Social Networking at a Glance
Books Worth Reading
October / November 2009
Volume 7 Number 5
The Facebook Era
The internet is evolving in breathtaking fashion from "technology-centric applications to people-centric applications," like social networking web sites. This paradigm shift is "one of the most significant sociocultural phenomena of this decade." In-the-know companies now actively leverage online social networks—€”My-Space, Facebook, Friendster and their numerous compatriots —€”to increase sales, improve public relations, gain market research data, reach customers, offer technical support, find new employees and more. Despite the stereotype that social communities are "just for kids," many online sites exist strictly for business people and professionals, including CEO Network (controlled access for select senior executives) and LinkedIn (a professional referral and networking portal). Online social networking draws countless mainstream consumers. If you want to reach them, getAbstract recommends this book by Clara Shih, who developed the first business application for Facebook. She details how companies can use the numerous dazzling new methods online social networking presents and even explains how you might make some money with it.
Clara Shih. The Facebook Era: Tapping Online Social Networks to Build Better Products, Reach New Audiences, and Sell More Stuff. Prentice Hall Direct, 2009. 256 pages. List Price: $24.99. ISBN-13: 978-0137152223.
Why Women Mean Business
Gender consultant Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and journalist Alison Maitland have carefully gazed through the gender-equality kaleidoscope and then turned it slightly—€”giving readers a refreshing view. Treating women as a workforce minority is no longer acceptable; nor should executives manage them in the same way as their male counterparts. Women are different from men, and their work and leadership styles reflect this difference. Treating women like men, or trying to "fix them" so they will advance in a male-centric work culture has not been successful, as demonstrated by the dearth of women in high leadership positions and on executive boards. Therefore, company leaders must reframe the gender debate and repair their biased systems. This book tells them how. It's important reading for human resources directors and corporate leaders, who may be heartened by its assurance that organizations that become "gender-bilingual" will find solutions to many 21st-century problems.
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and Alison Maitland. Why Women Mean Business: Understanding the Emergence of our next Economic Revolution. Wiley, 2008. Pages: 376, List Price: $34.95. ISBN-13: 978-0470725085.
Going Lean
People and organizations too often find that the very things they did to prepare for emergencies end up making their problems worse. Aerospace engineer Stephen A. Ruffa shows you how to use the "lean dynamics" approach to track "lag" within your operations and eliminate it before it harms your competitiveness and makes you less adaptable in a crisis. He explains how to determine where lag is hiding and how to root it out. He offers a solid plan for launching lean dynamics and getting everyone on board. Ruffa also explains how to measure and maximize value within the lean dynamics system, and tells you how to stay ahead of the "value curve." Ruffa writes clearly and illustrates his principles by comparing Toyota and the Detroit automakers, Wal-Mart and Kmart, and Southwest and other major airlines.
Stephen A. Ruffa. Going Lean: How the Best Companies Apply Lean Manufacturing Principles to Shatter Uncertainty, Drive Innovation, and Maximize Profits. AMACOM, a division of the American Management Association, 2008. Pages: 288, List Price: $27.95. ISBN-13: 978-0814410578.
Special Review by Charles Whitehurst, Ph.D.
How the Mighty Fall
Jim Collins continues his sage advice to corporate leaders in his latest book, How the Mighty Fall. This is a small, easy to read, compendium of lessons learned through well documented research on the causes of company failures. I found the situations causing company decline and the stages of decline so well described by Collins particularly applicable to institutional problems I've encountered in the academic world as well as in large and small corporations. It is quite common in academia for a new department chairperson, dean or chancellor to create momentum and excitement with fresh ideas and a charismatic management style, Then, five or six years into the position, satisfaction sets in and decline in the form of inertness takes over. It is time to step down.
Although the general tone of the book is foreboding and the examples where thousands of jobs are permanently lost due to the failure of management can be frightening, there is a bright side—€”company decline can be reversed, failure avoided and rejuvenation to solid economic growth realized.
One major factor leading to company decline is the failure to recognize or accept the risks associated with "staying the present course." A manager must continually be aware of these risks and surround him/her self with a team of supporters who make every effort to see that decisions made are the right decisions and that they are successful. Bureaucracies tend to create levels of decision-making that reduce the risks of management, create complacency and, as Collins points out, "become infected with the disease of mediocrity." Too many people are in the wrong jobs. This happens in government and in the private sector.
Perhaps the most succinct message for managers facing challenging situations is to "get the facts," "gain clarity about the company's core values," "stay the course," "focus on performance" and "create momentum with well executed decisions." These guides to success will work in government agencies as well as private institutions. This is a must read for managers in every institution, large and small, private and public.
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