The content of this book is centered around three seemingly diverse themes. The first theme is why it’s so important for companies to learn from the past, the present, and the future. The author covers some of the key learnings from the distant and current past, and how these learnings changed the course for many companies. He discusses new learnings that have been developed in our current state and will continue to be brought forward. He provides a look into the future, just to make sure companies understand that they should always be looking for better ways to function. The second theme is centered around problem-solving, problem prevention, and decision-making. That is, how to successfully define problems that already exist in your current reality, how to prevent problems from occurring in the future, and how to make much more effective decisions. Problems have plagued many companies for many years and knowing how to follow a structured approach to solve them should prove to be very useful. And perhaps even more important than solving problems, is how companies can go about preventing the problems from occurring in the first place. Think about how your company might look if the plethora of problems to solve didn’t exist. And with current or potential problems, many decisions must be made. The final theme in this book is how to successfully implement the Theory of Constraints, and then combine Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma, and the Theory of Constraints. The Theory of Constraints should be considered the "missing link" in most improvement initiatives. The author presents, in detail, why combining the Theory of Constraints with Lean and Six Sigma and all of the associated improvement tools and techniques will take your company to new levels of profitability. He introduces two new roadmaps. One roadmap is on how to implement the Theory of Constraints, while the other new roadmap is how to implement my Ultimate Improvement Cycle.

This book is the first to present a review and synthesis of the research in knowledge management and strategy management. The readings in this book will help readers get an understanding of the best methods to create and apply knowledge in order to sustain superior organizational performance.

Leadership in today's organizations is a tough business. Organizational leaders face a number of challenges as their jobs, and the world around them, become increasingly complex. Trends, such as organizational "delayering," rapid technological advances, and increased employee empowerment require that leaders adapt their techniques and styles of leadership to meet these new challenges. Consequently, there has been an explosion of interest in leadership in recent years as researchers and management educators struggle to understand the process of leadership development, how it operates, and what characteristics make effective leaders. Born of these questions, the 11th Annual Kravis-de Roulet Leadership Conference at Claremont McKenna College brought together an impressive slate of scholars whose theories, research, and cutting-edge techniques are now gathered together in this impressive volume. Each chapter asks and answers questions about the current state of the field while providing future direction for research to help bridge the gap between leadership researchers and leadership development practitioners. Notable topics include chapters on "e-leadership" and leadership within the "virtual" organization, exploring 360-degree feedback, the importance of "social capital," and a comprehensive analysis of the well-researched theory of Leader Member Exchange.

Today, we're married to our cars. But life behind the wheel of an automobile didn't come naturally to Americans. Crooked politicians, unscrupulous businessmen, burning streetcars, and convoluted tax shenanigans are a few of the players in this gripping tale of corruption, greed, and endless miles of asphalt. In Andy Singer's accessible, scandalous tale of motordom, comics, text, and historic photographs tell the story of the rise of the U.S. highway system and the corresponding demise of rail and public transportation. He also explores how we can ditch the car and rebuild a functional transportation system that can bring wealth, happiness, and freedom.

This text uses sociological perspectives to examine the various dimensions of globalization, and the social problems of inequality, war and violence, and environmental sustainability that are occurring on a global scale. Clear writing and vivid examples help students to better understand their role as global citizens. The book is divided intothree parts: Part I focuses on the challenges of global inequalities: in life chances, wages and work, gender and education. Part IIfocuses on conflict and violence at all levels: from crime to politics, terrorism to war. Part III focuses on the issue of sustainability and the problems of urbanization, crowding and environmental destruction.