Management reading

After a great readership response to articles such as Position, position and Financial Planning written by Sean Bosse on marketing and strategic management for the law firm, the following books and publications have been recommended by him:

1. Marketing Management Millennium Edition (10th Edition) by Philip Kotler- Prentice Hall;
Book description
This world-wide best-selling book highlights the most recent trends and developments in global marketing-with an emphasis on the importance of teamwork between marketing and all the other functions of the business. It introduces new perspectives in successful strategic market planning, and presents additional company examples of creative, market-focused, and customer-driven action.

Coverage includes a focus on marketing in the 21st century that introduces the new ideas, tools and practices companies will need to successfully operate in the New Millennium. Chapter topics discuss building customer satisfaction, market-oriented strategic planning, analyzing consumer markets and buyer behaviour, dealing with the competition, designing pricing strategies and programs, and managing the sales force. This is for marketing managers who want to increase their understanding of the major issues of strategic, tactical, and administrative marketing-along with the opportunities and needs of the marketplace in the years ahead.

2. International Marketing (8th Edition) by V. Terpstra and R. Sarathy - South-Western College Pub;
Book description
Drawing on the extensive and unparalleled international marketing experience of its authors, International Marketing takes a comprehensive look at the environment, problems, and practices of today's international marketing arena. This text gives students a real-world taste of this dynamic field, preparing them for entry into the marketing workplace of the 21st century.

3. Managerial Economics (2nd Edition) by Howard Davies - Pitman Publishing;
Book description
This new version of the text, first published in 1989, stays true to the aims of the first two editions. It provides a clear introduction to Managerial Economics for students who have no previous background in economic analysis and at the same time develops the analysis to a level that is appropriate for second or third year undergraduates or for postgraduate students who are taking the subject for the first time. The text shows how economic analysis can be of relevance to business decision-making without making pretentious and unjustified claims for its practical application.

4. Goals and Goal Setting: Achieving Measured Objectives by Larrie Rouillard - Crisp Learning;
Book description
Goals provide a sense of purpose as well as a reason to strive for meaningful results. This book helps you define goals and set measurable objectives to achieve them, whether the goal is one you have set for yourself or one that is assigned to you. Discover how to handle obstacles that may stand in your way and how visualizing your goals can turn your mind into your biggest motivational tool.

5. The Marketing Game: How The World's Best Companies Play To Win by Eric Schulz - Adams Media Corp;
First Sentence
It is always surprising to me that so many businesses keep most of their employees in the dark about the company's overall business objectives or the CEO's vision for growth.

6. Marketing Warfare by Al Ries and Jack Trout - McGraw-Hill;
From the back cover
You've got your hands on one of the greatest marketing manuals ever written - the classic that defines the strategies, plans, and campaigns of today's marketing battlefield. Marketing is war. To triumph over the competition, it's not enough to target customers. Marketers must take aim at their competitors and be prepared to defend their own turf from would-be attackers at all times. This indispensable guide gives smart fighters the best tactics: defensive, offensive, flanking, and guerrilla. It's the book that wrote the new rules!

7. Marketing Management and Strategy (2nd Edition) by Peter Doyle - Prentice Hall;
Book description
A core text for MBA marketing management courses, and for university short courses for executives; a supplementary text for undergraduate and postgraduate marketing strategy courses, and CIM strategy courses.

Marketing Management and Strategy is a concise, practical management guide to the latest ideas in marketing and strategy for MBA and executive courses. It has already been adopted by many leading British business schools. It focuses on key issues relevant to modern business, drawing on the author's experience as a consultant to many major international companies. It gives practical, step-by-step guides to developing a marketing strategy, making pricing decisions and developing advertising and communications plans. Its interdisciplinary approach is designed to appeal to all senior managers.

8. Combat Zone: Selling in the 21st Century by Dennis T. Lewis - Zebra Press;
Book description
The arena of the professional salesperson is a combat zone. Fierce competition, increasing globalization and changing technology make it vital to hone your strategies and skills in order to succeed. This text aims to equip salespeople to do battle in the world of sales.

This text provides practical, tried-and-tested advice on a number of crucial strategies, such as how to get access to people in a company; ways of building long-lasting professional relationships; and how to motivate a sales team. Insightful tips into modern technology provide ways of enhancing your efficiency. There is also advice on how to analyse potential customers using the scientific method of Neuro-Linguistic Programming, which can be used to understand the way a person thinks and perceives reality. "Combat Zone" is designed for salespeople who want to get the competitive edge.

9. Working in Organizations by A. Kakabadse, R. Ludlow and S. Vinnicombe - Penguin Books;
Book description
In this practical and thought-provoking book, three specialists in the field answer the questions that managers always ask, using perceptive case histories and real life examples that relate management theory to modern-day working life. They examine the key challenges that companies around the world should pay attention to: the new and ever-changing priorities of managers, working in teams, valuing employee diversity, exploiting new technology, improving communication between employees, providing clear leadership and motivating staff to achieve the best results. It is also an essential aid to help managers in their own work, with advice on how to make a personal impact, effect change and increase efficiency in an organisation by understanding its structure, culture and power hierarchies.

And it considers the ways in which changes in society affect businesses beyond considerations of cost and profitability, with discussion of the political, ethical and environmental issues and responsibilities facing today's companies. Accessible, comprehensive and brought right up to date for this new edition, Working in Organisations provides an invaluable combination of research, commonsense and guidance for all managers.

10. Foundations of Corporate Success: How Business Strategies Add Value by John Kay - Oxford University Press.
Book description
The most innovative contribution to business thinking for a decade
How did BMW recover from the edge of bankruptcy to become one of Europe's strongest companies? Why did Saatchi and Saatchi's global strategy bring the company to its knees? Why has Philips's outstanding record in innovation not been translated into success in the market? What can be learnt from the marriage contract about the conduct of commercial negotiations? These are some of the questions addressed as John Kay asks `What makes a business successful?'

Drawing on his own business experience and on concepts in economics, legal theory and sociology, the author presents a fresh approach to questions of business strategy. He rejects the military analogy which underpins much strategic thinking, in which success depends on size and share, on vision and leadership, on shifting patterns of mergers and alliances.

John Kay argues that outstanding businesses derive their strength from a distinctive structure of relationships with employees, customers, and suppliers, and explains why continuity and stability in these relationships is essential for a flexible and co-operative response to change. By integrating organizational and financial perspectives on the performance of the firm, Kay not only gives insights into the creation of effective business strategies, but also sheds light on the success - and failure - of national economies.