The Leader's Guide to Coaching & Mentoring is a highly practical handbook that helps managers get the most out of their people. It includes grounded advice on the practicalities of both coaching and mentoring - such as how to structure a session - as well as core content on: * The skills required for coaching and mentoring, including listening, questioning, observing body language, challenging and affirming * The established processes for coaching and mentoring, such as GROW, relational coaching, reverse mentoring and solution-focused coaching * The scenarios in which coaching and mentoring skills are particularly appropriate, for example, coaching under-performers, coaching star performers and coaching for career development There is also a handy section on the 10 pitfalls to avoid when coaching or mentoring. Written in the no-nonsense and engaging style of the other Leader's Guide books, this is the best tool on the market for managers wanting to coach their people to optimum performance. 'In this hands-on book, Mike and Fiona highlight the real difference between conventional management and effective leadership: management is a profession, while coaching is much wider; it encourages social interaction and a focus on human relationships at work. That's what new generations expect and respect.' Laurent Choain, Chief People & Communication Officer, Mazars Group 'It's not always easy for managers to recognise what real coaching is, let alone its value. This book makes a compelling case for the Manager as Coach and contains real, usable examples of how to go about it.' Ian Johnston, Chief Executive, Dubai Financial Services Authority

A powerful "how-to-do-it-better" book, this is the first guidebook on competitive intelligence that uses case studies to provide behind-the-scenes insights into how professionals improve competitive intelligence processes. All organizations need to stay competitive in their respective fields to ensure success. Competitive intelligence (CI) is an established discipline that focuses on giving businesses and nonprofit organizations the advantage of staying fully informed about what their competitors are doing, are capable of doing, and will likely do. CI is a particularly valuable and powerful tool that supports everything from strategic planning to marketing and new business development to human resources-if it's executed properly. This groundbreaking book uses real-world case studies to expose common CI challenges and present a simple methodology for spotting problems, understanding how to rectify each problem, educating others in order to bring about improvements in a process, and testing and validating that the changes are working. Competitive Intelligence Rescue: Getting It Right provides invaluable insights from Carolyn M. Vella and John J. McGonagle, two of the most prolific authors, recognized experts, and in-demand speakers on the topic of competitive intelligence worldwide. Any manager, executive, or owner of any organization-including medium-sized and large enterprises such as businesses, law firms, hospitals, nonprofits, and universities-as well as anyone inside or outside of a firm who provides competitive intelligence to managers or executives will benefit from reading this book, regardless of previous experience with or knowledge about CI. Provides readers with practical tools and strategies to immediately identify and address their CI problems Enables businesses to realize discernible improvements in performance, planning, competitiveness, and agility Offers helpful checklists and other easy-to-use aids to make improving CI operations a straightforward process Serves leaders in any organization-for profit or nonprofit-charged with the challenge of maintaining a competitive edge in their industry

Society's growing dependence on information technology for survival has elevated the importance of controlling and evaluating information systems. A sound plan for auditing information systems and the technology that supports them is a necessity for organizations to improve the IS benefits and allow the organization to manage the risks associated with technology. Auditing Information Systems gives a global vision of auditing and control, exposing the major techniques and methods. It provides guidelines for auditing the crucial areas of IT--databases, security, maintenance, quality, and communications.

"True to form, Melvin Greer's futurist thinking provides new applicability to Software as a Service that identifies ways of reducing costs, creating greater efficiencies, and ultimately providing significant long-term value through business transformation. He continues to be on the cutting edge of merging business function evolution and technology innovation to increase customer satisfaction and return on investments."
-Kevin Manuel-Scott, chairman and CEO, RONIN IT Services, LLC

"Melvin Greer provides an excellent guide to the Cloud computing IT model with a solid overview of concepts, business aspects, technical implications, benefits, challenges, and trends. Definitely a 'must read' for IT managers and enterprise architects considering adoption of this flexible, beneficial business model within their organization."
-John Magnuson, senior staff engineer, Lockheed Martin

"This book offers the most comprehensive view of Cloud computing and SaaS on the market today. The author skillfully lays out a game plan for government and commercial entities alike looking to stay relevant in this burgeoning business paradigm."
-Ken Brown, program account executive, IBM Federal

Almost every business reaches a time when the fundamentals change. This time is referred to as a strategic inflection point.

Adopting new technology or fighting the competition may not be enough when these critical moments arise. That's because inflection points build up force so quickly that organizations may have a hard time even putting a finger on what has changed. The way a firm responds could propel it to new heights or lead to its demise.

Over the last few years, industry has begun developing a model of information technology known as Cloud computing, which includes Software as a Service. This new model has reached an inflection point and will give users the choice to purchase IT as a service, as a complement to, or as a replacement of the traditional IT software/hardware infrastructure purchase.

It's time for businesses to transform how they approach advanced software and innovative business models so they can achieve real agility. If you are a decision maker involved with the deployment of information technology, then it's imperative that you understand "Software as a Service Inflection Point."

Shows how the principles of Action LearningA" can be used to enhance performance and help manage change in the workplace. Much has been written about the challenges of managing change in organisations and the importance of keeping people motivated and positive throughout the process. This practical guide shows how action learning can help change to 'stick'. Apart from the benefits to teams, departments and organisations, action learning can also be valuable for personal development. It is an extremely cost effective way to help people and their organisations move forward in today's fast changing world. This book will show you how.

How have employment relations evolved over the last decade? And how did workplaces and employees fare in the face of the longest recession in living memory? Employment Relations in the Shadow of Recession examines the state of British employment relations in 2011, how this has changed since 2004, and the role the recession played in shaping employees' experiences of work. It draws on findings from the 2011 Workplace Employment Relations Study, comparing these with the results of the previous study conducted in 2004. These surveys - each collecting responses from around 2,500 workplace managers, 1,000 employee representatives and over 20,000 employees - provide the most comprehensive portrait available of workplace employment relations in Britain. The book provides an in-depth analysis of the changes made to employment practices through the recession and of the impact that the economic downturn had on the shape and character of the employment relationship.

Trends in cleaner business decisions have resulted in sustainable business models involving society, stakeholders, and consumers. Sustainable choices of companies create competitive differentiations that enable consumers to weigh social values and shift loyalties in the competitive marketplace. This book focuses on sustainability as the pivot of marketing and argues that commitment to sustainability in business not only equips companies to have greater social impact but also inspires an emotional response in consumers that aids companies in growing their image, brands, and socio-political reputations. Exploring topics such as the circular economy, sustainable logistics, eco-innovation, conscious consumption, and social entrepreneurship, the chapters discuss sustainable practices in emerging markets and co-creation between corporations and consumers. This book offers researchers innovative concepts on sustainable business modelling.

The book discusses the opportunities and challenges of managing knowledge in the new reality of Industry 4.0. Addressing paradigmatic changes in value creation due to the development of digital technologies applied to manufacturing (additive manufacturing, IoT, robotics, etc.), it includes theoretical and empirical contributions on how Industry 4.0 technologies allow firms to create and exploit knowledge. The carefully selected expert contributions highlight the potential of these technologies in acquiring knowledge from a larger number of sources and examine approaches to innovation, organization of activities, and stakeholder development in the context of this next industrial revolution.

One of the most pivotal tasks of a regional government is to find different and innovative ways to develop their economies. Formulating universities, in that respect, potentially holds the key to competitive global economic success. Smart Specialization Strategies and the Role of Entrepreneurial Universities is a crucial reference source that examines a new competitive paradigm where universities can act as a partner institution, policy actor, and producer of knowledge that can affect the potential for economic growth and development of regions. While highlighting topics such as economic development, entrepreneurship ecosystem evolution, and regional competitiveness, this publication explores the varying dynamics that are evolving toward the successful mobilization of university resources on regional economies. This book is ideally designed for policymakers, administrators, researchers, developers, academicians, marketers, and business professionals.

Leading people in today's complex world is challenging. There are regulations, unions, lawyers, and more to deal with on a daily basis. Written by a longtime human resources consultant, this guidebook helps you develop your leadership skills so you can recruit qualified applicants; interview candidates with confidence; hire the right people; train new employees and keep the best performers; deal with unions; and stay out of court.

In addition to the basics, you'll learn how to respond to situations that catch you off guard. For instance, what do you do if your best employee tells you that he or she is leaving to join a competitor? What if one of your employees takes a public stand against one of your policies? What if someone you fire for theft hires a lawyer who sends you a nasty letter?

Other textbooks on human resources management focus on theories and statistics, but "A Practical Guide to Human Resources Management "provides real-life examples to help you handle any situation with leadership that inspires confidence.

This book provides well-founded insights and guidance to (self-)manage work in a globalized and digitalized knowledge economy with a perspective of the year 2030. International researchers and practitioners draw a picture of how, when, and where we will work most probably in 10 years. Many cases and examples make this work a compendium for learning and for implementing new leadership and management practices. The book assists managers, knowledge workers, human resource professionals, consultants, trainers, coaches in business, public administration, and non-profit organizations to shape the future of work. Drawing on the authors' more than twenty years of research, teaching, and consulting experience, this is one of the first professional guidebooks to analyze and discuss strategies for digital and disruptive changes at the workplace.

The world is moving into a new era of the knowledge economy. In the past decade, the significance of developing knowledge has grown to a level where it is now dominating other socio-economic factors. Systems Approaches to Knowledge Management, Transfer, and Resource Development provides a new view of knowledge management through the lens of systems approach, which looks at each part of the knowledge management system as a section of the full overview. This cutting-edge resource will be essential for academicians, scientists, practitioners, and industry professionals as all of these individuals work toward a new understanding of knowledge and information management practices in the 21st century.

This book is developed by focusing on the four issues: (1) product strategy of private brand; (2) pricing strategy of private brand; (3) channel strategy with private brand introduction; and (4) supply chain coordination with private brand introduction. Private brand (PB), also known as private label (PL) or store brand (SB), refers to a brand created and controlled by a retailer. In the 1960s and 1970s, private labels began to emerge in France and England. Although private label has grown rapidly worldwide, market share varies greatly from region to region. According to Nielsen's 2018 Global Private Label Report, the largest markets for private-label products are found primarily in the more mature European retail markets. In recent years, many large domestic retail enterprises have launched their own brand products. With the growth of e-commerce, some online retailers have also launched private-label goods. JD started to introduce its private brands in 2010, with annual sales of its private brand products reaching several hundred million yuan. However, at present, the market share of China's private label is only 1-3%, which still has a big gap compared with Europe and America.The main challenges to China's private label lie in private brand operations management. Among them, how to select the correct product categories, how to make pricing decision, how to restructure channels and how to coordinate supply chain after introducing private brands are four operations management problems need to be solved.

Contemporary Product Development: A Focus on Innovation engages learners with a proven framework to design, develop, and go to market with innovative products that solve consumer problems while also supporting the mission, values, and brand of the company which created them. The book's framework, the Go-To-Market Aura Plan (GT-MAP), emphasizes two key practices for innovative product development-speed and creating aura. This dual approach includes an overview of critical concepts in neuroscience, sustainability, and product design methods, as well as a demystification of the step-by-step, iterative processes critical to introducing a high-performing product to market as quickly and effectively as possible. Simultaneously, the approach builds interest among consumers with proven techniques that gain attention, foster excitement, and then convert consumer excitement into demand well before a product is launched. The text describes how to inspire designers and developers to create innovative, high-performance products that consumers crave through exceptional communication, team building, presentation and validation, and prediction of a product's performance, pre- and post-launch, to ensure its success. Designed to inspire innovation, Contemporary Product Development is an ideal resource for courses in business, especially those with focus on product development.

Rapid changes in technological development are forcing businesses to continuously innovate to improve their competitiveness, which is particularly evident in logistics and supply chain management (SCM), where innovation impacts both the strategic and operational levels. Supply Chain Innovation for Competing in Highly Dynamic Markets: Challenges and Solutions investigates the role of innovation in the management of supply chains of today. This book focuses on supply chain integration from both strategic and operational perspectives and the impact of information technology-related innovation in supply chain and logistics service industries. It also analyzes how environmental innovation affects logistical decisions throughout the supply chain and the strategies employed in managing logistics-related environmental impacts. Finally, the book explores theoretical and practical implications of innovation in the management of supply systems.

Innovation is critically important for countries seeking to maintain or improve their competitive advantage in the global economy. This book addresses the major current policy debates in science, technology and innovation focusing mainly on Europe but also including comparisons with other countries around the world.The R&D policies of five European countries - the UK, The Netherlands, France, Finland and Germany - are examined to understand national innovation systems and public policies, the determination of R&D spending priorities, research responsibilities and the allocation of funds. The authors combine interviews with senior civil servants, analyses of government publications and various government statistics on R&D performance. They consider national debates on science, technology and innovation policies within the wider context of the overarching political and administrative culture, and relate actual innovation and research policies to structural and institutional features of national economies. This book will be warmly welcomed by scholars and all those in decision making positions in government and non-governmental institutions on research, innovation and technology.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is influencing the future of almost every sector and human being. AI has been the primary driving force behind emerging technologies such as big data, blockchain, robots, and the internet of things (IoT), and it will continue to be a technological innovator for the foreseeable future. New algorithms in AI are changing business processes and deploying AI-based applications in various sectors. The Handbook of Research on AI and Knowledge Engineering for Real-Time Business Intelligence is a comprehensive reference that presents cases and best practices of AI and knowledge engineering applications on business intelligence. Covering topics such as deep learning methods, face recognition, and sentiment analysis, this major reference work is a dynamic resource for business leaders and executives, IT managers, AI scientists, students and educators of higher education, librarians, researchers, and academicians.

This book examines inventory and production strategies that can reduce unexpected breakdown costs. It highlights different EPQ models to deal with such problems, providing optimal value derivations for decision variables. It provides proofs for concavity or convexity of objective functions. The chapters also include numerical examples for all the developed mathematical models. Imperfect Inventory Systems: Inventory and Production Management and Breakdown should be useful for professionals working on supply chains, but also researchers in operations research and inventory management.

The impacts of the digital transformation on society in general, and particularly on people's lives, are the subject of increasing debate among policymakers, researchers and industry. This book explores the challenges of this new revolution, identifies solutions, and demonstrates how knowledge management can enable the transition process associated with the digital transformation, guided by the principles of sustainability. Featuring contributions by experts from diverse areas of science and business - on topics ranging from the digital transformation of knowledge management in the public sector, to the creation of sustainable smart cities, regions and countries, and from using AI for business models to food security - it provides a comprehensive discourse on the digital transformation's impacts on employment, education, governance, social life, sustainability, values, the economy and democracy.

Easy to follow, friendly, and conversational How to Talk Finance will help you get the low down on the numbers behind your business -what they are, what they mean and how you can use them to get ahead.

Management is a constellation of concepts and ideas. Its many definitions span the boundaries of leadership and strategy on the one hand and business administration on the other; from people management to P&L accounts, to both change and stability, sometimes simultaneously. There are few concepts that have attracted as much business interest as the management of organisations. Presenting a wide, deep and engaged body of research about management, this book explores how management competencies have developed over time and whether these are still relevant to the management of contemporary organizations. The author addresses this question by tracing the evolution of management competencies from the First to the Fourth Industrial revolution, investigating the role and style of managers in each 'revolution' and in multiple geographies. Ultimately, this book suggests that that five 'core management competencies; will be relevant as the Fourth Industrial Revolution gathers momentum.