Practice Management Books

This tome is definitely for the in-depth holistic care giver.
Every aspect of care is covered in a complete and organized manner. This includes the very over looked self-care subject.If you are seeking the 'Bible' in holistic work, search no further. I can not imagine another source as complete as this one. A big thumbs up.

I bought this book because I admire the author's wonderful biography of Florence Nightingale. This is an essential reference for all nurses who want to be compassionate and effective care givers and who would like to be conversant with holistic medicine. We have so many patients who ask about that now that we owe it to them to be properly informed.

Any interior designer or architect who has dreamed of operating a design firm needs the second updated edition of this classic which covers all the basics of establishing such a business, from developing a plan and financing an office to setting fees, locating clients and marketing design services. Both general and design firm-specific tips are blended together making this an invaluable guide for any collection catering to businesspeople or designers alike.

Very good book if your looking to get started on your own. Everything you need to know. Nothing is left out!!!

This wonderful book by Eric Brechner analyzes from the inside of Microsoft the dynamics of Software Development, Organization, Project & People Management, Software Design, Development & Quality. To every harsh criticism, he offers some very interesting and yet simple advice. That doesn't mean that Eric is always "WRight", but he certainly has a good point, and it will make you think and see things in a different light. I strongly recommend it to anybody in a IT profession, specially to managers!

"Hard Code" is a brilliant read for any software developer, architect, manager, etc. It is a candid interpretation of the politics inside Microsoft and the relationships across various roles in the development process.

This might sound a little boring, but no--this guy goes for the throat. In understanding that everyone has a specific job to do--and their objectives often oppose those of everyone else--he accurately and bluntly exposes common points of conflict. More importantly, he gives hard-won, actionable advice on how to cut through all that crap and put everyone on the same page.

For managers and architects, this book [namely chapter 1: "Project Mismanagement"] would be a great supplement to two books of Julie Bick's that also offer unique insight: All I Really Need to Know In Business I Learned at Microsoft and The Microsoft Edge.

Another interesting point in this book was the article, "Google: Serious threat or poor spelling?" Here he actually points out the flaws with Google's business strategy and gives tips on how they [or any company] could overcome their weaknesses to become a true competitor to Microsoft.

It's not like he gives up Windows source code here, but don't be surprised if you get a bit anxious reading it...just waiting for FBI agents to break down your door for accessing coveted insider trade secrets.

I like using this textbook because it allows you to verify your responses to the lessons. I rate it highly.

Faye Brown is the Guru of Coding Guidelines and rules. Every coder and office needs to have this book available for reference.

I took a course with this as the text. I liked the case studies that Carey uses.

Improving Healthcare With Control Charts: Basic And Advanced SPC Methods And Case Studies by healthcare statistical process control and research expert Raymond G. Carey is an informed and informative study of how statistical process control methodology, or SPC, can help improve the overall quality of healthcare in both short and long-term projections. Extensive statistical research and detail form the core of this learned and scholarly presentation, written with a keen-eye toward practical, real-life situations. Improving Healthcare With Control Charts is confidently recommended to the attention of anyone charged with the responsibility of collecting and assessing healthcare data.

I have only read the first two chapters, but this book has already structured my own knowledge on information systems and benefits more than I could have asked for. At the moment I am working on an information analysis for a customer and I have been looking for ways to simplify the presentation of potential benefits in cost-displacement and value added to my customer - and Eureka! I have found it!

I recently finished reading Nicholas Carr's controversial "Does IT Matter?" (ISBN 1591394449). Carr's book make some valid points about the state of IT, but seemed to fall short when it came to describing how to rectify problems. This book, written nearly a decade earlier, does describe how to rectify the problems Carr cited. In fact, it is almost as though the authors wrote this book in anticipation of Carr's book!

Meyer and Boone clearly outline how to employ information technology to achieve competitive advantage. Their approach is based on value-added benefits, how to identify them, and how to implement the right systems to attain them.

This book comprises fifteen chapters divided into five parts. Part 1 introduces terms and definitions that will be used throughout the book, as well as the concept of value-added benefits. If you assume the information is too fundamental and skip this part you will probably approach the rest of the book with an imprecise understanding of terms and concepts. Part 2 is a collection of cases and ideas that address basic business processes, and how the value-added benefits are derived in each domain, which include: selling, marketing, operations, HR, finance, rolling out products, and negotiations. Each scenario is realistic and well developed. The conclusions, ideas and benefits are both realistic and compelling. There are no gaps in logic or required leaps of faith here.

Part 3 covers information tools at the executive/senior management level. Like the preceding chapters, this one provides context, key benefits, and an approach to attaining benefits. Also like the preceding chapters, this part of the book uses cases and examples from real life.

Up to this point the authors have proposed a concept and gave examples of how this concept can be applied, making a compelling case. In Part 4 the concept is transformed into an actionable implementation plan. There are four steps, (1) planning for strategic systems, performing a value-added needs assessment, measuring benefits, and adopting the value-added perspective. There is no consultant voodoo here - the steps are clearly articulated, reinforced with examples, and are supported with facts and numbers. Three of the four appendices expand this material by providing needs assessment and measurement interview guides, and expected values.

If you've read Carr's book cited above and are at a loss as to where to start resolving IT deficiencies, read this book. Next, visit the author's web site (paste the ASIN number, B0002EUOU0, in the search box on this page and select all products), and also explore the following other books by Mr. Meyer: "RoadMap: How to understand, diagnose, and fix your organization" (ISBN 0964163527), "The Building Blocks Approach to Organization Charts" (ISBN 1892606178), and "The Internal Economy: How to Apply Market Principles within Organizations to Make Sense of Budgeting, Rate-Setting, Project-Approval, and Accounting Processes" (ISBN 1892606186).

This book goes over IE in general with emphasis on data modeling but I find it has many references to IEF the case tool, aka, Coolgen, Composer, Advantage Gen, Allfusion Gen. I've heard CASE tools are dead but I still see it in large organization. Legacy applications developed using IE still function on a daily basis running distribution, governments and huge financial organization. I think RUP is a child of IE. I've work extensively using both methods. I still prefer IE over RUP. I find IE more intuitive, where RUP goes againist the normal thought process. All RUP analyst should read this book first and learn how to develop IT systems the right way before reinventing the wheel. RUP is not new, just new people, new terminology and not new technology.

I located this book by accident when searching the stacks at the library and I'm sure glad I did.

Information systems references have mushroomed in the past few years. What I liked about this book is that it provides information that is applicable to any IT/IS project. Even in the age of ecommerce, these basic skills of understanding databases, tables, and relationships is critical.

Illustrations make abstract concepts easy to learn and understand.

Whether you are on a project and getting on the job training or just want to train yourself for your next job, a reference such as this is invaluable.

While this book is quite dated (1985 publication date, which makes it virtually 20 years old from time of its writing) it is a valuable book about business and the role of information in the lives of office workers.

Author Strassman equates "white collar work" with "information work." We used to say "I'm in advertising" or "I'm in manufacturing" but what the majority of people like you and I do daily, hourly is gather, process and distribute information.

Strassman also touches on measuring productivity in these terms. A great quote on optimizing organizational effectiveness:
" Effective work is enlarge in scope, variable in procedure...and subject to instant feedback."

Such wisdom can provide the business manager with insight on how to better organize his or her team in terms of information flow and action. This is a really fundamental book that is worth reading again and again, despite the fact it is a two decades old. Highly recommended.

Paul, former Chief Information Officer for Xerox and later Director of Defense Information, used this book to address the basic issues of employee productivity in relation to information technology. This is one of a very few books, including those by Carkhuff, Cleveland, Kelly, and Toffler, that I regard as fundamental-required reading for anyone with any authority over anything.

Integrating Complementary Medicine into Health Systems, a 725-page ASPEN PUBLICATIONS text, is a remarkable compilation of strategies, articles, how-to, and opinion which should prove to be the enduring core text for CAM integrators and would-be integrators. This definitive work is a labor of love from editor NANCY FAASS, who managed to bring between two covers exceptional information from diverse, hands-on workers who are all leaders in the multi-stakeholder, integration undertaking - from research to coding, from network-based CAM coverage to hospital-based CAM delivery, from present utilization to a vision of optimal placement in a patient-centered system. For newcomers, Faass wisely includes a half-dozen sections on leading CAM modalities. But even for seasoned old-timers in CAM, this volume will be repeatedly pulled off the shelf as a valuable resource. Among the contributors are long-time integrators like Roger Jahnke, Wayne Jonas, Marty Rossman, Sita Ananth, Debra Canfield, Tracy Gaudet, William Stewart, Chuck Si mpson, Andrew Weil, Eileen Stretch, Karen Hohenstein, Laura Patton, Dean Ornish, Carlo Calabrese, Deborah Grandinetti, Jeffrey Bland, Michael Cohen, Linda Bedell-Logan, John Weeks, Melinna Gianinni, Christopher Foley, Marla Orth, Mary Jo Kreitzer, Tom Trompeter, and many more. In total: 67 chapters, encompassing a total of over 130 distinct contributions. Buy this one. $125.

Integrating Complementary Medicine into Health Systems, a 725-page ASPEN PUBLICATIONS text, is a remarkable compilation of strategies, articles, how-to, and opinion which should prove to be the enduring core text for CAM integrators and would-be integrators. This definitive work is a labor of love from editor NANCY FAASS, who managed to bring between two covers exceptional information from diverse, hands-on workers who are all leaders in the multi-stakeholder, integration undertaking - from research to coding, from network-based CAM coverage to hospital-based CAM delivery, from present utilization to a vision of optimal placement in a patient-centered system. For newcomers, Faass wisely includes a half-dozen sections on leading CAM modalities. But even for seasoned old-timers in CAM, this volume will be repeatedly pulled off the shelf as a valuable resource. Among the contributors are long-time integrators like Roger Jahnke, Wayne Jonas, Marty Rossman, Sita Ananth, Debra Canfield, Tracy Gaudet, William Stewart, Chuck Si mpson, Andrew Weil, Eileen Stretch, Karen Hohenstein, Laura Patton, Dean Ornish, Carlo Calabrese, Deborah Grandinetti, Jeffrey Bland, Michael Cohen, Linda Bedell-Logan, John Weeks, Melinna Gianinni, Christopher Foley, Marla Orth, Mary Jo Kreitzer, Tom Trompeter, and many more. In total: 67 chapters, encompassing a total of over 130 distinct contributions. Buy this one...

I read this book because it was strongly recommended by a friend whose advice turned out to be invaluable. The approach that Ms. Brown takes is one of the most practical, straightforward I have come across. If followed it will reduce technical, cost and schedule risks that are rampant in application integrations, especially those to which this book targets: gluing together systems that have been separately developed by two organizations and now have to be merged into a coherent whole when one of the organizations acquires the other. The seven models proposed each address a unique requirement or situation based on a pattern. That Ms. Brown has managed to distill integration challenges into seven models is an impressive feat. It shows the level and depth of her experience, and from what I read in the book, combined with my own experience, she has completely thought this through.

One of the most important aspects of this book is that it's balanced between both business and technical considerations, and also embodies the best project management practices. As someone who takes applications into production and provides support I think that the overall approach set forth in this book also strikes a good balance between integration activities and post-integration support. It's refreshing to find a book that accomplishes this.

This is an important book that serves two purposes: it is a solid collection of application integration models that should be in the toolbox of all IT/IS professionals whose job entails enterprise architectures or application integration, and it is a clear roadmap for those folks who have just been told that their company just acquired another and the systems need to be integrated into a coherent whole without disruption the business operations of either organizational unit. It serves both purposes exceptionally well. Bravo Ms. Brown!

Ms. Brown has given us a gift: a book that thoroughly describes the challenges of implementing integrated enterprise applications, and how to overcome those challenges using proven methods that address both business and technical issues. This book is divided into four parts: (I) Techniques, (II) Catalog of Integration Models, (III) Applying Integration Models and (IV) Appendices.

The three chapters that comprise Part I sets the context for EAI, introduces integration models (which are, in essence, patterns) and discusses the environment for integration modeling. I liked this part for the following reasons: it focuses on business imperatives, and includes risk factors from a company and industry perspective; it bridges both business and technical views, and provides a frank discussion of the challenges faced by the implementation team. One of the highlights of part I is the approach to selecting a project approach and advice on placing project deliverables in context.

Part II is a catalog of integration models that contains seven chapters, each devoted to a specific model template. The templates are provided in a fixed format is closely aligned to Design Patterns (by Gamma, et al), making selection of the appropriate model for your organization or project straightforward. The format is: Description, Discussion, When the Template Applies, Examples, Benefits and Consequences, Realization, EAI Applications to which it applies, and Templates that work well with the one discussed. The seven integration models for which templates are provided are: Cycle, Seed, Web, Flow, Wave, Ring, Cell and Tree. I thought it was interesting how the templates themselves could be classified by geometric shape, but as you read through them it makes sense. Moreover, you begin to look at the integration models in a different way, which in turn, triggers creative thoughts.

The author intersperses case studies and technical discussions in Part III, Applying Integration Models. The case studies are: Chapter 12-Enterprise Resource Planning and Chapter 15 - Integration in Telecommunications; technical discussions include: Chapter 13-Using Integration Models to Synthesize Industry Models and Chapter 14-Data Strategy, Warehousing, and Architecture with Integration Models. The case studies and technical discussions not only added a dimension of credibility to Parts I and II, but reinforced one another.

Sample artifacts included in Appendix B are valuable. I especially like the checklist of factors that indicate an increased need for integration, but the sample letters, and other documents are also useful.

This book is to implementing enterprise applications what David Linthicum's Enterprise Application Integration is to EAI architecture. As a side note, if you decide to check out Mr. Linthicum's book, get B2B Application Integration, which is a more updated version of his Enterprise Application Integration. I not only give it a solid five stars, I also recommend it as one of the most important books available on EAI.