Management by Running in Circles

Rating:
Summary: Pretty much crap
Review: A very poor attempt at using humor to illustrate the failings of management. I bought the electronic version, and even for $3.95 I was ripped off. Save your money and ignor the 5 star review.

Rating:
Summary: Finally...what was always known is now in print!!!
Review: I bought this book because of the promise of an explanation of why things happen in business. Well, I certainly was not disappointed! Throughout the chapters, I saw that finally, someone had put on paper what was always known about business practices - but only on the INSIDE of the conference rooms. Mr. Smith has not really told anything new...fads have been coming back around and fading out again for years. However, in this book, the truth is told. Companies aren't coming up with anything new and innovative. They merely recycle the old theories and brandish them as "brand new", along with the promise that they will make the company a better and more profitable place. Inevitably, the company starts losing money and the whole cycle starts anew. I have recommended to my entire staff that they read this book, so that they can also understand what is going on.

As the book description states, this takes "The Peter Principle" and "Who Moved My Cheese" to a whole different level, focusing not on individual success and adaptation, nor on how people move up. Rather, this book focuses on the "whole" of the company, and how it affects everything in the operations of that company.

I have already started going over our own business plan and can tell you now that while changes are in order, we are not going to fall into this cyclic trap again. Thank you Mr. Smith, for being bold enough to bare the mistakes we make...and giving us the chance to correct them while there is still time!!

Rating:
Summary: Finally...what was always known is now in print!!!
Review: I bought this book because of the promise of an explanation of why things happen in business. Well, I certainly was not disappointed! Throughout the chapters, I saw that finally, someone had put on paper what was always known about business practices - but only on the INSIDE of the conference rooms. Mr. Smith has not really told anything new...fads have been coming back around and fading out again for years. However, in this book, the truth is told. Companies aren't coming up with anything new and innovative. They merely recycle the old theories and brandish them as "brand new", along with the promise that they will make the company a better and more profitable place. Inevitably, the company starts losing money and the whole cycle starts anew. I have recommended to my entire staff that they read this book, so that they can also understand what is going on.

As the book description states, this takes "The Peter Principle" and "Who Moved My Cheese" to a whole different level, focusing not on individual success and adaptation, nor on how people move up. Rather, this book focuses on the "whole" of the company, and how it affects everything in the operations of that company.

I have already started going over our own business plan and can tell you now that while changes are in order, we are not going to fall into this cyclic trap again. Thank you Mr. Smith, for being bold enough to bare the mistakes we make...and giving us the chance to correct them while there is still time!!

Rating:
Summary: Management By Running In Cirlces
Review: The ancient adage that medicine has to taste bad to be good for you doesn't apply in the case of Management By Running In Circles. It's a thoroughly enjoyable and enlightening read! I've been employed by many corporations throughout my life...some large and some small. Many times, in the transition from one company to another, I've found my new home in a track that was trailing my previous employer, and I watched in wonder as we blundered down the same path, making the same mistakes. It reminds me of the movie, Groundhog Day. How long must we continue traveling this circuitous path...until we get it right? For whatever reasons, and whether you're on top of the heap or on the bottom, you are sure to enjoy this book...as well as learn from it.