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January 2003 |
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paperworks
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planning
for the worst Helferich and Cook, who are both on the faculty of Central Michigan University, outline in this management report how businesses can plan for disasters that disrupt their supply chains and how to reduce the effect of disasters when they do occur. They also discuss how to detect less obvious but still serious disasters such as those involving data or product tampering. The major goal of the report is to provide managers with a framework to assist in providing supply chain continuity through a disaster, either man-made or natural. The report consolidates extensive research into disaster response, information from key government agencies and more. The authors have developed a number of generalized recommendations on how logistics and supply chain managers should proceed at each stage, from preparing for disaster through recovery. Appendices, which make up close to half the book, include a glossary, a look at the goals of the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), an outline of the federal response plan for emergencies, the FEMA checklist for business recovery, a supply chain disaster management check list, several case studies of emergency preparedness plans by businesses, acompilation of software useful in disaster planning and response, and a lengthy annotated bibliography.
protecting
against the enemy within In this brief (76-page) treatise, security expert Barry Brandman argues that losses due to crime against U.S. businesses may well exceed what most business leaders believe them to be. And he argues that distribution centers are more prone to internal theft than other parts of the supply chain due to the marketability of finished goods, the simple reality that DCs are in the business of moving goods, hiring problems, and the ineffectiveness of guards and alarms against insiders. In this booklet, Brandman, who is president of the investigative firm Danbee Associates, outlines some ideas on establishing security rules and developing lossprevention controls and procedures. He offers advice on preventing theft by drivers, theft on the receiving dock and cargo theft. He also addresses ways to deal with substance abuse by employees and internal fraud. And, in recognition of the latest developments in business crime, he discusses protections against cybercrime.
helping
to implement that "vision thing" New York University Professor Mark Lipton, in his new book Guiding Growth: How Vision Keeps Companies on Course, recognizes this and points to a solid field of research to support this view. More important, though, is the methodology he suggests to help balance short-term tactics and long-term strategy. Drawing on both academic and other research from the past decade, Lipton has developed a simple step-by-step guide to successfully implementing what he refers to as a “vision process.” The guide comes in the form of a “vision framework” that addresses three core principles: a company’s raison d’être (reason for being); its strategy for achieving its “higher purpose”; and the values that define what the organization stands for. Using companies such as Oakley, Whole Foods Market and The Container Store, which Lipton cites as examples of solid performers that have developed successful and sustainable strategic visions, he explains how any organization—from startups to established corporations—can use his vision framework. If successfully implemented, he suggests, the framework can:
By presenting the process in a step-by-step framework, Lipton appears to successfully move beyond just “how-to” for developing a mission statement by proposing specific, deliberate steps that managers can take to guide a company closer to its overarching strategy, even as they go about their daily business.
you
say you want a revolution In his latest book, Gary Hamel, coauthor of Competing for the Future, the book that set many management agendas for the 1990s, proposes an action plan— indeed, an incendiary device—for any company or individual intent on becoming and staying an industry revolutionary. The book has the potential to ignite the passions of entry-level assistants, neophyte managers, seasoned VPs, CEOs and anyone else who worries that their company may be caught flat-footed in the future. Hamel argues that in an increasingly nonlinear world, only nonlinear ideas will create new wealth. To thrive in the age of revolution, he contends, companies must adopt a radical new innovation agenda. The fundamental challenge companies face, he says, is reinventing themselves and their industries not just in times of crisis— but continually. Based on an extensive study of world-class companies including Charles Schwab, Cisco, Virgin and GE Capital, Leading the Revolution explains the underlying principles of radical innovation, explores where revolutionary new business concepts come from and identifies the key design criteria for building companies that are activist-friendly and revolution-ready.
quality
lives Did businesses institute quality programs, make all the necessary improvements and move on? Hardly. In the third edition of their textbook, authors Evans and Dean argue that many companies either never took the necessary steps or failed to sustain those they did take. TQM requires attention and resources that many businesses cannot muster for the long term, despite the potential for major improvements in business performance. But the authors, who hail from the University of Cincinnati and the University of North Carolina, respectively, believe that quality is making a comeback. In preparing the third edition, they have expanded the publication in several ways. The new book has updated material to ensure its continued relevance, new sections on creativity and organizational systems, a more in-depth look at how total quality relates to traditional management practices, and more examples of issues raised in the text drawn from actual business cases. It also includes new cases at the ends of the various chapters. The book opens with an introduction to the concept of total quality, followed by sections that discuss total quality and organization theory, with an emphasis on customer-supplier relationships; total quality and organizational behavior, which looks at teamwork, leadership and related topics; and total quality and strategic management,which deals with the effects of TQM on strategic issues. This is a textbook, meant to be used in college courses. For that reason, Evans and Dean deliberately organized the text to allow teachers—or business readers—to dip into the different chapters without necessarily reading from the beginning.
and
the geeks shall inherit the earth Written by Warren G. Bennis and Robert J. Thomas, the book presents an intriguing new model that predicts who is likely to become—and remain—a leader, and why. The authors note that today’s young leaders grew up in the glow of television and computer screens; the leaders of their grandparents’ generation in the shadow of the Depression and World War II. In studying these two demographic groups, which the authors affectionately label “geeks” and “geezers,” Bennis and Thomas set out to determine exactly how eras and values shape those who lead. What they discovered was something far more profound: the powerful process through which leaders of any era emerge. At the heart of their model is what the authors call “crucibles” — transforming periods of testing from which one emerges either hopelessly broken or powerfully emboldened to learn and to lead. Whether losing an election or burying a child, learning from a mentor or mastering a martial art, crucibles, they contend, are turning points: defining events that force us to decide who we are and what we are capable of. Through the candid and often moving stories of widely varying lives, from pioneering journalist Mike Wallace to new-economy entrepreneur Michael Klein, from New York Stock Exchange trailblazer Muriel Siebert to environmental crusader Tara Church, the book chronicles the stunning metamorphoses of some of the world’s most widely recognized leaders. next> <Back to the Table of Contents
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