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Liker, K. Jeffrey. and Meier, P. David., Toyota Talent, India: Tata McGraw-
Hill, 2007. 326p. Rs. 350/- Paper Back.
The author's pick up from where they left, when they signed out with 'The Toyota
Way Field Book' in terms of showcasing the incredible corporate success story
that Toyota has become. The book looks at the way the company invests in
developing its people and provides a detailed insight into the talent development
processes in place at Toyota. The famed Toyota production system, owes its success
to the people and the processes at work- 'Toyota Talent' teaches us how, others can
do the same and reap the benefits.
The book scores as an easy read; it would relevantly engage academia,
researchers, and the corporate professionals. The authors do a great job with taking
a sharp look at the philosophy and processes that guide training and mentorship
of fresh and existing talent at Toyota. Using Toyota as a model, the book outlines
the key steps towards integration of firm's employees with its high quality, lean
manufacturing. While the focus continues to be on manufacturing, implications
for the service sector cannot be ignored.
Chapter 3, looks at the training philosophy adhered to at Toyota. The Training
Within Industry Program is discussed as the centerpiece of the firms strategy to
continuously impart know how to the work force to achieve excellence. The
discussion on the role of 'Job Instruction' as a foundation for developing talent is
valid for businesses in any industrial domain.
The later chapters in part three of the book are very impressive, in terms of
establishing the simple tasks that need to be followed to facilitate transfer of
knowledge to others in the organization. The level of detail and the simple steps
that the process is broken into reflect the intent and the discipline required to
actually train your people the 'Toyota Way'.
The book however ignores the presence of 'Idiosyncrasies' and makes it look
like we finally know how to apply the successful strategies and get desired results.
The depth of analysis of the processes and systems at work at Toyota are for all to
appreciate and walk away with. Use of examples and showing sample charts and
lists helps understand the discussion and visualize actual implementation of the
same.
The book retains a flow and clarity of thought process that keeps you
interested, and engaged. A good read.
Sandeep Munjal, Programme Director, Institute for International Management
and Technology, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
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Subhash Chandra Das, Corporate Governance in India-An Evaluation. New
Delhi: Prentice Hall of India Private Limited, 2008. XVII + 242 PP. Rs. 225/-
Paper Back.
Why is that with all our technology, managerial know-how and investment
capacity, we are unable to make even a minor contribution to the problem of
pervasive global poverty and disenfranchisement? This question hits you only to
remain answerless. Good governance is considered as effective accountability of
the policy and strategy designer of an organization to meet the requirement of the
stakeholders of inside and outside the business-environment.
The book under review is written by Prof. Subhash Chandra Das, a Professor
of Management and who is also a former Director of Finance, Hindustan Paper
Corporation Ltd. and had worked in Tata Steel for over a decade. He has vast work
experience for than 30 years in Corporate Sector which has enabled him to become
the best suited to author and evaluate Indian Corporate Governance process and
enlighted a new corporate ethos and stricter compliances with the legislation.
The book is divided into seven chapters and the whole study is explorative,
conceptual and empirical in nature. In Chapter-2, Prof. Das unveiled the history
and evolution of systems of corporate governance in India and highlighted the
recent developments and measures taken during 1998 - 2005. One of the best part
of initial chapters of the book is analysis of Governance Vs. Management. The
suggestion of Prof. Das as regards formation of supervisory board is not found in
any such book.
While Chapter-3, deals with conceptual issues of corporate governance,
Chapter-4 & Chapter-5 bring out various committees reports & recommendations.
So far no author has ever discussed about the Blue Ribbon Committee Report on
effectiveness of corporate audit committee.
Most important part of its investigation of Prof. Das is analysis of Corporate
Governance Systems in India with refer to Corporate Governance Systems in
industrialized countries (USA, UK, Germany, Japan).
The credit goes to Prof. Das to find out and highlight the anomalies between
the provisions of the Companies Act & SEBI Regulations related to Corporate
Governance. He has cited Case Analysis of different companies under BSE Sensex
and NSE Nifty and has designed a wonderful effective method for examining the
quality & effectiveness of Corporate Governance. The most interesting features of
his analysis are designing key parameters for scoring system. In the last chapter,
Prof. Das has recommended some suggestions on the basis of his thorough studies
and research on Corporate Governance issues ; the best part of the suggestions are
process of Corporate Governance, board procedures, orientation and training of
directors and board's performance evaluation. Each Case Analysis has illustrations
and figures & detailed references. This will help readers understand the cases and
have sources to seek more information if they want. This book can be considered
as reference book for academics, directors and practicing managers & executives
and regulatory authorities in the globalised world to get international dimension on Corporate Governance and also useful to post-graduate and doctoral students
as a reference book.
Dr. S. N. Ray,
Professor & Head, MBA Department; Editor, Management Journal
"SURVEY", Indian Institute of Social Welfare & Business Management,
Management House, College Square West, Kolkata.
#336, Udyog Vihar,
Phase - IV, Gurgaon - 122001, Haryana, India.
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Alexis Leon, ERP Demystified, Second Edition, New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill,
2008. 585 p. Rs. 425/- Paper Back.
The right kind of ERP package, well implemented & understood and successfully
executed can do wonders to the organizations profitability and productivity by
improving operational efficiency. This books is a comprehensive guidance in
implementing ERP system successfully.
The book has been written by Mr. Alexis Leon who is the Managing Director
of L&L Consultancy Services Pvt. Ltd., had earlier worked with Ponds India Ltd.
and Tata Consultancy Services and has more than 18 years of consulting experience
in the areas of software engineering, workflow automation, groupware, product
design, process improvement, project management etc. He has written more than
forty books on computing, IT and management topics.
This book is the second edition and has includes the more recent developments
to the ERP and the IT industry. The book is divided into 7 parts and has 64
chapters. Part I is about basics of ERP, Part II is relating ERP to technology, Part III
is talking about ERP implementation, Part IV is discussing about ways to successful
execution of the ERP, Part V lists the various modules in the ERP, Part VI discusses
the names of various players providing ERP packages and part VII talks about the
present and future of the ERP system. The book has six hundred pages
approximately. It has five appendices and an index at the end.
The book has been written in simple english and has a good chapterisation
plan. It is not only relevant for industry but also for students. For industry it
includes a wide gamut of technical information that might come handy for ERP
packages and for students it discusses a set of relevant concepts that they need to
understand in relation to ERP. Given the fact that ERP packages is a necessity in
today's complex business environment and most of us do not understand the
essentials of it, this book can surely be an informative interesting read.
Kirti Sharma, Senior Associate - Financial and Transaction Support" with a
business and management consulting firm, Gurgaon.
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V.Raghunathan & Prabina Rajib, Stock Exchanges, Investments and Derivatives,
Third Edition, New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill, 2007. 439p. Rs. 295/- Paper Back.
With recession gripping the world economy, companies turning bankrupt, bourses
bearing the brunt of it and the stock indices plummeting to an all time low, this book and its contents could prove to be very useful for people wanting to understand
the basics of stock exchanges and derivatives.
The book has been written by Mr. Raghunathan who is the Managing Director
of GMR Industries Ltd. and has around 400 academic & popular articles and
several books in the area of capital markets and corporate finance to his credit and
Ms Prabina Rajib, who is a PhD in Finance from IIT, Kharagpur.
The industry had given very positive feedback to the first two editions of this
book. Needless to say that the third edition is an improved version of the previous
two, hence more captivating and informative.
The book is divided into three parts and has twenty four chapters. The title of
the book is suggestive of the names of the three parts. The first part being "Stock
Exchanges" which has fifteen chapters under it, the second part being "Investments"
with five chapters under it and the third part is "Financial Derivatives" having four
chapters under it. The chapters are formulated in a question-answer format making
a total of two-hundred and fifty questions. The book has seven appendices and an
index to look out for important terms. The appendices in addition to Present Value
tables contain a list of Asset Management Companies, few Mutual Funds, Index
Funds, explanation on portfolio beta computation and a normal distribution table.
The book is written in a lucid style and is an easy read even for a layman. One
does not have to necessarily proceed from the first chapter to understand the
concepts. The question-answer format does not require methodical reading from
the beginning to the end, one could read selective topics and still be able to
appreciate the content. The book successfully achieves its objective and I
personally feel it is one of the best written books in India on this topic.
Kirti Sharma, Senior Associate - Financial and Transaction Support" with a
business and management consulting firm, Gurgaon.
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Elizabeth Haas Edershem, The Definitive Drucker, New Delhi, Tata McGraw
Hill, 2007. 289 p. Price NA Hard Bond.
There is no doubt about the fact that Peter Drucker is the father of modern
management. While he has numerous books to his credit elaborating his profound
thought process on management concepts, this book is different. It captures Peter
Drucker's visionary management concepts, applies them to the key business risks
and opportunities of the coming decade and imparts his views current business
practices, economic changes and trends through Edershem.
Elizabeth Haas Edershem is a Ph.D. in Operations Research and Industrial
Engineering from MIT. She is a strategic consultant and has been working with
both Fortune 500 companies and private equity investors. She was one of the first
female partners at McKinsey & Company. She has been successfully able refresh
and update Drucker's wisdom through her contemporary experience as a consultant
in this book.
The book has been written in lucid style but not everyone may be able to appreciate Drucker's philosophy outright. It has three hundred pages approximately
and seven chapters. The front page of the book displays comments of numerous
industry experts who have reviewed this book. The comments portray a very
impressive picture of the content of the book. Prior to the commencement of the
chapters, there is a foreword and an introduction. Chapter one talks about doing
Business in Lego World, Chapter two is about the customers, titled as “The
customer: Joined at the Hip”. Chapter three is titled as “Innovation and
Abandonment” and Chapter four as “Collaboration and Orchestration”, Chapter
five is dedicated to People and Knowledge, chapter six to Decision Making and
chapter seven has been titled as “The twenty first century CEO”. At the end of the
chapters there are endnotes, acknowledgements and an Index. There is also a list
of books written by Peter Drucker.
As the chapter titles suggest, this book is more pertinent to top level
management personnel who can use Drucker's philosophy to make their
organizations successful. The book has more industry appeal than academics as it
is practice oriented. Students may find this book as a tough read and not touching
upon theoretical concepts. However, for people who are in leadership roles or
aspiring leaders, this book is surely going to provide incredibly valuable inputs.
It has been written very well.
Kirti Sharma, Senior Associate - Financial and Transaction Support" with a
business and management consulting firm, Gurgaon.
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Radhakrishnan, Meenakshi, Stratagem-Cases on Retail, Products, Services and Trends. India: Tata McGraw-Hill, 2007. 354. Rs. 325/- Paper
Back.
Stratagem serves as an effective and sought after tool for trainers and academia
rendering inputs in diverse business contexts to an equally diverse student body.
There is a need to discuss business scenarios across various industry sectors relevant
to Indian context. Even from a perspective of linking generic business theories
and models to real life applications for the sake of improved assimilation by the
target audience, there is a substantial deficit of case studies in the Indian context,
which could be utilized across multitude of academic disciplines.
The mix of cases is also impressive, with a focus on Retail, Products, Services
and Trends a good cross section of business situations can be observed through
this collection. From 'comparison shopping' that looks at inherent difference in
the growth strategy of Kishore Biyani's Pantaloon to the Tata's Westside, to 'why
merc landed in the ditch in India' which explained the struggles of a MNC engaged
in doing business in India the range is quite effective in providing the reader with
ample exposure to the Indian Business context.
While the book offers volume and as a result substantial width, the depth of
engagement with aspects being looked at in each specific case are somewhat
restricted, which may hinder their utility as a piece of credible 'literature' that may
be used as a tool for extensive probing into typical business situations.
The book retains a flow and offers a contemporary collection that keeps you
interested, and engaged. A good read for undergraduate business students and
business professionals at large. Sandeep Munjal, Programme Director, Institute for International Management
and Technology, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
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Johri, Shweta, Brand Management. Delhi: Galgotia Publishing
Company, 2007. 368pp. Rs. 225/- Paper Back.
Branding as a concept and as a tool for corporate glory, is in vogue since few years
and this book taps the 'ever growing importance of brands' in a lucid and
comprehensive way. The book introduces the concept, scope and application of
branding through Indian examples which are very recent. Unlike few of its western
counterparts, the book does not rely on being verbose and presents the concepts
such that they could be applied and understood by Indian students, brand
practitioners as well as a layman who hasn't received any formal training on
management as a discipline.
The book is divided in 11 units acquainting the reader with the concept of
brand vis-à-vis customer, Product Life Cycles, Financial capabilities of
corporations, its application to different sectors and a global overview of the
branding concept.
The book carries not just explanatory examples of latest Indian brands but
also a copy of the print advertisements for the same which facilitates in relating to
the theory being discussed.
The author discusses some well established concepts like brand equity, brand
extension, brand identity models (Upshaw, Aaker, Kapferer's) and makes the read
simple for Indian students by exemplifying the concepts through Indian brands'
citation.
Unit Six of the book holds an interesting amalgamation of concepts with the
objective of the organizations, discussing brand economics and ‘Brand as a
Financial Asset’, trying to highlight the financial implications of effective brand
management.
Since services and retail are gaining evident importance in our economy, so
the book has a section devoted on branding in these sectors and the need to wake
up to its requirement.
The book wraps itself up with a global perspective on branding and finally
describes the relevance of branding by the fact that India, as a nation too, has made
efforts in the direction of being recognized as a brand and it has succeeded in the
same.
Overall the author gives a widespread view of Brand Management, in
accordance with the syllabus of major institutes and universities across India.
Meghna Rishi, Assistant Professor, Institute for International Management and
Technology, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
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Lowell L. Brayan, Claudia I. Joyce., Mobilizing Minds, India: Tata McGraw-
Hill, 2007. 316 p. Rs. 525/- Hard Bond.
'Mobilizing Minds' turns out to be an extremely exciting read. The book provides
a perspective on how 'sustainable competitive advantage' is within reach of every
business enterprise that chooses to mobilize the correct ingredients to harness the
almost unlimited potential of its stakeholders to add continuous value.
Authors on one hand take our attention to an established reality called
'Globalization' and on the other hand identify a burning need for firms to learn
how to compete in the 21st century global economy. In the introductory chapter,
the statement "all companies can increase their returns from talent and create
wealth by designing organizations that fit the 21st century" sets the tone for
probing the role of design and processes in enabling businesses to optimally
utilize available recourses and capabilities. The discussion in chapter three adds
valuable insight into the role of organization structure and associated arguments
about installing a 'hierarchy' that works. The need for an empowered and enabled
front line, is very effectively linked with an equally relevant aspect- leadership
through the innovative 'backbone line structure'.
In the chapter on financial performance measurement, the authors offer an
interesting critical examination of how the 'profit center' approach to assessing
fiscal performance of line managers in a firm needs to grow into a 'contribution
center' approach which is likely to serve as a far more effective tool for appraisal
purposes.
On the whole the book provides some great ideas and valuable perspectives
to support understanding of strategic theory elements in terms of the realities of a
global economy. The language expression remains effective and use of real business
contexts to drive home key points ensures that a reader remains connected. The
work makes a sound investment for academia and middle management level business
professional, however the depth and width of perspectives render it a little hard to
grasp for undergrad students or entry-level managers at large. No issues in terms of
a logical flow of thought and expression as the book progresses.
Sandeep Munjal, Programme Director, Institute for International Management
and Technology, Gurgaon, Haryana, India.
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