A Company Discovers Its Soul is the engaging story of a year in the life of a fictional, yet true-to-life company as it undergoes profound transformation. Grounded in the author's own experiences in organizations, it is a tale that probes deeply into the "soul issues" of organizational life and offers an inspiring and realistic portrayal of how new principles and concepts evolve in everyday business reality.

Randall Hawkes was trained in modern business schools and is CEO of a company founded by his grandfather-a traditional, hierarchical organization that is facing decreasing profits, low morale, and competitors that are taking market share. Recognizing that the managerial techniques he learned in school are now producing dis-ease in himself, his family, his staff, and the organization, Randall becomes convinced that some kind of radical change must be made. Exploring the gradual changes in Randall's own thinking and way of leading the company, A Company Discovers Its Soul illustrates how such a process of change might happen. It shows how-through a combination of humility, courage, rigorous self- and mutual appraisal, and practice-Randall and his staff gradually learn to see the Hawkes Company as a living community.

Most important to this change process is Randall's own change in perception and thinking regarding his role in the organization and his notions about control, ownership, information sharing-and the resulting freedom for his staff, and everyone in the organization, to be more powerful and creative. By the end of the first year of this journey, The Hawkes Company staff has become more strongly aligned around their purpose and vision, the management team has truly become a team, relationships with suppliers and customers have been strengthened, and even their work environments have been improved as employees have taken ownership for maintaining their working spaces, and the plant in general.

Author Alan Green examines the changes that take place in the lives of the company's top management as they struggle to achieve greater effectiveness previously prevented by their control-oriented, narrowly functional roles. Readers will learn along with Randall as he combines the roles of servant, steward, partner, and leader in an effort to create an organizational culture that fosters creativity, cooperation, and resiliency.

• A true-to-life story that addresses the real issues that businesses struggle with every day
• Clearly distinguishes between real transformation and simply learning a new vocabulary

Refutes myths about video game violence, antisocial content, and addiction

Video games have been a source of controversy in the media almost since their invention. At best, these digital diversions are thought of as trivial, childish obsessions. At worst, they are attacked as violent, antisocial, corrupting, and dangerous to our youth. But as Rusel DeMaria shows, video games may represent one of the most powerful learning technologies ever invented. He turns the controversy on its head and shows the positive potential of the much-maligned video game to inspire, motivate, and teach. DeMaria delves deeply into the realities of the gaming world, analyzing both the business forces driving game development and the unique qualities that distinguish video games from all other popular media. Drawing on the latest research on play and learning, he explains that it is precisely these qualities--a combination DeMaria calls the "magic edge"--that make video games such potentially powerful tools. He shows how games can be designed to integrate content that educates, inspires, motivates, and empowers players--even as they lure them in with their drama and thrill them with special effects--and offers numerous examples of popular games that do just that. He even offers a primer to help curious non-gamers begin to explore the gaming world and discover the positive potential of games for themselves. DeMaria presents video games in a new light and details many of the ways they can facilitate learning. Because millions of people are playing games all around the world, we owe it to ourselves to utilize their positive power to spark imaginations and make learning fun for our own kids and for gamers around the world.

• Refutes myths about video game violence, antisocial content, and addiction
• Reveals how video games can become a force for positive personal and social change
• Written by a video game expert whose books have sold over two million copies

Every business understands the value of connecting its top leaders to other established and high-potential leaders in the organization. Becton, Dickinson and Company had its leaders make this vital connection in a unique and highly effective way -- through teaching.

Offers a compelling implementation roadmap and includes detailed plans, worksheets, exercises, complete sample training outlines, and other useful tools that speed the transition to leaders as teachers

Dozens of sidebars throughout the book present the participation experiences of leaders at all levels, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and personal testimonials of those who have benefited from participation in the leaders as teacher program.

Most business professionals understand the value of connecting their top leaders to other established and high potential leaders in the organization. Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD), a $6.5 billion medical technology company with 28,000 employees, believes its leaders should make this vital connection in a unique and highly effective way – through teaching. Leaders as Teachers chronicles BD’s 8-year journey to create and deploy a leadership development program that relies on all top leaders (even its CEO) to train other leaders. The initiative, led by author Edward Betof , BD’s vice president and chief learning officer, has produced dramatic results, including measurable business results, a stronger and more supportive learning environment, improved communications and strengthened organizational culture, a more adaptive and change-receptive leadership team, and direct cost savings for the organization.

In addition to its compelling story of change, Leaders as Teachers offers a roadmap for other organization wishing to implement and benefit from BD’s experience. This complete roadmap includes detailed advice on how to introduce the leaders as teachers program and advice on how to overcome resistance to change; how to select, recruit, and train new leaders for the program; and how to evaluate the effectiveness of a fully functioning program. The book provides all the necessary tools, including detailed plans, worksheets, exercises, complete sample training outlines, and extra materials that speed the transition to leaders as teachers and take full advantage of BD’s extensive experience. Dozens of sidebars throughout the book present the participation experiences of BD’s leaders at all levels, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and personal testimonials of those who have benefited from participation in the leaders as teacher program.

•    Offers a compelling implementation roadmap and includes detailed plans, worksheets, exercises, complete sample training outlines, and other useful tools that speed the transition to leaders as teachers
•    Dozens of sidebars throughout the book present the participation experiences of leaders at all levels, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and personal testimonials of those who have benefited from participation in the leaders as teacher program.

Most business professionals understand the value of connecting their top leaders to other established and high potential leaders in the organization. Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD), a $6.5 billion medical technology company with 28,000 employees, believes its leaders should make this vital connection in a unique and highly effective way – through teaching. Leaders as Teachers chronicles BD’s 8-year journey to create and deploy a leadership development program that relies on all top leaders (even its CEO) to train other leaders. The initiative, led by author Edward Betof , BD’s vice president and chief learning officer, has produced dramatic results, including measurable business results, a stronger and more supportive learning environment, improved communications and strengthened organizational culture, a more adaptive and change-receptive leadership team, and direct cost savings for the organization.

In addition to its compelling story of change, Leaders as Teachers offers a roadmap for other organization wishing to implement and benefit from BD’s experience. This complete roadmap includes detailed advice on how to introduce the leaders as teachers program and advice on how to overcome resistance to change; how to select, recruit, and train new leaders for the program; and how to evaluate the effectiveness of a fully functioning program. The book provides all the necessary tools, including detailed plans, worksheets, exercises, complete sample training outlines, and extra materials that speed the transition to leaders as teachers and take full advantage of BD’s extensive experience. Dozens of sidebars throughout the book present the participation experiences of BD’s leaders at all levels, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and personal testimonials of those who have benefited from participation in the leaders as teacher program.

Ninety-two percent of all professionals feel overloaded, overwhelmed, and overrun by interruptions, email, and tasks. It's time to fight back and zoom to your goals!

• Discover amazing, easy-to-learn Outlook, iPad, iPhone, Android, and Google tips that will take your performance to the next level
• By the bestselling coauthor of The Hamster Revolution (over 125,000 copies sold)
• Uses an entertaining business fable that makes the tips even more fun to learn

Ninety-two percent of all professionals feel overloaded, overwhelmed, and overrun by interruptions, email, and tasks. Traditional time management concepts no longer work in today's info-intense, 24-7, always-on work environment. People desperately want to zip through tough tasks, jammed in-boxes, and never-ending interruptions, but despite their best efforts, they increasingly fall behind and often fail. It's time to fight back and zoom to your goals!

ZIP! Tips is an express ticket to productivity nirvana. Mike Song shows you that the secret is right at your fingertips-literally. The devices and programs we use every day have shortcuts and features that almost nobody knows about and that can save you hours of time. ZIP! Tips is packed with the very best ways to instantly get more done via the world's most popular technology platforms: Microsoft Outlook, Apple iPads and iPhones, and Google Android and Search, to name a few.

As with his first two bestsellers, Song once again tells the story of Harold, a harassed executive who has been going round and round for so long, he's morphed into a hamster. Desperate, he encounters Z-a productivity superhero who uses his simple, not-so-secret weapon, ZIP!, to help business hamsters regain their humanity.

You'll turn your personal devices into your personal robots, destroy evil time-wasting aliens, and master amazing timesaving tips instantly! ZIP! is rocket fuel for careers and a spa day for the stressed-out soul. And best of all, ZIP! Tips gets the hamster in all of us off the wheel once and for all.

Outlines six Prosperity Practices and provides concrete actions you can take to put each into practice

• New York Times Bestseller
• By the coauthor of the #1 New York Times bestseller The One Minute Entrepreneur
• Shows how to achieve genuine, satisfying, sustainable prosperity, not simply increase your income
• Outlines six Prosperity Practices and provides concrete actions you can take to put each into practice

What is true prosperity? Is it simply having enough money? Certainly financial security is necessary for peace of mind. But for many people the pursuit of money stresses and exhausts them so much, it makes peace of mind impossible. And they're always chasing after more-they never feel like they have enough.

True prosperity is when there is no conflict between money and happiness-when you don't have to drag yourself out of bed every morning because the way you make a living is true to who you are. And when your way of life is sustainable, you don't fall victim to the boom/crash syndrome that afflicts so many people because you know exactly what you need to be happy and have a plan to achieve it.

For the past twelve years Ethan Willis and Randy Garn have helped tens of thousands of people find their own personal path to prosperity. After nearly 11 million hours of personal coaching observation in eighty countries, they've developed six Prosperity Practices that will enable you to create a life that is rich, rewarding, and renewing.

You begin by focusing on what you have, not on what you do not-you'll be sur- prised what you find once you shift your way of thinking. A key part of this process is determining what Willis and Garn call your "Polaris Point": a precise description of the life you want and what you need to sustain it. This becomes your own private North Star, guiding all your actions and keeping you from chasing after things you don't really want or need. Then you'll discover how to leverage your passions, experi- ence, and expertise to generate the income you require to reach your Polaris Point.

Although you'll find much to reflect on here, Prosper is an action guide-at the end of each chapter, Willis and Garn provide concrete steps you can take to make each of the Prosperity Practices a reality. Soon your life will be aligned with the core of your being, you will have a deep understanding of what you need to be happy, and you'll know how to hold to that vision-and you will truly prosper.

 

We are plagued today by a decline in ethical behavior. Scandals come so thick and fast that any attempt to list them is out of date in weeks if not days. But ethics isn't just a matter of headlines; it's a part of everyone's life. We're called on to make ethical decisions, large and small, all the time. This can be particularly tricky in the workplace, where our decisions can affect not just ourselves but coworkers, clients, customers, and even the entire company.

Existing ethics books are of limited use. They generally feature one author's opinions on very specific situations, which may well have nothing to do with the problems we're facing. And anyway, we don't need expert advice. Mark Pastin insists every one of us is qualified to resolve even the thorniest dilemmas ourselves, and in this profoundly practical book he gives us the tools to do just that.

Pastin argues that we all have an innate ethical –he calls it “the ethics eye.” The problem is, we're not aware we have it or how to develop it. Here he provides practical tools we can use to open up our ethics eye so that we can consistently see what is right and do it.

Make an Ethical Difference shows how to apply these tools using actual ethical dilemmas drawn from Pastin's decades of experience as an advisor to governments, corporations, and NGOs. The point is not to try to wedge your situation into one of the examples—it's to show how a tool that can be applied to any situation is used in one particular instance. And once you've reached a decision, Pastin offers strategies for building consensus with those who might disagree with you.

People often feel hopeless and skeptical that there is anything they as individuals can do to raise society's ethical level or resolve long-standing impasses. By using the unique tools in this book, we will gain confidence in our innate ethical sense and take actions that will elevate the ethical level of the groups and organizations we belong to and society as a whole.