For any company contemplating a major course correction, the tale of Best Buy is instructive. It illustrates both the size of the opportunities and the range of difficulties an organization can encounter in accomplishing transformative change. And the story is still being written. In the current economic downturn, with discretionary purchases like electronics plunging, Best Buy’s transformation is being put to the test with encouraging results. Here’s what you can learn. For years, Best Buy thrived as one of America’s leading national electronics retail chains. It had built its reputation and market share over three-and-a-half decades, along the way embracing the big-box superstore and the growing line of electronic products within. Indeed, the company and its employees were focused on the bevy of products Best Buy offered, which was fine with its tech-savvy customers. But, as rapidly evolving technology added more and more sophisticated products to retailers’ shelves, the ranks of the not-so-savvy began to expand. Then came the day in 2002 when Best Buy’s new chief executive realized the need for change—big change. In the years since, the company has remade itself into an organization that concentrates relentlessly on its customers. New Word City, publishers of digital originals, contributes 10 percent of its profits to literacy causes.

They also crunch the numbers of change - including Best Buys five-year financial highlights - and show why Best Buy is living proof that learning organization principles do improve the bottom line."--Jacket.

A Wall Street Journal Bestseller Named a Financial Times top title How to unleash "human magic" and achieve improbable results. Hubert Joly, former CEO of Best Buy and orchestrator of the retailer's spectacular turnaround, unveils his personal playbook for achieving extraordinary outcomes by putting people and purpose at the heart of business. Back in 2012, "Everyone thought we were going to die," says Joly. Eight years later, Best Buy was transformed as Joly and his team rebuilt the company into one of the nation's favorite employers, vastly increased customer satisfaction, and dramatically grew Best Buy's stock price. Joly and his team also succeeded in making Best Buy a leader in sustainability and innovation. In The Heart of Business, Joly shares the philosophy behind the resurgence of Best Buy: pursue a noble purpose, put people at the center of the business, create an environment where every employee can blossom, and treat profit as an outcome, not the goal. This approach is easy to understand, but putting it into practice is not so easy. It requires radically rethinking how we view work, how we define companies, how we motivate, and how we lead. In this book Joly shares memorable stories, lessons, and practical advice, all drawn from his own personal transformation from a hard-charging McKinsey consultant to a leader who believes in human magic. The Heart of Business is a timely guide for leaders ready to abandon old paradigms and lead with purpose and humanity. It shows how we can reinvent capitalism so that it contributes to a sustainable future.

When we figure out exactly what it is that we are each made of, unexpected things to begin to happen. Good things. Magic begins to sparkle. Anxieties and fears take a hike. Opportunities come beckoning. Life happens in all its glory. And those are the moments when we will feel wholeheartedly awesome. Wholeheartedly unstoppable. The only problem? Getting there. Breathe. Live. Let every moment take you to a place where goodbyes are hard to come by. Be in love with your life. Better yet, be in love with you. Grab onto life with both hands and don't let go. Are you going to slide down to the mountain when the going gets rough, or are you going to crawl on your hands and knees until you get to the top? The choice is yours - only you know what you are truly made of and capable of. Journey with me as we grapple with all the things that hold us back from living up to our potentials and the things that keep us from living the life we have always wanted. Let's start doing good so that we can be better people in order to live our best lives.

The #1 New York Times bestseller that has all America talking—with a new afterword on expanding your range—as seen on CNN's Fareed Zakaria GPS, Morning Joe, CBS This Morning, and more. “The most important business—and parenting—book of the year.” —Forbes “Urgent and important. . . an essential read for bosses, parents, coaches, and anyone who cares about improving performance.” —Daniel H. Pink Shortlisted for the Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award Plenty of experts argue that anyone who wants to develop a skill, play an instrument, or lead their field should start early, focus intensely, and rack up as many hours of deliberate practice as possible. If you dabble or delay, you’ll never catch up to the people who got a head start. But a closer look at research on the world’s top performers, from professional athletes to Nobel laureates, shows that early specialization is the exception, not the rule. David Epstein examined the world’s most successful athletes, artists, musicians, inventors, forecasters and scientists. He discovered that in most fields—especially those that are complex and unpredictable—generalists, not specialists, are primed to excel. Generalists often find their path late, and they juggle many interests rather than focusing on one. They’re also more creative, more agile, and able to make connections their more specialized peers can’t see. Provocative, rigorous, and engrossing, Range makes a compelling case for actively cultivating inefficiency. Failing a test is the best way to learn. Frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers. The most impactful inventors cross domains rather than deepening their knowledge in a single area. As experts silo themselves further while computers master more of the skills once reserved for highly focused humans, people who think broadly and embrace diverse experiences and perspectives will increasingly thrive.

Life-changing wisdom from 130 of the world's highest achievers in short, action-packed pieces, featuring inspiring quotes, life lessons, career guidance, personal anecdotes, and other advice

Buy Shoes on Wednesday and Tweet at 4:00, former investigative journalist Mark Di Vincenzo’s follow-up to his bestselling Buy Ketchup in May and Fly at Noon, is another endlessly fascinating and eminently useful compendium of expert tips on perfect timing for a myriad of activities—more of the best times to buy this, do that, and go there. Covering an even wider range of topics than before—including beauty tips, pets, cars, and children—this book is an absolute must for readers of Schott’s Miscellany and other collections of useful information, and for multi-taskers searching for better, healthier, thriftier ways to do things. After all, timing is everything.