Books

Brief Summary How did a pioneering company in the semiconductor industry not only survive but thrive in the face of the explosive change and upheavals that forced it to transform itself twice in the course of its thirty-year history? The answer lies in the quality of its strategy-making process, contends leading strategic management scholar Robert A. Burgelman in this extraordinary book based on an exhaustive twelve-year study he conducted inside Intel Corporation. Granted the opportunity to track Intel's strategy-making through his close teaching collaboration with its chairman, Andy Grove, at Stanford Business School since 1988, Burgelman has written a definitive and far-reaching account of how highly educated top managers groped their way through strategic conundrums. His account of the evolution of key events in Intel's history is illustrated with extensive quotes from its cofounder Gordon Moore, Andy Grove, current CEO Craig Barrett, and dozens of other Intel executives. His study allows these leaders to speak for themselves in scores of highly rendered executive portraits. Using thoroughly tested conceptual tools, Burgelman first documents the key role played by mid-level managers in transforming Intel from a memory company into a microprocessor company during the late 1970s and early 1980s, which led to the heartbreaking decision to abandon the business on which the company had been founded in 1968. He then makes readers eyewitnesses to the complex set of complementary strategic thrusts orchestrated by Andy Grove to make Intel capi- talize on the extraordinary opportunities associated with the phenomenal growth of the PC industry during the late 1980s and the 1990s. He reconstructs Grove's resolution of the struggle between two competing micro- processor architectures within Intel that caused civil war to erupt, and he shows how Intel's superbly run strategy-making process in the core business, paradoxically, made it difficult for internal entrepreneurs to extend the company's strategic reach. This allows him to link the strategic leadership challenges, faced today by Craig Barrett, to Intel's illustrious past and to provide suggestions for how these challenges can be met. At once a history of strategy-making at Intel as well as a strategy-making field manual that any high-technology manager will need to consult frequently, Strategy Is Destiny truly describes strategy-in-action as the way of life of senior executives in the corporation of the future. ISBN:9780684855547 Author:Robert Burgelman and Andrew S. Grove

Brief Summary Lean Six Sigma For Leaders: A practical guide for leaders to transform the way they run their organization. A refreshingly practical guide to real–world continuous improvement Lean Six Sigma for Leaders presents a no–frills approach to adopting a continuous improvement framework. Practical, down–to–earth and jargon–free, this book outlines the basic principles and key points of the Lean Six Sigma approach to help you quickly determine the best course for your company. Real–world case studies illustrate implementation at various organizations to show you what went right, what went wrong, what they learned and what they would have done differently, giving you the distilled wisdom of hundreds of implementations with which to steer your own organization. Written from a leader′s perspective, this quick and easy read presents the real information you need to make informed strategic decisions. While many organizations have implemented either Lean or Six Sigma, there is a growing interest in a combined approach; by implementing the most effective aspects of each, you end up with a more potent, adaptable system that benefits a wider range of organizations. This book shows you how it works, and how to tailor it to your organisation′s needs. • Understand the basic principles and key aspects of Lean Six Sigma • Examine case studies of organizations that have implemented the framework • Build on the lessons learned by other leaders to shape your own path • Achieve continuous improvement by creating the right environment for success In theory, every organization would like to attain continuous improvement but what does that look like in day–to–day practice? How is it structured? What practices are in place? How can you implement this new approach with minimal disruption to daily operations? Lean Six Sigma for Leaders answers these questions and more, for a clear, actionable guide to real–world implementation. ISBN:9781119374749 Author:Martin Brenig-Jones and Jo Dowdall