Arogyaswamy and Simmons combine the technique of value analysis and the concept of the value chain to build a perspective on value that is at once comprehensive and practical. They provide a methodology for formulating value-based strategy as well as a system for managing the value-directed organization. The management system proposed is based upon the high value Just-in-Time (JIT) and Total Quality Control (TQC) principles successfully deployed by numerous Japanese (and more recently American) firms. In a sense, this book brings together the American and Japanese streams of value creation.

Essentially, the authors argue that accepting, and indeed increasing, interdependencies within activities (design, operations, marketing) is imperative in order not only to create value but also to build the value-creating organization. Effective integration among activities is the second key ingredient, while involvement by deemphasizing power-based relationships--by providing knowledge and information, as well as the opportunity and the desire to use both--is the third requirement, and one that makes the process of value creation self-sustaining. The authors discuss the cultural traits most conducive to value enhancement and specifically tackle the ingraining process. The measurement of improvements both in value-as received and in the process of value delivery itself is extensively discussed. Numerous practical value indicators to assess progress in value creation are proposed. Being a judicious how-to, why-to amalgam, the book will appeal equally to executives and managers seeking to install value as a guide to action, as well as to graduate and advance undergraduate students seeking the rationale underlying value management.

Until recently, double-digit economic growth was not unusual among Asian countries and, in fact, had come to be expected of them. From western India to northeastern China, markets were booming and incredible numbers of foreign investors were racing into the Asian markets. Scholars have written laudatory books and articles, politicians want to ensure that trade with Asian countries continues on a rising trajectory, and business leaders have become the new promoters of Asian prosperity. This book attempts to inject a note of caution and reality, while giving Asian countries well-deserved credit for improving their economic status.

Technological, managerial, and institutional deficiencies need to be addressed in Asian countries if the progress of the past two decades is to be restored and preserved. Although Asian nations, particularly Japan, have invested heavily in R&D, their success mainly derives from process improvements and not from new product innovations. Technology and science are the foundations of modern economic civilization, and Asia's assets fall behind Western countries in both areas. The centrality of family-based organizations in some Asian economies and the dependence on horizontal/vertical networks in others also limits the ability of Asian firms to become global operations. The lack of adequate institutions such as an independent judiciary and a responsive polity, and the absence of organizations to bridge the gap between between familism and the government, results in an uncertain societal framework in much of Asia. If robust economic growth is to return, Asian economies must rectify the weaknesses Arogyaswamy exposes in this provocative and timely book.