This is a book for managers who know that their organisations are stuck in a mindset that thrives on fashionable business theories that are no more than folk wisdom, and whose so-called strategies that are little more than banal wish lists.It puts forward the notion that the application of uncommon sense - thinking or acting differently from other organisations in a way that makes unusual sense - is the secret to competitive success. For those who want to succeed and stand out from...

Functional stupidity can be catastrophic. It can cause organisational collapse, financial meltdown and technical disaster. And there are countless, more everyday examples of organisations accepting the dubious, the absurd and the downright idiotic, from unsustainable management fads to the cult of leadership or an over-reliance on brand and image. And yet a dose of stupidity can be useful and produce good, short-term results: it can nurture harmony, encourage people to get on with the job ...

Strategic Thinking: A Step-by-Step Approach to Strategy and Leadership, now in its third edition, takes you step by step through sound strategic thinking by setting out the questions to ask. In the process of answering these questions and thinking through the important issues that they raise, you will learn how to formulate strategies and write clear and concise strategic plans.With new online material to support each step and help strengthen your ability ...

Given the urgency and immediacy of so many business problems and challenges, a solid grounding in the history and evolution of business thinking will help managers separate fad from fact and apply the cumulative wisdom of the writers whose ideas have demonstrated profound and lasting impact. From Sun Tzu's timeless Art of War to the inventors of modern management in the 1920s-'40s to the books that have the captured the New Economy Zeitgeist, The Best Business Books Ever ...

Modern culture’s worship of “how-to” pragmatism has turned us into instruments of efficiency and commerce—but we’re doing more and more about things that mean less and less. We constantly ask “how? and still struggle to find purpose and act on what matters. Instead of acting on what we know to be of importance, we wait for bosses to change, we seek the latest fad, we invest in one more degree. Asking how keeps us safe—instead of being led by our hearts into uncharted territory, we keep our...

In this classic text, Peter Drucker studies how modern-day managers, whether in business or public service, can perform effectively. He takes an international view, exploring management problems in Great Britain, Western Europe, Japan, and Latin America, and suggests how these problems can be tackled. The interactions between manager, the institution and the social and cultural environment are penetratingly examined, and the book is enhanced by telling examples from a wide spectrum of expe...

The world of management is in crisis - the old remedies no longer work and organizations are failing at an increasing rate. Although many talk of 'joined up thinking', few offer practical guidance on how to achieve this in organizations. The Fractal Organization sets down the practical implications of a well tested systemic approach to building organizations that are capable of surviving and flourishing in these turbulent times."An excellent read…Many orga...

Why do we need motivated employees? The answer is survival. All managers want to know the secret of how to motivate employees. They know this ensures not only survival in a changing world but also serious productivity and progress. Motivating employees is perhaps the single most important function of management. And it is not that simple. Many myths and traps exist about motivation. Increasing money can decrease motivation. Older workers have different motivational factors than younger wor...

An employee's-eye view of what makes a great boss—and how you can become oneWhereas most books on managing people approach the subject from the perspective of a manager of an idealised organisation, Becoming a Better Boss takes a real-world approach, looking at the topic from the perspective of an employee in a real-world organisation—dysfunctions, warts, and all. Focusing on the choices individual employees make every day in getting work done, this book r...

In 1988, on Stephen King’s retirement JWT published ‘The King Papers’ a small collection of Stephen King’s published writings spanning 1967-1985. They remain timelessly potentially valuable but are an almost unexploited gold mine. This book is comprised of a selection of 20-25 of Stephen King’s most important articles, each one introduced by a known and respected practitioner who, in turn, describes the relevance of the particular original idea to the communications environment of today.

As coaches and clients increasingly realise, the demands of business mean that it is now vital to integrate, understand and leverage cultural differences across countries and corporations. This work bridges the gap between coaching and interculturalism.

Research shows that roughly half of all start-up businesses fail within the first three years, and the majority of failures happen because business owners aren't prepared enough to deal with the challenges that can affect them. In other words, they haven't done enough planning.Creating a business plan should be one of the first things you do when you think of starting up a company, and it's an important document to turn to time and again as your business develops - especially in th...