Filed under: Books in General, Small Business, health care | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books, health care, Small Business
Here at Soundview we’re experts at condensing books that number in the hundreds of pages down to eight essential pages of information. Our purpose in doing this is to provide executives with concentrated knowledge that’s meant to give maximum impact for minimum time invested. Knowing the amount of effort that we put into this work, I can only tremble at the thought of tackling the bill that’s currently sitting on Capitol Hill. The health care reform bill that awaits the House of Representatives is nearly 2,000 pages. While I can’t give you eight compact pages, I’d like to discuss one aspect of the bill that is currently causing debate amongst a key segment of the American economy: small businesses.
Take a look at this article from The Dayton Business Journal for an inside track on the debate. I was glad to see that the reporter indicated there are people who are in favor of the bill, as well as covering the vocal element that are against it. While I don’t state my political opinions in this forum, I bring up the bill and its impact on small businesses because I’m anticipating a bump in business books dealing with health care if the bill is passed.
To date, Soundview has really only featured one title that dealt explicitly with health care. The Innovator’s Prescription by Clayton Christensen, Ph.D. remains a valuable resource for understanding the nature of the American health care system and the history of the system’s development.
We had the opportunity to speak with Christensen at a Soundview Live event in July 2009. Looking back on that conversation, I continue to reflect on Christensen’s argument that the government’s efforts had little to do with the care that patients actually receive. “This is a debate about reforming health insurance, not health care,” he told us at the time. While I think there is truth in his argument, I can’t help but feel that the thousands of small business owners across the U.S. are more concerned with the bill’s potential effect on their bottom lines at present.
I revisit Christensen’s book quite often, particularly when I read stories about the progress of health care reform. Regardless of the size of your company, it wouldn’t hurt to take a second look at our summary of The Innovator’s Prescription. In the event a new system dawns, those who stay informed will likely be the ones to have the smoothest transition.
Filed under: Books in General, From the Editor, General Business, Hands-On Management, Leadership, Strategic Management | Tags: books, Business, business books, Hands-On Management, Leadership, management, Strategic Management
Whether your candidate won or lost yesterday, I think there’s one thing on which we can all agree: it’s nice to know that the political attack ads are over for a little while. I was getting a little tired of hearing two people give me reason after reason why their respective opponent is quite possibly the cause of every major disaster, both man-made and natural.
However, there may have been a few of you out there who got a little extra enjoyment yesterday from pulling a lever, checking a check-box or pushing a button (for as many candidates as there are, there’s also as many ways to vote for them). With that in mind, I’d like to run a little poll of my own. Our November summaries have been with our subscribers for a little while now, and I hope that all non-subscribers at least gave them a look and considered joining us. What I’d like to know is which of the three titles we featured is the one you deem most beneficial to you and your business?
Was it How Did That Happen? Roger Connors and Tom Smith’s look at creating a workable accountability system? Was it Emmanuel Gobillot’s Leadershift, a new look at the changing methods of leadership? Or was it Keith Ferrazzi’s Who’s Got Your Back? an in-depth look at building three key lifeline relationships?
Reply to this post and let me know which was your favorite and why. One thing is for certain, this is one race that I’m glad is too close to call.
Filed under: Books in General, From the Editor, General Business | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books
I ran across two separate articles today discussing the “price wars” over best-selling books. Major retailers such as Wal-Mart, Amazon.com and Target are in fierce competition to snap up the considerably fewer dollars that shoppers will spend on books in the upcoming holiday season. Here’s one article from The Washington Times discussing the fight by the American Booksellers Association to get the federal government to investigate the deep price cuts that the major retailers are undertaking.
Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal offers an article that explains the tightly regulated publishing market in Europe. It’s an interesting read when you consider that prices for nearly all new releases are set in advance and discounts are verboten (I couldn’t resist, since Germany is heavily featured in the article).
One point brought up in the Journal article that I wanted to bring to your attention is the lawsuit that occurred in French courts against the French branch of Amazon.com. The suit in question concerned the famous “free shipping” offered by the online retailer on purchases of a certain amount or more. This lawsuit was also referenced in one of the key business books of 2009, FREE: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson. I’ll have a little more to say about Anderson and this book in the coming weeks, but the fact that both he and the Journal discuss the French Amazon case gives indication about the ongoing fight over pricing in today’s economy.
The entire price war debate reminds us once more of the desperation occurring in retail. I suppose if I can take anything positive away from the situation, it’s that there is still a great demand for books of all genre.
Filed under: Books in General, Brands, General Business, Marketing | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books, consumer goods, Marketing
If you check in with us from time to time, you’ve probably noticed that I have a bit of a fascination with business titles that deal with consumerism. Part of the interest is rooted in the frequent observation that Americans today have more material wealth and technological convenience than any previous generation, yet they continue to be less and less happy. On another level, I always enjoy the consumer titles because I’m fascinated by branding and the unique combination of factors that can propel one product to the top while a similar one collects dust on store shelves.
In that vein, I was delighted to read this review of a new book by Kevin Maney, a writer for USA Today. Maney’s book Trade-Off examines the gap that exists in the modern world of retail. Customers are drawn more and more to two distinct sets of products. They prefer either inexpensive goods that offer convenience but not quality, or they splash their cash on high-end items that carry a certain clout or trendiness. Products that fall in between these two categories, Maney argues, are likely to be ignored by the majority of the buying public.
Maney is not the first author to tackle the widening gap in consumer goods. Michael Silverstein examined this topic in his book Treasure Hunt, a title we summarized. What’s interesting about both books is the notion that consumers of all income levels cherry-pick from both groups of products. Maney’s book seems to suggest that quality suffers in the pursuit of the lowest price. However, he also remarks that most consumers are comfortable with this idea. I suppose that more and more consumers are willing to live with the adage “You get what you pay for.” Something to think about the next time the person in front of you at Wal-Mart pulls an iPhone out of an expensive handbag before paying for discounted household items.
Filed under: Books in General, Hands-On Management, Leadership, Strategic Management | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books, Hands-On Management, Leadership, Strategic Management
Here at Soundview, as we watch the steady flow of business books pour across our desk, there is a recurring trend that doesn’t speak well for bosses. It seems that many people aren’t happy with the way their boss does his or her job, and they’re looking for ways to either work around their boss or “manage” him or her.
The most recent title in this vein is Lead the Boss: The Subtle Art of Managing Up by John Baldoni. In the acknowledgment portion of his book, Baldoni says his urge to write the book began with the needs of the men and women executives who he has coached, many of whom were “excelling in their jobs but found it sometimes difficult to get the attention of, interact with, or persuade senior leaders.” “Leading your boss,” he tells us in the prologue, “is really a metaphor for leading from the middle,” which actually encompasses leading your boss, your peers and your team for the ultimate good of the organization.
Other similar books published in recent years include The 360 Degree Leader by John Maxwell, Leading Up by Michael Useem and Managing Up by Rosanne Badowski and Roger Gittines. Maxwell even ventures to say that “the reality is that 99 percent of all leadership occurs not from the top but from the middle of an organization.” In the final Special Section of The 360 Degree Leader he mentions, “More than two-thirds of the people who leave their jobs do so because of an ineffective or incompetent leader. People don’t leave their company — they leave their leader.”
Clearly, good leaders are needed throughout an organization, not just at the top. But issues around trust, lack of transparency, ineffective communication and unclear direction — plus a few poor interpersonal skills — can easily undermine the effectiveness of any leader at any level. If you or your boss could use some perspective on effective leadership or management strategies, visit Soundview Executive Book Summaries for access to some helpful book titles.
Filed under: Books in General, Conference/Event, Leadership | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books, Conference/Event, Inspiring Leader, Leadership, Soundview Live
I was interested to read about Bank of America’s continuing search for a new CEO. As the massive financial institution narrows its list of candidates to replace retiring CEO Kenneth Lewis, I began to wonder about the multitudes of staffers that work in the various Bank of America branches. A charismatic, level-headed leader can instill workers with a tremendous amount of purpose and pride. Media outlets have frequently pointed to Steve Jobs as an example of a leader who can affect remarkable change in an organization simply through straightforward communication and a dominant presence.
The heart of what separates the average leader from the truly inspirational is a commodity that business authors have frequently attempted to quantify. Next week, Soundview is very fortunate to offer subscribers the opportunity to delve a little deeper into the subject of inspirational leadership. On Thursday, October 15 at Noon (Eastern), Soundview Live will hit the online airwaves featuring an exclusive interactive event with John Zenger, Joseph Folkman and Scott Edinger, the authors of The Inspiring Leader.
Our Soundview Live Web events are generally very lively. However, I get the distinct feeling that this topic will bring even more intense discussion than we’ve previously experienced. The Inspiring Leader is one of a handful of books that generates a great deal of debate because so many people have an opinion about what makes a leader inspiring. Attempting to pin down the elusive qualities is not an easy task, but in my opinion, Zenger, Folkman and Edinger have done an excellent job of focusing on key characteristics which anyone can emulate.
If you’re not a subscriber, this would be a great time to come on board and gain FREE access to this Soundview subscriber exclusive. For more information on Soundview Live, or to subscribe, visit this link. I hope you’ll join us next Thursday at Noon (EST)!
Filed under: Books in General, Sales | Tags: books, Business, business book, business books, Sales
I’ve always enjoyed when we at Soundview work on business books that deal with sales. Selling is a key aspect of the success of any business and I have a lot of respect for the men and women whose job it is to make sales. They appear, to me, to have a rare combination of a winning attitude and skin made of Kevlar.
That’s why this article from the Newark Star-Ledger piqued my curiosity. Communication is the secret to sales success. There appears to be a bit of a growing trend toward the reversal of traditional logic about communication in the sales process. This article was refreshing because it addressed the main reason why so many salespeople struggle in today’s ultra-tough selling environment: they don’t spend enough time evaluating why their messages are or are not getting through.
It’s a concept that we’ve dealt with in many of the sales books we’ve covered. Check out Soundview’s collection The Art of Selling and see for yourself. There are new relationships forming between buyer and seller and salespeople need to be in control of establishing this bond.
