Resources Books

This book teaches the simple truth that if you hire better salespeople you will get more high quality sales. The authors teach you how to do that and how to coach them to be even better. You will learn how to analyze your sales team and what to do with what you learn. The authors show you how to recruit and hire the best salespeople and provide you with forms, checklists, and key techniques on how to accomplish your purposes. Coaching your salespeople is also very important and this book gives you a chapter on how to do that.

The last chapter provides you with the way to get started with the topgrading process and four appendices that provide the means to scorecard your current sales reps, a career history form so you can understand what your salespeople and prospective salespeople have done, and forms for an interview checklist and reference checks. The last appendix lays out the numbers of how topgrading your sales team will make you more money.

Very good.

Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Ann Arbor, MI

In today's competitive landscape, getting and keeping the best talent is necessary to win the game. The Topgrading process is a good process to really identify talent that will help make an organization stronger. I use Brad's techniques in my business and they have served me well. I recommend any person who has responsibility for hiring and managing sales people to become very familiar with this book.

Topgrading for sales is a must in any manager's library. It's an easy way to get introduced to the Topgrading concepts. You'll be able to rapidly implement tools for better hiring and get results. It will help you improve your sales. Although Topgrading for sales is a great place to start, if you're serious about Topgrading, I suggest you also get the original Topgrading book - How leading companies win by hiring, coaching and keeping the best employees.

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Topgrading for Sales. World-class methods to Interview, Hire, and Coach Top Sales Representatives. Bradford D. Smart & Greg Alexander. 2008. ISBN 9781591842064. Stats from this book: In the USA the national failure rate in the sales profession is 40% which is also the annual turnover/ termination rate. The life of a sales manager is 19 months. The cost of a sales mis hire is easily $600 000, which translates into a mis hires annually in the US of about 8 million people annually ( or 8million * $600k = ?) . Alexander teamed up with Smart to bring top grading to Sales. While at GE, Alexander did wonders with this approach. He strive to only hire the top 5 % of the sales guys. This book contains everything you want to know on how to do this. Lots of very very useful advice here. My only concern is for those of us in small regional markets like Canada etc, how big is that 5% pool? Not very, so what is a smaller co to do? I think there are great ideas here on how to hire better people which will make your management tasks that much easier. If you have to take folks as they come, you will know out of the gate that some of them are going to take lots of your resources in order to be successful The gem for me was the idea of having a virtual bench, ie knowing who in your market you would like to have working for you that are not, nurturing relationships so that when you need fresh faces in the filed you have a connectors/prospects bench to go to. Lots of work, but it is a valid idea. Every Sales manager should have this one on their shelf.

If you are a manager hiring sales representatives this is a must read. It is a practical no nonsense method to identifying top talent. Do not shortcut the process or you will shortcut your results. My team started Topgrading over a year ago and we have drastically reduced turnover and mis-hires. We have been awaiting the Topgrading for sales as the information in this book is only serving to help us improve on what we were already doing.

Total Church is a book born out of longing: If only there were a different way of doing church!

Authors Tim Chester and Steve Timmis seek to orient the Church around two main principles: gospel and community. The content of our message is the gospel. The context of our message is the Christian community.

Being gospel-centered means we will be word-centered and mission-centered. This book directly challenges the voices of some in the Emerging Church who downplay the Word in favor of community. But Total Church also challenges the traditional's church's failure to produce authentic community under the guise of "biblical faithfulness."

The authors chose Total Church as the title in order to stress that church is not a place we go. Church is an identity that shapes our whole lives. Our life and mission must become "total church." (18)

The book begins with the principles of gospel and community. I am glad the authors do not collapse these two principles into one. They rightly see the gospel as a proclamation. "The gospel is good news. It is a word to be proclaimed. You cannot be committed to the gospel without being committed to proclaiming that gospel."

Reshaping the church around gospel and community leads to a rethinking of all aspects of church life.

Evangelism? The centrality of the gospel word as proclamation is combined with the importance of the Christian community living with gospel-intentionality.

Social involvement? Loving the poor means we will not only help them with physical needs but proclaim to them the gospel of salvation. The church is not to focus on being a respectable club for the upper class. We form a community that believes all worldly divisions are nullified at the foot of the cross.

Church planting? Let's focus on multiplying small churches rather than growing big ones. Church planting is church growth.

Discipleship and Training? The gospel word means that we will learn from each other as we follow Christ. Authentic Christian community sees church discipline as a natural outgrowth of our close relationships.

Apologetics? Intellectual persuasion is not the answer. Our rejection of the gospel is a moral decision. Instead, we must combine rational apologetics with relational apologetics that spring from a community putting the gospel on display.

Success? We must see ordinary Christians who live out the message of God's kingdom as "successful." We are not to seek church growth for our own glory. Character matters more than charisma.

I enjoyed Total Church. It is filled with powerful insights. But the book has a couple of problems. It seems the authors advocate the house church model in a way that echoes some of the arguments of Viola and Barna's Pagan Christianity. The authors believe the monologue-styled sermon was invented after Constantine. The historical record shows something quite different. If the only person experiencing good learning in a sermon is the preacher (as the authors assert), then it is a wonder any education has taken place in the past 1700 years!

The authors also overreact to the current desire for "spirituality." In the chapter on spiritual disciplines, they downplay the importance of silence and solitude. They do not see stillness in prayer as helpful. "When the psalmists do talk of stilling our hearts, it is not the stillness of silence, but the stilling of self-justification or self-confidence." (148) For the life of me, I cannot find even a hint of this concept in the biblical text itself. It seems that the authors conveniently explain away the commands that do not fit with their preconceived notions of active spirituality.

Surely there are ways we can engage in spiritual disciplines in a gospel-centered, community-centered way, without abandoning some of the historic practices of the church. What the authors want to avoid is the substitution of passive disciplines for active involvement. But why should we choose between the two?

Overall, Total Church is an important book. When I first began reading, I was not expecting their vision of church to be so comprehensive. It is indeed total church - in that this book addresses a wide variety of important issues facing the church. This book will lead to fruitful discussion about the church and the gospel. Total Church deserves to be read, pondered, discussed, and practiced.

This was a wonderful read from beginning to end. It is a sound theological book and a very practical one. I believe it ought to be read by every pastor and church member alike. It pictures what the church ought to be not only in this generation but in all generations.

This is exactly what I and others in our body have been saying for the past few months to a year. It is so nice to have it wrapped up in a book so that we can give it to others. God is a missionary God and the heartbeat of His church is His mission. Thank you!

-CL

Total Church is one of the best books I've read in a long time and may be THE best books I've read on church. As the subtitle suggests, the authors argue that church is to be radically reshaped around gospel and community. They argue for three things:

"Christian practice must be (1) gospel-centered in the sense of being word-centered, (2) gospel-centered in the sense of being mission-centered, and (3) community-centered." (p. 16)

The authors immediately nail their colors to the mast, distinguishing their perspective from both conservative evangelicals and the emerging church. With emerging church, they agree that conservatives are often bad at community. But with conservatives, they agree that the emerging church is sometimes soft on truth. This book proposes an alternative to both, churches that are both gospel-centered (with both a word-centered focus and a missional focus) and community-centered.

"Rigorously applying these principles has the potential to lead to some fundamental and thoroughgoing changes in the way we do church," warn the authors (p. 18). This is no entrenched defense of traditional church structures or practices. I found the book stimulating, eye-opening, paradigm-shifting, and sometimes personally-threatening.

Total Church is divided into two parts.

I. Part one is on "Gospel and Community in Principle" and argues for each in turn. Chapter one, "Why Gospel?" discusses both word and mission. "Christianity must be word-centered," the authors argue, because "God rules through his gospel word" (p. 24) and "mission-centered because God extends his rule through his gospel word" (p. 28). These assertions are fleshed out with close, but non-technical, attention to the text of Scripture, and real-life stories that show how the principles work out in practice. In fact, two of the strengths of this book are the pervasive use of Scripture and the multiple stories and examples of application. Chapter 2, "Why Community?" argues that "The Christian community is central to Christian Identity" (p. 39) and "Christian mission" (p. 47).

II. Part Two of the book focuses on "Gospel and Community in Practice," by applying the principles of part one (being word-centered, mission-centered, and community-centered) to the following areas:
*Evangelism (chapter 3)
*Social Involvement (4)
*Church Planting (5)
*World Mission (6)
*Discipleship and Training (7)
*Pastoral Care (8)
*Spirituality (9)
*Theology (10)
*Apologetics (11)
*Children and Young People (12)
*Success (13)

There are too many helpful insights from these chapters to share in a brief review. But here are some examples from the chapter on evangelism. The authors argue that there are "three strands of evangelism" (1) building relationships, (2) introducing people to community, and (3) sharing the gospel (p. 60-61). Their approach is holistic, relational, and driven by genuine concern for both the gospel and people. You won't find gimmicks or techniques here. In their words, "most gospel ministry involves ordinary people doing ordinary things with gospel intentionality" (p. 63).

Evangelism is to be a community project, which means that "our different gifts and personalities can complement one another. Some people are good at building relationships with new people. Some are socialites - the ones who will organize a trip or an activity. Some people are great at hospitality. Some are good at initiating gospel conversations. Some are good at confronting heart issues" (p. 62). A team approach combines the various gifts, which helps counter the guilt and despondency so many people feel when thinking about evangelism. "By making evangelism a community project, [we] take seriously the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit . . . Everyone has a part to play - the new Christian, the introvert, the extrovert, the eloquent, the stuttering, the intelligent, the awkward. I may be the one who has begun to build a relationship with my neighbor, but in introducing him to community, it is someone else who shares the gospel with him. That is not only legitimate - it is positively thrilling!" (p. 62).

As you can see, this approach focuses on all three priorities: the word, mission, and community. This is how the authors approach each of the eleven topics listed above.

I can hardly recommend this book highly enough. I will be sharing it with my staff, elders, and other church leaders (I'm a pastor). I'll also be talking about this book with friends, exploring how to apply it in our congregational life, and referencing it often. If you want a fresh approach to church and mission that doesn't lose sight of the gospel and isn't just a plug-n-play program, get this book. You'll be glad you did.

There are many people today who are talking about the major shifts that are occurring in culture and in the church in the West. Many are speaking of the return to a mission-centered approach to the Christian life. The problem is that many (myself included) tend to get bogged down in the talking and thinking phase.

Tim Chester and Steve Timmis live in the UK, which, culturally speaking, is further down the road of secularization than we are in America, but not by much. It's therefore very helpful to learn from them, as they have had more time to work out the implications of what this means for church life. What they've found is that we need to retool our conceptions of what it means to be the church, and once again learn to live deeply as the body of Christ in our local communities.

In Total Church Chester and Timmis propose that the two core components of church life are the gospel and community. They winsomely and compellingly show that the major responsibilities of the church, i.e. evangelism, discipleship, mercy ministry, pastoral care, etc. are all meant to be accomplished in community, specifically communities of Christians that commit themselves to living under the gospel together. So, for example, in the case of pastoral care--when a person is struggling with fear or anxiety the first place they should go is not to a professional, but to their community, where they can be reminded of the truth that they are secure in Christ and can find their rest in him. Or in the case of evangelism--rather than formulaic, lone-ranger evangelism, the life of the community of Christ itself is to be a demonstration of the power of the gospel to change lives, in such a way that neighbors and friends a) wonder why we love each other so much, b) realize that Christianity may not be so freaky after all, and c) ask questions of us to which the only reasonable answer is "Christ."

Chester and Timmis' articulation of how the gospel can and should shape our life together has changed me, for the good. That's why I strongly encourage you to read this book yourself. Let it change how you see your life and the life of the church. And then let it shape how you live...

This book gives trainers and managers the broader skills and knowledge they need to provide solutions (beyond training) to improve workforce performance. It is easy to read, practical, and has exercises and case studies to reinforce learning. Everyone on my team is reading - and using - it.

Like the other reviewers, I find this book to be exceptionally clear and well-written, and provides a great introduction to the key concepts of human performance improvement (also called human performance technology). It's deceptively simple, because the book has a rigorous intellectual base, and cites key theories, authors and research in the field (not surprising, because Stolovitch and Keeps also co-edited the definitive handbook in the field).

I used the book as a text in my graduate course in human performance technology. It offers many benefits as a textbook. It's readable, so it invites students to read it. It's interactive as well, which makes the reading experience more of a learning session, rather than just an absorption session.

Through these activities, the book makes the abstract and admittedly difficult-to-grasp concepts of human performance improvement concrete.

It also helps me model a key performance concept: build on small successes to create effective performance. Because this book is accessible, my students--many of whom are new to both the field and graduate education--can demonstrate success early in the program and that inspires them to greater success.

Stolovitch and Keeps have again (after their wildly popular Telling Ain't Training)demystified all of the processes and procedures for moving your organization from one that is mainly concerned about training to one that is focused on performance. Training is an activity. Performance is an activity coupled with the result of that activity and this book provides all of the methodology for getting valued results for your organization. Its fast paced style and fun to do exercises will make this book the one book on your professional book shelf that just ain't going to gather dust.

Once again, Harold and Erica have co-authored a book which is practical, content rich and great fun to read. This book is a "must read" for anyone who wants to learn more about training, about performance and how they are different. All the worksheets, case examples and key points that are identified ensure this book will be a valued resource and not just a book to store on the shelf.

This book provides practical ideas and insights about how to best manage performance in the workplace and best invest your training dollars. Too often, we use training as the panacea to resolve workplace performance issues. Harold explains when training is really necessary and when other interventions are best suited to resolve those issues. This book should be read by business owners and managers, not just by trainers or human resource professionals.

Trickster, by Laurie Halse Anderson, is one of the best books that I have ever read. It's about a boy named David whose parents get a divorce. He has to go and live with his mom. To help David take his mind off of things, she takes him to the farm where he used to ride horses. One day, David rides away from his group. David gets a chance to work at a vet clinic and David and the rest of the kids and Dr. Mac are going on a trip to the same farm. Find out what happens next in Trickster.
I like the book because the book is interesting, funny, exciting and sometimes you can't even put the book down. It's one of my favorites in the whole world.
I think that the author (Laurie Halse Anderson) could have put a little more past times in the book, maybe a little more exclamatory events too.
The message to this book is to help others when they are in trouble. Also, be responsible and don't always play around.

I absolutely LOVE any Wild at Heart Books, and I can never put them down. I would strongly suggest that you buy this book for you, friend, or a family member. Anyone could find something that they enjoy in these books!!!

I liked Trickster a lot and I want to read a lot more wild at heart books!

If you want to read this book go for it. This book is one of my favorit books. If you like books about horses this is a book for you. this is an exiting book. once you read this book and you love it look for other wild at heart books such as Masks, fight for life, teachers pet,homeless and lots more! if you think you might like it I say go for it!

The Wild At Heart book Trickster is a great book. I finished the book in two days , i just couldn't put it down. This book kept me on the edge of my seat. I like horses, but by reading this book i love them even more. This book has one of the best endings i have ever read. All of the Wild At Heart books are very good, but Trickster is the best.

I got the book when it came out in October. Since then I have read it three times, lent it out to 4 different people, and led a small group examining the book.

The book is well balanced with the philosophical and abstract characteristics for the integration of faith and learning and for evangelism in academia, and with practical and specific methods for accomplishing this. Not only this, but the contributors come from a wide variety of disciplines and each has a different slant to their insight.

The introduction by Gould was one of my favorite chapters, though it only reads like an introduction for a few pages. I may be showing my affinity for philosophy, but the chapter by Peter Kreeft was incredible. As soon as I finished I saw that I had taken so many quotes from it with the intention of sharing with some friends that I just handed the book over with the chapter bookmarked. Speaking as someone weary from fighting the battles over the integration of faith and learning and the proper place for faith and religion in academia, this book was an excellent refocusing and encouragement.

My only problem is that Malik's chapter on the priority of uniting the orthodoxes and caring for our churches around the world didn't really belong in the book. I thought it was a great call to service, but perhaps it would be better placed in another book or journal, as it really didn't touch on Christian scholarship. But this won't knock the review down to 4 stars because the material in the rest of the book more than makes up for the flaw I just mentioned.

I apologize for not being terribly specific in the review, but the other reviews on Amazon have already done a good job with that. I encourage you to look at them should you want more specifics on the material.

This is an outstanding collection of essays centered around the theme of Charles Malik's 1980 address regarding redeeming the soul and the mind. It seeks to encourage Christian academics to glorify Christ in the secular university both in their academic research and their spiritual lives. Far from proffering a simplistic vision of the calling of a Christian academic, the book presents a deeply thoughtful, godly and concerned critique of the secular academy and how Christian scholars might successfully navigate the unfriendly waters there.

Perhaps the best essay in the book is the first one, Gould's "Two Tasks Introduced." The interesting and original discussion here of what "academic integration" really means is thought-provoking and immensely useful for those concerned with questions such as "what exactly is Christian scholarship?" and "what is an integrated Christian life?" Gould makes a helpful distinction between "explicit Christian research" and "latent Christian research," and how both can further Christian thought. "Explicit" Christian research is research that is asking "distinctly Christian questions" or "applying distinctly Christian concepts," while "latent" Christian research supports or implies the Christian worldview without explicitly discussing it. Both are useful and necessary in the academy, Gould says. But he doesn't rest there when describing the Two Tasks, as he includes the life and worship of the scholar in his definition. That is, in order to be a fully integrated Christian scholar, such a scholar must seek to glorify God with her life, how she treats and serves others, as well as standing up for Christ when necessary. These latter, practical areas are topics which, it must be admitted, are all too often forgotten in discussions of this type. Also included in this chapter is Gould's sketch of the metanarrative of Scripture and what that implies for distinctly Christian scholarship.

The essays by Robert Kaita, a physicist at Princeton, and John North, English professor at the University of Waterloo (Canada), are also very thought-provoking reflections on the two tasks from the perspectives of the sciences and the humanities, respectively. Kaita places the Christian integrative life within Paul's address at Mars Hill (Acts 17:16-34), and then discusses Intelligent Design with regard to Paul's approach to his audience at Athens. Kaita makes quite useful observations about the term "theory" as it is applied in physics, and how that differs from its use in biology. This, he says, has interesting implications for the acceptance of Intelligent Design in biology. North, as well, makes very interesting observations about the Christian roots of Western literature, and how his teaching of such literature has led to many spiritual discussions with students. In fact, North says, it was his study of the Christian symbolism in Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" which led him to study English literature as a career. He encourages scholars to simply select certain texts and let those texts, which have Christian themes, speak for themselves in the classroom.

There are a number of other outstanding essays in the book as well. Walter Bradley, professor of Engineering at Baylor University, gives very practical suggestions in his essay about how to reach out with the gospel to students and colleagues in a secular environment. Charles Malik's original "Two Tasks" address is reprinted here, and his son Habib Malik writes the introduction as well as an essay about the Two Tasks and "the clash of civilizations." William Lane Craig and Peter Kreeft offer fitting tributes to Charles Malik as well. Overall, this volume is an essential one for the scholar who desires to glorify God in the secular academy through integrative research as well as richly-flourishing soul. Highly recommended.

I got up at 3am to turn down the heat in the house and saw the book on my desktop. I read the foreword and chapter one. Chapter one is worth the price of the book. I loved the way Paul Gould unpacks the difference between 'agnostic pluralism' (merely being allowed a seat at the table of philosophical relativism) versus the 'committed pluralism' (what I believe Os Guiness calls a 'principled pluralism) which the book attributes to L. Newbigin.

I loved the C.S. Lewis quotes throughout the chapter in the text and footnotes. One example was on scholarship not being an end in itself but neither being merely instrumental and linking such to an essay from "God in the Dock" and to a C.S. Lewis's speech, and in the illustrative footnote from John Piper on worship and mission and the One who is Ultimate. What an intriguing way to get at scholarship as an act of worship, not of the endeavor but of the God who affirms it.

The world-view overview and the part on human flourishing (which
is the theme of the upcoming GFM conference) was vintage creation mandate BUT the book's mention of the significant missing puzzle piece for many, e.g. the part on the image of God and human responsibility as moral agents was masterful. Paul Gould's mention of how Darwinian determinism and American autonomous individualism really hate that reality was worth the late night musing.

In his rendition of recent history (on the shoulders of Mark Noll and others) of the western university and Christian transformational potentials, mentioning study centers like MacLaurin in Minnesota where I have a friend now studying in a Ph.D. program at Indiana University, and Harvey Fellowships where I also have a friend at I.U. are all worthy affirmations. What Gould offers as hope is indeed such. I've seen the scholarly fruit and high caliber players.

Quotes from F. Schaeffer, M. Noll, G. Marsden, D.A. Carson, and even the select ones from L. Newbigin all rocked in the big picture challenge Paul Gould describes as did his distinguishing scientism and naturalism. Well written.

Thank you Paul for your part in editing this work and for your chapter in particular. I love Peter Kreeft's writing and KNOW I'm going to love that
chapter as well as Walter Bradley's. Got to stop the review and read the rest. All the grad students and faculty I know at Purdue and I.U. really need to read, read slowly, savor, and discuss this chapter in particular. The familiar dodge (in a new context) on the 'play the game' (kind of a methodological naturalism) and wait for getting through the ABD phase, to waiting for tenure, to waiting for more time... pg 30...oh goodness, bulls eye challenging but it is written very graciously as is the tone throughout the chapter.

Did I mention the book's high view of biblical authority (if chapter one is any indication)? It is a very rich book indeed. Get it. Enjoy it. Share it widely!

In September 1980 Charles Malik gave a powerful talk on the need for evangelicals to reclaim the mind, and to reclaim the universities. It was published that year in a brief book called The Two Tasks. A century after his birth, a number of Christian scholars, including his son, commemorates Malik and his stirring address. Thus this book.

Seven Christian thinkers, including Peter Kreeft and William Lane Craig, remind us of the crucial importance of what Charles Malik said on that September day. And it was indeed a vital message. I have pulled from my shelves that quite thin volume (a mere 37 pages) and reread that incisive message.

Malik rightly said that the "greatest danger besetting American Evangelical Christianity is the danger of anti-intellectualism." He also said that the most urgent need is "not only to win souls but to save minds". He correctly noted that the universities are the real battle ground today, and we need to see Christ exalted there as much as anywhere else.

He gave his speech at a leading evangelical university, Wheaton College. In his impassioned address, he said he craved to see "an institution that will produce as many Nobel Prize winners as saints". The authors of this new book fully agree, and urge us to take seriously the challenges made by Malik.

Paul Gould reminds us that our universities and professors are the gatekeepers of ideas, and that they have a tremendous influence on every other aspect of life. If bad ideas come forth from our universities, then we will all be on the receiving end, because bad ideas have bad consequences.

Indeed, Malik warned decades ago that the ideas mainly emanating from our universities are not exactly faith-friendly. Worldviews and ideas such as naturalism, humanism, materialism, hedonism, relativism, nihilism, atheism and cynicism are rife in our institutions of higher learning. "All of which are essentially so many modes of self-worship" said Malik. "Any wonder there is so much disorder in the world?"

And the truth that ideas have consequences applies on the individual level as well as the social level. Gould says "there is a two-way causal connection between moral character and intellectual virtue". Indeed, Paul makes the connection when he speaks of "the knowledge of truth that leads to godliness" (Titus 1:1); and being "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Roman 12:2).

William Lane Craig offers many great insights in his essay. He too acknowledges that "the single most important institution shaping Western culture is the university". Thus the importance of the Christian mind: "If we change the university, we change our culture".

Craig cites J. Gresham Machen who wrote in 1912: "False ideas are the greatest obstacle to the reception of the gospel". Although the battle for truth and ideas is so crucial, most believers have shirked their duties in this regard. Evangelicals especially have "for the most part been living on the periphery of responsible intellectual existence".

But Craig says there have been some signs of hope. He refers to the impact of Christian philosopher Alvin Plantinga's 1967 book, God and Other Minds, for example. He also notes how one atheist philosopher bewailed the fact that perhaps one-quarter to one-third of all American philosophers are now theists.

He reminds us that Christian academics stand on the church's frontline "in one of the most important theatres in the culture war, that of the university". He reminds them to carefully integrate their Christian faith with their academic calling.

The various essays contained in this much-needed volume remind us of some central truths - truths which Malik sought to hammer home back in 1980. They remind us, as Malik put it, that at the "heart of all the problems facing Western civilization ... lies the state of the mind and the spirit in the universities".

Malik was right to argue that all our ills stem primarily from the "false philosophies that have been let loose in the world and that are now being taught in the universities". And the consequences have been profound. "No civilization can endure with its mind being as confused and disordered as ours is today".

Fortunately, Malik's original address is included in this volume. The writers of these essays urge us to take seriously this most urgent of challenges. They, like Malik, have sounded the trumpet. The question is, who will respond?

The imperative for the Christian thinker is to integrate being a Christian with living and working in the academic world. A decade ago Should God Get Tenure? explored the legitimacy and participation of the Christian in the academic world. In The Two Tasks of the Christian Scholar, William Lane Craig and Paul M. Gould, with a cadre of academics, take the work of Charles Malik and propose the place and participation of the Christian in the academy. What they propose is specifically Christian, without compromise and without equivocation.

There is no honest Christian in the academy who compromises Christianity and attempts to segregate Faith from Knowledge. The fully integrated life is the best life for ministry. The following are some of the more significant points made in the book:

As Christian scholars continue to permeate academia we will have the opportunity to open doors for the gospel. That is one of the themes of this book. Not theocracy, not a conquest of the university, but an advance into a world often untouched by the Christian. It is sometimes closed, but when it opens, Christians as capable scholars and participants will gain the opportunity for ministry in the secular cathedrals.

Ideas have consequences, and the university in general and professors in particular are the gate-keepers of ideas -- influencing directly or indirectly all aspects of thought and life in our world. Christian professors must live a fully integrated life even in the face of challenges from within and without, for the sake of the lost -- and as Malik states, for our future generation of children. (p. 19)

...this very obvious fact -- that each generation is taught by an earlier generation -- must be kept firmly in mind .... None can give to another what he does not possess himself. No generation can bequeath to its successor what it has not got. You may frame the syllabus as you please. But when you have planned and reported ad nauseum, if we are skeptical we shall teach only skepticism to our pupils, if fools, only folly, if vulgar only vulgarity, if saints sanctity, if heroes heroism. ... Nothing which was not in the teachers can flow from theminto the pupils. We shall all admit that a man who knows no Greek himself cannot teach Greek to his form: But it is equally certain that a man whose mind was formed in a period of cynicism and disillusion cannot teach hope and fortitude. (p. 30, quoting C. S. Lewis, "On the Transmission of Christianity," in God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics)

Gone are the days of Constantinian Christianity where Christianity rules the culture. Rather, we should be principled pluralists -- recognizing that to be a Christian is always to stand in tension with what the Bible calls the world. (p. 41)

The Christian scholar is on the front lines of the battle of ideas. (p. 49)

I urge every Christian in the academy, as a student or a professor, to read this work along side Should God Get Tenure? Then take some time to evaluate your position and your ministry with all honesty.

Collin
[...]

This is by far the best book for older siblings who are about to have a new baby in their house. Great pictures and wonderful text make it a fun read, and it really touches your heartstrings. Especially the part when the older sibling helps comfort the baby, I see it so much now between my two kids. I highly recommend this book to anyone is about to go from 1 to 2. My son still wants me to read it to him and his sister is almost a year and a half.

This book is adorable. I got it for my son when his little sister was born, and have gifted it to several friends when they have their seconds. The older child will relate to the little tiger and parents will laugh at all the descriptions ("Yuk! Take a look / it isn't cooked!..."), the illustrations wonderful and the ending is very sweet. For those wondering, it is not "technical" or "religious" as to where one comes from. Just a very sweet (and secular) conclusion to the question.

A delightful tale of the experiences of a new sibling. The older child thinks of all the ways to send the new baby back but in the end realizes that a baby is not such a terrible thing to have around the house! A nice book to share with a new older brother/sister.

The tiger familyhas a new baby and the older sibling is curious as to where it came from. "Did you buy it from the store? Please don't buy any more!" This hilarious tale of the quest to figuring out where the pooping, crying, new baby comes from and how to take it back. The ending will leave you with warm feeling inside!

The main character in the story a cute tiger cub. He has just gotten a new baby in his house. He wants to know where it came from so he can take it back. He's upset by all the attention it gets. He also says all it does is cry, pee and poop, and spit up! He's had it with this baby. That is until one day when the baby is crying and he goes over to it to try and calm it down. The baby smiles at him and he starts to like the baby.

The pictures were fun to look at. The story moved at a fast pace as well.


We would recommend this book to families who are getting ready to have babies. This would make a great story to read and discuss with young children about the way they feel about having a new baby in the home.

"Dr. Ehin is the rarest of business authors: the subject expert whose writing is clear, focused, and actionable. Unleashing Intellectual Capital is a must read for tomorrow's business winners."

-David Stauffer, President of Stauffer Bury Inc.

"[A]n absolutely fascinating work which must be read by all contemporary managers. This book not only points the way for future global business evolution, but truly is a 'capstone work' which draws from Dr. Ehin's professsional expertise, and also incorporates all of his life's experiences into an exceptional 'common-sense approach' to the science of management for the new millenium...Personally, I believe that the elements that he sets forth provide an exceptional sound basis to guide all managers well into the future."

-Peter F. Gerity, Vice President for Research, Utah State University

"Charlie Ehin has done us all a great favor. He has clearly demonstrated that in the long run there can be no middle ground between controlled and shared access based organizations. And he has shared with us the precious knowledge that organizations flowing from a shared access foundation are those more likely to succeed in very unpredictable environments. Those who do not see a clear connection between the 'new science' and how human endeavors ought to be 'scientifically' organized should read this book."

-Ned Hamson, Senior Editor, The Journal for Quality and Participation

"In Unleashing Intellectual Capital Dr. Ehin has developed a model that will help create the necessary competitive advantage for companies through intellectual capital generation. He has provided the keys that open the best in an individual, team and a company as a whole. His book is the key to success for all change managers and anyone else interested in prospering in the Knowlege Age."

-Carl Champagne, President and CEO, Data Systems International, Inc.

"Dr. Ehin's Unleashing Intellectual Capital is a rare treasure in the evolution of management theory. Never before have we enjoyed a more comprehensive, integrated framework for managing human assets that incorporates the critical components necessary for success in the new millennium."

-Carol C. Leavitt, Sunstone Partners

"In this day and age of rapid change in both society and scientific endeavor, we all begin to see a convergence of biology, sociology, world economy, computer science, etc. I admire your courage in trying to amalgamate these diverse facets of human-kind and lead the reader to the obvious 'right and good' choice for our society and our enterprise structure."

-Donald F. Summers, M.D., Associate Director, National Cancer Institute

"Finally a book which not only brings back today's complex world of work to a human dimension, but reveals explicitly that in our basic humanness lies a source of incredible potential for building a successful business. A unique and very useful book."

-Frank Heckman, President of Van Ede Heckman, The Netherlands

"Dr. Ehin's Unleashing Intellectual Capital is thought provoking and enlightening. He built a compelling evolutionary argument demonstrating how hierarchical organizational structures stifle human social needs, thereby limiting organizational competitiveness. [Dr. Ehin] opened my eyes as to how an alternative structure, the shared access organization, affords modern organizations to compete in today's complex global society. Anyone planning to be a part of a successful 21st century enterprise should read this book and heed its advice on developing shared access organizations."

-Dr. Vicki R. Whiting, Assistant Professor, Vive and Bill Gore School of Business, Westminster College

"Unleashing Intellectual Capital showcases Dr. Ehin's great breadth of knowledge, passion and intuitive reflection. This book provides the reader with deep personal insight necessary for the development of management theory. Ehin weaves corporate principles with human behavior resulting in a unique model which will bring success to any company in the Knowledge Age."

-Tom Lyons, Senior Advisor, Irish Productivity Center, Ireland

"Most pleasing about this work is the interdisciplinary approach to explaining management. Dr. Ehin's book redistributes the balance of power so that we can all see ourselves as innately-driven, and in search of personal fulfillment. Perhaps organizations will at this point learn, grow and self-organize as the keys to productivity. The argument in Unleashing Intellectual Capital should help us get back to some basic scientific truths about human behavior so that our organizations can all move forward, in a more honest and productive manner."

-Stephen R. Baar, Academic Vice President, Dean of Faculty, Westminster College

"Dr. Ehin, a business professor and leader, weaves corporate principles with molecular biology, to reveal the many obstacles of what is considered 'traditional management.' Morality, reponsibility and understanding are essential to not only the corporate world, but to the planet at large. This book will be an innovative tool for the corporate culture."

-Jerry Kaufman, Attorney At Law, Los Vegas, Nevada

"Dr. Charles Ehin makes a logical and interesting case for understanding human behavior in knowledge organizations by focusing on our biological and evolutionary development. He provides us with another way of building "brain-rich" companies, who are the engines of progress and economic growth in modern society."

-Anu Kaljurand, Managing Director, Baltic Management Conferences, Estonia

"Unleashing Intellectual Capital combines current management theory with important observations about human biology to create an organizational construct based on bio-logic. Professor Ehin brings these theories together with a model for creating a self-organizing learnging organization that will be helpful in building and developing knowledge-age business."

-Carl Lehmann, CEO of RTW, and former President of the Store Value Group of American Express

"Organizations and individuals want a partnership where the individuals can use their ideas and skills and the organization will reward them for their contributions to the success of the business. Dr. Ehin is making a strong case that this movement is founded in recognizing and building on the positive aspects of our human nature. He has clearly explained why this is critical for satisfying the needs of both the business and the individual. A must read for successful companies of the 21st century

Dr. Ehin has provided us with the management strategy we need to succeed in this new age of business. Unleashing Intellectual Capital is definitely a must read for anyone involved in the Internet Age.

-Wally Hartman, Executive Vice President of storeBusters.com, Inc.

Unleashing Intellectual Capital helps us to understand that there are two sides to human nature. Without knowing we have stimulated the self-centered side of human nature, which isn't condusive to sharing tacit knowledge. We need to find ways to express our unselfish side, which is explained in this outstanding book.

It is true in every corporation, in every organization, in every enterprise: one still cannot find the entity where people believe that everyone -- everyone! -- is working to their full mental potential and bringing that intellectual capital to bear on the purpose and productivity of the firm. Thus, Ehin has written a book that is part paean to the power of the human mind -- and part prescription for how management can tap into that powerful resource. Then again, perhaps the word is not "management," for Ehin boldly announces early on that "Increasing intellectual capital cannot be managed in the traditional sense." This upfront distinct point-of-view makes this book a standout. For at its core, this book is not about managing organizations; it's about human nature. Ehin argues that to tap into intellectual capital, one must "grasp the vital function of the genes. Second, we need to be aware of how our multilevel minds process information received through our senses. Finally, we should be familiar with some of our fundamental drives." Ah, now the reader starts to understand what Ehin was talking about when said in his Preface that he was going to build a case for unleashing organizational intellect by "building on the most recent research in a variety of fields, such as anthropology, palentology, molecular biology, neuroscience, evolutionary psychology, and sociobiology." And, guess what? He does. He does! And he does it in 183 crisply written pages that won't bore you but will, instead, fascinate you. In fact, they may electrify you. For when he closes the book talking about "human values" as "the fundamental tapestry of our organizations," you will know that you have found in this book a new way to look at intellectual capital, organizations, and yourself. More than that, it would be hard to put this book down and not feel that you have encountered an unusually-gifted author, one whom you will want to keep as a knowledgeable friend for many years to come.

A powerful case for radical change to the assumptions and practices driving current organisation. Argues that the rise of the knowledge economy makes it even more urgent to organise in ways that support human cooperation and creativity. Builds from human biology to identify the social capital required to support generation of intellectual capital.

It is increasingly accepted that the only sustainable source of competitive advantage in 'the knowledge economy' is to tap the full creative potential and capacity to learn together of the humans who are the most important asset of any organisation. Yet most organisations continue to behave in ways that directly work against realisation of that potential.

The replacement of the dominant 'machine' metaphor of organisations with an 'organic' metaphor has become commonplace in the literature and its implications for organisation, culture and style of management are clear. But this is not (at least yet) having any dramatic effect on organisational behaviour. Perhaps a different metaphor is not a powerful enough tool to start the process of changed consciousness.

Charles Ehin takes a different approach to a similar end. He goes right back to the genetic and evolutionary foundations of human behaviour and our basic drives. From that he draws out conclusions about the cultural environment - the social capital - that needs to be in place to produce the high levels of collaboration needed for vigorous intellectual capital generation and market responsiveness. In effect he is offering a scientific rather than a metaphorical argument for changed behaviour by organisations. We need to understand our basic human nature so that 'we can narrow the gap between it and the organisational context rather than unknowingly widening it.' Throughout, he uses relevant and engaging examples from his personal experience to illustrate his case.

The fundamental argument rests on two sets of innate human drives: self centred and other centred (cooperative or communitarian). Each of these drives is continually present in all of us. The socio/cultural or organisational environment or context is a major factor in calling forth on or the other set of drives. What he calls 'controlled access' - or hierarchical - organisation triggers the self-centred drives: dependence, compliance, self preservation. What he calls 'shared access' - essentially reliance on self-organisation - triggers the other-centred drives: self-direction, interdependence, commitment, trust. While each set of drives can manifest itself under either style of organisation, the hierarchical form is hostile to the full flowering of the other-centred drives. Further, engagement of the other-centred drives and development self-organisation are interdependent: the development of self-organisation can only proceed through engagement of these drives in a reinforcing loop of development. The loop is driven through nurturing four fundamental interacting competencies:

common purpose (shared values and vision); sense of community (building trust, empathy and compassion); 'line-of-sight relationships' (face to face activities and interactions); visualising wholes (fostering the ability to see wholes and understand and work with whole systems)

Ehin argues that it is precisely these drives and associated competencies that are essential to organisational success in a knowledge economy.

The elements in his case are well illustrated in a series of figures through the book, particularly Fig 2.1 (P. 36), Fig 5.1 (P. 104), and the detailed two-part system chart in Figs 7.1A and 7.1B (Pp. 152-3). I found it useful to copy those charts so that they were in front of me for reference as I read the text.

The book is a valuable addition to the literature on the learning organisation ( Senge et al. The Dance of Change), on management under complexity (eg Lewin: The Soul at Work), on working with whole systems (eg Pratt et al.: Working Whole Systems) and on knowledge management and innovation (e.g. Leonard- Barton: The Wellsprings of Knowledge). I suspect that a number of readers will be willing to take the argument about human nature on trust, without reading it in depth, but the model and the relationships underpinning it deserve careful attention.

The assault on the hierarchical castle continues, and Ehin has thrown in another battalion, opening one more front. However, the walls remain unbreached. The sad reality is that most hierarchs are hooked on power and the belief that things can only go right if they personally make the decisions. The objective of retaining and expanding personal power often (even if unconsciously) outweighs the objective of achieving commercial success and blinds the hierarch to the fact that the two are often in opposition.

The acceptance of the current geological theory of tectonic plates took 25 years, when all that was at risk was the reputation and knowledge base of the then generation of geology professors. More is at stake in this shift in the way we see our organisational world; we are probably looking at generational change to achieve the shifts that Ehin advocates, but it is never too soon to start.

This is a terrific book. A "must have" to process medical claims.

As a Vice President of Claims with many years of experience in the business, this is the first time I have a experienced such an excellent claims processing manual. It is well organized and extremely easy to utilize. I have found myself and my staff using this book more often than any other reference material presently available. The author has skillfully gathered all of the pertinent information required in claims adjudication and has successfully wrapped it all together in one book. It is about time there is a book available with such complete information.

I can't image working without this book. I am a claims examiner and reference this book constantly. It has been an enormous help to me. My coworkers are constantly trying to borrow it. The author has really put together a knockout book.

This is a wonderful book. I bought the 2000 Edition and have just bought the 2001 Edition. It is even better than the first, if that was possible. I am a medical claims trainer and use this book every day. It has made my job and that of my department so much easier. All the answers are now at my fingertips!

With over 25 years experience working in the medical claims field, I understand the needs of the Claims Department. This book provides answers to your claims questions in an easy-to-ready, all-in-one user guide.

It is colorized, written in everyday language, and filled with processing guidelines needed for day-to-day processing.

The table of contents is as follows:

Chapter 1 Claim Forms; Chapter 2 Ambulatory Surgical Facilities; Chapter 3 Modifiers (all of them); Chapter 4 Surgery; Chapter 5 Anesthesia

CLAIM FORMS - This book provides a complete layout of the HCFA-1500 and UB-92 forms and full field descriptions

AMBULATORY SURGICAL FACILITIES - ASC procedures and associated grouper codes

MODIFIERS - all numeric and alpha modifiers as well as a new section on bilateral procedures

SURGERY - How to pay multiple surgery, procedures that do not allow an assistant at surgery, procedures that allow a surgical tray, procedures not subject to multiple surgery reduction, and follow-up days

ANESTHESIA - The formula used to calculate general anesthesia, anesthesia base units and a cross reference guide from the surgical code to the anesthesia code.

Authors Mark Hurd and Lars Nyberg have brought a wealth of business management wisdom in this book. As the book is classified under business intelligence and information services, it is likely to be missed by business managers and students of management. The book defines contemporary global company to be one that collaborates effectively across the entire organization, whether worldwide or in one country. The other fascinating theme in the book is how a global business could manage effectively by centralizing goals and democratizing decisions. The best part of the book are the brief case studies from real businesses on how a concept that is explained is put into practice. The amount of wisdom packed in 130 pages makes it an outstanding book on "fact-based management" in practice.

"It's a book of staggering blandness, but in fairness, no more than thousands like it: the CEO's management manual," notes The Register in a review of the book. (...) "A title to send anyone to sleep.".

It goes on to say, "The CEO may become expert at pattern recognition, but staring at the patterns doesn't help with the predictive instincts that often go into making a hit product. That's the essential risk of entrepreneurship, and it's a wildly unpredictable factor. The technocratic management culture of the modern MBA school tries to minimize that risk, and so we have remedies such as "Information Alignment", which tell us nothing. Hurd is very much a product of his time."

We couldn't disagree more. Information leads to knowledge and to insights that allows one to have the "predictive instincts". Data warehousing and data mining can uncover true gold since information and not data is the basis of any wisdom - from personal life to corporate life.

This short book can actually be an eye opener to those who have been sleeping or tend to. As the above review shows, one more reason to read it.

This book is like a clear lamp knifing through the fog of business, saying that what really matters is developing one clear unified concept of your business, declaring who you are and what you do. The key to achieving this "unified truth" is information. Most companies stack information in silos represented by business units, so one part of the company doesn't know what the other parts are doing. Authors Mark Hurd and Lars Nyberg of the NCR global information technology firm make a cogent case that the key to overcoming this shortcoming is to take information out of scattered departments and develop centralized storage facilities for its collection, processing and retrieval. Armed with this base, this "unified truth," employees can become more customer-centric. One caveat, however, is that single view companies face the danger of tunnel vision. Sometimes companies need internal, competing views to be sure they consider the correct perspective. Although this book is an NCR public relations effort, it sets out a key point: if your firm isn't making information its top priority, you're could be falling behind the curve. We highly recommend this book to leaders and future leaders.

For many years, hardware and software vendors have preached the benefits of unifying databases for major companies. In recent years, there has been a strong move to open up those unified databases for more and more people in the company so that better and timelier business decisions can be made. Such an effort can cost a large company hundreds of millions and be an even larger cost in percentage of assets for smaller companies. Before deciding to move ahead, what can a leader expect to gain? What must the leader do, once deciding to go ahead, in order to be sure that the gain is achieved? Those are the helpful subjects of The Value Factor.

I was very pleased to see that this book emphasized the business process of making such a change . . . rather than simply touting the potential benefits. You cannot spend potential benefits, after all.

Within the book, there were lots of examples to show what kind and size of benefits can be achieved . . . and how they are achieved. I found the airline examples to be especially telling in creating fast flexibility to respond within hours to marketplace shifts. The financial services examples were also compelling, as I was reminded of how often such organizations treat us differently depending on what product of service is involved. Seeing these examples, it was also clear how much it helps streamline decision-making if everyone is looking at the same facts in the same way . . . reflecting the total situation.

The book is very brief, which will be welcome to time-weary executives. It would be an excellent choice for a three hour plane flight.

The only thing I didn't like about the book was the seemingly endless repetition of the need to break down independent "silos" of operations that do not cooperate with one another and have different data sets.

A good related book is E-Business Intelligence by Bernard Liautaud of Business Objects.

See what needs to be done . . . and empower those close to the problem to get on with it!

Hurd and Nyberg call on their vast industry knowledge to provide corporate leaders with real-world examples from top companies around the globe where information gathering steers profitable business decisions.

This quick read (only 132 pages) provided me with the confidence I need to drive practices within my organization to get and maintain good information for decision-making purposes.

I was pleased to see leaders at Hurd and Nyberg's level, who really understand the value of a unified corporate vision based on levelheaded information management, are willing to share their insight.

This is a must-read for anyone making key business decisions!

One of the best books we have come across for practical application. This book is not theory about what "should" happen, but actual experience in what "does" happen in small groups. We recommend that all our small group leaders read this book!

This is an awesome book about home based small groups. Another companion book "The Seven Deadly Sins of a Small Group Ministry" is a must read too.

Before I opened Walking the Small Group Tightrope, I feared another formula for "how to do small groups." But Donahue and Robinson provide fresh insight into the realistic tensions of small groups. Through their experiences, they share failures and successes.
Donahue and Robinson claim, "Each chapter will identify the challenge, define the inherent dynamics of the tension, describe what happens when groups lean too far toward one end of the continuum, and offer suggestions and tools so leaders can help their groups manage these polarities." The hope: leaders gain the skill to walk that tightrope. Overall, they fulfill their promise.
The authors, experienced pastors of small group ministries, who've overseen thousands of groups, studied their failures as small group leaders. Through these failures, they identified six challenges. Each chapter of this book defines one of the six challenges. And every challenge presents two tensions, creating the ends of the tightrope. For example, "the learning challenge" creates the tensions of truth and life. The other tensions consist of care and discipleship, friendship and accountability, kindness and confrontation, task and people, openness and intimacy. Small group leaders must find the balance between the two polar extremes. A target in the middle of the tightrope balances the continuum and gives the leader an aim. Tools and suggestions facilitate next steps.
The identification of the six challenges, definitions of the tensions, examples of the polar extremes and tools assist in management of these tensions. The real life stories and the honesty engage the reader. Th