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Rating: 
Summary: Extreme is Extremely Amateurish
Review: I picked up a used set of Extreme Management (book and audio) at a flea market. I should have saved my dollar. The book was laborious reading, bordering on pontification, so I tried the tape. What a mistake. If the amateurish and combative writing style was bad in print, the voice used on the tape made things exponentially worse - a classic case of really bad writing getting worse.Here's the quick scoop:
1. I checked with Harvard and they did NOT authorize this book.
2. The author did NOT attend the classes he wrote about.
3. The writing style is very reminiscent of pre-canned smoke-and-mirrors business-speak...much verbosity, little content.
4. The author sounds positively angry about something.
5. I was angry, too, only because I wasted a dollar on this junk. I agree with the jist of almost every reviewer on this page, especially Publisher's Weekly and AudioFile. I should have read the reviews on this site first. Oh well, it was only a buck.
Rating: 
Summary: meeting with few executives and professors
Review: Poor ratings and skewed reviews by others prompted me to write this review to provide objective information for knowledge seekers. In my view it is a good book considering the price i paid, reading time, breadth of topics, simplicity and few good examples of how high level concepts could be translated into actions. I felt like spending few hours in the company of professors and executives, what they shared made sense to me and made me collect their words as jewels. Where else could one find synthesized knowledge from people like Michael Porter, Fruhan and other renowned scholars within 190/200 pages? I liked the simple manner in which DuPont and other fundamental financial management concepts are explained. I wouldn't mind recommending it to anyone for casual reading during a 3hr flight. Indeed it is not a text book, should not be taken seriously and may not be permanent part of your collection. The book is NOT for technical person who likes to live in details, nor for one who tends to seek ready-made solutions, nor for one who is interested in structured learning or pursuing graduate degree in management. One finds elements of inspiration and motivation to act, hallmark of good books. The stuff about Harvard or text on cover is more of marketing gimmick but nowhere author claims school endorses his book. There is a clear statement to that fact so don't know what caused the confusion written in other reviews. What matters is that the interviews, wisdom and thought process shared by people is original and real.... writer did not make up those 7 OFP points or market competition strategies. Don't expect a book could make you good manager or reveal secrets of success - there is no formula book. Bottomline, professors who are Harvard's brain and their executive students from Fortune500/Global2000, .....talk to you in this book. It does not matter whether the book is endorsed by the school or if the writer himself attended the AMP program.....knowledge shouldn't have strings attached to it.
Rating:
Summary: Extreme is Extremely Amateurish
Review: The title was a little over stated. As a business student myself, all of the enclosed information was positive reenforcemnet for what I had already learned and a little more! Some of the quotes in the text were reassuring to the reader of a point well explained. although some of the points explained in the text were over explained and it became "dry" reading after awhile. The author had good usage of business terms, but lacked other examples other then that from Harvard Business school. The text was by far an ad for the Advanced Management Program and Harvard Business school. It also touched slightly on management from a global arena, when most would know that all businesses are likely to go global. So more information is needed for a non-AMP student to learn how to manage in a global market. Overall the book was informational, but could not be used as the only form of education for potential managers. Not everyone can afford to go to Harvard, but any business school would be better then just reading this book. Because business school can explain these points better and with more content then the book did.
Rating:
Summary: Save Your Money!
Review: This book has a great title but little else. I was not inspired and learned very little from the book. Based on this book, if I were responsible for Harvard's AMP Program I'd be distancing myself from Mark Stevens. It's a better investment to spend your moeny on a bag of jelly beans than to purchase this book. Can I have my time back that was wasted reading this book?
Rating:
Summary: Save Your Money!
Review: This book has a great title but little else. I was not inspired and learned very little from the book. Based on this book, if I were responsible for Harvard's AMP Program I'd be distancing myself from Mark Stevens. It's a better investment to spend your moeny on a bag of jelly beans than to purchase this book. Can I have my time back that was wasted reading this book?
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