A Bias for Action How Effective Managers
Harness Their Willpower, Achieve Results, and Stop Wasting Time
By Heike Bruch and Sumantra Ghoshal;
Penguin — Viking; pages 209; Rs 595
Authored
by the Switzerland-based management professor and research director
Bruch along with the London Business School professor Ghoshal, the
book is essentially a guide for managers and team leaders. The
subject is dealt with in two parts — the first is about harnessing
willpower and the second, about cultivating a company of
action-takers. Various strategies are outlined for distinguishing
purposeful action from active non-action, marshaling energy and
developing focus, and moving beyond motivation to willpower.
Interesting classifications of managerial behaviour — the
detached, the purposeful, the procrastinators and the frenzied —
enliven the text. The 'winning-the-princess' and other such
strategies laid down in the latter part are aimed at propelling an
organisation towards collective, positive action. Case studies too
have been incorporated to illustrate various strategies. The
well-structured and uncluttered format lends to the book a neat,
inviting look.
Fundamentals
of SalesManagement
By Ramneek Kapoor
Macmillan; pages 336; Rs 255
This
book is a comprehensive guide on the art of selling, be it a
product or a service. From defining salesmanship to discussing
whether selling is a science or an art to dwelling on the role
of marketing, this volume highlights various concepts,
categories and challenges of sales management. Various kinds
of sales jobs — industrial sales, retail sales and personal
sales — are examined in detail. The chapter on selling as a
career option outlines the advantages and disadvantages of
this job, growth prospects in an organization and the
qualities required to be an effective salesperson. Various
field operations too are discussed with the help of tables,
charts and graphs. The consumer aspect too finds mention with
clients being placed into certain broad categories — the
inattentive, the silent, the indifferent, the indecisive, the
skeptic and the hostile prospects. Basically aimed at
marketing students and professionals, the text has been
structured simply to facilitate easy understanding of various
technical and general aspects of the job. For a lay person,
more visuals and graphics would have made it better reading
though.
Authored
by the Switzerland-based management professor and research director
Bruch along with the London Business School professor Ghoshal, the
book is essentially a guide for managers and team leaders. The
subject is dealt with in two parts — the first is about harnessing
willpower and the second, about cultivating a company of
action-takers. Various strategies are outlined for distinguishing
purposeful action from active non-action, marshaling energy and
developing focus, and moving beyond motivation to willpower.
Interesting classifications of managerial behaviour — the
detached, the purposeful, the procrastinators and the frenzied —
enliven the text. The 'winning-the-princess' and other such
strategies laid down in the latter part are aimed at propelling an
organisation towards collective, positive action. Case studies too
have been incorporated to illustrate various strategies. The
well-structured and uncluttered format lends to the book a neat,
inviting look.
This
book is a comprehensive guide on the art of selling, be it a
product or a service. From defining salesmanship to discussing
whether selling is a science or an art to dwelling on the role
of marketing, this volume highlights various concepts,
categories and challenges of sales management. Various kinds
of sales jobs — industrial sales, retail sales and personal
sales — are examined in detail. The chapter on selling as a
career option outlines the advantages and disadvantages of
this job, growth prospects in an organization and the
qualities required to be an effective salesperson. Various
field operations too are discussed with the help of tables,
charts and graphs. The consumer aspect too finds mention with
clients being placed into certain broad categories — the
inattentive, the silent, the indifferent, the indecisive, the
skeptic and the hostile prospects. Basically aimed at
marketing students and professionals, the text has been
structured simply to facilitate easy understanding of various
technical and general aspects of the job. For a lay person,
more visuals and graphics would have made it better reading
though.
