Sunday, December 6, 2009

Listening or Financial Shenanigans

Listening: The Forgotten Skill

Author: Madelyn Burley Allen

A proven program for turning effective listening into a powerful business tool Managers and other employees spend more than 40 percent of their time listening to other people but often do it so poorly that the result is misunderstood instructions, misdirected projects, and erroneous actions—millions of dollars’ worth of mistakes just because most people don’t know how to listen. In this new edition of her classic guide to the art of effective listening, Madelyn Burley-Allen shows you how to acquire active, productive listening skills and put them to work for you—professionally, socially, and personally. With her time-tested techniques, you’ll learn how to:

  • Eliminate distractions and improve your concentration on what is being said
  • Locate key words, phrases, and ideas while listening
  • Cut through your own listening biases
  • Interpret body language clues
  • Ask constructive, nonthreatening questions that elicit real information
  • Get others to listen to you
  • Master a whole range of listening skills that you can use on the job and in your personal life
Listening: The Forgotten Skill uses an interactive learning approach with work-sheets, charts, graphs, and self-tests that help you pace and monitor your own progress.



Table of Contents:
Preface
Acknowledgments
1What Is Listening and What Can It Do for You?1
2How You Got to Be the Listener You Are22
3Barriers between Listener and Speaker46
4Listening to Yourself82
5Making Listening Work for You106
6Getting Others to Listen to You139
7Putting It All Together168
Notes187
Suggested Reading189
Index191

Interesting textbook: Toxic Congregation or Group Psychotherapy with Addicted Populations

Financial Shenanigans: How to Detect Accounting Gimmicks and Fraud in Financial Reports

Author: Howard M Schilit

Techniques to uncover and avoid accounting frauds and scamsInflated profits . . . Suspicious write-offs . . . Shifted expenses . . . These and other dubious financial maneuvers have taken on a contemporary twist as companies pull out the stops in seeking to satisfy Wall Street. Financial Shenanigans pulls back the curtain on the current climate of accounting fraud. It presents tools that anyone who is potentially affected by misleading business valuations­­from investors and lenders to managers and auditors­­can use to research and read financial reports, and to identify early warning signs of a company's problems. A bestseller in its first edition, Financial Shenanigans has been thoroughly updated for today's marketplace. New chapters, data, and research reveal contemporary "shenanigans" that have been known to fool even veteran researchers.

Howard M. Schilit, Ph.D., CPA, is president of the Center for Financial Research and Analysis (CFRA), a leading independent financial research organization, and is one of today's leading authorities on detecting accounting gimmicks. Dr. Schilit, a former professor at American University, has been quoted or featured in numerous business publications including The Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, Fortune, and The New York Times, and has appeared on CNBC, CNN, and other networks. He is also the coauthor of Blue Chips and Hot Tips.



Saturday, December 5, 2009

Contemporary Strategy Analysis or Rich Woman

Contemporary Strategy Analysis

Author: Robert M Grant

The pre-eminent strategy text in the field on both sides of the Atlantic has been significantly updated and revised in its latest edition. Introducing students, especially MBA candidates, to the core concepts and principles of strategy, the text combines a rigorous approach to business strategy analysis with lively examples of current practice.


  • Now includes thorough coverage of internet-based strategies, fresh examples of resource-based competitive advantage, additional case illustrations in every chapter, and new self-study questions
  • Features a new two-colour design throughout with high-spec artwork
  • Introduces students to the core concepts and principles of strategy, and offers them the tools they need to formulate and implement these
  • Combines Grant’s renowned rigorous approach to business strategy analysis with lively examples of current practice
  • Supported by a range of online resources, including a guide for instructors and downloadable PowerPoint slides for students, available at blackwellpublishing.com/grant



Read also Peas or Cooking the Vietnamese Way

Rich Woman: A Book on Investing for Women - Because I Hate Being Told What to Do!

Author: Kim Kiyosaki

Why do so many women accept the myth that men are better at investing? RICH WOMAN - which was self-published by The Rich Dad Company — addresses this self-sabotaging habit head on and teaches women the essentials about finance. Key sections include:

The First Four Keys to Being a Successful Investor - Arm yourself with some financial education, start small, put a little money down, and stay close to home.

How to Get Smarter Quickly - Financial jargon can be intimidating. Kim Kiyosaki teaches the three easy rules to raising your financial IQ — increase your vocabulary every day, ask the basic questions about money, and don't worry about asking the wrong questions.

Why Women Make Great Investors - A recent Merrill Lynch report revealed that only 35 percent of women hold onto a losing investment for too long while 47 percent of men are guilty of the same mistake. Learn the strengths that women often have as investors.

This book is for you if you:

• never want to lose sleep over money again

• want to take control of your financial future

• and are tired of looking for a "rich Prince Charming" and demand financial independence!

What People Are Saying


"This book is a must read for all women. Today, more than ever, women need to be financially savvy." —Donald Trump




Thursday, December 3, 2009

Management of Organizational Behavior or Strategic Management

Management of Organizational Behavior: Leading Human Resources

Author: Paul Hersey

Used by more than a million people throughout the world, this highly readable book provides a comprehensive examination of the applied behavioral sciences, and focuses on fundamental ideas which have stood the test of years of application in academic, business, not-for-profit and administrative environments. Complete coverage of motivation and behavior, situational leadership, building effective relationships, planning and implementing change, leadership strategies, the organizational cone and integrating situational leadership with the Classics. For individuals interested in expanding their knowledge of, and proficiency in leadership strategies.



Interesting book: The Wilderness Chef or Joy of Eating

Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization, Concepts and Cases

Author: Michael A Hitt

STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT: COMPETITIVENESS AND GLOBALIZATION, CONCEPTS AND CASES Eighth Edition, is a comprehensive Strategic Management text that combines impeccable scholarship; cutting-edge research; a sophisticated and practical global focus; and the most thorough, up-to-date, and relevant business examples and cases available. Now, this seminal business text is enhanced by the addition of powerful new media and technology resources, including an updated video program, CengageNOW online teaching tools, and the Business and Company Resource Center (BCRC)—a complete electronic business library. The highly respected authors, all active teachers and experts in the strategic management field, use a unique model that blends classic industrial organization with a resource-based view of the firm to explain how real-world businesses use strategic management to build a sustained competitive advantage. The text includes current and relevant examples to provide context for key concepts, outstanding figures and models to illustrate key points, and a case study section containing engaging and exemplary cases that cover a broad range of critical issues confronting mangers today.



Table of Contents:
Pt. 1Strategic Management Inputs
Ch. 1Strategic Management and Strategic Competitiveness2
Ch. 2The External Environment: Opportunities, Threats, Industry Competition, and Competitor Analysis46
Ch. 3The Internal Environment: Resources, Capabilities, and Core Competencies92
Pt. 2Strategic Actions: Strategy Formulation
Ch. 4Business-Level Strategy140
Ch. 5Competitive Dynamics184
Ch. 6Corporate-Level Strategy228
Ch. 7Acquisition and Restructuring Strategies272
Ch. 8International Strategy312
Ch. 9Cooperative Strategy358
Pt. 3Strategic Actions: Strategy Implementation
Ch. 10Corporate Governance400
Ch. 11Organizational Structure and Controls440
Ch. 12Strategic Leadership484
Ch. 13Corporate Enterpreneurship and Innovation520
Pt. 4Cases