Organizations Books

I am an organizational consultant and human resources professional. I found out about this book in my Master of Arts program in organizational development. This is a fun, simple and incredibly accurate way in which people play out roles in organizations based upon status (tops are the owners, presidents, CEO's, etc., middles are middle managers, and bottoms are the workers). You've seen this drama play out. Barry Oshry helps you understand it and work with it.

Anyone working with (or in) an organization can benefit from this book. The power is in its simplicity. But don't let the simplicity fool you. It is the real deal. Good, effective writing and presentation. I'm director of a nonprofit that does training, and I'll be using these principles within our organization, and with clients, every day. Thank you, Barry Oshry, for making them so accessible.

Oshrey has a knack for making the realities and possiblites of organizational life and behavior simple and understandable. It provides insight into the world of burdened Tops, oppressed Bottoms, torn Middles, and screws Cusotmers, why the relationships don't work and some possibilites and staregies on how they might work.

By looking at organizations as systems, the reader can get useful insights into why organizaitons works as well as they do and fail as dismally as they fail. If, like me, you struggle with systems thinking but are intrigued with the concept, Oshrey uses simple models that are easy to grasp and profound in their reflections of reality.

This book is a great intoduction into Oshrey's world of power, systems, leadership and partnership. We've all been burdered Tops, torn Middles, oppressed Bottoms, and screwed Customers. The book gives us insight into why these conditions happen and offers some alternative strategies for making organization work both for us and for the organization's purpose.

I'm a great fan of the author and have taken two of his workshops. Along with the reading, the experience of Oshrey's model fun, challeneging, and holds the potential for great personal and organizational change.

It has been said that each new generation forgets the mistakes of those that came before it. This book proves this point with respect to the privatization of utilities. The auhor delves into the history of electric and power privatization in industrial countries since 1900, with an emphasis on the US and UK, the two countries with the longest history of mass electricity usage. In this book, the author shows:
1. How the control of power generation, transmission, and usage has shifted back and forth between the public and private (corporate) sphere over the last century.
2. The times of public control saw minimal blackouts or rationing, low and steady rates, high investment in environmentally friendly technology, and high investment in research for more efficient technology.
3. The times of private control saw numerous blackouts and rationing, high and increasing rates, minimal investment in environmentally friendly technology, and low investment in research for more efficient technology.
4. The drive for privatization is always from big corporations who are either large-scale consumers of electricity, or large-scale producers of electricity.
5. The drive for public control always results from the poor service provided by privately-owned utilities.
6. Any time public and privately held utilities operated in the same geographical marketplace, the public utilities ALWAYS offer lower rates and more dependable service.
7. The switch from privately owned utilities to public control is always due to overwhelming public pressure at the grassroots level.
8. The switch to deregulate public utilities is due to propaganda put out by corporations and their sponsored think tanks.
9. The electricity industry by its nature and evolution in America is a prototypical natural monopoly and trying to privatize different segments of it leads to chaos.
10. Over the last decade, both the Bush and Clinton administrations contrived with Enron to force other countries to deregulate their utilities so Enron could buy them up and make profits on them.

Overall, this is a great book. It shows how big corporations, primarily Western ones, have collaborated over the last century to take control of the electric utilities around the world, solely to increase their profits. I highly recommend reading it.

Beder has written the indispensable account of why the American electric power industry is in extreme disarray. This is an account of deregulation, Enron, artificial prices and gross exploitation. It is the book of the moment: timely and relevant to the electric blackouts of August 2003, easy to understand, and really essential. Extremely informative.

Hegel once remarked that the only thing people learn from history is that people have learned nothing from history. To that end, the philosopher no doubt would have been intrigued by Sharon Beder's outstanding book "Power Play." In it, the author shows how the neo-liberal ideologies and financial self-interests that once conspired to create chaos in the electric power industry in the 1930s have been resurrected in our own time to produce similarly disastrous results. Importantly, her analysis helps us understand what needs to be done to restore order to an out-of-control system that garners most of its profits at the public's expense.

In my estimation, Sharon Beder has established herself as one of the most articulate critics of corporate power. As a Professor of Social Sciences, Media and Communications in Australia, Ms. Beder has demonstrated in prior books such as "Global Spin" a remarkable knack for deconstructing propaganda and uncovering the agendas that are often hidden behind corporate messages. I found "Power Play" to be a carefully reasoned, well-supported and convincing piece of research that makes for compelling reading.

The book is divided into five sections. The first deals with the history of power politics in the U.S. for most of the 20th century. We learn how private interests used the media and political influence to promote deregulation, and how the industry's eventual implosion was a major contributing factor in the stock market crash of 1929 and subsequent Great Depression. The second section discusses the push to deregulate in the latter part of the century to the present day. We see how legislation enacted in the 1930s to protect against corporate abuse was eventually rolled back, which in turn set the stage for companies like Enron to suffer a fate similar to that which befell Samuel Insull's energy empire in the 1930s.

The third, fourth and fifth sections deal with deregulation in Britain, Australia and other parts of the world. The global perspective provided by Ms. Beder is useful. Clearly, ideology and financial interests have been the driving forces behind the privatization agenda; interestingly, we learn that the outcomes in various locales have been remarkably similar. Ms. Beder relates how large corporations are often able to exercise market power in order to extort unusually large fees from their customers. The winners are large industrial users and the banks, investors and consultants working on behalf of the energy companies. The losers include taxpayers, farmers, the poor, small businesses and the environment.

In my opinion, although "Power Play" does not explicitly tie the economic inefficiencies of the deregulated power industry with the current economic downturn, it provides ample evidence that the crisis in the power industry significantly contributes to job loss and siphons capital from other productive sectors of the economy. For example, the author explains that privatized energy companies often cut payrolls in order to boost bottom-line profits. Ms. Beder also shows how obscene profits earned by a few large corporations such as Enron often act as a drag on local economies. The leading example of course is California, where escalating prices forced many businesses to shut down. Moreover, the payments that the state was forced to make to greedy suppliers during the energy crisis easily exceeds the state's current budget deficit, causing hardship for many.

Interestingly, "Power Play" was completed prior to the 2003 blackout in the U.S. and Canada. This unfortunate event validates Ms. Beder's work. The author points out that the dynamics of an unregulated market and the quest for instant profits provides a disincentive for producers to maintain equipment and transmission lines, resulting in more frequent failures and service disruptions. Ms. Beder goes on to point out that the expense and risk associated with added capacity is increasingly borne by the public even while profits accrue to private interests; this assertion also appears to have been prescient, as witnessed by the huge subsidies that the U.S. government has recently proposed to pay for upgrades to the country's electric grid for the benefit of many privately-held energy producers.

By cutting through the smokescreen of self-serving corporate propaganda, "Power Play" serves as a wakeup call for citizens everywhere. It helps us understand how we might be able to reverse this trend for the better before more damage is inflicted on us all.

I highly recommend the book! This book is a strong experienced based program that guides you through the Consulting Process. The tools are ready to use; I really enjoy that. I put this book on the same level as "Operational Profitability;Conducting Management Audits." John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Powerful Professionals is well designed for the specific needs of internal consultants. I enjoyed the book thoroughly. It's easy-to-use, providing lots of partical tools and advice. Organized into a user-friendly handbook, it covers everything from establishing your credibility to managing change and resistance.

Written with a healthy does of humor, there are plenty of practical, step-by-step models supported by checklists, worksheets, assessment tools, and examples--rather than long- winded discussions on theory.

I STRONGLY recommend this book for anyone dealing with the day-to-day challenges of an internal consulting organization.

There has been a glut of books on 'how to be a consultant' that have been published in the last few years. I have become frustrated with the increasing quantity and decreasing quality of such books. All that changed with my reading of "Powerful Professionals". Finally, a superb book! "Powerful Professionals" is grounded in experience that I can relate to, and offered excellent, immediately useable advice for me as a professional. I also liked the easy-to-follow formatting and mix of text and graphics. There is also the behind-the-scenes theory for us who like such stuff. Chapter 15 of the book is "Putting It All Together". Well, the author and editor certainly have put together an all-encompassing and all-powerful book for all professionals. Bravo! Books of this quality are not often found by me. But when I do find a high-utility book like "Powerful Professionals", it becomes a jewel in my collection.

This book is ideal for leaders who want to include everyone in the decision making process. It gives multiple ideas and suggestions of how to peacefully achieve your decision making goals.

Lacking confidence in your decision-making abilities? This book will help you achieve a high level of confidence to make faster and more effective practical decisions for your school.

CONTENTS: Preface; List of Tables and Figures; Setting the Direction; Decision Making Defined; Core Steps in Decision Making; Adapting the Core Steps; Use of Structuring Devices; Designing Your Own Road Map for Decision Making; Structuring Devices; Four Illustrative Cases; Team Facilitation Tips and Techniques; Warning Signs on the Road to Decision Making; This Stuff Works;

This book should be read by every supervisor, manager, superintendent, principal and CEO involved with making decisions. It is a simple, yet thorough process of decision making. Pages of structuring devices are provided to help individuals and groups walk through the decision making process. The structuring devices offer non-confrontational, effective methods of examining the mind set of the group, defining the problem, identifying solution criteria, developing solution possibilities, and selecting, then implementing, a solution. Highly recommend!

This an an excellent resource for presidents, boards of trustees and senior university administrators as they face the challenges of presidential succession planning and change. These are crucial times in higher education so particular attention needs to be paid to the planning for the departure as well as the selection and transition process.
I was very impressed with how the authors have captured and presented the important lessons for these transitions. Many of their recommendations are also applicable in the transition of other senior administrators.
It is well done and a must read.

This book is most informative about what occurs when institutions go through presidential transitions. It provides very valuable and useful information for Boards, outgoing presidents and incoming presidents. This is a very difficult and stressful time for an institution. There are right ways and wrong ways to do this. The experience of others can be extremely helpful. This should be a must read for all key individuals involved in a presidential transition.

This is an extremely useful book for those going through leadership transitions, whether as candidates, new appointees, or as trustees. Each chapter deals with a part of the transition process, using the authors' experiences, buttressed by theory, then adds accounts from presidents who decribe their own transition experiences (ranging from Harvard to community college). Although the book deals with higher education, it would be equally useful for those in corporate, K-12, or non-profit organizations.

James H. Lytle, Practice Professor, University of Pennsylvania

The process-focused organization differs from traditional organization in three ways: it designs end-to-end business processes; it measures and manages process level results rather than tasks; and it thinks in terms of customer goals, not localized functional goals.

This book distinguishes itself from so many others concern processes in that it presents a clear, well reasoned and structured road map to achieve the features and power of a process-focused organization. The approach also gives recognition to the broader system of the organization.

Gardner makes clear, from the outset, that process improvement, while powerful, is not the complete solution to performance management. Process improvement is not a magic bullet, it has limited applications, and it is not the final answer. Process improvement must be linked to organizational strategy, and consideration must be given to how to integrate process with organizational structures and systems, and how to proactively manage process.

Gardner's has produced a highly readable book that reflects this broad and rich understanding of his subject. The road map presented in this work is unique in reflecting an end-to-end orientation-not the components; it is not issue-based but is centered on the higher levels of organizational capability; and the map provides a pathway with clearly discernible steps, indicating where you are and what's ahead.

The book offers an operating model that describes key operating and structures and relationships; a road map to guide process improvement work; and a transformation strategy that combines the model and road map into a plan for navigating the journey to process focus.

This book is exception in its scope, depth and clear thinking. As a consultant in organization design and change (...) I believe this book will prove highly valuable to any enterprise seeking major, lasting process improvement. 230 pp.

Mr. Gardner's premise that organizations should be managed horizontally by processes instead of the traditional vertical method is long overdue. Once customer value is indentified, a PFO (Process Focused Organization) can concentrate on identifying, developing and tweaking value creating processes that lead to increased market share and improved profits. This is a must have how to book for any manager who wants to make their organiztion number one in their industry.

I can say a lot about this book, I can actually write a book about how good this book is. But I rather you spend your time reading it than my review. Simply put, I have been in this field for over 20-years and read many process books from many so called experts. But none of them come even close. If you are just starting, consider yourself an expert or anywhere in between, you owe it to yourself to buy and read this great book. I actually gave a few to my clients for X.Mas. I would like to personally thank Mr. Robert Gardner for writing this book and sharing his knowledge with us!

Mortaza Zainaleain EE, PMP, SSMBB
Prevail Services™ Profitability Engineering™ Consulting
President, Profitability Engineering™ Infrastructure Architect
Mortaza@PrevailServices.com

I took a grant writing class in college and this was one of the textbooks used. It's a good resource. It gives samples of different types of proposals, tells you how to write them, and also gives a list of resources. Pretty much a self-teaching book, you don't really need a class to use it.

This book offers specific examples, models, and step-by-step instructions on how to write all kinds of grants, from local and federal government programs to grants from private foundations and corporations. More than 300 Web sites are described, as is the use of search engines to develop better proposals. The authors also present scores of concrete writing examples and time-saving tips from successful grantseekers. (summary by South Texas Library System)
The author, Miner, has an online newsletter (Grantseeker Tips) as well, that I've subscribed to for years. Her advice is very practical and to the point. You can't go wrong with this book to guide you.

The general advice provided in this book is invaluable. After reading it cover to cover, I still revisit the main sections every time before writing an important grant. There are key bits of knowledge provided that will serve you well, and like EB White's "Elements of Style," Miner and Miner can be recommended without hesitation. Finally, this book is much more useful than both the "Dummies" grant writing book and "Foundation Center" guide.

After years and years of hearing the psalms in church and prayer, this wonderful new edition of the Book of Psalms truly brings them to fresh new life. Following scholarly guidelines that also attempt to convey the cadence and rhythm of what are essentially ancient songs of faith, this psalter is both well done and powerful. The artwork that is interspersed throughout the psalms is also very moving and meditative. Each psalm begins with a summary of the psalm that is helpful for prayer and meditation. The psalms are arragned for communal recitation, but they are also beautiful when prayed privately. From the forward and afterword, it seems that this particular version of the psalter is "experimental" with regard to ease-of-use for community prayer, and the authors encourage feedback about such use to help in a possible future "revision." If someone finds the psalms to be meaningful, heart-felt prayer, this psalter will only make them more so!

This is my favorite wedding present. My husband and I have been reading a psalm to each other every night for almost 25 years. We've gone through a lot of translations in this way, and this book meets our three criteria: (1) a lyrical translation (2) a text which fits on the narrow headboard of the bed and be lifted easily with one hand while lying in bed (3) a physical text which honors these ancient words of God. (The Abbey Psalter, for example, meets criteria (1) and (3) but not (2).) I don't mean to be flippant; this is not only a physically beautiful book, but one suited to daily use. A rare and wonderful gift.

This translation of the Psalms is by the ICEL (International Commission on Enlish in the Liturgy). Their goal is to provide a translation suitable for use in liturgy and personal prayer. This book takes that text and makes it "user friendly". This is done in several ways - clear type with sufficient white space, simple colored diamond-shape separators for separating psalm sections, interspering excellent black and white photographs in keeping with the meditative quality of the Psalms. The afterward provides a brief, non-technical introduction to the Psalms, their liturgical use, and the concerns in translating for liturgical use.

This, together with the companion volume for Canticles is highly reocmmended.

A practical guide which maps out an excellent strategy for any organization, business, or venture. In clear and engaging style the authors show how to improve one's personal relationship to work, family, and community. Intelligible on every page, this books works for those with time for a complete, sit-down reading and also for strap-hangers between subway stops. Here is deep thinking and personal experience applied with a spiritual attentiveness to true challenges. The reader is educated to think realistically about present problems, hard facts, and tough dilemmas in the rubric of uplifting hope. Hope is investigated as the best antidote to fear, and the authors avoid all of the swamps of New Age mushiness. Hope will put us on track. Bravo!

In a time when there are more "managers" (good or bad) than "leaders"; this book offers valuable insight into providing positive and realistic motivation for any organization. Any person who considering themself a leader should read this book and think about how various principles can be applied to their organization. This should be a "must-read"!

In their book, Putting Hope to Work: Five Principles to Activate Your Organization's Most Powerful Resource, Harry Hutson and Barbara Perry identify, and help us understand the inspirational value of Hope in the work place. While often thought of in the realm of vague spirituality or wishy-washy Pollyannaism, the authors clearly demonstrate that Hope, and its value within thriving, achieving organizations is anything but wishy-washy!

Stating that the "Hopes of an organization are consolidated in a company's belief in what you're trying to accomplish," they show how Hope within an organization is inevitably linked to the company's mission and vision - and where there is no vision, the people perish. The importance then, of a company's vision cannot be overstated. It's not coincidence that there is such a lack of "hope-talk" in the modern work place accompanied by a tangible sense of hopelessness.

While traditional management theory focuses on "driving out fear," pioneering authors Hutson and Perry compel us to focus on Hope instead, to "bring energy to the more life-enhancing side of the equation, creating more vibrant, creative, collaborative and successful workplaces."

Hutson and Perry identify the five principles of Hope - Possibility, Agency, Worth, Openness and Connection - and define Hope as "an orientation to a positive future that engages our heads, hearts and hands." When these principles are present - and sustained - within an organization, individuals and their organizations succeed.

In presenting their five principles of Hope, Hutson and Perry highlight research proving the effectiveness of Hope within an organization and provide detailed examples of how to evaluate and improve your skills as a leader fostering Hope within your organization or team. You'll learn who "Hopeful" leaders are, what they do, and how they keep their own Hope alive in times of difficulty or stress.

While some management books present theory alone, Hutson and Perry provide clear, useable tools to create and sustain Hope within your organization. Relying on their many years of management consulting and research, they feature real-life examples from a variety of industries. Combined with the tangible results presented from companies with cultures of Hope, led by "Hopeful" leaders, Putting Hope to Work is an inspirational and practical guide to implementing the power of Hope within your organization or team.

As both a business executive and an MBA professor, I found Dr. Shelton's book to be extremely helpful. The blend of science, psychology, religion and organizational development created a solid research-based theoretical foundation, and the action-oriented exercises at the end of each chapter were helpful for practical application. I highly recommend this book to leaders, managers, academics and those desiring to better integrate their personal values with their organizational life.

This highly readable and usable book introduces us to the world of quantum mechanics as underlying principles of our personal and business lives. Quantum Leaps actually presents hard science simplified with plenty of examples to show that the theories work. Quantum Leaps goes way beyond cheerleading readers toward bold acts. Because each of the seven skills is actually based in the new science of quantum mechanics that shows the way the universe really works, each of us can use the described skills of quantum thinking, acting, feeling, being, seeing, trusting and knowing with the confidence of using scientific instruments. Charlotte Shelton has done us all a favor by translating the mystery of the new science into the simplicity of skills to use every day. By doing so she has given us a vital new stepping stone toward the 21st century and an evolutionary step toward quantum living. Her fresh and elegant approach paints an encouraging future for all of us.

I sincerely wish that everyone would read "Quantum Leaps". If so there would be a "Quantum Leap" in individual and universal consciousness. She explains new scientific technology in a clear and easily understandable way. Her examples and explanations are excellent and clearly point out the necessity for a change in consciousness from the old Newtonian mechanistic to the world of today's Quantum Physics. This book is simplistic enough to be read by someone unfamiliar with current technology and it is also able to captivate the mind and imagination most erudite. Warning - pleased be advised that you may find yourself buying copies for your friends and stopping strangers on the street telling them to read this book.