, the book does not necessarily provide concrete solutions for your own business, but it showcases how other companies, successfully or not, handled various crisis situations. Sheffi's analysis of how and why things go wrong or right is spot on and to the point. This is a good story-book, but it's a story-book with a message. Keep it on your desk at all times, or even better, keep a second copy on your nightstand...enjoy!

A fire burns down the manufacturing plant of your key supplier, who makes parts you absolutely must have. A contractor miles away accidentally cuts a communication cable, taking your entire information system offline. A labor strike shuts down ports, and your products sit offshore for weeks. All of these scenarios have damaged companies in the past. However, today, in the post-9/11 era, terrorism has elevated your risk to entirely new levels. Is your organization ready to cope? Yossi Sheffi, an international expert in supply chain management, shows you how to determine your company's level of vulnerability, and what to do to become resilient in the face of setbacks. We recommend this book to executives who want to prepare for disaster.

I'm a brazilian doctorean student in Supply Chain Management, and this book is being very important for my studies. It is about the risk end vulnerability that one enterprise can occours, and show examples and tools to use when a disruption occours. Very good.

I lead a relatively large business continuity practice and have recommended this book to my team and clients. It's not that there is so much new information for me, but it is packaged very well and the war stories alone are worth the price of admission.

If you are looking for a book covering the IT aspects of resilience this is not for you, but if you want some exposure to improving the resilience of the operational side of your organization I believe you will find this book extremely helpful.

The book can be used as a repository of useful anecdotes. However, it doesn't bring much new. If you're a beginner in the SCM field then it will definitely open your eyes to some operational challenges companies face all the time. But for the experienced professional, this book is of no great value (some of the anecdotes are interesting though)...
We, as supply chain professionals, need to upgrade our thinking and admit that our role is not to eliminate uncertainty but rather mitigate it... and that's the best we can do... as such, one cannot possibly come up with a bullet proof model but rather an approach to handle risk... the key attribute to all of this thinking is how much risk we can live with? that's it... truly, that's all that's needed to be told!
My reaction to the example of Apple reducing its inventory and then getting a major supply disruption because of some disaster in Asia is So?
What can you do? The only thing you can is to define your tolerance for risk and conduct some tradeoff analysis: what matters more? keeping low level of inventory and therefore reducing likelihood and scope of obsolescence (tangible)? or is it minimizing potential for lost sales (intangible)? That's the basic question.

This was a great book by Matt Christopher - my son loves his books - what more could a boy want a sports, action and a great story!

Snowboard Showdown By: ???
9/28/06


This story is about two brothers, Freddie and Dondi. Freddie is jealous of Dondi because Clarissa likes Dondi not Freddie. So Freddie challenges Dondi to a snowboard competition and Dondi declines. Then after Freddie wins the competition he notices Clarissa is with Dondi at the mall. A week after that Dondi challenges Freddie to who can make it down Devil's Ravine. Then it's Freddie up first. He faked a hurt ankle when he went through the trees. In the end the brothers like each other again, and Freddie gets the girl.

The story was exciting because of the competition between the brothers. Freddie and Dondi would compete in skiing, snowboarding and trying to get the girl. I can relate to the snowboard competition because I know how to snowboard. The suspense somehow made me want to keep reading. The only downside was that some of the story took place at school and I thought that was boring. I wanted Freddie to win, and in the end he got the girl.

The author, Paul Mantell uses the third person to tell this story. He used snowboarding terms when talking about the competitions. He also used slang words that teenagers might use. He gave nicknames to some characters that were realistic and cool. I was able to feel the tension between the brothers while reading this book. I have read several Matt Christopher books and enjoy the story lines and surprises through out the books. He writes the way an 11 to 18 year old thinks and shows the bond between kids and sports.

I would rate this book at nine out of ten because it has characters and a setting I can relate to. It kept my interest throughout the whole book. In the end the conflict between the brothers was resolved. I would recommend this book if you like snowboarding or want to learn to snowboard.

This book is an awesome book. I like Matt Christopher books because all the characters think outside the box. Some times throughout this book I was thinking how much I would like to do the tricks he could do. I can't wait until it snows.

I love this book because I love snowboarding. In this book, two brothers have a contest to see who is better at snowboarding. Freddie and Donovan tease each other a lot. Donovan won't admit that Freddie is a better athlete. Freddie and his friends all think that he is better than Donovan. I also liked this book because the brothers play pig and I love to play pig. This book is exciting because you don't really know what happens next, things sort of pop out at you when you don't really expect it. You should read this book because it has action and is fun.
Nathan L.

I liked this book because it was about snowboarding.Well snowboarding is my favorite sport.I rate this book 5 stars for people who like snowboarding.It is about a halfpipe contest. Read it to find out who wins.

I was impressed with the condition of the book.

I am a Japanese student. In Japan, there are few Japanese books of WTF taekwondo, so people uses English TKD books to learn taekwondo. And this book is one of the most popular TKD books in Japan. This fact would represent value of the book.
As for me, this book is felt to be very useful,too. It helped me constructing training menus and sparring strategies. It contains lots of helpful instructions.

I've never been a fan of point sparring, but I have to admit this is a pretty good book. It's definetly not for the beginner, though. The technique section is very basic, giving only the briefest of discriptions on the kicks, but also providing suggestions on how the moves are best utilized. The book then goes into stratagies for TKD style sparring, though most of the drills and principles can be used by karateka as well. What does show a lot of depth is that the authors include chapters on sports medicine, nutrition, mental preparation, and conditioning. A lot of that information is useful to any serious martial artist who participates in point sparring, and I'd recoment the conditioning excersises be applied to any program. The book ends with a chapter on Olympic TKD rules, including weight classes and a list of fouls. A glossary follows. As this book was designed to prepare competitors and coaches for Olympic-level competition, I'd call it an essential publication to anyone who is competing at the national levels in any martial art point sparring.

I think this is a great book. If you ar looking for a big book with a lot of pictures in it, then this is not the book for you since wery few of the combinations are shown. But if you already know how to kick and how to punch, then that should not be a problem for you. Everyone involved in sparring as a practicioner or as a coach could learn a lot from this book. I certainly did, even thaug i practice ITF Taekwon-Do, since a lot of the bodywork and qualities you need are similar.

I didnt like this book and it was very boring. Its said the same things many times and the only thing I found useful were the moves that it showed. If this is the best book of TKD sparring I wonder what kind of books the others are.

Having been involved in the martial art of Tae Kwon Do for over 25 years and currently holding a 4th dan black belt in the art, I am always more critical on books and DVD's on the subject of Tae Kwon Do more so than I am towards most any other martial art, with an occasional exception or two. Therefore, I was almost a little reluctant to read this book, but relented anyhow after skimming through the first few pages.

Now normally I try and write a fairly complete and descriptive review on each unique section in a book, however, in this case I am going to forego my normal style and simply base my review on the overall quality of the entire book.

If you are already a senior ranking student (gup) or black belt in Tae Kwon Do, then this book will not only be a welcome addition to your martial arts library, but the information provided within it is very valuable and relevant to the subject of "free sparring" in Tae Kwon Do. I can't imagine anyone not being able to learn a considerable amount about the subject even at just a first cursory look through this book.

I found the material very well organized and easy to understand, if you already have a significant amount of experience in Tae Kwon Do. If you are a novice or beginner student, then I would recommend that you hold off on getting this book until you within a year or so of testing for black belt.

This book recommends that you primarily use the following three kicks in competition.

Roundhouse Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 9)
Back Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 1)
Axe Kick (Achieving Kicking Excellence, Vol. 3)

I should make note that its not that other kicks aren't used, it's just that these kicks tend to be more effective in the competition arena.

This book covers just about every possible subject that could or would come up on the subject of Tae Kwon Do "free sparring," although not all subjects are covered in great detail, they are discussed to varying degrees and offers the reader a pretty good overall view of the subject. I highly recommend this book to all individuals interested in Tae Kwon Do "free sparring."

Shawn Kovacich
Martial Artist/Author of the Achieving Kicking Excellence series.

Both a high-level overview and specific framework for value creation. Slywotzky provides real-world case studies from a variety of industries, so the text will be relatable to many. Will be of particular interest to folks involved in the strategic planning process.

According to Slywotsky, there are three phases of what he calls "value migration": In "inflow," the initial phase, a company starts to absorb value from other parts of its industry because its business design proves superior in satisfying customers' priorities; the second phase, "stability," is characterized by business designs that are well matched to customer priorities and by overall competitive equilibrium; in "outflow," the third phase, value starts to move away from an organization's traditional activities toward business designs that more effectively meet evolving customer priorities. Slywotsky explains that Part I of this book describes the basic rules of Value Migration" and the workings of what he refers to as "the new game of business." As when playing chess, winning at this game requires an understanding of the individual pieces (i.e. when to deploy them and how to capture them). One must master basic moves and simple techniques such as openings, traps to avoid, end-game moves, etc. It is also important to understand the the importance of controlling (as in chess) "the four central ones." In business as in chess, one must become familiar with certain "basic patterns" which will ultimately determine success or failure. These "patterns" are examined in Part II. There are seven: Multidirectional Migration (from steel to materials), Migration to a Non-Profit Industry (airlines), Blockbuster Migration (pharmaceuticals), Multicategory Migration (coffee), From Integration to Specialization (computing), From Conventional Selling to Low-Cost Distribution, ands finally, From Conventional Selling to High-End Solutions. Slywotsky shifts his attention in Part III to explaining how to play the Value Migration "game" well on a day-to-day basis. He identifies certain specific initiatives to take which help to (a) avoid value loss and (b) preempt the next cycle of value growth. "The final chapter of the book focuses on the increasingly high-stakes nature of the decisions that determine future value growth."

There are more than a dozen charts which effectively illustrate Slywotsky's key points. For example, Figure 15-1 presents "The Grand Masters of Value Growth" and identifies them, their key moves, and the value each created (in terms of billions of dollars) from 1980 until 1994. All of these visionary leaders (Welch, Walton, Vagelos, Gates, Petersen, Grove, Malone, Platt, Noorda, Iverson, and Kelleher) focused on making the right moves and thereby created enormous value for their respective companies. "Business chess is a game that is as demanding as [football and basketball], but in very different ways. It is not physical stamina, but stamina of thought. It is not transactional concentration, but constant shuttling between a focus on the current move and imagining the next several moves out. It is an unrelenting exercise of matching patterns on the current game board to the countless patterns in your mind." Slywotsky concludes the final chapter with a suggestion that this question be asked: What five moves will capture most of the given industry's value growth? "Give yourself a couple of months to analyze and assimilate the grand masters' key moves. Then come back and determine the five (or fewer) critical moves for your company." In this exceptionally thought-provoking book, Slywotsky indicates why he would be an indispensable guide throughout that difficult but necessary process.

This book presents a very high level strategic view of business. Slywotzky emphasizes the value of a good business design vs reliance on technology for growth.For example, there is the simplified view of why IBM became a slogging giant in the early 90s. Lou Gerstner would certainly like to add to it

However there is good set of tools to understand your business better. I find his radar screen tool particularly useful to visualize business competitors and analyze the direction of value migration.

All said, this book is worth reading..just don't expect ttoo much.

I normally do not read business books of this book's scope; however, it was recommended by my co-author for an article on which we were collaborating. Our challenge was to support the assertion that the U.S. software industry is being supplanted by India, and a shift in off-shore development resources from the U.S. consumer to Indian provider is actually moving to Indian consumer to Russian and Egyptian providers. This is obviously value migration in its truest form and is consistent with the ideas set forth by Mr. Slywotzky in this book.

Using the inflow-stability-outflow model that is one of the basic paradigms in this book, we developed a model upon which we were able to build a case supporting our assertion. More interestingly, the whole concept and numerous case studies that reinforce it throughout the book provided me with a deeper understanding of the macro and micro issues of value migration - this was eye-opening.

My favorite chapter is at the very end of the book. Titled, "Five Moves ... or Fewer," it showed how major companies captured or recaptured the biggest share of value available, and each of the examples involved five or less moves. I was personally fascinated.

Although my initial reason for reading this book was to research an article, it has changed my way of thinking on a number of levels that go well beyond a single-topic research project. The writing style is clear and engaging, and the concepts and ideas ring true. I am giving this remarkable book 5 stars and highly recommend it to anyone who wants to see a bigger picture of economics or develop a keen business strategy.

I discovered this book during a business trip to Phoenix in 1996, and it still occupies a space on my special shelf of books that have deeply influenced me.

As the most basic level the concept of value migration is business design, and the ability of that design to evolve in a dynamic market. The simple map of where your business, which is a function of design, is summed up in three states: value inflow, stability or outflow.

At a more complex level, this book provides seven patterns that serve as markers to show how value can migrate from one business (or industry) to another. The final part of this book shows how the concepts and patterns can be applied in your own business.

The foregoing may erroneously give the impression that this book is heavy on concept and lite on practicality. It's not. The material is meticulously presented, reinforced by recognizable examples drawn from industries, and prescriptive measures are laid out with realism and pragmatism. The concepts are what have influenced me. After reading this book I've looked at certain industry trends differently, and after eight years my observations bear out the premise of this book. This is highly actionable information that is invaluable to any company that wants to prevent the outflow of value, while capitalizing on stability and finding ways to create inflow. A more recent book that meshes nicely with this one is "The Ultimate Competitive Advantage: Secrets of Continually Developing a More Profitable Business Model" ISBN 1576751678. In fact, that book extends this book in many ways, especially with respect to business design, and further proves the concepts Slywotzky set forth in this book in 1996.