"Innovative concepts, tools and playbooks for discovering, defining and taking charge of new market categories, by two of the leaders of the category design movement.
The most exciting—and often most valuable—companies create, develop and win new categories of products or services. Examples range from the Zamboni company a century ago to OpenAI today. Such companies can be giants like Amazon, creator of the online everything store category—or a niche player like Bob Chandler, creator of the monster truck category.
Category creation and development should be the goal of any company that wants to make a difference. And the way to achieve that is through the discipline of strategic category design.
Kevin Maney helped introduce category design in his bestseller Play Bigger. Now, he and Mike Damphousse—an experienced CEO, investor and marketing executive—share the secrets that they’ve learned over the past decade. Their advisory firm has worked on strategic category design projects with more than fifty companies and guided workshops for hundreds more at incubators and VC portfolio gatherings. The Category Creation Formula reveals the processes they rely on and the truths about categories that they’ve uncovered, clearly laid out so any entrepreneur or leadership team can benefit from them, too.
The Category Creation Formula expands on ideas introduced in Play Bigger and enhances the discipline’s hands-on practices, including how to write a powerful category point of view and how to set the rules for a category so your company always maintains an advantage. From forming an initial category-winning strategy to relentlessly executing on that strategy, The Category Creation Formula is the crucial resource for anyone who has the ambition to change the way we live and work."
"From Rebecca Hinds, PhD—organizational expert who has helped Fortune 500 companies fix their fractured collaboration—comes a bold, battle-tested blueprint for tackling the workplace's biggest time-wasters: meetings.
Meetings are broken. They are relics from a bygone era of top-down hierarchies and factory-like procedures—designed to issue orders, flaunt power, and keep the hierarchy intact. In today's digital, collaborate-or-bust era, this model isn't just inefficient, it actively harms employees and organizations.
Drawing on decades of research and stories from leading companies like Google, Salesforce, Pixar, YouTube, and Dropbox, Your Best Meeting Ever provides a blueprint to transform your meetings from monotonous, soul-crushing time sinks into powerful tools for collaboration. The secret? Treat them like products. Using seven product design principles, you'll turn your meetings into well-designed products that actually drive work forward and serve your most important users—the people in your organization. You'll learn:
- Why every organization needs a "Meeting Doomsday" to reset collaboration, and how to strategically orchestrate one at your company.
- How to fix your communication system so meetings are a last resort, not a knee-jerk default.
- Which meeting metrics matter—and which do more harm than good.
- How to inject moments of delight into your meetings so people genuinely want to show up.
- When to integrate technology into your meetings so you enhance collaboration, rather detract from it.
More than just a practical guide, Your Best Meeting Ever is a rallying call to rethink how we collaborate in the modern workplace. Whether you're a leader or an individual contributor, this powerful book will nudge you to be audacious—to challenge the existing norms and embrace new paradigms—so you'll never dread another meeting again."
"The astonishing life of the modest New Jersey businessman who anonymously gave away 10 billion dollars and inspired the "giving while living" movement
In this bestselling book, Conor O'Clery reveals the inspiring life story of Chuck Feeney, known as the "James Bond of philanthropy." Feeney was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey, to a blue-collar Irish-American family during the Depression. After service in the Korean War, he made a fortune as founder of Duty Free Shoppers, the world's largest duty-free retail chain. By 1988, he was hailed by Forbes Magazine as the twenty-fourth richest American alive. But secretly Feeney had already transferred all his wealth to his foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies. Only in 1997 when he sold his duty free interests, was he "outed" as one of the greatest and most mysterious American philanthropists in modern times, who had anonymously funded hospitals and universities from San Francisco to Limerick to New York to Brisbane. His example convinced Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to give away their fortunes during their lifetime, known as the giving pledge."
"An in-depth look at Henry David Thoreau's innovative thinking and business achievements-for the unconventional professional and independent thinker.
You may be surprised by the hidden business lessons of a man better known for Transcendentalism and Civil Disobedience. It's true-Henry David Thoreau has come to be defined primarily through the lenses of writer, environmentalist, thinker, surveyor, and activist. But a deeper look into his life reveals Thoreau as a creative and eclectic thought leader with timeless contributions in the business arena that are as profound as his impact in other disciplines.
Like so much else that Thoreau attempted in his life, when opportunities arose in his professional life, Thoreau not only proved himself more than capable at just about anything he put his mind to-from innovations in farming and science to writing and public speaking-but he did things in ways that were inventive and unconventional, often yielding highly-successful results.
In Walden for Hire, bestselling author Ken Lizotte draws out the hidden business insights we can all learn from through Thoreau's life and the body of his work, bringing to light how his natural curiosity and problem-solving skills drove multi successful business enterprises and an enduring legacy."
"Embrace motherhood without compromising your career.
During attorney Daphne Delvaux's first pregnancy, she learned first-hand how the system was set up to make it as difficult as possible for women to juggle a challenging career along with all the responsibilities of being a new mother.
The needlessly stressful (and often humiliating) experiences forced upon her by the juggling act of being an attorney and the exclusive source of nutrition for her new baby led her to draft a new maternity leave policy for her firm. Later in her career, she specialized in representing mothers, helping them navigate the competing demands of work and family life. Her goal was to protect their rights while ensuring their careers stayed on track.
With this invaluable guide for mothers in the workplace, Daphne outlines everything that new and expectant mothers need to understand about:
- Pregnancy rights
- Parental leave rights, and
- Back-to-work rights
You'll learn how to advocate for yourself, see through the sometimes purposely confusing corporate policies, and communicate effectively with your boss and Human Resources to ensure a smooth transition for both you and your employer."
"A new marketing paradigm focuses on the concentrated economic power of 600 global cities. City-Centered Marketing: Why Local is the Future of Global Business is a compelling practical analysis of a new direction of marketing within the context of intensifying urbanization and the shift of global economy from West to East. Philip Kotler, one of the world's foremost marketing experts, and his brother Milton, an international marketing strategist, explain why the future of marketing must focus on top global cities and their metro regions, and not squandered resources on small cities. Marketing is city-centered activity. 600 global cities will contribute 65 percent of the global GDP of $67 trillion by 2025. The top 100 cities will contribute 25 percent of GDP, and 440 of these top 600 cities will be in the developing world. Top cities have to improve their marketing prowess in compete for the right companies and settling on the best terms. By 2025, the vast majority of consuming and middle-income households will be in developing regions. While New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago will remain major players because of high per-capita GDP and capital and intellectual assets, companies will pay more attention to growing city regions in the developing world. Multinational businesses must change the culture of their headquarters, divisions and branches, as well as their value chain stakeholders to take advantage of these market changes. The book details the strategies for sustainable growth with topics like: -Resource allocation in developed versus developing city markets -Shifting the focus to city regions instead of central governments -The rise of new multinational corporations from developing economies -Declining consumer and business growth in developed cities Cities in China, Brazil, India, and throughout the Middle East and Latin America are rising to become major players in the global marketplace. Philip and Milton Kotler argue that an inversion is taking place, and top cities are growing economically faster than their national rate of growth. These emerging city markets are critical to company growth , and City-Centered Marketing: Why Local is the Future of Global Business provides the vital information and guidelines that companies need to plan accordingly."
"The outcome of most persuasive events is determined before you ever say a word. People may know how to sell, but most were never taught how to persuade. Persuasion expert Dave Lakhani breaks down the process into easy-to-use steps, teaching the listener not only how to persuade, but the biology and psychology behind it as well. Persuasion is key to every aspect of sales, marketing, and negotiations. This audiobook reveals today's most effective persuasion techniques for business professionals, which can easily be applied to their personal lives as well. Though the techniques are similar, Lakhani draws a hard line between persuasion and manipulation, with the primary distinction being intent. True persuasion is based in truth, honesty and inquisitiveness, and the ability to tell a powerful story and to meet the expectations of those one is trying to persuade. Good persuasion is a practiced art - so Lakhani gives the listener: -A map for the persuasive process -Persuasion tools and instructions for use -17 persuasion tactics to instantly persuade -The Persuasion Equation -The Six Tenets of Persuasion -Steps to becoming an expert in just 30 days -Quick Persuaders: tools to use every day Citing the opinions of noted neuroscientists, psychologists, and influence professionals, and featuring examples of persuasion at work in sales, copywriting, advertising, negotiations, and personal interactions, this audiobook supports its theories and shows how to get a message through the electronic clutter facing decision-makers today. The listener will learn to layer on tactic after tactic to methodically and effectively break down natural resistance, increase the emotions of acceptance and desire, and move the prospect to the right outcome: the outcome the listener desires."
"Las estrategias de cambio son un requisito indispensable para competir en el siglo XXI. Sin embargo, las fórmulas no bastan por sí solas si descuidamos el papel determinante de un liderazgo eficaz para coordinarlas. La prueba está en el elevado índice de fracasos que se asocia a las transformaciones dentro del ámbito de la empresa. John P. Kotter, con su bagaje de veinticinco años de experiencia, nos muestra los errores básicos que surgen en todo proceso de cambio y qué podemos hacer para corregirlos. Al frente del cambio ofrece un modelo de ocho pasos que puede aplicarse en cualquier iniciativa comercial. Éste método, pormenorizado y con numerosos ejemplos prácticos, nos ayuda a evitar la inercia empresarial y a integrar de forma correcta las innovaciones en la estructura de nuestra compañía. Un libro que demuestra la importancia de no bajar jamás la guardia: la necesidad de una nueva reestructuración es siempre impredecible. / Harvard professor Kotter breaks from the mold of M.B.A. jargon-filled texts to produce a truly accessible, clear and visionary guide to the business world's buzzword for the late '90s change. Kotter emphasizes a comprehensive eight-step framework that can be followed by executives at all levels. Kotter advises those who would implement change to foster a sense of urgency within the organization. ''A higher rate of urgency does not imply everpresent panic, anxiety, or fear. It means a state in which The international bestseller-now with a new preface by author John Kotter. Millions worldwide have read and embraced John Kotter's ideas on change management and leadership. From the ill-fated dot-com bubble to unprecedented M&A activity to scandal, greed, and ultimately, recession-we've learned that widespread and difficult change is no longer the exception. It's the rule. Now with a new preface, this refreshed edition of the global bestseller Leading Change is more relevant than ever. John Kotter's now-legendary eight-step process for managing change with positive results has become the foundation for leaders and organizations across the globe. By outlining the process every organization must go through to achieve its goals, and by identifying where and how even top performers derail during the change process, Kotter provides a practical resource for leaders and managers charged with making change initiatives work. Leading Change is widely recognized as his seminal work and is an important precursor to his newer ideas on acceleration published in Harvard Business Review. Needed more today than at any time in the past, this bestselling business book serves as both visionary guide and practical toolkit on how to approach the difficult yet crucial work of leading change in any type of organization. Reading this highly personal book is like spending a day with the world's foremost expert on business leadership. You're sure to walk away inspired-and armed with the tools you need to inspire others."
"The global phenomenon that has sold over 4 million copies, is published in a record-breaking 46 languages and is a bestseller across five continents--now updated and expanded with new content. Named by Fast Company as one of the most influential leadership books in its Leadership Hall of Fame. A strategy classic. In this perennial bestseller, embraced by organizations and industries worldwide, globally preeminent management thinkers W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne challenge everything you thought you knew about the requirements for strategic success. Recognized as one of the most iconic and impactful strategy books ever written, BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY, now updated with fresh content from the authors, argues that cutthroat competition results in nothing but a bloody red ocean of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. Based on a study of 150 strategic moves (spanning more than 100 years across 30 industries), the authors argue that lasting success comes not from battling competitors but from creating 'blue oceans'--untapped new market spaces ripe for growth. BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY presents a systematic approach to making the competition irrelevant and outlines principles and tools any organization can use to create and capture their own blue oceans. This expanded edition includes: A new preface by the authors: Help! My Ocean Is Turning Red Updates on all cases and examples in the book, bringing their stories up to the present time Two new chapters and an expanded third one--Alignment, Renewal, and Red Ocean Traps --that address the most pressing questions readers have asked over the past 10 years A landmark work that upends traditional thinking about strategy, this bestselling book charts a bold new path to winning the future. Consider this your guide to creating uncontested market space--and making the competition irrelevant. To learn more about the power of BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY, visit blueoceanstrategy.com. There you'll find all the resources you need--from ideas in practice and cases from government and private industry, to teaching materials, mobile apps, real-time updates, and tips and tools to help you make your blue ocean journey a success."
"Learn the secrets of the Sequoias and how long-term success comes from implementing a strategy that maximizes growth.
Some companies continually prune, focusing mainly on short-term efficiency and perfection. Others maximize sustainable, longer term profitable growth, even if everything isn't perfect in the very short term. Over time, companies that focus on growth will perform better. From 2002 to 2021, the top 20% best performing companies in the world accounted for 116% of all the profit growth.
As the Chief Evangelist at Google for five years, Nicolas Darveau Garneau had the incredible opportunity to advise over 1,000 companies on their growth strategy. This book draws from hundreds of conversations with CEOs when they were making difficult decisions. It focuses on the latest, most innovative digital growth techniques reshaping industries today, presenting strategies that have worked across multiple industries and company sizes.
Darveau-Garneau's unique vantage point in these confidential, exclusive meetings with CEOs allowed him to uncover seven secrets that propelled them to extraordinary success:
- Maximize Profitable Growth.
- Focus on the longer term:
- Acquire the most valuable customers.
- Radically improve the profits of existing customers.
- Take your brand to a whole new level.
- Deliver an amazing customer experience.
- Evolve faster."
"An enlarged edition of Thomas Sowell's brilliant examination of the origins of economic disparities
Economic and other outcomes differ vastly among individuals, groups, and nations. Many explanations have been offered for the differences. Some believe that those with less fortunate outcomes are victims of genetics. Others believe that those who are less fortunate are victims of the more fortunate.
Discrimination and Disparities gathers a wide array of empirical evidence to challenge the idea that different economic outcomes can be explained by any one factor, be it discrimination, exploitation, or genetics. This revised and enlarged edition also analyzes the human consequences of the prevailing social vision of these disparities and the policies based on that vision--from educational disasters to widespread crime and violence."
"Leadership shouldn't cost us our souls, yet too many leaders find themselves spiritually and emotionally exhausted, leading organizations that drain rather than nurture human potential. This book offers a different path—one where personal transformation becomes the foundation for positive organizational change.
Written by conscious business pioneer Raj Sisodia and transformational expert Nilima Bhat, this book guides listeners through seven essential steps of inner healing that ripple out to create healthier organizations: Know your self—Strip away the masks you wear as a leader to discover who you truly are. Love your self—Learn to embrace all parts of yourself, even the shadows you try to hide. Be your self—Find the courage to lead authentically, not just effectively. Choose your self—Take back authorship of your leadership story. Express your self—Channel your unique gifts into meaningful impact. Complete your self—Bring together all parts of yourself into wholeness. Heal your self—Transform your wounds into wisdom that serves others.
Through vulnerable personal stories, practical exercises, and real-world applications, this book provides a road map for leaders who are ready to begin their healing journey—not just for their own sake but also for the healing of the organizations and communities they serve."
