Sunday, December 14, 1997

Sunday, December 14, 1997

Sunday, December 14, 1997

Thought-provoking, entertaining books on business and the economy

By Teresa McUsic / Knight-Ridder Newspapers

Each year, I put together a list of books that I think would make great gifts for the holidays.

This column is devoted to a group of thought-provoking, entertaining and enlightening looks at business and the economy. Next week, will be my top picks among the personal finance books.

One of the most interesting and truly hilarious books I read all year was from former Labor Secretary Robert B. Reich, "Locked in the Cabinet" (Alfred A. Knopf, 338 pages, $25).

A noted economist and Harvard professor-turned-bureaucrat, Reich is credited with influencing much of the economic package touted by Bill Clinton that got him elected.

Along with very funny accounts of Washington inner workings, Reich has some powerful observations of the economy: "Almost one in five of the children of America is living in poverty, without adequate food or clothing or a place to live. "The wealthiest nation in the history of the world," and we've been splitting into the have-mores and the have-lesses. The whole economy has been transformed from high-volume" production (based on repetitive tasks) to high-value" production (based on thought and knowledge)."

A thought-provoking look at where we stand as a nation, economically, and where we're headed, along with some ideas on how to make it better for all.

Another explanantion of today's topsy-turvy economic world comes from Michael Mandel, a Harvard Ph.D. and economics editor of Business Week magazine, in his book "The High-Risk Society: Peril and Promise in the New Economy" (Times Business, $25).

In addition to excellent reporting on the global economic picture, Mandel theorizes on why Americans are "gloomy" with such a booming economy.

He identifies four forces driving growth: foreign trade, technological changes, corporate restructuring and government deregulation.

Embracing those very risks in today's marketplace is the only way to succeed, he writes.

"Economic uncertainty is the price that must be paid for growth," he writes.

Mandel gives some ideas on how workers can survive the new risks.

Meanwhile, those hippie ice cream moguls, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, tell business leaders to be more responsible to the world in their book, "Ben & Jerry's Double Dip: Lead with Your Values and Make Money, Too" (Simon & Schuster, 300 pages, $24).

No small task. But Cohen and Greenfield aptly point out that business has become "the most powerful force in society." So who better to turn to in order to solve society's problems?

Besides, they quickly add, the better that companies treat their communities, the more money they'll make.

"You don't have to sacrifice social involvement on the altar of maximized profits," they write. "One builds on the other. The more we actualize our commitment to social change through our business activities, the more loyal customers we attract and the more profitable we become."

Finally, if your company is in serious need of ready cash, take a look at "Direct Public Offerings: The New Method For Taking Your Company Public" (Sourcebooks, Naperville, Ill., 217 pages, $19.95).

It's written by Drew Field, a consultant who has put together more than $100 million in corporate shares in more than 20 DPOs for entrepreneurs.

Direct public offerings are different from the more traditional initial public offerings in that a DPO uses direct marketing to sell its shares, while an IPO uses a group of securities firms to do the selling.

Technology, specifically the use of the Internet to market the shares of company offerings, will play a major role in the DPO, Field writes.

"We are entering the stage where the techniques of direct marketing will create a flow of capital from individual investors to entrepreneurs, telecomputer trading markets will bring liquidity and a sense of fairness to individuals who invest in new shares, and the new capital will finance cybernetics, the technology that replaces human labor, freeing investors from dependence on wages," he writes.

A brave new world, and a book worth exploring.

Here are the year's best.

(Hard cover)

1. "The Millionaire Next Door," by Thomas J. Stanley

2. "F.I.A.S.C.O.," by Frank Partnoy

3. "The Excel Phenomenon," by James W. Robinson

4. "The Dilbert Future," by Scott Adams

5. "Wall Street Money Machine," by Wade B. Cook

6. "Buffetology," by Mary Buffet and David Clark

7. "Selling the Invisible," by Harry Beckwith

8. "Inside Intel," by Tim Jackson

9. "Stock Market Miracles," by Wade B. Cook

10. "Pour Your Heart Into It," by Howard Schultz and Dori Jones Yang

BLURBS:

--"Dogbert's Top Secret Management Handbook," by Scott Adams; HarperBusiness, $11.95, paperback

For those of you who missed this bestseller in hardback, it's now out in the cheaper paperback version -- and it's just as funny. Adams truly captures with humor and insight the often insane world of business. In this book on management, he takes on empowerment, team building and layoffs as he shows the '90s manager for who he usually is.

--"Profit From Experience: Practical, Proven Skills for Transforming Your Organization," by Gil Amelio and William Simon Simon & Schuster, $14 Another bestseller from last year now out in paperback, this book is written by a great self-promoter, Gil Amelio, formerly of National Semiconductor and Apple Computer. He credits himself with turning both of those companies around through his management skills, although that is debatable, certainly in the case of Apple, where he was booted out after one year. This book focuses mainly on his National Semiconductor experience. --"America's Stupidest Business Decisions: 101 Blunders, Flops & Screw-ups," by Bill Adler and Julie Houghton William Morrow & Co., $9.95

Business mistakes made by greats ranging from Thomas Edison and Henry Ford to Apple Computer's John Scully and Disney's Michael Eisner are included in this book that scans the history of American business. The stories are short, but often have an interesting historical or modern-day analysis that readers will likely not know about.