Control Your Destiny or Someone Else Will: Revised Edition

Book Description

The Best Analysis of Jack Welch's GE, Now Freshly Revised

A business classic -- now completely revised -- hailed as the unofficial GELeadership handbook.

Completely revised, with two new chapters by the authors, an added chapter-length interview with Jack Welch, plus the complete set of Welch's GE annual letters to shareholders, this title remains the classic CASE STUDY of how Welch transformed GE from a corporate dinosaur into one of the nimblest, most successful corporations in the world, and provides a useful handbook for effecting change in your business and your life.

Since Welch became its CEO in 1981, GE has become one of the most successful companies of the late 20th century, increasing its market value from $13 billion to over $400 billion. Welch has been hailed by "60 Minutes" as the best executive in the world. This success can be attributed in large part to Jack Welch, GE's dynamic CEO who transformed the company from a bureaucratic behemoth into a fierce competitor in the global marketplace.

Among the many books that have been written about GE, Control Your Destiny stands out. Its authors are uniquely qualified to explain Welch's transformation of GE and to explain the leadership lessons it reveals. Noel Tichy ran GE's Crotonville school during the start of the Welch era, while Stratford Sherman covered GE for Fortune magazine. Together, they study GE with a remarkable blend of inside knowledge and clear-eyed objectivity. Their narrative -- studied at business schools nationwide -- is extraordinarily thorough, thoughtful, and rich in insight.

Customer Reviews:

Reads like a fiction with Jack Welch as the Hero.......2005-10-02

Hero worship this book is without shame. Sure, the book calls Jack Welch an "As***le" but it is spoken as a compliment. This highly antagonistic, argumentative, determined, intelligent, and energetic hero is indeed a first class "As***le" without apologies. He is the consummate proof that one needs to be an excellent "As***le" to be considered as a great CEO\manager. If you are one of the nice guys who wants to be gentle, cheerful, and sympathetic to your 80+hr/week working employees, forget it, you can't be a successful manager at GE. You need to be like Jack, and take all the credit for the hard work your underlings, and if any of them complain, you kick their fatass during their review which you are required to cut at least 5% of your staff.

Be a tough, bottom-line demanding, reality driven, confrontation seeking, slave driving, and kick assing manager. Otherwise, you will get your butt kicked by other first class manager\as***les. This is the primary lesson of "Control your destiny or someone else will".

On the business side, I found Jack's view on competitiveness ("if you don't have competitive advantage, don't compete") and productivity (productivity is the engine that drives profitability, job security, competitiveness, and higher pay) quite refreshing.

The title is somewhat misleading........2005-04-04

This is maybe a 4 Star book - IF, and ONLY if, this is the first book on Jack Welch and GE you have picked up. If you have already read "Jack" skip it. There is nothing here that hasn't already been said elsewhere. I was disappointed how little "new" information was presented in this book.

If you are looking for something on the topic of controlling your own destiny this title is somewhat misleading.

Decent read, lessons to be learned........2004-04-04

This book looks dauntingly thick when you pick it up, but some brief exploration will show that including the interviews only 311 pages are the Jack Welch story-- the rest of the book is Afterword, GE Timeline, GE Shareholder Reports, Bibliography and finally a section meant to be applied to your own business. I suppose that there are readers out there who wanted that level of completeness in their history of GE. I did not. I stopped reading after the afterword.

The book covers GE during the period of Jack Welch's reign. Specifically, it charts his efforts in five major initiatives: Services, Six Sigma, Digitization, Succession, and the Honeywell acquisition.

I found it interesting and readable, although I was left with the feeling (despite the author's best efforts) that these were very difficult achievements to duplicate if you did not happen to be Jack Welch. Although ostensibly a business biography, I still had much more of a feel of personality than facts when I was done. I would have been pleased to have a less broad-ranging treatment which delved a little bit more deeply into some specific numbers and consequences. Although this information might have been contained in the investor reports, I had no patience to page through it and find the information.

An educational, yet entertaining, read.......2001-12-19

I came into this book assuming a book on the history of Jack Welch's early years with GE. It ended up being much more and I was pleasantly surprised at the overall educational value of the book.

The book is broken down into three "acts" which recount the years of Jack Welch - when and how he was made the CEO with GE, the early years of layoffs, the early resistance to his ideas, reorganization of GE, the need for globalization, and eventual acceptance of his ideas as he empowered GE's employees. Welch's ideas of empowering the employee encompassed such things as "boundarylessness", strong values, leadership, simplicity, and productivity. As the book progresses, the reader is provided with the real world GE examples that qualified Jack's ideas and their results. Nor does the book hold back from describing Jack's missteps and describes the lessons learned.

Overall the book was a good read. The examples read as stories that both entertain and educate. Welch's ideas, as presented in Control Your Destiny, are probably now considered common sense business practices. The ideas seem simple today, yet were revolutionary for that time as you'll read.

The end of the book provides a manual that can be used to carry out a similar revolution with your business and employees. I didn't really work my way through it - it seemed more appropriate for larger organizations.

Terrific.......2001-11-09

Tichy is a guru of all gurus and he has a winner with this book. Highly recommended.

Book Description

Financial services are facing numerous challenges caused by the rapid changes occurring in the marketplace. These events have called into question the fundamental principles upon which the current regulatory structure was built. In the past, the roles of banks, mutual funds, and insurance companies have been somewhat separate; today the differences are becoming less noticeable. The Financial Services Revolution explores the current regulatory environment. This title is an essential tool for any financial professional seeking to keep abreast of this rapidly changing industry. Specific topics include: Banks and insurance companies moving away from their traditional business operations and entering the investment management arena; The increasing role of mutual funds in the financial services industry; The explosion of new financial instruments into the industry.

Book Description

This book traces the early development of Chinese law by means of archaeological and literary evidence, and advances the thesis that Chinese law varied according to clan and social status.

Book Description

Amy Willcock's Aga Seasons will show you how to cook and enjoy produce at its best, when it should be eaten, in harmony with farming calendars. In spring, Amy brings you perfect recipes such as Milk-fed lamb with lavender, while the summer recipes are all perfect for long hot days and balmy evenings, making the most of seafood, vegetables, and even preserving a little bit of summer for the rest of the year in the ultimate Raspberry jam. Autumn brings Halloween parties and delicious Squash soup with ginger, and winter boasts Cod and saffron kedgeree and Queen of Puddings. Accompanying the 180 recipes is a comprehensive calendar for produce and a section on preserving so that you can enjoy the best of the harvest throughout the year. Written in Amy's simple, informative style, featuring conventional cooking instructions and with stunning colour photographs throughout, this is the culinary calendar no Aga owner should be without.

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Amy Willcock's Aga Seasons
Amy Willcock
Manufacturer: Ebury Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OGZCU8

Book Description

GENETICALLY MODIFIED FOODS. It's a phrase ripped from the headlines, guaranteed to spark heated debate and generate contentious discussions. Concerned Europeans march in opposition to GM foods. African ports have been barricaded to prevent the unloading of genetically modified corn, despite the urgent needs of starving people. Canadians have mailed slices of bread to their prime minister to protest the use of genetically modified wheat. And in Australia, Greenpeace activists attached themselves to a cargo ship with magnets and painted "Stop GE imports" on its hull in their campaign against genetically modified food.

The truth is we've been changing the genetic makeup of our food for millennia, coaxing nature to do our bidding. Long before scientists understood what genes were and how they worked, early civilizations created wheat and corn. These crops, so very different from their wild grassy ancestors, represent man's early ventures in altering evolution. In time, plant breeders learned to stir up plant genes faster, using novel breeding methods, chemicals, and even radiation to produce such marvels as white blackberries and red grapefruit.

But it was the curiosity of a 19th-century Augustinian monk, Gregor Mendel, that ushered in the modern era of genetics. Mendel spent countless hours in his garden crossing pea plants to find out just how traits were inherited, finally arriving at the idea of the gene, the unit of inheritance that is at the heart of today's plant breeding strategies.

Mendel's genetics turned molecular when Watson and Crick unveiled the structure of DNA in 1953. Within a few short decades, genes were understood to be DNA sequences that code for proteins using a universal genetic code. Genes could be moved easily between different organisms without losing their identity or changing their function. But the new terms that entered agriculture -- genetic engineering, biotechnology, genetic modification -- were disquieting. People began to ask questions about foods that they'd never asked plant breeders before: Is it safe to eat? Are these foods natural? Isn't it dangerous to fool with genes?

Nina Fedoroff, a leading expert in plant molecular biology and genetics, looks at the many issues raised by contemporary techniques for modifying food plants. She answers the most commonly asked questions -- and some we didn't think to ask. Fedoroff and her co-author, science writer Nancy Marie Brown, weave a narrative rich in history, technology, and science to dispel myths and misunderstandings. In the end, Fedoroff argues, the new molecular approaches hold the promise of being the most environmentally conservative way to increase our food supply, helping us to become better stewards of the earth while enabling us to feed ourselves and generations to come.

Customer Reviews:

I was wowed by this book.......2006-11-03

As daily consumers of the great agricultural engine of America, it's only fitting that we know how the system works. This book takes a historical approach to agriscience and the agritech business and reveals startling facts about both "conventional" and organic systems. This book was really hard for me to put down. Its description of the stresses and forces on the American farmer really moved me and has increased my awareness and respect for the struggle to provide food for the world. Now I lecture to all my friend about agriculture.

It helps to know the fundamentals of molecular biology (DNA -> RNA -> Protein) like your high school/college Intro to Bio, but if you don't, just read through and the later chapters will better explain and help understanding the earlier ones.

Worth the effort!.......2005-04-09

First off, I am a lay reader who, prior to reading this book, was on the fence regarding genetically modified (GM) food. I had heard some scary stuff from friends and in the media but I wanted more information. After reading this book I feel reasonably well versed in GM history/opinion/issues, although as other reviewers noted, this book is definitely biased in favor of GM. To have a truly informed opinion a person ought to also read an anti GM book. That said, here are my key learnings:

(1) If a person chooses to be anti GM, in order to be consistent then there are many more foods to avoid than you might think. The definition of GM is subject to wide interpretation. Truly being opposed to any messing around with a plant's DNA would mean that you should not consume Canola, Tritricale, the majority of domestic Soy and Corn, and a LOT (!!) of other foods including many foods featured in your local health food store.

(2) As noted above the definition of GM is nebulous. Where is the line between the generally accepted cross-breeding of plants (think Luther Burbank) and the "scary" genetic modification done in a lab under a more controlled setting?

(3) The media has generated a lot of anti GM buzz and fear. Actually looking at the facts is, as usual, a lot more complicated. It takes some heavy reading, through a book such as this one, to be able to interpret the science for oneself. Most people are more content to read a quick article in a magazine and then end up with a much less informed (and probably anti GM) opinion.

(4) There are undeniable benefits of GM. Less chemical pesticide needs to be applied to some GM crops. GM can introduce additional nutrients to foods. GM has saved some plant species from going extinct. These and other benefits must be weighed against any downsides of GM.

This book also includes an interesting discussion on Organic foods, in particular debunking the public's tendency to romanticize organic farming. Think Organic is Farmer Jed working a small farm with his own hands? That's what the marketers want you to believe...

In conclusion I recommend this book to anyone who wants to formulate an opinion on GM and is willing to work through the science and history thereof. Even if you happily anti GM, this book is worth reading so that you can be informed about the other side. As for myself, after reading through the facts, I'm OK with feeding GM foods to myself and my family.

Opinionated Fact Piece.......2005-01-27

Interpretation of data can essentially never be said to be unbiased. At least this book doesn't try to hide the fact that the authors intrepret that data with a particular skew in mind. Instead they present a reasonable arguement and some background (data and history) to support the conclusions presented. Because of this, the book can be a bit ranting in places; the first chapter is a bit chaffing. But I wouldn't call the position extreme; instead they point out the downfalls of both "traditional" and "genetic" techniques instead of claiming that gmo's are always safe.

This book depends on the reader having some basic biology knowledge. However it does a reasonable job of presenting the difficult concepts at a basic enough level that I could understand it pretty well and I haven't had biology since high school. (Though that was only 10 years ago so if your memory of biological terms doesn't include things like cells and mitochondria you might want to have a biology text on hand to help you out.)

The overall readability of the book was quite good for a science book. The beginning and end were a bit frustrated, but writing those two items is exceptionally hard for non-fiction so I forgive the authors. One thing that I would have liked to have seen is a summary of the common examples they used that showed products & the specific traits they were bred for divided into groups of how they were modified (i.e. chemical mutation or irradiation or genetic splicing using a bacteria).

All about the pros of GMF; not as much about the debate .......2005-01-13

This is an excellent book that explains, in great detail, why so much of the anti-GM food movement is scientifically misguided. It also makes the point that far from being an evil that will irrevocably damage the environment, biotechnology can be an important tool for more ecologically sound soil management, and for reducing the amount of land worldwide that must be used for farming. Most importantly, it describes the role bioengineering has to play in feeding people who will otherwise be malnourished or starving.

A warning I would offer to other readers is that, as a layperson with little formal science background, I found the going tough in spots. The section on how polymerase chain reaction works was particularly hard going, although the authors are probably to be praised for trying to make the process clear. Some concepts are extremely complicated, even in the hands of good authors.

The one disappointing aspect of this book is its one-sided approach. It is not polemical; on the contrary, the prose is always calm and reasoned, and the authors don't flinch when the story they are telling necessitates providing evidence that could be taken for anti-biotech arguments. However, they make little to no effort to summarize other points of view. (One gets the feeling that they believe, if you really understand the science, there IS no other valid point of view - this would explain why they have trouble articulating opposing viewpoints.)

This book doesn't represent itself as "balanced" -- it makes it clear that it is a treatise in favor of GMF. That's fine. But I guess I would have preferred to read a book that let me hear a little bit about what the other side was saying. As convincing as their arguments seem, I'd like to study all sides of an argument before making up my own mind. This book alone doesn't permit one to do that - you'll have to keep reading elsewhere if you want to hear what anti-biotech forces have to say. But by all means, if you are prepared to read several books about GMF with an open mind, make this book one of them.

Harvest of hope? Agriculture is a colossal environmental problem; genetic science could be part of the solution.(Book Review): An article from: OnEarth

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Harvest of hope? Agriculture is a colossal environmental problem; genetic science could be part of the solution.(Book Review): An article from: OnEarth
Richard Manning
Manufacturer: Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00081VPJG
Release Date: 2005-08-01

Book Description

This digital document is an article from OnEarth, published by Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. on January 1, 2005. The length of the article is 1933 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Harvest of hope? Agriculture is a colossal environmental problem; genetic science could be part of the solution.(Book Review)
Author: Richard Manning
Publication: OnEarth (Magazine/Journal)
Date: January 1, 2005
Publisher: Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
Volume: 26 Issue: 4 Page: 38(3)

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Mendel in the Kitchen: A Scientist's View of Genetically Modified Food

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Mendel in the Kitchen: A Scientist's View of Genetically Modified Food
Nancy Brown Nina Fedoroff
Manufacturer: National Academies Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OSYO0U

Book Description

The authors describe project performance, methods for field study of rocks, soils, and outcrops and how to evaluate impacts of air pollution and water resources systems. Furthermore, they develop guidelines for graphic and text presentation of results of studies and describe superficial rock characteristics and subsurface geological mapping techniques. The text covers hydrogeologic methods, groundwater monitoring systems, contamination and waste management and discusses groundwater flow in fractured and granular aquifers, including a special reference to karstic aquifers. In addition to this, international waste management rules and regulations are listed. A glossary is provided of geological and hydrogeological terms, as well as a standard terminology for soils, rocks, and contained fluids.

Book Description

In 1905, Albert Einstein published five scientific articles that fundamentally changed the world-view of physics: The Special Theory of Reativity revolutionized our concept of space and time, E=mc² became the best-known equation in physics.

On the occasion of the 100th aniversary of his "annus mirabilis" 1905, the UNESCO declared the year 2005 the "World Year of Physics", in order to draw attention to the impact of physics. The Max Planck Institute for the history of science dedicates an exhibition in the Kronprinzenpalais in Berlin to the probably most important scientist of the 20th century.

In this book, 100 authors explain the historical background of Einstein's life and work, shed light on many different aspects of his biography, and on the scientific fields and topics that are connected to Einstein's work. The authors are some of the most renowned Einstein researchers in the world, such as Jürgen Ehlers, Peter Galison, Zeev Rosenkranz, John Stachel and Robert Schulmann.

The essays form a bridge between scientific and cultural history, opening up a perspective on Einstein's biography which goes beyond the traditional picture of the exceptional science genius.

In celebration of the Einstein year.(Albert Einstein, Chief Engineer of the Universe: One Hundred Authors for Einstein)(Book review): An article from: Architectural Science Review
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In celebration of the Einstein year.(Albert Einstein, Chief Engineer of the Universe: One Hundred Authors for Einstein)(Book review): An article from: Architectural Science Review
Gale Reference Team
Manufacturer: University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B000KGG89Q
Release Date: 2007-01-31

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Architectural Science Review, published by University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture on September 1, 2006. The length of the article is 672 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: In celebration of the Einstein year.(Albert Einstein, Chief Engineer of the Universe: One Hundred Authors for Einstein)(Book review)
Publication: Architectural Science Review (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 1, 2006
Publisher: University of Sydney, Faculty of Architecture
Volume: 49 Issue: 3 Page: 316(2)

Article Type: Book review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Albert Einstein: Chief Engineer of the Universe: One Hundred Authors for Einstein

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Albert Einstein: Chief Engineer of the Universe: One Hundred Authors for Einstein
Jurgen Renn
Manufacturer: Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000N7589I

Book Description

Henry Fielding and the Narration of Providence analyzes the fate in 18th-century England of the Augustinian tradition of the providential design of history. At this time the retrospective form of literary narrative (also know as “the rise of the English novel”) flourished, particularly in the novels of Henry Fielding. Through his “historian” narrators, Fielding presents to the reader a sense of narrative ending that explores, with great power of poetic penetration, the claims humans can and cannot make, even retrospectively, for the realization of the divine design.

Henry Fielding and the Narration of Providence: Divine Design and the Incursions of Evil

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Henry Fielding and the Narration of Providence: Divine Design and the Incursions of Evil
Richard Rosengarten
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTE5QM

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