- Email: [email protected]
Nippon: New superpower, Japan since 1945
106
Long Range
Planning
Vol. 24
June 1991
within the educational system-possibly the largest industry in the world; and one where modern management techniques are often sadly neglected.
CreeNing Business: Managingfir Sustainable Development, JOHN DAVIS, Basil Blackwell (1991), 215 pp., E18.95. Argues that businesses of all kinds are likely to be the main agents for the ‘Green Revolution’ and that managers at all levels bear the main responsibility for implementing this fundamental change. Within this process local communities will have to be much more self reliant; products much more durable; renewable materials and energy resources much more widely and technology systems more user-friendly. All this will need much greater understanding of the issues, as well as a capacity for managing focused innovation. The nine practical strategies outlined provide a useful starting point and the book needs to be urgently read by managers at all levels. Similar concerns are reflected in Sustainable Development: Economics and Environment in the Third World, DAVID PEARCE, EDWARD BARBIER and ANIL MARKANDYA, Earthscan Publications (1991), 228 pp., L9.95, which addresses the problem ofequity between rich and poor nations and the economics of sustainable natural resource management through the use of case studies in Indonesia, Sudan, Botswana, Nepal and Amazonia.
Capital People: Skills Strategiesfor Survival in the Nineties, AMIN RAJAN, with LYNDA RAJAN and PEENY VAN EUPEN, The Industrial Society (1990). 233 pp., A34.95. A follow up study to Create or Abdicate (Which argued that: ‘The choice for the City of London is clear: create its own stock ofskills in order to ensure global competitiveness into the Nineties or abdicate its premier position to other global financial centres through benign neglect.‘). Focuses on how that improvement can be accelerated through specific ideas on the development and implementation of skills strategies. The Square Mile has the highest concentration of knowledge workers of any comparable area; and the exploitation of this resource is certainly the key to its success. The case for greater strategic analysis and more effective implementation is overwhelming; and the authors approach is a valuable step in the right direction. But there are scenarios that suggest that changes could be much more far reaching than those outlined and that should be enough to support regular revisions every couple of years for some time ahead. In addition the ability to manage change effectively probably needs to be identified specifically in any discussion of the skills/competencics required for the 1990s.
Leisure Trends: The Thatcher Years, Leisure Consultants 81 pp., L50.00.
(1990).
The last decade has seen a period of growth and change in leisure and the leisure industries in the U.K. (and other parts of the industrial world). But what are the prospects for the 199Os? The authors identify the major trends within the context of individual sectors and the main factors likely to affect the decade ahead; ending each section with a series of questions (nearly 150!) that reflect the uncertainties. Plenty of scope for further research.
Designing for Quality: An Introduction to the Best (of Ta
Managing Your Se!f: Mana~gement by Detached lnuo1vement. JAGDISH PARIKH, Basil Blackwell (1991). 175 pp., Ll8.95. Persuasively argues that personal effectiveness is a precondition of professional excellence. And better self-management increases managers’ ability to: cope with stress, resolve conflict, manage change and manage to change, achieve sustainable peak performance, build and lead effective teams and influence organizational cultures. (i.e. the ability to deliver ‘total quality’.) The author’s unique background and experience enable him to provide invaluable insights ‘that combine the Western ‘know thyself’ tradition with the Eastern ‘become thyself’. ‘In other words, sat+tion or happiness consists of “striving toget what you want, but at the Same time experiencing the wanting of whatever you get”.’ For those particularly interested in self-exploration Findhorn holds attractions, reflected by The Findhorn Community: Creating a Human Identity for the 21st Century, CAROL RIDDELL, Findhorn Press (1990), 286 pp., A8.95; At One with all Lift: A Persord Jowney in Gaiarl Communities,JuDI-rrr L. BOICE, Findhorn Press (1990), 273 pp., A8.95; This New Age Business: The Story of the Ancient arld Continuing Quert to Bring Down Heaven on Earth, PETER LEMESURIER,Findhorn Press (1990), 232 pp., A8.95. But these books tended to illustrate confusion rather than clarity when compared with the insights of Parikh. This whole area could easily become increasingly important in the decades ahead and it has far-reaching implications for traditional and new forms of corporatism. Different views of self-development are How to be Headhunted: How to make Yourse!fthe Best Personfor the Best Job, YVONNESARCH, Business Books (1991), 210 pp., L15.99; and L$ Choices and Lifi Changes Throu& Imagework: The Art of Developing Personal Visiorl, DINA GLOURERMAN,Unwin (1989). 339 pp., A6.99. Both sound, sensible, advice and well worth reading. In any consideration of the people issues demographic trends need to be more widely recognized as shown by 55+ Market: Exploring a Golden Business Opportunity, Edited by STEPHEN BUCK, McGraw-Hill (1990), 156 pp., A25.00.
The Crash and the Cornin
Nippon: New Superpower,japan since 1945, WILLIAM HORSLEY and ROGER BUCKLEY, BBC Books (1990), 278 pp., Al5.00. Accompanies
the 8-part
BBC TV series. A popular,
readable,
Book account of the post-war rise ofJapan. Useful background, but not aimed at the managerial market. A similar comment can be made about another angle provided by Japan and the North East ofEngland: From 1862 to the Present Day, MARIE CONTE-HELM, Athlone Press (1989), 203 pp., ,I;ZO.OO.
Measure Up! Yardsticks for Continuous Improvement, RICHARD L. LYNCH and KELVIN F. CROSS, Basil Blackwell (1991), 213 pp., R30.00. A valuable combination of theory and practice that shows managers how to use performance yardsticks both effectively and competitively. The main elements are: Measure what is important to customers; Motivate the organization to improve continually against customer expectations; Identify and eliminate waste, both of time and resources; Accelerate organizational learning and build consensus for change. Sounds simple and obvious, but rarely achieved in practice.
Management of Information Systems Technology, JANICE BURN and EVELINE CALDWELL, Alfred Wailer (1990). 262 pp., A20.00. .Emphasizes the identification and development of the most effective type of information system for a particular organization. Reviews the nature of information and the role of computers, before going on to examine different classifications of organization according to size, product, structure, age and ownership. Uses case studies to help identify both the information requirements for the various classifications and the various types of computer system. Excellent introduction to a complex, expensive, subject. Exactly how expensive mistakes can be is shown in Regaining Control of IT Investments: A Handbook for Senior U.K. Management, BEAT HOCHSTRASSER and CATHERINE GRIFFITHS, Kobler Unit Imperial College (1990), 188 pp., El80.00. Essential reading for anyone involved with significant investments in this area. (Issues apply world-wide, not just in the U.K.) A directory of terms and concepts is provided by Fast Track: Everything the High-flying Executive Ought to Know About Information Technology, DENIS JARRET~,McGraw-Hill (1988), 283 pp., E25.00. A new edition is probably needed every couple of years.
Global Companies and Public Policy: The Growing Challenge of Foreign Direct Investment, DEANNE JULIUS, Pincer Publications (1990), 126 pp., Q9.50. The growth of direct investment flows among the advanced countries has far outstripped that of world trade. This book explores the new types ofinternational economic linkages that both inward and outward flows are creating projects their future development and identifies the policy constraints and new business opportunities that these cross-border activities are generating. Their conclusions are that economic growth and integration will be enhanced by demoting the role of the exchange rate and the current account balance in international policy discussions and promoting the importance of agreed rules for trade, investment and competition in one another’s markets. Only for economists with a special interest in the subject.
Reviews
107
h&de Job: The Looting of America’s Savings and Loans, STEPHEN Przzo, MARY FRICKER and PAUL Muoro, McGraw-Hill (1989), 443 pp., 619.95. An amazing and horrifing story. The price of deregulation in a wildly entrepreneurial environment. ‘Big-Bang’ was never that bad; or was it? Is it the more open U.S. system that just makes writing about it easier? Should be widely read if the lessons are to be learned. Eastern Europe is walking a tightrope in a different dimension. No socialist economy has ever moved from a centralized, bureaucratic structure to a market system. Another revealing inside story (of the RJR/Nabisco saga) is Barbarians at tke Gate, BRYAN BURROUCH and JOHN HELYAR, Arrow Books (1990), 650 pp., L5.99. The authors concluded the rules were simple: ‘Never pay in cash; Never tell the truth; and Never play by the rules’.
In The Road to a Free Economy: Shtftingfrom a Socialist System, The Example of Hungary, JANOS KORNAI, W. W. Norton (1990), 224 pp., Al 1.95. The author, who splits his time between Harvard where he holds a full professorship in the economics department and Budapest where he heads the research department at the Institute of Economics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, argues that such a transition will only be accomplished successfully with a sensitive combination of a firm, but humane, hand and a minimum of disruption and pain. No mean task, as the Soviet Union and others are finding out to their cost. It is to be hoped that those involved with the difficult decisions at least have access to studies of this kind.
Teaching Business Ethics in the U.K., Europe and the U.S.A.: A Comparative Study,JAcK MAHONEY, The Athlone Press (1990), 204 pp., A25.00. Describes how the ethical conduct of business has become a topic of major interest in the U.S.A. and a subject for serious study in American universities and business schools. In Europe, including Britain, public concern is increasing about the moral aspects of business behaviour. The author shows how this growing concern is reflected in the programme of business studies offered by various European universities and business schools.
Presenting your Case to Europe, PETERDANTONDE ROUFFIGNAC, Mercury (1990), 246 pp., E25.00. Increasingly companies and organizations are finding a need to present their case more effectively to the various Community institutions. This study examines how national governments monitor Community legislation, and provides a number of case studies showing how powerful organizations representing employers, trade unions or special interests carry out their lobbying role.
Business Success: Strategic Unit Comprehensive Computer-based Expert Support System, ELI SEGEV and PAUL GRAY, PrenticeHall (1990), 443 pp., L42.80. Takes 53 strategies
specific
to business
units and molds
them
Long Range
Planning
Vol. 24
June 1991
within the educational system-possibly the largest industry in the world; and one where modern management techniques are often sadly neglected.
CreeNing Business: Managingfir Sustainable Development, JOHN DAVIS, Basil Blackwell (1991), 215 pp., E18.95. Argues that businesses of all kinds are likely to be the main agents for the ‘Green Revolution’ and that managers at all levels bear the main responsibility for implementing this fundamental change. Within this process local communities will have to be much more self reliant; products much more durable; renewable materials and energy resources much more widely and technology systems more user-friendly. All this will need much greater understanding of the issues, as well as a capacity for managing focused innovation. The nine practical strategies outlined provide a useful starting point and the book needs to be urgently read by managers at all levels. Similar concerns are reflected in Sustainable Development: Economics and Environment in the Third World, DAVID PEARCE, EDWARD BARBIER and ANIL MARKANDYA, Earthscan Publications (1991), 228 pp., L9.95, which addresses the problem ofequity between rich and poor nations and the economics of sustainable natural resource management through the use of case studies in Indonesia, Sudan, Botswana, Nepal and Amazonia.
Capital People: Skills Strategiesfor Survival in the Nineties, AMIN RAJAN, with LYNDA RAJAN and PEENY VAN EUPEN, The Industrial Society (1990). 233 pp., A34.95. A follow up study to Create or Abdicate (Which argued that: ‘The choice for the City of London is clear: create its own stock ofskills in order to ensure global competitiveness into the Nineties or abdicate its premier position to other global financial centres through benign neglect.‘). Focuses on how that improvement can be accelerated through specific ideas on the development and implementation of skills strategies. The Square Mile has the highest concentration of knowledge workers of any comparable area; and the exploitation of this resource is certainly the key to its success. The case for greater strategic analysis and more effective implementation is overwhelming; and the authors approach is a valuable step in the right direction. But there are scenarios that suggest that changes could be much more far reaching than those outlined and that should be enough to support regular revisions every couple of years for some time ahead. In addition the ability to manage change effectively probably needs to be identified specifically in any discussion of the skills/competencics required for the 1990s.
Leisure Trends: The Thatcher Years, Leisure Consultants 81 pp., L50.00.
(1990).
The last decade has seen a period of growth and change in leisure and the leisure industries in the U.K. (and other parts of the industrial world). But what are the prospects for the 199Os? The authors identify the major trends within the context of individual sectors and the main factors likely to affect the decade ahead; ending each section with a series of questions (nearly 150!) that reflect the uncertainties. Plenty of scope for further research.
Designing for Quality: An Introduction to the Best (of Ta
Managing Your Se!f: Mana~gement by Detached lnuo1vement. JAGDISH PARIKH, Basil Blackwell (1991). 175 pp., Ll8.95. Persuasively argues that personal effectiveness is a precondition of professional excellence. And better self-management increases managers’ ability to: cope with stress, resolve conflict, manage change and manage to change, achieve sustainable peak performance, build and lead effective teams and influence organizational cultures. (i.e. the ability to deliver ‘total quality’.) The author’s unique background and experience enable him to provide invaluable insights ‘that combine the Western ‘know thyself’ tradition with the Eastern ‘become thyself’. ‘In other words, sat+tion or happiness consists of “striving toget what you want, but at the Same time experiencing the wanting of whatever you get”.’ For those particularly interested in self-exploration Findhorn holds attractions, reflected by The Findhorn Community: Creating a Human Identity for the 21st Century, CAROL RIDDELL, Findhorn Press (1990), 286 pp., A8.95; At One with all Lift: A Persord Jowney in Gaiarl Communities,JuDI-rrr L. BOICE, Findhorn Press (1990), 273 pp., A8.95; This New Age Business: The Story of the Ancient arld Continuing Quert to Bring Down Heaven on Earth, PETER LEMESURIER,Findhorn Press (1990), 232 pp., A8.95. But these books tended to illustrate confusion rather than clarity when compared with the insights of Parikh. This whole area could easily become increasingly important in the decades ahead and it has far-reaching implications for traditional and new forms of corporatism. Different views of self-development are How to be Headhunted: How to make Yourse!fthe Best Personfor the Best Job, YVONNESARCH, Business Books (1991), 210 pp., L15.99; and L$ Choices and Lifi Changes Throu& Imagework: The Art of Developing Personal Visiorl, DINA GLOURERMAN,Unwin (1989). 339 pp., A6.99. Both sound, sensible, advice and well worth reading. In any consideration of the people issues demographic trends need to be more widely recognized as shown by 55+ Market: Exploring a Golden Business Opportunity, Edited by STEPHEN BUCK, McGraw-Hill (1990), 156 pp., A25.00.
The Crash and the Cornin
Nippon: New Superpower,japan since 1945, WILLIAM HORSLEY and ROGER BUCKLEY, BBC Books (1990), 278 pp., Al5.00. Accompanies
the 8-part
BBC TV series. A popular,
readable,
Book account of the post-war rise ofJapan. Useful background, but not aimed at the managerial market. A similar comment can be made about another angle provided by Japan and the North East ofEngland: From 1862 to the Present Day, MARIE CONTE-HELM, Athlone Press (1989), 203 pp., ,I;ZO.OO.
Measure Up! Yardsticks for Continuous Improvement, RICHARD L. LYNCH and KELVIN F. CROSS, Basil Blackwell (1991), 213 pp., R30.00. A valuable combination of theory and practice that shows managers how to use performance yardsticks both effectively and competitively. The main elements are: Measure what is important to customers; Motivate the organization to improve continually against customer expectations; Identify and eliminate waste, both of time and resources; Accelerate organizational learning and build consensus for change. Sounds simple and obvious, but rarely achieved in practice.
Management of Information Systems Technology, JANICE BURN and EVELINE CALDWELL, Alfred Wailer (1990). 262 pp., A20.00. .Emphasizes the identification and development of the most effective type of information system for a particular organization. Reviews the nature of information and the role of computers, before going on to examine different classifications of organization according to size, product, structure, age and ownership. Uses case studies to help identify both the information requirements for the various classifications and the various types of computer system. Excellent introduction to a complex, expensive, subject. Exactly how expensive mistakes can be is shown in Regaining Control of IT Investments: A Handbook for Senior U.K. Management, BEAT HOCHSTRASSER and CATHERINE GRIFFITHS, Kobler Unit Imperial College (1990), 188 pp., El80.00. Essential reading for anyone involved with significant investments in this area. (Issues apply world-wide, not just in the U.K.) A directory of terms and concepts is provided by Fast Track: Everything the High-flying Executive Ought to Know About Information Technology, DENIS JARRET~,McGraw-Hill (1988), 283 pp., E25.00. A new edition is probably needed every couple of years.
Global Companies and Public Policy: The Growing Challenge of Foreign Direct Investment, DEANNE JULIUS, Pincer Publications (1990), 126 pp., Q9.50. The growth of direct investment flows among the advanced countries has far outstripped that of world trade. This book explores the new types ofinternational economic linkages that both inward and outward flows are creating projects their future development and identifies the policy constraints and new business opportunities that these cross-border activities are generating. Their conclusions are that economic growth and integration will be enhanced by demoting the role of the exchange rate and the current account balance in international policy discussions and promoting the importance of agreed rules for trade, investment and competition in one another’s markets. Only for economists with a special interest in the subject.
Reviews
107
h&de Job: The Looting of America’s Savings and Loans, STEPHEN Przzo, MARY FRICKER and PAUL Muoro, McGraw-Hill (1989), 443 pp., 619.95. An amazing and horrifing story. The price of deregulation in a wildly entrepreneurial environment. ‘Big-Bang’ was never that bad; or was it? Is it the more open U.S. system that just makes writing about it easier? Should be widely read if the lessons are to be learned. Eastern Europe is walking a tightrope in a different dimension. No socialist economy has ever moved from a centralized, bureaucratic structure to a market system. Another revealing inside story (of the RJR/Nabisco saga) is Barbarians at tke Gate, BRYAN BURROUCH and JOHN HELYAR, Arrow Books (1990), 650 pp., L5.99. The authors concluded the rules were simple: ‘Never pay in cash; Never tell the truth; and Never play by the rules’.
In The Road to a Free Economy: Shtftingfrom a Socialist System, The Example of Hungary, JANOS KORNAI, W. W. Norton (1990), 224 pp., Al 1.95. The author, who splits his time between Harvard where he holds a full professorship in the economics department and Budapest where he heads the research department at the Institute of Economics of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, argues that such a transition will only be accomplished successfully with a sensitive combination of a firm, but humane, hand and a minimum of disruption and pain. No mean task, as the Soviet Union and others are finding out to their cost. It is to be hoped that those involved with the difficult decisions at least have access to studies of this kind.
Teaching Business Ethics in the U.K., Europe and the U.S.A.: A Comparative Study,JAcK MAHONEY, The Athlone Press (1990), 204 pp., A25.00. Describes how the ethical conduct of business has become a topic of major interest in the U.S.A. and a subject for serious study in American universities and business schools. In Europe, including Britain, public concern is increasing about the moral aspects of business behaviour. The author shows how this growing concern is reflected in the programme of business studies offered by various European universities and business schools.
Presenting your Case to Europe, PETERDANTONDE ROUFFIGNAC, Mercury (1990), 246 pp., E25.00. Increasingly companies and organizations are finding a need to present their case more effectively to the various Community institutions. This study examines how national governments monitor Community legislation, and provides a number of case studies showing how powerful organizations representing employers, trade unions or special interests carry out their lobbying role.
Business Success: Strategic Unit Comprehensive Computer-based Expert Support System, ELI SEGEV and PAUL GRAY, PrenticeHall (1990), 443 pp., L42.80. Takes 53 strategies
specific
to business
units and molds
them