Book Description
In this path-breaking book, the author argues that European countries' political-economic policies, practices, and discourses have changed profoundly in response to globalization and Europeanization, but they have not converged. Although national policies may now be more similar, especially where they follow from common European policies, they are not the same. National practices, although moving in the same general direction toward greater market orientation, continue to be differentiable into not just one or even two but three varieties of capitalism. And national discourses that generate and legitimate changes in policies and practices not only remain distinct, they matter. The book is a tour de force which combines sophisticated theoretical insights and innovative methods to show that European countries generally, but in particular Britain, France, and Germany (for which the book provides lengthy case studies), have had very different experiences of economic adjustment, and will continue to do so into the future.
Average customer rating:
- Thought provoking, but flawed & overly pessimistic
- "What I can do for you...."
- jealous wannabe
- You say that as if it were a bad thing
- I owe my soul to the company store
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Corporate Cults: The Insidious Lure of the All-Consuming Organization
Dave Arnott
Manufacturer: American Management Association
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ASIN: 0814404936 |
Book Description
Sports facilities, laundry services, cappuccino bars. A ready-made set of companions. A purpose in life. Sometimes work is such a great place to be, you don't even want to leave--not in the evening, not on weekends, and especially not on vacations!
All of this is fantastic for your company, but seriously bad for you, says organizational expert Dave Arnott. These perks aren't merely altruistic gestures on the part of your company. Instead, they're consciously designed to induce you to devote more and more of your time, talent, and emotional allegiance to the corporation--at the expense of your private life, your family, and your community.
And rest assured, says Arnott, corporate cultism is not an isolated phenomenon or a far-fetched concept. Consider the top three factors that Fortune magazine calls the hallmarks of a great place to work: sense of purpose, inspiring leadership, and knockout facilities. Now read the uncannily similar characteristics that define a cult: devotion, charismatic leadership, and separation from community
Both startling expos and insightful self-help manual, CORPORATE CULTS gives you a clear picture of this deeply rooted, pernicious problem. It exposes the cycle of manipulation and dependency that is making unhealthy, "cultish" behavior a commonplace way of life for millions of people.
* You'll study the symptoms of "encultedness," including crushingly long hours, few (or no) friends outside the workplace, emotional attitudes about a job--and a dangerous blurring of "who I am" with "what I do." * You'll learn about companies like Southwest Airlines, 3M, and Microsoft that forge the narrowly focused traits of their carefully selected employees into fiercely loyal and cultish organizations. * You'll read the real-life stories of people whose jobs have become their lives--such as the USAA Insurance employee so enamored of his "compound's" fine facilities that he wholeheartedly proclaimed: "You become a part of this place, and it becomes everything you're about." * You'll take an eye-opening 20-question corporate cult test that accurately measures your own level of cultedness. * And--best yet--you'll discover practical strategies for escaping the lure of the corporate cult...and restoring a healthier balance to your life.
Download Description
It's not farfetched, and it's definitely not funny. The fact is that many corporations use the same manipulating and controlling tactics that cults do. In cult-like cultures, employees pledge unconditional obedience to their leaders. They willingly relinquish their precious vacation days. They even subsume their identities, investing increasing amounts of time and energy in the corporation, at the expense of family and community. This eye-opening book provides a fascinating -- if startling -- expose of the unhealthy, all-consuming power that cultish organizations wield over their employees. And it includes behind-the-scenes profiles of cultish cultures, including those from well-known and celebrated companies. But it's not just businesses playing this insidious game. As Corporate Cults explains, many employees willingly allow themselves to become "enculted." In a misplaced quest for emotional support and self-esteem, they pledge their deep commitment to an organization -- a commitment that will never be returned. Corporate Cults makes the impassioned argument that people should place more value on who they are and less on what they do. Studiously researched yet accessibly written, the book also reveals practical tips for recognizing the symptoms of cult-like companies and behaviors -- and for escaping their pernicious clutches. For the millions of people who are happier at work than at home -- or for those who chafe at the intrusion of the all-consuming company on their private lives -- Corporate Cults uncovers a provocative new way to understand the problem. And, better yet, it offers practical strategies for restoring a healthier, more normal balance to their lives.
Customer Reviews:
Thought provoking, but flawed & overly pessimistic.......2005-05-29
This book correctly identifies such companies as Microsoft, Southwest Airlines, and USAA Insurance as corporate cults. However, these are extreme examples. The all-consuming organization is not as prevalent as Arnott would have us believe. Some of his arguments are flawed. The theme throughout the book is that "Who I am" should not be defined as "What I do." What? Arnott believes that the two should be mutually exclusive. The can't be, and aren't. If "what you do" is not part of "who you are," then what does define "who you are?" Think of whenever you meet someone new. Inevitably, the question that will come up early in your conversation with that person will be either "what kind of work do you do?" or "where do you work?" For everyone, not just members of corporate cults, what you do for a living is part of your identity, and that is not necessarily a bad thing. Arnot makes his case for a theory called "Competitive Advantage Selection Model," in which he classifies workers into either "collection of specialists," people who are valued by their employer for "what they do," or "specialist collections," people who are valued for "who they are." Corporate cults are "specialist collections," people who find all of their emotional needs met by the company they work for, and as a result are cut off from family and community. "Collection of Specialists" employees, since they are valued for "what they do" and not for "who they are," are involved in family and community, because they don't get their emotional needs met a work. Arnott states that members of highly skilled professions, such as doctors and lawyers, work for a "collection of specialists." Apparently, Arnott does not know very many doctors or lawyers. There are probably no other professions where what the person does for a living is more a part of their identity than these professions. Doctors and lawyers are also among the most driven people, and spend much more time at work that most people do. Arnott's argument that people in collection of specialist organizations have more time for family and community would not apply to most people in medicine or law. Ask a lawyer or doctor's family members: most of them would tell you that they don't see much of their lawyer or doctor family member because he or she is always at work.
To Arnott's credit, this book is written in easy to understand language. It does not read like a textbook or an academic journal. While the book is thought provoking and brings up good points for discussion, Arnott's theories are flawed and his view of corporate America overly pessimistic.
"What I can do for you....".......2000-12-31
The image of the tattoo on the man's head was a little radical for me, and I have to say that it took a while to even pick this book up. I'm very glad I did, however. I noticed that a previous reviewer (or two) became very defensive in their explanation of what a wonderful situation it is to belong to a corporate cult. Like the frog, enjoying the warm water, but slowly boiled after gradual temperature increase, you poor people never even saw it coming. Of course the company provides everything you could possibly need. Of course they reward you for five, ten and fifteen years perfect attendance. Why ever leave the property, when you have a place to eat, take your children, exercise (and yes, even sleep). The joke on the "team" I worked was that we only went home to change clothes. That could be addressed as well, with lockers in the fitness center. Eventually, your entire life is with the company, and this is the danger. Work needs to stay at work, and home at home. When the lines are blurred, I guarantee your life will fall apart. Depend upon it. You may have met your spouse there, take your kids to daycare there, have breakfast and lunch with all your friends there, but at some point, you will realize the high price you've paid. They are taking care of business, not you. They really do not care about you at all. When you retire after 40 years of service while holding your pencil set engraved with the corporate emblem, the question I want you to ask yourself is this: Were the trinkets and certificates worth it? Are you a better person for sacrificing your whole life to show your loyalty and thankfulness? Did all your bowing and scraping pay off? Have you realized your full potential at the expense of your marriage, your children and your sanity (...Although they did come through on hospitalization costs after your nervous breakdown.)? Did you make the right decision?
jealous wannabe.......2000-10-22
This is written by someone who has obviously never felt the thrill of being successful and satisfied in a job. Corporations need to provide environments where individuals can be the best they can be, while advancing their own personal as well as the corporation's goals. This guy would have us all working in cubicles with institutional green on the walls, and 10 minute pee breaks at scheduled intervals. Professor of Management? My corporation ain't gonna consult with him.
You say that as if it were a bad thing.......2000-08-29
The cover of this book doesn't really seem to go with the content. The author obviously wants to worry people, to make them aware that Western culture's idea of you=your job is a bad thing. And I agree. This isn't a fault that corporate America has imposed on the world; this is the market adapting to existing societal conditions. People don't live in the same house or same neighborhood all their lives, so they don't develop relationships with their neighbors. Churches are having trouble finding and keeping members. Society values work over these things, so it isn't too surprising when employers begin to fill the needs that are not being met in the workers' personal lives. I, personally, would love to work for an employer who actually cared about my well-being and valued my hard work enough to supply a gym, child care, visiting massage therapists, etc. The author's cause-and-effect theory on this phenomena seems backwards from the reality of life.
I owe my soul to the company store.......2000-06-21
What if the organization that you worked for found a way to provide you with all of your human needs, including your meals, social companionship, growth, and even personal meaning? Before you sign up, you might want to heed Dave Arnott's warning that you could be walking into a cult.
I found Arnott's treatment of corporate life to be somewhat biased by his thesis that organizations, particularly those labeled as "great places to work," operate like intentionally manipulative cults. The book takes a number of organizational innovations, such as wellness centers and other on-site conveniences designed to make life easier for employees, and spins them into an evil spider's web designed to trap employees into the organizational version of a cult.
While the book provides a very thorough description of the major elements of a cult and how these elements exist to some degree in a number of organizations, it downplays the need for organizations to offer incentives, such as providing on-site day care, wellness centers and dining facilities, in order to attract and retain highly talented employees.
In the end, however, the book does challenge the reader to question the potential downside of organizations who provide such lavish incentives to keep people on their payrolls. Is there a danger that organizations could go too far in their competition for the best and brightest employees?
In an age where organizations are examining ways to tap into the more emotional and spiritual sides of employees, it is a question worth pondering...
Average customer rating:
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Flowing water fish culture
Richard W Soderberg
Manufacturer: Mansfield University Biology Department
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
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ASIN: B00070UQW0 |
Book Description
Flowing Water Fish Culture provides an in-depth discussion of the husbandry of fin fish in a stream of water. It guides the reader through the technical considerations of intensive aquaculture, including fish growth rates, hydraulic characteristics of fish rearing units, oxygen consumption rates in relation to oxygen solubility and fish tolerance of hypoxia, and water reconditioning by reaeration and ammonia filtration. Unlike other publications that provide only general overviews on the subject, this text/reference offers specific details that will be useful in the actual design and operation of a facility. Problem sets at the end of each chapter provide ample opportunity to develop skills. The information in the book is valuable for those teaching, considering, or practicing aquaculture at intensity levels ranging from conventional single-pass trout hatcheries to closed aquaculture systems.
Book Description
Referring to Lewis Carroll's Red Queen from Through the Looking-Glass, a character who has to keep running to stay in the same place, Matt Ridley demonstrates why sex is humanity's best strategy for outwitting its constantly mutating internal predators. The Red Queen answers dozens of other riddles of human nature and culture -- including why men propose marriage, the method behind our maddening notions of beauty, and the disquieting fact that a woman is more likely to conceive a child by an adulterous lover than by her husband. Brilliantly written, The Red Queen offers an extraordinary new way of interpreting the human condition and how it has evolved.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book.......2007-03-27
I can't add very much to the excellent reviews already posted. I'll just say quickly that I enjoyed very much the fresh insight into mating practices among the "lower animals" and among humans. I've read a lot about evolution and biology and so forth, and still found much new material here. I really enjoyed learning about how scientists finally discovered the rampant adultery among birds and how incredible they are at hiding it.
Several reviewers warn about having to "make it through" the first part, and I certainly understand that if your primary interest is in the evolutionary origins of human sexuality. However, I really enjoyed the first part as well, because it provides a broad understanding of sex in evolution and give lots of fun examples about different behaviors and adaptations.
Although I didn't give the book 5 stars (I reserve that for the best of the best), it showed me that Mr. Ridley is a great writer and I'll check out his other books (I think I'll start with Genome).
Worth slogging through Part 1 to get to Part 2.......2007-01-30
Some of the ideas expressed in The Red Queen are brilliant, and their applicability to the nature of human sexuality are quite interesting. However, Ridley's very methodical approach to categorizing and cataloging the varieties during the first 120-150 pages can be painfully slow.
Once Part II kicked in, I was glad I persevered. After the first part apparently sets the stage for some descriptions related to human beings, I found myself unable to put the book down during second half. No need to add on to what has been written by others, but if I had to do it again, I definitely would have skimmed Part 1.
Still worth the effort and quite a conversation piece. In the month since I finished, I find I bring it up in casual conversation regularly, and even during the course of book club conversations about male and female perspectives to similar actions, perceptions, or mating rituals. Definitely recommended!
So interesting..........2006-12-14
I remember flying on an airplane 6 years ago and having the stranger sitting next to me highly recommend this book. It ended up taking me three years before I finally obtained a copy!
This book is phenomenal. Starting from the first organisms on the planet and building up to modern day human beings, this book gives a detailed account of evolution and covers numerous theories, supported in great detail, as to how humans are they way we are.
The only reason this book gets 4 stars from me is because it is written in text book language and it can be hard to follow at some points. But stick with it - the end of the book is where most of the interesting points emerge.
The implications to the future human civilization are staggering.......2006-11-10
Science writer Matt Ridley's book "The Red Queen: Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature" is outstanding. I have read at least 20 other books by various authors on this subject, and yet Ridley's book contains a vast amount of original work and brilliant viewpoints.
His language is accessible, witty, and moving. His explanations and arguments are well researched, and elegantly written.
Ridley takes you on a journey, for those willing, into nature's infinite world of sexual evolution using existing species as examples. You'll end up realizing how constricted our society is in relation to our nature. The book opened my mind to how diverse our society can be, and how we limit and restrict ourselves. I find this book to be one of his best works.
Experts in every field of living systems should read this book, the implications are staggering. Although written entirely from a biological / genetic / nature point of view, anyone could use the material to develop an improved system. For example, improved political systems, draft laws that make sense, market products more successfully, understand the criminal mind-set, raise children better, better discern the cause of war and violence, etc.
In a nut-shell, if you want to understand the infinite possibility of human potential, this book gives you the "theory of operation" and should be considered the bible on how central sexuality is to the nature of humankind and our modern civilization.
Too serious / intense - Not for casual reading.......2006-11-06
This is interesting only if you want to do a very detailed study on Sex and Evolution of Human Nature. Not something I would recommend if you are just looking for some dating techniques or How to....type suggestions.
Average customer rating:
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Nature Notes of the Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady
Edith Holden
Manufacturer: Harpercollins
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0060152265 |
Customer Reviews:
The Nature Notes of an Edwardian Lady.......2005-02-28
Edith Holden was an excellent observer of nature and an outstanding artist of what she saw. The inclusion of some of my favorite poems by well known authors makes this book an absolute delight!
Breathtaking nature walk.......2004-12-02
Elizabeth Holden's The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady seems to have more popularity than The Nature Notes, but I have found it to be just as awesome and inspiring as The Country Diary. In fact, if it is possible, I like this one more so than The Country Diary, although its setup is very much the same. The book is broken down by months from January through December. Each month begins with a brief history of the month, related folk lore, and poetry. The art work is wonderful and the entries draw you into the adventures of Ms. Holden. Even though the journal was kept almost 100 years ago, you feel that you are right there beside Ms. Holden, and for me, she has become a friend. She has been a great motivation for me to illustrate my own journals. I would highly recommend this book as well as The Country Diary if you love nature walks and journaling.
Average customer rating:
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An Edwardian Country Diary: An Illustrated Journal With Space for Personal Reflection, Inspired by the Nature Notes of Edith Holden
Edith Holden
Manufacturer: Running Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Stationery
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ASIN: 156138108X |
Book Description
Expert climber John Long analyzes more belay anchors and gives advice on their respective strengths and suitability.
Customer Reviews:
Learn Anchors.......2006-04-20
This book is actually much more useful than 'Climbing Anchors'. It has pictures of numerous real life anchor setups and their pros and cons, while 'Climbing Anchors' is pretty much just very basic anchor info without too much in depth detail. That basic stuff is much better illustrated in other guidebooks, and quickly learned with some practice, so I would say just get this book instead of both or the first one only.
So, you think you know anchors..........2000-07-27
This book will help make you an expert in building safe, sophisticated multi-point anchors. The relative meirts of the various methods of equalizing anchors -- rope, cordelette, and sliding X -- are discussed in depth. The authors take the position that there is no such thing as a perfect anchor, and present detailed analyses, with photographs, of the pros and cons of 52 anchors. Whether you are a beginning or an advanced climber, you will find yourself reading and re-reading this text, learning something new each time.
Not much more info........1998-01-26
Not much more info than available in "Climbing Anchors," by John Long. Mainly more pictures of various anchors. If you have a basic understanding of anchors, you can get away with not having this book.
Book Description
Amid mounting concern over the loss of jobs to low-wage economies, one fact is clear: America's prosperity hinges on the ability of its businesses to continually introduce new products and services. But what makes for a creative economy? How can the remarkable surge of innovation that fueled the boom of the 1990s be sustained?
For an answer, Richard K. Lester and Michael J. Piore examine innovation strategies in some of the economy's most dynamic sectors. Through eye-opening case studies of new product development in fields such as cell phones, medical devices, and blue jeans, two fundamental processes emerge.
One of these processes, analysis--rational problem solving--dominates management and engineering practice. The other, interpretation, is not widely understood, or even recognized--although, as the authors make clear, it is absolutely crucial to innovation. Unlike problem solving, interpretation embraces and exploits ambiguity, the wellspring of creativity in the economy. By emphasizing interpretation, and showing how these two radically different processes can be combined, Lester and Piore's book gives managers and designers the concepts and tools to keep new products flowing.
But the authors also offer an unsettling critique of national policy. By ignoring the role of interpretation, economic policymakers are drawing the wrong lessons from the 1990s boom. The current emphasis on expanding the reach of market competition will help the analytical processes needed to implement innovation. But if unchecked it risks choking off the economy's vital interpretive spaces. Unless a more balanced policy approach is adopted, warn Lester and Piore, America's capacity to innovate--its greatest economic asset--will erode.
Customer Reviews:
More Interpretation, Less Problem Solving Helps Innovation.......2005-10-13
I work in a business that struggles to be innovative. There's many very smart people who are superb problem solvers. This book explains why a problem solving mindset may actually interfere with listening to customers and stimulating new ideas.
By thinking "who else should I invite into this conversation who might have another perspective," and "how can I get these people together and stimulate a deep conversation," I've begun to see another way to work with my colleagues that may help our organization push the envelope more. The authors offered very specific examples of these kinds of interpretative conversations.
This book has good case studies about garment industry, cell phone industry and biotech. Their economic argument pushing for more public spaces where interpretative conversations can occur was of less interest and I thought weaker than their company examples.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Journal of Economic Issues, published by Thomson Gale on March 1, 2006. The length of the article is 1226 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: Innovation--The Missing Dimension.(Book review)
Author: Fulvio Castellacci
Publication:
Journal of Economic Issues (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 40
Issue: 1
Page: 228(4)
Article Type: Book review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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Tech talk.(Innovation -- The Missing Dimension)(Book Review): An article from: Issues in Science and Technology
Michael Borrus
Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
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Release Date: 2006-03-15 |
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Issues in Science and Technology, published by Thomson Gale on September 22, 2005. The length of the article is 1207 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: Tech talk.(Innovation -- The Missing Dimension)(Book Review)
Author: Michael Borrus
Publication:
Issues in Science and Technology (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 22
Issue: 1
Page: 92(3)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Books:
- The Homevoter Hypothesis: How Home Values Influence Local Government Taxation, School Finance, and Land-Use Policies
- The Intelligent Negotiator: What to Say, What to Do, How to Get What You Want--Every Time
- The New Geography of Global Income Inequality
- The Nobel Memorial Laureates in Economics: An Introduction to Their Careers And Main Published Works
- The OECD, Globalisation and Education Policy (Issues in Higher Education)
- The Paradox of Plenty: Oil Booms and Petro-States (Studies in International Political Economy , No 26)
- The Poetics of Primitive Accumulation: English Renaissance Culture and the Genealogy of Capital
- The Value of a Dollar: Prices and Incomes in the United States, 1860-2004 (Value of a Dollar)
- The Welfare Economics of Public Policy: A Practical Approach to Project And Policy Evaluation
- The World Trading System - 2nd Edition: Law and Policy of International Economic Relations
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