The surprising process of growth
351806
Our entire school has been asked to read this book as a summer reading project, due to the fact that our area is in the direct line of a total solar eclipse on August 21, 2017. So the first thing I enjoyed was learning about eclipses and the different stages that will occur.
But I truly enjoyed the characters of Alli, Bree and Jack.  I thought the author did a great job giving them voice and painting them as full characters.  I recognized each of them as full characters, fill with their own quirks, issues, strengths and possibilities. They may have seemed a bit young working with scientific devices (my only question about the book), but I enjoyed the journey they took.
The book is about how growth occurs in the most unlikeliest of ways, with the most unlikely of people.  And it always happens when we are shoved out of our comfort zones like the three lead characters are.
3223989
This is an extraordinary, in the sense of out-of-the-ordinary, book. Flipping through it, you see page after page of loops and curves. At first, you might think it is a guide to drawing. And in a sense, it is. Most of the book explains how to use depictions of various types of loops to represent different kinds of business problems. Such problems never occur in isolation, because every business is a system, and everything that happens in a business has causes and effects that reach into other areas of the business and into the outside world. Author Dennis Sherwood is not peddling a simple notion, but rather is explaining "systems thinking," a method of analyzing systems and processes. We unexpectedly found this quite entertaining, written with a light touch and bound to give almost any manager some new, valuable insights. On the down side, the author probably could have delivered his core message more succinctly, and after a while his insistence on demonstrating and categorizing the species and genera of loops begins to seem, well, a bit loopy.
4889000
Couple of interesting outcomes,

* Very Good articulation of the market transition from Business 'to' Business to business *FOR* business thru a outcome based offerings.

* How effectively we can manage this transition

* Strategy to deal with the volume of consumption data and being a part of customer's business

*  Framework to conceptualize outcome based service offerings.
1021944
This quick read explains key drivers behind economic growth in the developing world, from the perspective of energy, ecology and resource consumption.  The New Spending Class is not "middle class" as experienced by Baby Boomers, but nonetheless is an economic engine of unprecedented proportions. Utilizing a parable-style narrative, the author explains why investors should be making an extra effort to look beyond the news stories we see on page one to discover ways we can capitalize on these developments.

The story is engaging, and the book provided me with insights I hadn't considered deeply before.  Awareness of opportunity is essential, but I found myself wishing Mr. Kovacevic had expanded the story a bit more.  Including ideas for additional learning without "eating the entire steer" would have enhanced the value of the book.  Especially in light of his warnings that significant time and personal capital is required to achieve the outsize returns achieved by the story's Porsche-owner-electrician.
1184550
This book gave me very nice overview and examples in all the channels through which a product can start to grow rapidly. If you are launching a product or struggeling with growth, this book is definately worth to read.
547492
Interesting story of growth, adaptability, pivots and perseverance. Well written and clear messages throughout the book. Reinforces some popular ideas on growth, offers realistic take on other messages and ideas.
3250891
Surprizingly its not about the rising cost of the energy that you personally use.  Its about the whole economy that has been built on using a non-replenishable energy supply.  You know how those economists always count on the 3% growth in the GDP.  Well the book argues that this long term growth is fundamentally driven by our long term growth in energy usage, which everyone knows will have to turn around at some point.

The other surprizing fact is that the turning point is long before you run out of oil.  Heinberg shows data that indicates that half of the oil is still left in the ground when the returns start to diminish.  And it appears that that we are within a few years of reaching that point.

So we've used up about half the "available" ( i.e. feasible to extract from an energy perspective ) oil.  Now oil production starts to decrease.  What happens next is anyone's guess, but Heinburg presents some detailed discussions on the possiblities.  Don't assume that a coal, nuclear, or "hydrogen" economy are going to be as easy and profitable as the petroleum economy we are leaving behind.

I've read lots of books about energy and the environment, and this is definitely one of the best.
4097273
A business that can grow exponentially, or that you can remove yourself from and have it still run and prosper, does not happen by accident. Hoffman and Finkel map out the business components necessary for it to happen.
4797240
This book features an assessment of the causes of the recent "great recession" and of the efforts that have been made by governments and central bankers to rekindle the growth (and inflation) that western governments have relied upon in the past to make their fiscal projections look as though they might work.  Mr. King goes into some detail to explain in terms fairly comprehensible to non-economists how things haven't really changed, it's just our past mistakes, profligacy and welfare "mission creep" catching up with us.  He also demonstrates how so much of the efforts of governments and central bankers have been ineffective at best and counterproductive at worst as they struggle to boost growth and prevent the kind of deflationary trap which has bound Japan for the past two decades.
  Of particular interest are his historical analyses of past fiscal crises around the world and how they were solved or exacerbated by government action.  He offers several scenarios in which he explores the social consequences of creditors to governments turning off the lending taps, forcing debtor governments to suddenly renege on the promises they have made to pensioners and the poor.  He concludes by offering some counterintuitive solutions which seem unlikely to be adopted by governments and central bankers still locked into the mindset that inflation is an evil which must be tamed at all costs.
  What I didn't like about this book is that it makes no mention of the fact that, as a result of information technology and automation,  the growth and employment game really seems to have changed.  A return to growth, if it can be engineered, no longer guarantees a robust employment market with well-paying jobs for the mass of people.  Owners of businesses which can be automated will be sorely tempted to add server computers and robots rather than workers who misbehave, call in sick and engender payroll taxes and insurance costs.  What I fear the most is the day when people realize that, not only are things not going to get any better for most of us in the future, but that, for most of us, living standards are going to have to drop as we compete with Indian, Chinese and Brazilian workers abroad and automation at home.  I heard a joke the other day.  The factory of the future will have only two permanent, on-site employees: a man and a dog.  The man is there to feed and clean up after the dog.  The dog is there to bite the man or anyone else who tries to touch the robots.
2383937
relationships grow as do the babies here or on the way
good action and unexpected sit accr along the way
3802965
This book is likely to spur immense controversy, specially in the current climate of anti-globalization  protests. Easterly provides a telling history of well-intentioned but somewhat misguided and didactic development efforts since the Bretton Woods conference. The book speckles careful theoretical exposition with lively anecdotes and "intermezzos" of personal stories from the developing world. This gives the book a humane touch that is often lacking in most economics books.
My only problem with the book is that the author is still rather hung up on the singularity of growth as the panacea for allevaiting poverty. While growth could be sufficent condition for alleviating poverty in many cases it might not be a necessary condition in all cases. The author also neglects environmental concerns that are often not properly internalized in short-term growth models.
I am also wondering what the World Bank establishment have to say about this. Some of the conclusions are so simple, that I am left to wonder why didn't all these smart people "get it?" Perhaps the Bank has its own set of counter-arguments for Easterle's specific examples, which I will continue to explore.
Nevertheless, this is a good read and gives much food for thought.
873071
Petitt posits a theory that deserves the attention of thoughtful readers.  In my words, that theory states that over human history there has been a correlation between wealth creation and political tranquility. When there are increasing gaps within countries and between countries in income and wealth, when the world's societies fail to generate new capital, when governments seek to maintain the status quo through borrowing there can only be one outcome; global anarchy and war.

Petitt cites numerous historical examples and does so in a way that avoids taking political sides. Things are what they are and we can neither reverse the trend or effectively blame others. As I read this work I thought of an aging forest whose floor is covered with years of dead wood and undergrowth. It is difficult for new life to take hold but humans go to great lengths to extinguish fires and maintain the status quo.  However, a devastating forest fire cleanses the land. It provides nutrients to the soil and new healthier growth soon sprouts. Petitt provides a theory (and he calls it a theory) that he challenges the reader to confront.

One cannot possibly look at the chaos around the world, growth in anarchy and economic stagnation (lack of wealth creation) in the US and say life will continue into the future unchanged. Bible believers may look at the world today and point to the Revelation. Something has to give. Some readers may find this theory disturbing. I find it enlightening.
1100360
This book is well worth reading for Daly's explanation of "ecological economics." Rather than looking at the economy as a system existing in a vacuum, where an infinite amount of exchanges are possible to create an infinite amount of economic growth--as neo-classical economists believe--Daly places the economy within the physical environment. This environment of course is a place of limits: limits on raw materials and limits on places to store pollution. Thus, Daly shows that the economy must observe limits too.

Common sense, right? Yet, our whole economy is premised on the opposite idea, that we can just keep growing forever. Think of compound interest and then move on from there and you get the idea of how pervasive growth is in our economic mindset today. Offering an alternative is what makes Daly's theory radical.

But the bonus in the book comes at the very end, where Daly offers economics (rightly understood with limits) as the intermediary between the physical world and religious belief. The latter, Daly believes, is necessary to offer humans the inspiration we need to radically change our current society and save our species. Some parts of the text are rough going, but if you're not an economist you can skim them to get to Daly's truly novel integration of heart and head.
946741
Entrepreneurial Leaders, not ideas, lead their enterprises to success.  Success is defined as a tangible and sustainable enterprise that can run without the leader.  Those are the foundational beliefs that the book is built on.  We know that not all founders are capable of growing a company and that not everyone is capable of starting a company.  This book identifies four distinct yet linear stages of growing a business from an idea to a self-sustainable company and five skills needed to bring a business through the stages.  It is based on the authors own experiences and teaching it as professor.

Here are some of the tidbits in the book:
Stage four is tricky to lead because you must create a balance between innovation and efficiency.

Nave assumptions to actual events do not cause entrepreneurs to fail, rather bad reactions to actual events that may cause an entrepreneurs to lose confidence and their ability to fail, will cause failure.

There are relevant and interesting stories that support the stages and skills.  PayPals evolution of how it started was interesting.  I liked putting logic and how to steps to what is sometimes called intuition or gut instincts.  For example in addition to the classic strategy questions, casual or effectual strategy is a tool that is explained and the example of the Vegan food offering was helpful.

Its an excellent resource and set of case studies for those involved in or wanting to grow a business from idea to sustainable.  Parts of it are adapting known models.  Parts of it seem like a business school case on paper exercise.  In my experience, not everyone wants to and some peoples talents are not best used by learning to move through all four stages.  Overall an interesting and helpful book and best used in conjunction with other resources that focus on each stage of a business growth.
93946
This is a hard book to pin down, but worth the wrestle. First off, the title might be a bit misleading. It is not about business as much as about economics, government, and social systems. It's not, in short, a "business book" promising new ways to squeeze profits out of stones.
 The first half of the book is about organizational structure, from government to the economy to business to household, and how different structures cause these entities to prosper or fail. This is not "structure" as taught in business school (e.g., the military-styled "line and staff") but an analysis of structure at the archetypal level, based on geometric forms.
 OK. What does that mean? It means that organizations based on the square will be solid and well-grounded but resistant to change. Organizations based on the triangle will be hierarchical and unresponsive to the base. And organizations formed like a circle or a sphere will be (or can be) creative, fluid, and responsive to its constituents.

The book's exposition of linear versus circular thought, movement, and energy is well worth pondering and, as far as I know, unique. Because the shortest distance between two points is a straight line (considered in the abstract) we tend to think that the best (or even the "proper") way to achieve a goal is to charge at it head long. This is gospel in many of America's big corporations. And it's a fraudulent gospel. It has been my experience that successful managers and executives learn to conceal from higher management the way their staffs and departments actually work so as not to rock the ideological boat.
 Having been a creative director in large American advertising agencies for many years, I found myself cheering the authors' proposition that the way good things happen is much more likely to follow a circuitous path than the old one-foot-in-front-of-the-other lockstep. The circuitous path is also more difficult to describe and to understand--exactly in the same way that a tree is different from a two-by-four.
  This is a book that should be required reading for all those greedy CEOs and monster managers who plague this country, those parasites on the commonwealth. It won't happen but it's a beguiling idea.
  For the thoughtful reader there are gems to be found in the book's winding exposition. For instance, it's not by chance that our houses are rectilinear and  those of ancient native Americans--teepees and wigwams and igloos--are circular.
 It's a quirky kind of book but offering much-needed food for circular thought.
4053104
Finding new areas for growth and innovation is the name of the game in this compelling book.  Rather than exporting only, Reverse Innovation offers the opportunity to tap the markets of developing nations.  It is a new perspective on prosperity and a completely new approach to business.  In times like these, innovation is the key to survival, and Reverse Innovation shares the benefits of reaching farther to earn profit, as well as affect global change.
210885
This book gives some insight and ideas about where globalization might be taking us. The author, Gregg Easterbrook, has thought a lot about the big trends in globalization and what it means for the future.

To sum up his main points: the main worldwide trend is increasing general prosperity yet with a permanent the feeling of economic uncertainty. Personally, I have no doubt about the economic anxiety and uncertainty that Easterbrook aptly describes. If we feel anxious about the economic growth, then Sonic Boom attempts to put our minds at ease. The trend is up Easterbrook says, citing the truly magnificent developments in globalization such as an increase in the number of democratic countries, the availability of information and increasing education in developing countries.

Easterbrook injects optimism about the economy. Our lifestyles, other than increased anxiety and lack of job security, will improve because this global movement is powerful without precedent. But he cites some facts in isolation that make me not quite as optimistic yet. For example, he says military spending per world capita is on a downward trend, and he applauds China for not investing in its military. Not so quick I think. Look at the new naval base China is building on Sri Lanka and think about how China may be positioned to one day become the number one military goods exporter. Many nations have announced plans to build navies, air forces and rapid deployment forces. Military spending worldwide might not be on a long-term downward trend as the author claims.

Chapters are named after geographical places. Each place plays some important role in the big trends. One is Yakutsk, Russia. That's the coldest major city in the world. Global warming will open up the Siberian permafrost to mineral exploitation and make Yakutsk a great city, according to the book. Those commodities will supply the world markets, writes Easterbrook. Consider the floods associated with that kind of warming and you might predict military conflict to be the order of the day rather than just a chance to get more oil and natural gas. In other words, some of these positive things the author cites have strong negative associations. That's why I didn't catch the optimism bug.

In terms of calling the main trends, I think Easterbrook makes good points and is probably correct. However, one might reconsider though the rule that the economy is always on an upward trend. The big counterexample is the fall of the Roman Empire. After that, the Italian Renaissance didn't begin until roughly one thousand years later. During that thousand year bear market, also known as the Middle Ages, many skills and a great deal of knowledge accumulated during the Roman age were lost. Even their language, Latin, died. I'm not suggesting we expect a repeat of such a decline. The point of factoring in such things is to remind us not to take economic growth for granted.

The main reason I'd recommend this book, other than boosting one's confidence in economic growth somewhat, is that it is full of ideas and connections. Sonic Boom helps us to form megatrend ideas that events will later test and confirm or deny.