The relentless pursuit of industrial efficiency no longer yields the profits it once did because it requires a level of business predictability that no longer exists. Instead, the Internet and global video and telecom systems provide a massive and continuous flow of data that causes the whole world to behave like a giant stock market, with all the volatility and uncertainty that goes along with such markets. Responsiveness now trumps efficiency.""

By being responsive to the evolving needs and desires of specific groups of customers, companies can wrap their products and services in a tailored blanket of value-added services to consistently earn an additional four percent or more gross margin than they would otherwise earn for the product or service alone. This customer and market specialization is the most promising and the most sustainable source of profits in our fluid, real-time economy.

Part of the Microsoft Executive Leadership Series, "Sustainable Prosperity" discusses the three fundamental process loops that drive an agile enterprise and how they work together to deliver the responsiveness that generates profits in a high-change economy. Providing strategies for innovative and pragmatic use of people, process, and technology to drive operations in an agile enterprise, this book reveals the principles of the agile enterprise, backed by real-world case studies from the author's own experience.

Michael Hugos is a speaker, writer, and practitioner in IT and business agility, and agile system development methods. He writes a column for "Computerworld" and a blog titled "Doing Business in Real Time" for "CIO" magazine.

Set in the declining days of the Roman Empire, this searching and historically accurate memoir by the son of a noble family tells of his journey to the court of the emperor to appeal for protection of his city from raiding tribes. When he is accused of treason by a corrupt general and court official, his fate and that of his family and his city are forever changed by the way he answers this charge. Based on a true story by a Roman historian. His is a world of fading Roman power, raiding tribes and corrupt imperial officials. The people of Leptis Magna look to him for guidance and protection. He does not know which way to turn. In the deafening silence and remorseless presence of the Sahara desert, an answer appears.

This short and practical handbook is dedicated to the idea that there is a set of highly effective strategies and tactics that chief information officers (CIOs) and other IT professionals can use to significantly increase the effectiveness of their own work and the competitiveness and profitability of their companies. Even though information technology itself is changing rapidly, these strategies and tactics transcend any particular technology, and they remain highly relevant over time: -- Seven strategic guidelines for designing application systems -- Six tactical principles for running projects -- Five questions to answer every day on every project -- Create agile IT organizations using three "agility loops" -- Agile "30-Day Blitz" Define-Design-Build development process Frequent use of diagrams and case studies to illustrate key points throughout the book.