Business Leaders and Success: 55 Top Business Leaders and How They Achieved Greatness Review

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(More customer reviews)I love the Leaders & Success page in Investor's Business Daily however I feel that creating a book with just leaders & success articles from past issues (all of these I am sure you can find via investors.com's archive search, which is free) is a terrible way to go about it. I bought this book when it first came out under the impression that it was never before seen Leaders and Success type articles.... I was wrong, and very disappointed.
The one thing that I like about this book is they have their best leaders & success articles compiled in a book format for easy pleasure reading, and at $8.78 at it is a time saving bargain.
Reed Floren

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Discover what it takes to become a global business leader and the success secrets you can use on your own road to the top. Look behind every breakthrough business success and you'll find personal stories of individuals persevering against monumental odds. "Profiles in Business Success" provides a revealing examination of 55 such stories and shows what it really takes to succeed in business. Covering a wide range of industry leaders, this behind-the-scenes book details: how Oprah Winfrey became a billionaire media mogul by refusing to settle for 'good enough'; how Gap CEO Mickey Drexler built a $9 billion-a-year retail business by ignoring self-pronounced experts to heed the advice of 12-year-olds; and, how Walt Disney changed the face of entertainment by paying attention to everything except making money.What made Nike cofounder Bill Bowerman push forward when shoe companies badly rejected his revolutionary sneaker design? How did eBay founder Pierre Omidyar see what everyone else missed? "Business Leaders & Success" answers these questions and more as it examines how 55 innovators reached the pinnacle of success in the competitive business arena."Investor's Business Daily" provides critical, no-nonsense finance and investing information to nearly a million readers every day. Known for its innovative approach and straightforward analysis, it's one of today's most essential tools for empowering individual and institutional investors.

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In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America's Best-Run Companies (Collins Business Essentials) Review

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(More customer reviews)This publication is a survey written by a couple of McKinsey consultants that seek to define the characteristics of successful, I mean excellent, organizations using the McKinsey 7-S framework; Structure, Systems, Style, Staff, Skills, Strategy, and Shared Values.
Their findings suggest that eight attributes are common for an excellent organization; bias for action, close to the customer, autonomy and entrepreneurship, productivity through people, hands on, value driven, stick to the knitting (=focus on what you do best), simple form lean staff, and simultaneous loose-tight properties (balance between centralized/decentralized organization). This is it.
Although the authors have a pleasant narrative style and are eloquent in making their point, I hesitate to buy into the arguments presented, first and foremost because I question the all encompassing validity of the McKinsey 7-s approach. Secondly, the authors cite companies such as Digital and Wang as qualifying for excellency. Whatever these companies did during the eighties, it wasn't good enough in the end since their advantage was not sustained and hence I wouldn't call them excellent. Thirdly, the best before stamp is obvious.
I do find the introduction and management theory review very well written and enjoyable. Ironically, (for me) the authors find that chapter the least important part of the book. I beg to differ. Overall, this would make a good intro for those interested in management theory. While you're at it, try to also take a look at Michael Porter's and Peter Drucker's work. In my view they are the authority in the field.

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The "Greatest Business Book of All Time" (Bloomsbury UK), In Search of Excellence has long been a must-have for the boardroom, business school, and bedside table.

Based on a study of forty-three of America's best-run companies from a diverse array of business sectors, In Search of Excellence describes eight basic principles of management -- action-stimulating, people-oriented, profit-maximizing practices -- that made these organizations successful.

Joining the HarperBusiness Essentials series, this phenomenal bestseller features a new Authors' Note, and reintroduces these vital principles in an accessible and practical way for today's management reader.

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