Once one of the world's largest staple food producers, Angola is now known as a major oil exporter - the second largest producer in sub-Saharan Africa. Angola is also the world's fourth largest producer of rough diamonds in terms of value, with the potential to become one of the leading global diamond producers. In addition to oil and diamonds, the country is well endowed with agricultural resources which remain mostly untapped. However, despite the country's significant natural wealth, a prolonged civil war, the rapid development of the oil sector, and the policies pursued after Independence in 1975 have left the Angolan economy in a unique situation, characterized by very uneven indicators of development. The Angolan economy is now experiencing massive oil windfall gains that are expected to last throughout the next decade. Since oil rents are to a large part concentrated in the public sector, the question of how the oil revenue should be spent and distributed across present and future generations becomes key to any economic development strategy. This study identifies six core areas where a strategic approach for the development of a broad-based growth strategy is required: (i) the incomplete transition to a market economy; (ii) macroeconomic management; (iii) governance and transparency in the management of the mineral wealth; (iv) the business environment; (v) agriculture; and (vi) public service delivery to the poor.

Price: $14.99 USD

Mission statements are everywhere: you have to have one, whether you're a Fortune 500 company, a hedge fund, a primary school, a church or a hockey club. Without a mission statement, who would know what your values are, or what your culture is? And how then, going forward, will you get buy-in on your strategy and uptake of your brand? The language of modern management has triumphed, transforming clear, everyday communication into meaningless sludge. To sound professional, you must express everything in abstract nouns, and each noun in terms of another one; you must talk about synergy and strategy, uptake and outcomes and outputs and inputs, key performance indicators and drivers and customer experience - even if your 'customers' are in fact patients in your hospital. This language is deliberately obscure and falsely scientific; what is more worrying, those who use it have lost the very ability to think clearly. From Don Watson, the author of Death Sentence and Weasel Words, comes this new assortment of noxious management drivel and financial market blather. Read them aloud - then try the exercises. The disease may not yet have run its course, but Watson's acerbic wit restores hope in the power of well-chosen words to entertain and to inspire.

Price: $19.02 USD

Proven techniques for leading-instead of following-fast-changing markets. Investors, no matter what strategy they are using, can be placed into two categories. Single-minded, inflexible hedgehogs lock into one strategy and stick with it through thick and thin. Dynamic, adaptable foxes, on the other hand, are alert for changes, learn from experience, embrace new ideas, and make the most of new trends and technologies. The key lies in being flexible and realizing that markets are dynamic. Invest Like a Fox . . . Not Like a Hedgehog shows investors how being a hedgehog can reduce returns while increasing the risk of a portfolio, and how acquiring the cunning and adaptability of the fox will improve returns while reducing risk. It reveals the shortcomings of popular but hedgehog-like investment strategies and shows how a fox-like investor adjusts to new market realities. Readers learn how to use the renowned Bayesian Theory of Probability and other guideposts from outside the world of finance to adjust their strategies and react to new information.

Price: $24.95 USD

Viet Nam continues to emerge on the world stage, as does its new and developing market economy. In this spirit, Viet Nam's Minister of Science, Technology and Environment approached the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) in January 1997 for assistance in developing a new science and technology strategy. In response, IDRC and CIDA assembled a team of experts into a mission with the following objectives:. Assess the impact of current Vietnamese science and technology policies on the economic and social development of Viet Nam;. Compare the Vietnamese experience with regard to science and technology policies with those of other countries in East and Southeast Asia; and. Based on these finding, make recommendations on the formulation of a long-term science and technology strategy for Viet Nam. This books presents the presents the findings of the mission. It is now being used to shape policy in Viet Nam and will continue to do so in the coming years. Interested readers will include government officials and policymakers in science and technology; academics, researchers, professors,and university students in development studies, policy studies, and Asian studies; public and private businesses involved, or interested in becoming involved, in the changing economy of Viet Nam; and donor organizations and NGOs active in Viet Nam and throughout Asia.

Price: $25.00 USD

This is the eBook version of the printed book. Successful online communities don’t just happen by themselves. They’re the result of a carefully executed strategy, solid design, and patient nurturing. Though they may seem like a lot of work, the benefits an online community can bring to your brand make the efforts worthwhile. This book will provide you with the essential tools to build online communities. You’ll learn how to: • identify the business objectives for your online community • develop a community strategy to recruit and retain members • create brand loyalty, bring in new business, and offer value to customers that your competitors cannot imitate • take advantage of free advertising opportunities • use communities to gain market insights and establish a direct line to your customer base In addition, you’ll discover the risks and costs of an online community project, how it can end up saving your company money, and even how it can become an important new revenue source of its own. You’ll also be inspired by exclusive interviews, where the people who manage thriving online communities share the lessons they’ve learned and the secrets of their success.

Price: $27.99 USD

The breakthrough marketing strategy from the world's most innovative advertising agency. One of the largest and most successful advertising companies in the world, Dentsu has pioneered a sophisticated new cross-communication strategy--and now it's being revealed for the first time. In a world saturated with marketing messages, making your offering relevant is your biggest challenge. Dentsu's Cross Switch model meets it head on. The Dentsu Way shares proven tactics for getting your message to consumers and creating "scenarios" to move them through calibrated Contact Points to meet whatever specific goal you set. This game-changing book: Explains Dentsu's 110-year history and unique service structure, as well as its broad range of business fields; Introduces ten case studies of successful campaigns, which have won international advertising awards at events such as the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival and ADFEST; Provides nine of Dentsu's newest original tools and analysis methods. Gain broader, more meaningful customer involvement and penetrate more deeply than ever into your market by following the Dentsu Way.

Price: $28.00 USD

`Markets don`t decline, they shift` says Jagdeep Kapoor in his thought provoking new book. Once again, Kapoor presents a powerful and effective roadmap on how to build successful brands. Terming these nine key brand elements as `Shaastras`, he highlights important truths that each marketer must know to build healthy brands. Beginning from the `Need Shaastra`, which is the genesis of every product, Jagdeep Kapoor discusses key brand building elements such as brand awareness growth strategy (or the `Heed Shaastra`) and brand market share growth strategy (or `the Breed Shaastra`). Through a stepwise presentation of these concepts, Jagdeep Kapoor maps the entire journey of any brand from inception to success!. Simple and direct, 9 Brand Shaastras distils decades of brand building experience into an easy to read book which every marketing person must have. Numerous real life examples, combined with the author`s vast experience, will give the reader a strong grounding in the fundamentals of brand building.

Price: $38.95 USD

This refreshingly simple, practical guide demonstrates how brand management can boost business performance. It is the ideal inspiration for creating growth in today's tough economic times. Following the template of the highly successful original version, the book consists of a programme of 8 "workouts" that will help marketers raise their own game in key areas such as: insight, portfolio strategy, positioning and innovation. The tools and techniques in the book have been road-tested on over 100 brandgym projects out of the last 8 years, making this book extremely practical. Based on the inside stories of brand leaders who have achieved success: Tesco, T-Mobile, Unilever and Proctor and Gamble. These companies share their tips, tricks and warn of the traps to avoid. 50% of the content is new or updated with the latest thinking on "recession proof branding", how to win when times are tough, communication briefing, growing the core business and new research with marketing directors on the key success factors of brand leaders. The authors are most influential, appearing in The Guardian, Marketing, Brand Strategy, Market Leader and The Marketer . The CIM have called David Taylor one of the " World's 50 most important marketing thinkers ".

Price: $40.00 USD

Porter's (1980) book Competitive Strategy has received a great deal of attention in the strategic management literature. Here Porter claims that competitive strategy is the search for a favorable competitive position in the industry, which can erode or improve, depending on a firm's choice of strategy. He derived a conceptual typology of three generic strategies that has already become a classic among scholars. They are cost leadership, differentiation and focus strategies. Just recently Michael Raynor (2007) challenged Porter's widely accepted typology, by including another dimension in the discussion that previously did not find consideration: risk. He claims that firms that execute pure strategies are much more exposed to corporate risk than firms that execute hybrid strategies. Two arguments support his view. First Porter's and other studies include what is called a "survivor bias", meaning that firms that went bankrupt during the investigation (with a pure strategy) do not play a role in the analysis. Second firms that have hybrid strategies are much more flexible when market preferences shift and are therefore less exposed to strategic uncertainty. Raynor's work is a valuable extension to the strategic management literature that leads to an assessment of strategic choice on at least two dimensions: profitability and risk. The contribution of the study is then twofold. First Porter's typology is tested with German data. Secondly Raynor's argument is tested, whether the very same firms that are more successful have a higher risk of running into corporate bankruptcy. In order to have the necessary information, the first section of the study reviews the literature. Here the generic strategies are explained and the most important studies on the topic are summarized in a table. Then the "Strategy Paradox" is presented that describes Raynor's argumentation for an increase in risk with pure strategies. Two conflicting theories are mentioned that deal with the question whether risk and return is positively or negatively related. In between this first part, two hypotheses are given that are tested with data from the Centre of European Economic Research in Mannheim (ZEW). Section 3 presents the dataset, the variables and the methodology. The results are analyzed in section 4 and the differences in performance and risk are compared among the strategic groups. In section 5 the most important results are discussed and potential explanations are given that lead to suggestions for further research. Additionally implications for managers are proposed and the limitations of the study are mentioned. The paper ends with a conclusion and a personal view on the discussion.

Price: $61.24 USD

How to Ensure That the Customer Is Truly Your Number One Priority How do winning organizations such as General Electric, Ericsson, and Nokia use project management to reduce time to market, trim inventory and supplier costs, and minimize obsolescence in their product lines? Why do so many companies fail when trying to do the same? In Building Customer-Based Project Organizations , two inter-nationally recognized project management gurus reveal the secrets behind these fabulous successes. Jeffrey Pinto and Pekka Rouhiainen demonstrate that building and maintaining long-term customer relationships is the key to successful project management, offering a method and an implementation strategy that companies can use to streamline their development and supply chain operations. This manual for success shows project managers how to: Place the customer at the center of the company's operational strategy Use customer needs to drive project development and supply chain management Deliver greater value to the customer and the business Increase efficiency, responsiveness, and profitability By following the clearly stated principles and methodology presented in Building Customer-Based Project Organizations , companies in any business sector can "get it right" the first time and build long-term customer relationships that will continue to increase profitability far into the future.

Price: $84.99 USD