Business

Brief summary The HR Scorecard: Linking People, Strategy, and Performance Three experts in Human Resources introduce a measurement system that convincingly showcases how HR impacts business performance. Drawing from the authors' ongoing study of nearly 3,000 firms, this book describes a seven-step process for embedding HR systems within the firm's overall strategy--what the authors describe as an HR Scorecard--and measuring its activities in terms that line managers and CEOs will find compelling. Analyzing how each element of the HR system can be designed to enhance firm performance and maximize the overall quality of human capital, this important book heralds the emergence of HR as a strategic powerhouse in today's organizations. ISBN:9781578511365 Author:Dave Ulrich, Mark A. Huselid and Brian E. Becker

Brief summary The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance The winner of the National Book Award and now considered a classic, The House of Morgan is the most ambitious history ever written about an American banking dynasty. Acclaimed by The Wall Street Journal as "brilliantly researched and written," the book tells the rich, panoramic story of four generations of Morgans and the powerful, secretive firms they spawned. It is the definitive account of the rise of the modern financial world. A gripping history of banking and the booms and busts that shaped the world on both sides of the Atlantic, The House of Morgan traces the trajectory of the J. P. Morgan Empire from its obscure beginnings in Victorian London to the crash of 1987. Ron Chernow paints a fascinating portrait of the private saga of the Morgans and the rarefied world of the American and British elite in which they moved. Based on extensive interviews and access to the family and business archives, The House of Morganis an investigative masterpiece, a compelling account of a remarkable institution and the men who ran it, and an essential book for understanding the money and power behind the major historical events of the last 150 years. ISBN:9780802138293 Author:Ron Chernow

Brief summary Free: How today's smartest businesses profit by giving something for nothing What happens when advances in technology allow many things to be produced for more or less nothing? And what happens when those things are then made available to the consumer for free? In his groundbreaking new book, The Long Tail author Chris Anderson considers a brave new world where the old economic certainties are being undermined by a growing flood of free goods - newspapers, DVDs, T-shirts, phones, even holiday flights. He explains why this has become possible - why new technologies, particularly the Internet, have caused production and distribution costs in many sectors to plummet to an extent unthinkable even a decade ago. He shows how the flexibility provided by the online world allows producers to trade ever more creatively, offering items for free to make real or perceived gains elsewhere. He pinpoints the winners and the losers in the Free universe. And he demonstrates the ways in which, as an increasing number of things become available for free, our decisions to make use of them will be determined by two resources far more valuable than money: the popular reputation of what is on offer and the time we have available for it. In the future, he argues, when we talk of the 'money economy' we will talk of the 'reputation economy' and the 'time economy' in the same breath, and our world will never be the same again. " ISBN:9781905211494 Author:Chris Anderson

Brief summary Economics in One Lesson: The Shortest & Surest Way to Understand Basic Economics A million copy seller, Henry Hazlitt’s Economics in One Lesson is a classic economic primer. But it is also much more, having become a fundamental influence on modern "libertarian” economics of the type espoused by Ron Paul and others. Considered among the leading economic thinkers of the "Austrian School,” which includes Carl Menger, Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich (F.A.) Hayek, and others, Henry Hazlitt (1894-1993), was a libertarian philosopher, an economist, and a journalist. He was the founding vice-president of the Foundation for Economic Education and an early editor of The Freeman magazine, an influential libertarian publication. Hazlitt wrote Economics in One Lesson, his seminal work, in 1946. Concise and instructive, it is also deceptively prescient and far-reaching in its efforts to dissemble economic fallacies that are so prevalent they have almost become a new orthodoxy. Many current economic commentators across the political spectrum have credited Hazlitt with foreseeing the collapse of the global economy which occurred more than 50 years after the initial publication of Economics in One Lesson. Hazlitt’s focus on non-governmental solutions, strong — and strongly reasoned — anti-deficit position, and general emphasis on free markets, economic liberty of individuals, and the dangers of government intervention make Economics in One Lesson, every bit as relevant and valuable today as it has been since publication. ISBN:9780517548233 Author:Henry Hazlitt

The Cash Nexus: Money and Power in the Modern World, 1700-2000. Conventional wisdom has long claimed that economic change is the prime mover of political change, whether in the age of industry or Internet. But is it? Ferguson thinks it is high time we re-examined the link-the nexus, in Thomas Carlyle's phrase-between economics and politics. His central argument is that the conflicting impulses of sex, violence, and power are together more powerful than money. Among Ferguson's startling claims are: Nothing has done more to transform the world economy than war, yet wars themselves do not have primarily economic causes. • The present age of economic globalization is coinciding-paradoxically-with political and military fragmentation. • Financial crises are frequently caused by unforeseen political events rather than economic fluctuations. The relationship between prosperity and government popularity is largely illusory. • Since political and economic liberalization are not self-perpetuating, the so-called triumph of democracy worldwide may be short-lived. • A bold synthesis of political history and modern economic theory, Cash Nexus will transform the landscape of modern history and draw challenging conclusions about the prospects of both capitalism and democracy.

Brief summary The Last Tycoons: The Secret History of Lazard Frères & Co A grand and revelatory portrait of Wall Street’s most storied investment bank Wall Street investment banks move trillions of dollars a year, make billions in fees, and pay their executives in the tens of millions of dollars. But even among the most powerful firms, Lazard Frères & Co. stood apart. Discretion, secrecy, and subtle strategy were its weapons of choice. For more than a century, the mystique and reputation of the "Great Men" who worked there allowed the firm to garner unimaginable profits, social cachet, and outsized influence in the halls of power. But in the mid-1980s, their titanic egos started getting in the way, and the Great Men of Lazard jeopardized all they had built. William D. Cohan, himself a former high-level Wall Street banker, takes the reader into the mysterious and secretive world of Lazard and presents a compelling portrait of Wall Street through the tumultuous history of this exalted and fascinating company. Cohan deconstructs the explosive feuds between Felix Rohatyn and Steve Rattner, superstar investment bankers and pillars of New York society, and between the man who controlled Lazard, the inscrutable French billionaire Michel David-Weill, and his chosen successor, Bruce Wasserstein. Cohan follows Felix, the consummate adviser, as he reshapes corporate America in the 1970s and 1980s, saves New York City from bankruptcy, and positions himself in New York society and in Washington. Felix’s dreams are dashed after the arrival of Steve, a formidable and ambitious former newspaper reporter. By the mid-1990s, as Lazard neared its 150th anniversary, Steve and Felix were feuding openly. The internal strife caused by their arguments could not be solved by the imperious Michel, whose manipulative tendencies served only to exacerbate the trouble within the firm. Increasingly desperate, Michel took the unprecedented step of relinquishing operational control of Lazard to one of the few Great Men still around, Bruce Wasserstein, then fresh from selling his own M&A boutique, for $1.4 billion. Bruce’s take: more than $600 million. But it turned out Great Man Bruce had snookered Great Man Michel when the Frenchman was at his most vulnerable. The Last Tycoons is a tale of vaulting ambitions, whispered advice, worldly mistresses, fabulous art collections, and enormous wealth—a story of high drama in the world of high finance. ISBN:9780767919791 Author:William D. Cohan

Brief summary It is said the future belongs to Communication. And rightly so. For today, more than ever before, the need for effective communication is being felt. This is particularly true of business communication because, organizations in their efforts to excel in business and outdo their competitors, have to be precise and extremely effective in their communication to satisfy all its stakeholders—be they suppliers, distributors, advertisers or customers. This book on Business Communication, now in its Second Edition, brings to fore the multidimensional aspects of Business Communication—ranging from listening, speaking, developing skill sets, to exhibiting correct body language. The book emphasizes that understanding the perceptions and mindsets of the communicators and the context are crucial for business communication. This book, which is the outcome of the rich and the vast experience of Dr. Asha Kaul and her interaction with the brilliant young minds at IIM Ahmedabad and other Bschools, should be of immense value to the budding as well as practicing managers. All readers will find this new edition extremely useful, refreshingly different, and delectably delightful. ISBN:9788120338487 Author:Asha Kaul

Brief summary This text explores international business economics from a European perspective, dealing not only within business in Europe but with the external trading relationships of the EU and the position of European firms in a globalized economy. An extensive website provides lecturers with support material. ISBN:9781403942197 Author:Judith Piggott and Mark Cook