Purchasing Books

This book's primary audience consists of SAP consultants and IT business systems analysts, and the ideal secondary audience should consist of business process owners in an R/3 environment, IT managers in all functional areas who are involved with developing, implementing and supporting supply chain and extended logistics solutions.

The theme is logistics management, using SAP, in an extended supply chain or a corporate hub and their vendors. There are three key sub themes in the book: (1) an explanation of the business benefits of extending buyer-seller systems in an extended supply chain (with an emphasis on using the Internet as the communications infrastructure), (2) specifics on how to accomplish this using SAP, and (3) evidence that it can be done.

I like the practical approach taken by the authors - instead of succumbing to the temptation to careen off into blue sky solutions, they stick with what can be done in the here and now. Although it's almost blasphemy to discuss EDI when everyone else seems to be hyping web services and other approaches and solutions that are relatively new, the authors show the strengths and weaknesses of this proven approach. They also discuss the strengths and weaknesses of XML, although ebXML is curiously missing. The reason its absence is so curious is that the EC appears to be wholeheartedly embracing it, and this book has a distinct European bias, especially in the chosen case studies.

More importantly, though, this book goes into the details SAP's internet components and how they relate to other modules that support logistics and supply chain management for an enterprise. The details go well beyond technology - this book gives equal treatment to business and technical issues, and that is one of the reasons why it's so valuable to the primary and secondary audiences I cited above. Although I thought ebXML should have been covered in depth, I found this book to be complete and to realistically cover the topic's key issues.

This book is the Doctoral thesis of a very able reseacher. To write the book, he not only interviewed more than 70 individuals, he worked in a Singapore-based international procuement office.

The book won't appeal to everyone, but I regard it as a must-read for any company wrestling with the issues of purchasing internationally. He covers one method of solving those problems very thoroughly, by examining the practices of the electronics industry. That industry has a variety of company structures, making the lessons learned applicable to any industry.

It's not light reading, but it's not an abstruse academic document, either. The author's practical experience shows up clearly. (Full disclosure: I helped with some editing.)

Buy this book if your company is considering setting up an International Procurement Office structure, or if it's interested in improving the performance of existing offices.

If you want to have a quick reference book rich in logistic quantitative methods, then this book a very good choice. It is concise an easy to read.

My dog-eared copy of this book is a great source of general information for Mid-Years. It is well organized, interesting, a very good read with good information, particularly for the novice Mid-Year 'Vette buyer.

This is an excellent purchase if you intend to purchase a condo
or coop in the not too distant future. The authors explain the
investment value of condominiums, as well as tax benefits and
the process of qualifying for a low-interest loan. The process
involves an offer, contract and close to transfer title.
A typical checklist of things will involve the following:
o price o maintenance fees
o parking o storage facilities
o life style o ownership approval
o location o utilities
o budget o by-laws

Important documents must be formulated; namely, a declaration
of intent, bylaws, budget and deed. There are a number of important internet sites for buyers of co-ops and condos; namely,
fanniemae.com hudgovlenders hud.gov/broker

This work is an important acquisition , if you intend to buy
a co-op or condominium. The paperwork and legal issues are
considerable. This text explains the details in simple English
with examples of how to fill out the paperwork and negotiation
complexities. It is well worth the price.

This book was a fascinating compilation of history with an international company (iosnet.com) as its featured case study. It offered the opposing view to recent negative media coverage of outsourcing and had a chart comparing the methods of traditional outsourcing and Laborgistics. Though it's written in textbook-style format, I was able to understand the big picture and learn about how a new way of outsourcing is potentially helping American workers, and providing jobs overseas to people who wouldn't otherwise have jobs, according to the author. I'll be interested to see if the media covers this side of the outsourcing debate.

This book is great in describing management systems that result in continuous improvement in your organization.
"Companies that believe human capital is worth the investment, and demonstrate that, are most often the more successful companies. People skills are frequently the difference between success and mediocrity or even failure." 240
The author writes about company culture having shared goals, predicable processes, open lines of communication, and accountability in management systems. This book helps establish this culture towards continuous improvement.

By

Jeremy Sauer
Master Scheduler
Mathews Inc.
CPIM, CIRM, CSCP

Make Millions with Foreclosures and Short Sales; Secrets on How to Profit for The Real Estate SubPrime Crisis

The Real Estate crisis affected the majority of the USA population. This book has an excellent point of view and helpful comments about how to deal with this Real Estate crisis. I highly recommend reading it.

From "Know your supply chain variables" by Philip Damas, American Shipper, July 2004

While avoiding industry jargon and the hyperbole often used by logistics consultants, this book guides the reader with clarity and purpose through many supply chain aspects, from order fulfillment to logistics network optimization, through order forecasts and product design.

A common theme of this book is the need for global optimization across all corporate functions, all warehouses or locations, and across companies that share the same supply chains.

I got this book at the local library and now I am going to buy it for myself. Most business start-up books tell the same things about how to start a business, but this is the only one I have encountered that gave actual advice on selecting partners to do business with (go for smart but lazy people), how a business "godfather" can help you (by being objective), as well as the importance of having a board of Directors. I had never considered these and many other things that Mr. Mancuso writes of.
Check it out, rent it, or buy it; simply do what you have to do to get the inside scoop on small business with this book.