Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers

John P. Kotter, Kotter

Corporate Culture and Performance

Going far beyond previous empirical work, John Kotter and James Heskett provide the first comprehensive critical analysis of how the "culture" of a corporation powerfully influences its economic performance, for better or for worse. Through painstaking research at such firms as Hewlett-Packard, Xerox, ICI, Nissan, and First Chicago, as well as a quantitative study of the relationship between culture and performance in more than 200 companies, the authors describe how shared values and unwritten rules can profoundly enhance economic success or, conversely, lead to failure to adapt to changing markets and environments. With penetrating insight, Kotter and Heskett trace the roots of both healthy and unhealthy cultures, demonstrating how easily the latter emerge, especially in firms which have experienced much past success. Challenging the widely held belief that "strong" corporate cultures create excellent business performance, Kotter and Heskett show that while many shared values and institutionalized practices can promote good performances in some instances, those cultures can also be characterized by arrogance, inward focus, and bureaucracy--features that undermine an ...

Melissie Clemmons Rumizen

Complete Idiot's Guide to Knowledge Management

A knowledge strategist at Buckman Labs explains how to successfully implementand utilize knowledge management in any size company, large or small.

Park Davis, Susannah Craig

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Running a Bed and Breakfast

This book holds all the secrets to opening and running a successful inn. It gives you guidelines for choosing a profitable location and describes a day in the life of the average inn owner. You can find information about how to write up a business plan, what to include on you Web site, what "house rules" you need to set up to keep your guests and your investment safe, and how to use your own personal touch to make your inn unique.