Women Seen and Heard: Lessons Learned from Successful Speakers
Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
  • Very Valuable!!
  • Gaining Self-Esteem
  • Great Book for Young PR Professionals
  • You Need This Book
  • Beyond Public Speaking
Women Seen and Heard: Lessons Learned from Successful Speakers
Lois Phillips , and Anita Perez Ferguson
Manufacturer: Luz Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

GeneralGeneral | Women & Business | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
Running Meetings & PresentationsRunning Meetings & Presentations | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
Public SpeakingPublic Speaking | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books
GeneralGeneral | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 096733005X

Book Description

In Women Seen and Heard, experienced public speakers share their wisdom on how to get ready for and deliver dynamic presentations, whether to co-workers or managers, small groups and formal audiences or at community and political events. This indispensable book covers all you need to know including how to: overcome stage fright and be yourself, shift from a subjective to a more strategic approach when planning your speech, enliven presentations with anecdotes from your culturally diverse background, build on gender differences --like women's conversational skills--at the podium, and capitalize on your life experiences to gain credibility as the voice of authority.

Customer Reviews:

5 out of 5 stars Very Valuable!!.......2004-05-18

I wanted to pass on to you some of the great ideas I have
personally been using from this book.
First, I have been actively learning from the women speakers I have come across. Developing my "role models" is important to me at this stage of the game.
Second , as a woman of color, I really appreciated chapter 10. The points that are touch on are so crucial. Establishing your credibility from the start -and keeping it- is so important, not only in speaking engagements but also in life.
For any woman that wants to seen and heard in her life this book is a very valuable tool!!!

5 out of 5 stars Gaining Self-Esteem.......2004-03-30

Public speaking is a wonderful way to gain self-confidence and self-esteem. This book is a gem in that it helps women become more sure of themselves in the competitive world of men.

The book is well-written and helpful to all who wish to know how to speak clearly.

5 out of 5 stars Great Book for Young PR Professionals.......2004-03-29

Both very useful and fun to read, unlike a lot of "How-to" public speaking books. I appreciated the history mixed in, too.
I do public relations for high tech companies so I'm required to be a good communicator, but I often run into huge challenges because of the fact that I work with technologists (who are notoriously bad communicators) and 99% of whom are male and have a tendency to immediately dismiss me as a source of valuable insight because I'm young, attractive, and female. In battling past those first impressions, I've found that effective communication is 20% what you say and 80% how you say it. Although at first blush this seems to be geared only to professional public speaking, the examples in it are really good for everyday interactions as well. A great book!

5 out of 5 stars You Need This Book.......2004-02-28

Watching women break through the glass ceiling when I was an executive at Catalyst convinced me of the importance of effective communication skills for women's success in the workplace. Written in a winningly personal style by two seasoned pro's, Women Seen and Heard is chock-full of practical advice, insights on overcoming the stereotypes that women speakers still face, and exercises sure to yield immediate results. Whether you are new to public speaking or an old hand at the podium, you need this book!

5 out of 5 stars Beyond Public Speaking.......2004-02-14

Here, at last, is a practical guide to enable women to assess how they present themselves not only on the podium but in almost every context of their lives. The accomplished authors are not male aversive, but very supportive of our capitalizing on our feminine perspective and it's delivery in a riveting manner that is "seen and heard". As a psychotherapist, I wish I had had this book long ago as a support to my clients who could not find or doubted their true voice on stage, in the workplace, and even in their interpersonal relationships. Bravo! and thank you Lois and Anita.
Successful Spokespersons Are Made, Not Born: How to Control the Direction of Media Interviews & Deliver Winning Presentations
Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
  • Just Awful
  • Strong Tips Here
  • Quick read packed with practical strategies
Successful Spokespersons Are Made, Not Born: How to Control the Direction of Media Interviews & Deliver Winning Presentations
Hal Hart
Manufacturer: Authorhouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

CommunicationsCommunications | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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SpeechSpeech | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1587213664

Customer Reviews:

1 out of 5 stars Just Awful.......2006-07-07

Filled with typos and sentences that simply make no sense, "Successful Spokespersons" borders on being absolutely useless. The book opens with endless pages of bragging about who Hart trained and what he did and yada yada yada, then drones on, only occasionally offering something the reader looking for public speaking tips can actually use.

The book appears self-published, and makes some dreadful mistakes in graphics and layout. It also repeats itself in just the first four pages in that "About The Book" and the "Foreward" contain virtually the same exact copy!

For a guy who's all about presentations, you'd think he'd know better. The book isn't so much a how-to as it is a history of Hal Hart's career as a public speaking instructor.

I've no idea how I got suckered into this one, but stay away. I've read far greater books on the subject.

3 out of 5 stars Strong Tips Here.......2004-11-26

Hart gives many strong and solid tips here on how to be an above average spokesperson. A quick and worthwhile read.

5 out of 5 stars Quick read packed with practical strategies.......2001-01-20

Hal Hart condenses years of experience and a thorough knowledge of media relations and human tendencies in this compact volume. An absolute must-read for any person speaking to a group of any size, it is especially essential for leaders and spokespersons of organizations. Hart's writing is practical and to-the-point. If you haven't taken presentation or media training, you will find this book an invaluable resource. If you have, you will find it a great refresher.
Meeting of Minds : The Complete Scripts, With Illustrations, of the Amazingly Successful PBS-TV Series - Series II
Average customer rating: 4 out of 5 stars
  • Meeting of Minds - Series II
Meeting of Minds : The Complete Scripts, With Illustrations, of the Amazingly Successful PBS-TV Series - Series II
Steve Allen
Manufacturer: Prometheus Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Guides & ReviewsGuides & Reviews | Television | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0879755652

Book Description

The nation's television critics voted Steve Allen's scripts for "Meeting of Minds" as the "Best TV Writing of 1976-1977," together with James Costigan's "Eleanor and Franklin." Subsequently the series won the Peabody Award, an Encyclopaedia Britannica Award, the Film Advisory Board Award, and an offical endorsement by the National Education Association.

The present volume contains the Second Series of six scripts. The first two bring together the Marquis de Sade, eighteenth-century economist-jurist Cesare Beccaria, China's Dowager Empress Tz'u-hsi, and American abolitionist Frederick Douglass, who discuss their ideas and experiences. The second two shows feature Martin Luther, Voltaire, Plato, and Florence Nightingale. The final two include Sir Francis Bacon, Socrates, Mexican revolutionary Emiliano Zapata, and Susan B. Anthony.

This is the second of four volumes of scripts from the First through the Fourth Series of "Meeting of Minds."

Customer Reviews:

4 out of 5 stars Meeting of Minds - Series II.......2006-08-15

In addition to examining timely social issues and philosophical questions, these scripts, Series I & II, take an irresitible form. Almost everyone has fantasized about whom they would invite for an evening of conversation if they could invite anyone who ever lived. Many of us have thought about it. Steve Allen did it. Picture Emily Dickinson chatting with Attila the Hun. Who wouldn't want to hear what they would say to each other?
The Art of Lecturing: A Practical Guide to Successful University Lectures and Business Presentations
Average customer rating: Not rated
    The Art of Lecturing: A Practical Guide to Successful University Lectures and Business Presentations
    Parham Aarabi
    Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
    ProductGroup: Book
    Binding: Paperback

    GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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    ASIN: 0521703522

    Book Description

    This volume is a simple and clear guide to lecturing. It offers strategies for successful lectures in the academic and business communities. Told from a lecturing mindset, this book aims to combat fear and nervousness, while presenting successful tricks and tactics. Parham Aarabi discusses a wide array of practical ideas that may surprise and help even the most experienced public speakers. In addition, Aarabi provides a unique insight into lecturing for 21st century audiences based on his own lecturing experiences at the University of Toronto and Stanford University. Aarabi is the winner of the 2004 IEEE Mac Van Valkenburg Early Career Teaching Award for ‘inspirational classroom instruction’.
    The Successful Speaker: 273 Tips for Powerful Presentations
    Average customer rating: Not rated
      The Successful Speaker: 273 Tips for Powerful Presentations
      Mandar Marathe
      Manufacturer: Ashwood House Publishing Ltd
      ProductGroup: Book
      Binding: Paperback

      GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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      ASIN: 0955487307

      Book Description

      "The Successful Speaker: 273 Tips for Powerful Presentations" is the essential handbook for preparing effective & powerful presentations. It contains a wealth of ideas and inspiration for anyone giving conference talks, speeches, business proposals, sales pitches, lectures, seminars, tutorials and interview presentations. Dr Mandar Marathe combines the latest thinking on what it takes to deliver powerful presentations with an informal style of writing to give you an easy-to-use, practical guide to making your presentations successful. The book includes chapters on planning your presentation, preparing the delivery, preparing effective PowerPoint slides, preparing a handout, rehearsing your presentation, things to do just before the presentation, how to deal with your nerves, delivering the presentation, handling a question and answer session and making contacts after the presentation.
      Public Speaking: Proven Techniques for Giving Successful Talks Every Time
      Average customer rating: Not rated
        Public Speaking: Proven Techniques for Giving Successful Talks Every Time
        Steven Frank
        Manufacturer: Adams Media Corporation
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Paperback

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        ASIN: 1580621848
        The  Art of  Successful Meetings
        Average customer rating: 5 out of 5 stars
        • How I Improved My Meetings
        The Art of Successful Meetings
        William Dixon Southworth , and Martha J Haun
        Manufacturer: McGraw-Hill Primis Custom Publishing
        ProductGroup: Book
        Binding: Paperback

        CommunicationsCommunications | Skills | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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        All TitlesAll Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
        ASIN: 0070598096

        Book Description

        This book teaches inexperienced presiders to be effective in meetings by providing a blueprint for running meetings firmly and fairly. It takes the presider through pre-meet- ing preparation, through presiding, to the adjournment of the meeting. It also provides a quick reference for Parliamentarians on specific problems and questions.

        Customer Reviews:

        5 out of 5 stars How I Improved My Meetings.......2000-08-06

        As the chair of our county Democratic Committee, my worst fear was chairing meetings that were either as boring, or, on the otherhand, as argumentative, as those under the previous chair. I had looked for references, but found them dry and lifeless. After reading this book, I realized several things that I was doing wrong, or could improve on. The commentary is informative, sometimes light and humorous, but always seems to get to the heart of the matter in an effective straightforward manner, unravelling the problems and providing direction that doesn't put me to sleep. Now my meetings run smoother, decisions are swift and sure, without excess debate and I have more people attending that we have had in years. Wish I could spend a weekend with W. Southworth - I might even ask for an autograph! Whether your meetings are avocational or professional, you owe it to your membership to read this book. They will all thank you for it! My members did!
        How to Make an Effective Speech or Presentation (Successful Office Skills Series)
        Average customer rating: Not rated
          How to Make an Effective Speech or Presentation (Successful Office Skills Series)
          Donald H. Weiss
          Manufacturer: Amacom Books
          ProductGroup: Book
          Binding: Paperback

          ManagementManagement | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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          ASIN: 0814476724
          New opportunities with digital minilabs: retailers share their successful ideas. (Retailing).(retailing in photography industry): An article from: Photo Marketing
          Average customer rating: Not rated
            New opportunities with digital minilabs: retailers share their successful ideas. (Retailing).(retailing in photography industry): An article from: Photo Marketing
            Jennifer Barr Kruger
            Manufacturer: Photo Marketing Association International
            ProductGroup: Book
            Binding: Digital

            GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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            ASIN: B0008DWSQ8
            Release Date: 2005-07-31

            Book Description

            This digital document is an article from Photo Marketing, published by Photo Marketing Association International on August 1, 2003. The length of the article is 1713 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

            Citation Details
            Title: New opportunities with digital minilabs: retailers share their successful ideas. (Retailing).(retailing in photography industry)
            Author: Jennifer Barr Kruger
            Publication: Photo Marketing (Magazine/Journal)
            Date: August 1, 2003
            Publisher: Photo Marketing Association International
            Volume: 78 Issue: 8 Page: 31(2)

            Distributed by Thomson Gale
            Successful debut: first meeting under AIE name provides a winning format.(Connections)(Association of Imaging Executives ): An article from: Photo Marketing
            Average customer rating: Not rated
              Successful debut: first meeting under AIE name provides a winning format.(Connections)(Association of Imaging Executives ): An article from: Photo Marketing
              Bonnie Gretzner
              Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
              ProductGroup: Book
              Binding: Digital

              GeneralGeneral | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
              GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
              GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | HTML | Formats | e-Docs | Formats | Books
              ASIN: B000I2J91G
              Release Date: 2006-08-26

              Book Description

              This digital document is an article from Photo Marketing, published by Thomson Gale on July 1, 2006. The length of the article is 728 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

              Citation Details
              Title: Successful debut: first meeting under AIE name provides a winning format.(Connections)(Association of Imaging Executives )
              Author: Bonnie Gretzner
              Publication: Photo Marketing (Magazine/Journal)
              Date: July 1, 2006
              Publisher: Thomson Gale
              Volume: 81 Issue: 7 Page: 17(1)

              Distributed by Thomson Gale

              Creating Integrated Curriculum: Proven Ways to Increase Student Learning
              Average customer rating: Not rated
                Creating Integrated Curriculum: Proven Ways to Increase Student Learning
                Susan M. Drake
                Manufacturer: Corwin Press
                ProductGroup: Book
                Binding: Hardcover

                GeneralGeneral | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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                ASIN: 0803967160

                Book Description

                Here's a comprehensive look at how an integrated curriculum can work for your school or district. Using what she calls a new "Story Model," the author helps you make sense of the changes involved in integrating your school's curriculum. She gives you the tools you need to create a curriculum that takes into account the complexity of today's world and how all knowledge is interrelated. Your students will benefit from integrated curriculum by:

                This book helps answer these crucial questions about learning in your school or district: 1. What is worth knowing? 2. How can we know when a student knows it? 3. How do students learn best and what does this mean to teaching? Once you've answered these questions, you'll have a better idea of what curriculum changes you need to make. Drake shows you how (and when) to integrate your curriculum. She offers you detailed descriptions of several different, workable approaches.

                The information she gives you is applicable for district use as well as for individual schools or departments. Designed for school leaders, curriculum developers, and curriculum supervisors, this book brings integrated curriculum into sharp focus and helps educators find a curriculum model that can work for their school's particular needs.

                The Tough Negotiator: Never Pay Too Much, Settle Too Low, Concede Too Quickly
                Average customer rating: 1 out of 5 stars
                • Shocking graphics, the same old, tired material
                The Tough Negotiator: Never Pay Too Much, Settle Too Low, Concede Too Quickly
                Henk Botha
                Manufacturer: Authorhouse
                ProductGroup: Book
                Binding: Paperback

                GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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                ContemporaryContemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
                ASIN: 1403317461

                Customer Reviews:

                1 out of 5 stars Shocking graphics, the same old, tired material.......2005-12-08

                It seems that the quality of negotiating books is inversely proportional with their recency, i.e. the more recent the book, the lower the quality. This book is one of many that points to a worrying trend. The material is old and tired, it has been told hundreds of times before in other books (and in a much better, more interesting way). Nothing original here. Graphics are especially amateurish, not only unnecessaary but also distracting. Type setting is below acceptable. A totally unnecesary book. Pity for the trees killed in the process of making it.

                Power of Ultimate Six Sigma(r), The: Keki Bhote's Proven System for Moving Beyond Quality Excellence to Total
                Average customer rating: 3 out of 5 stars
                • Good Book
                • Focusing on the Customer
                • Not your typical book on Six Sigma
                • Worst Book on Six Sigma
                Power of Ultimate Six Sigma(r), The: Keki Bhote's Proven System for Moving Beyond Quality Excellence to Total
                Keki R. Bhote
                Manufacturer: AMACOM/American Management Association
                ProductGroup: Book
                Binding: Hardcover

                GeneralGeneral | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
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                ASIN: 0814407595

                Book Description

                Developed by Motorola and popularized by Jack Welch and GE, Six Sigma remains today's hottest program for "zero defect" quality excellence. Now, Keki Bhote, member of the original Motorola team, presents an undiluted approach, applying his trademarked "Ultimate Six Sigma(r)" method to every business process -- from manufacturing and customer retention to supply chain management and leadership.

                The book is packed with every technique and metric necessary for a fast, smooth implementation, giving readers everything they need to make their own companies world-class in their industry.

                In addition, numerous case studies of benchmark companies illustrate the factors that contribute to success. Bhote includes assessment tools designed to help a company gauge its current status and measure future progress. This book is the ultimate guide to the ultimate quality assurance tool.

                Customer Reviews:

                5 out of 5 stars Good Book.......2007-07-04

                Have been a fan of Bhote for many years. Thoroughly enjoyed this book and find it very useful.

                3 out of 5 stars Focusing on the Customer.......2005-08-04

                Keki Bhote is one of the pioneers of the Six Sigma movement, which has captured much of corporate America as the superior evolution of the quality movement. In a very narrow sense, Six Sigma refers to a statistical tool that can be used to analyze product defects and bring down their occurrences to approximately zero. His book The Power of Ultimate Six Sigma, however, is not really about Six Sigma¡Kit is partly about the application of his latest iteration called Ultimate Six Sigma, partly about loosely-related organization and management techniques, and, to no small extent, about selling his own ideas and previous works on the subject. Although not terribly well written (with many one-sentence paragraphs and undeveloped thoughts), the work is nonetheless helpful in providing practical ways to structure a business for increased stakeholder value and customer retention. His greatest contributions are the sections on developing and measuring customer, employee and supplier loyalty and cooperation. His list of about 200 ¡§disciplines¡¨ or techniques, case studies illustrating their application, and self-assessment checklists to help companies implement them are also a major plus. The techniques often need a little further explanation, but they contain many helpful suggestions for areas to improve effectiveness. The case studies help provide explanations for the disciplines, and the self-assessment checklists provide an abbreviated way to measure how much a company has already adopted an Ultimate Six Sigma system of management.
                The book commences with a seemingly unrelated, and a bit pretentious, call for a business Marshall Plan to save the world from terrorism and other threats, which can only succeed with Bhote's Ultimate Six Sigma business ideas. He lambastes businesses for their general lack of ethics and social responsibility, and denigrates other practitioners of Six Sigma and other quality techniques. His single chapter explanation of the actual methodology and practice of Six Sigma is inadequate for anyone unfamiliar with the mechanics, and serves mostly to point out errors others have made in corrupting his ideas. Once one gets beyond Bhote's volcanic venting and frequent self-promotion, and wades through the loosely organized jungle overgrown with numerous acronyms and specialized lingo, the material markedly improves. Bhote attempts to provide a roadmap for the implementation of Ultimate Six Sigma as a quality management system. He begins with a section on developing stakeholder value, including separate chapters on customers, corporate leadership, organization infrastructure and culture, employees, and suppliers. The following section develops three major techniques for a company to increase its effectiveness and profitability: quality, cost, and cycle time. In an attempt to move the applicability of Six Sigma beyond manufacturing, Bhote devotes the next section to applying Ultimate Six Sigma to the major firm functional areas of design, manufacturing, and services. Finally, he includes a short concluding section discussing metrics for assessing results of the implementation of Ultimate Six Sigma.
                I found the opening discussion on developing and measuring customer loyalty interesting and thought-stimulating. Bhote makes a convincing argument on the importance and efficacy of nurturing dedicated customers, as opposed to spending large resources on finding new customers. He introduces five disciplines to strive for the goal of zero customer defects:
                -- Reduce and differentiate the customer base
                -- Measure core customer defections
                -- Assess customer "wow"
                mass customization
                quality function deployment
                company effectiveness index
                -- Customer cultivation
                -- Establishing a company culture for customer loyalty

                I had not previously considered that a company might want to actually shed some customers who do not contribute much to the company's profitability, but Bhote's argument that the top 60% of customers usually make up for nearly 100% of profits shows that spending resources to keep the bottom 40% is not very efficient. Bhote also argues for putting a monetary value into the accounting figures for customer defections. This is a good idea to emphasize the cost of losing customers because of inferior quality or service; unfortunately, Bhote¡¦s work here does not provide much practical assistance in how to accurately measure such defections.
                Customer "wow" is that rush of delight in a customer's mind when they find an unanticipated but desirable feature in a product. Bhote provides a practical table to measure a customer¡¦s reaction to a company's product, called a "Customer Effectiveness Index." This takes several areas such as quality, reliability, price, ease of use, etc. and asks the customer to rate the importance of each area, and then the actual performance of the company in those areas. Bhote describes customer cultivation as "taking the customer's skin temperature every day." (p. 55) Finally, Bhote advocates four disciplines to build a company infrastructure that retains customer loyalty: meaningful metrics, a customer loyalty steering committee, a chief customer officer, and a customer defection SWAT team. These seem like good suggestions, but there is little concrete material expounding on how to establish these disciplines.
                Bhote's section on leadership does not contribute much new insight on the subject¡K he emphasizes that a leader must provide a vision, must unleash the creative potential of the workers, and must act ethically and responsibly. He does provide a somewhat useful table (if one edits the specialized jargon which confuses the list of attributes) which employees can use to measure leadership effectiveness, called the "Leadership Effectiveness Index." As in the previously mentioned Customer Effectiveness Index, this asks employees to rate the importance of and then performance of company leaders in the areas of "personal philosophies and views," and "enabling people to reach their full potential." The table is a good summary of 20 leadership attributes that would contribute to a quality corporation.
                Bhote advocates new ways of rating performance, along with making other suggestions for reorganization, in the section on organizational structure and culture. He lists the following "ten-step process for creating a culture of entrepreneurship." (p. 85)
                -- Eliminate bureaucracy
                -- Rebuild the organizing infrastructure (making it flatter)
                -- Change requirements for hiring employees (letting line people make hiring decisions)
                -- Train all employees (constantly and in applicable areas)
                -- Revamp performance appraisals
                -- Change the rules of compensation (giving large incentive payments based on performance)
                -- Design meaningful and egalitarian gain sharing
                -- Redesign promotion criteria (based on potential for leadership)
                -- Team synergy
                -- Total Involvement

                The actual fleshing out of these details must be done by the reader, as Bhote provides little detail, but attention to personnel practices (hiring, evaluating, training and promoting) is worth consideration. For example, a 360 degree performance rating system could incorporate ratings from subordinates, colleagues, customers, and suppliers, not just the traditional method of relying on the single evaluation of one¡¦s immediate superior. I¡¦m sure company lore is full of personality conflicts or misunderstood employees who were not fairly evaluated by the traditional system. With a fair evaluation system, one can then implement Bhote¡¦s suggestions to provide large pay incentives based on performance that promote entrepreneurship and creativity, and that share the gains of the company equitably.
                This brings Bhote to a discussion of the very important company stakeholder, the employee. His most useful ideas in this section are Job Design, Open Book Management, Self-Directed Work Teams, and The Minicompany. Bhote argues that ¡§the job is the core of motivation,¡¨ (p. 102), and that jobs must be re-designed to provide meaningfulness, responsibility, and knowledge of results. He proposes that this re-design be accomplished by combining tasks, forming natural work units, establishing client relationships, creating vertical job enrichment and opening feedback channels. (p. 103) One of the more pertinent practical suggestions is open
                book management, in which all employees are regularly given full financial information of the company. Bhote strongly advocates Self-Directed Work Teams as an alternative to corporate bureaucracy, although he completely ignores any drawbacks to the use of teams. There are certain situations in which individual work will be more desirable and efficient than team work. Finally, the Minicompany concept provides a way for companies to push decision-making and responsibility down closer to worker level, making the organization flatter and, hopefully, providing more incentive for employees to increase their productivity. Bhote proposes this push toward worker empowerment and ¡§industrial democracy¡¨ as the ultimate solution to making a profitable company, and this may very well work for most American corporations in an indivualistic society. I believe one should be cautious, however, in completely discarding more vertically-structured organizations, as many situations and perhaps different cultures will prefer more structured direction in work.
                Advocating supplier partnerships and more careful management of the supply chain is one of the stronger sections of Bhote¡¦s work. Bhote believes that supplier partnerships, with active company involvement in a supplier¡¦s design and manufacturing process, will produce improvements in quality, cost and cycle time. Since the majority of costs for most companies come from materials provided by suppliers, it certainly makes sense to take what is often a confrontational relationship into a collaborative, mutually-beneficial relationship. Bhote promotes limiting the number of suppliers to a quality few, taking the time to build a relationship which provides reliable, quality inputs. Partly to facilitate this close relationship, and because he believes there are numerous hidden costs in overseas outsourcing, Bhote also recommends keeping suppliers close to the production process. An important feature of the supplier relationship is to develop Early Supplier Input into design of parts or material supplied. He proposes an organizational structure that builds teams that are cross-functional and cross-company, that enhance the communication between supplier and buyer.
                The following section discusses three major techniques, or ¡§high octane engines of thrust,¡¨ for increasing company effectiveness and profitability: Quality, Cost, and Cycle Time. This section is full of tools, many of them complicated statistical tools, that require much more detailed explanation from some outside source¡Xof course, Bhote would be happy to sell you his books on those very subjects! This section also suffers from being narrowly applicable to manufacturing, and is much less useful for the service industry. Bhote¡¦s three favorite tools, which he of course designed or radically improved, are Design of Experiments (DOE), Multiple Environment Over Stress (MEOST), and Total Value Engineering (TVE). The Total Value Engineering concept is a general technique aimed at maximizing customer loyalty at minimum cost. This is another way of looking at developing customer loyalty, but analyzes the cost of developing that loyalty. Bhote¡¦s case studies in this section are useful for giving ideas on how to assess what customers want and what can be done to fill their needs at lowest cost. The key of Total Value Engineering is to be aware of the customer¡¦s needs, and spend just as much as necessary to fill the need and develop customer loyalty¡Kanything else is unneeded and inefficient.
                After discussing ways to involve and develop stakeholders, and then giving a cursory knowledge about tools to improve effectiveness and profitability, Bhoke attempts to show how Ultimate Six Sigma can be applied to three functional areas of design, manufacturing and service. The first two areas involve technical discussions specific to a company producing a product that can be analyzed for physical defects. The more interesting section is the attempt to apply the concepts to services. Bhote claims that Ultimate Six Sigma is the cure for service industry inefficiencies, but in fact the discussion focuses almost exclusively on management techniques to improve service sections within a company. The operative concept here is the Next Operation as Customer (NOAC). This was a concept initiated in Japan in the quality movement with the goal to improve quality, cost, cycle time and effectiveness. Bhote explains how he adapted it and then Motorola ¡§packaged it to extend Six Sigma process from a manufacturing and product focus to all white-collar operations.¡¨ (p. 287) This is simply encouraging a company to work as a large team, or perhaps as a collection of minicompanies, and to try to satisfy internal customers just as one would satisfy the end customer in order to succeed in the business. The method includes setting specifications for services, perhaps in timeliness or quality, and then providing internal rewards or penalties according to the ability to meet the standards.
                Though much of Bhote¡¦s book remains applicable only to manufacturing, providing only a superficial and sometimes unorganized explanation of many tools and techniques, it makes significant strides in encompassing the design and service areas, and there is still much to be recommended in its reading. The how-to lists of business disciplines may take some expansion and individual research, but they are a good consolidated list of actions on which to focus to make one¡¦s business more effective. In the same way, the self-assessment, or health audits, at the end of each chapter offer a practical way to measure how far a company is in implementing Ultimate Six Sigma as a management system. The focus on customer rings loud and clear throughout Bhote¡¦s book, whether it¡¦s the external customer buying or using the final product or service, or an internal customer producing a key component or adding value to the final product. Business managers may see profitability as the bottom line, but one can¡¦t have profit without customers, and having loyal customers is the best way to ensure long-term solvency. This call to focus on the customer is not new, but remains an enduring principle, and Bhote provides some useful ways to maintain that focus, and move toward ¡§Total Business Excellence.¡¨

                4 out of 5 stars Not your typical book on Six Sigma.......2003-04-11

                Several things need to be understood about this book. To begin with, the author is one of the most experienced Six Sigma professionals in the world. However, he has a very convoluted writing style that makes it difficult to understand some of the points he is trying to get across. Furthermore, this is not a book on Six Sigma per se, this is a book that describes how Ultimate Six Sigma can be applied to improve a variety of areas within a company from customer relations to supply chain management. Whenever I have heard someone criticize this book it usually revolves around the fact that the author believes his method of Six Sigma, Ultimate Six Sigma, is by far much better than most of the other Six Sigma programs on the market and this is perceived as being "preachy". I feel this type of criticism is unwarranted for the following reasons:

                1. The author does not state that all of the current providers of Six Sigma are shysters, he is merely stating that some Six Sigma consultants are less experienced than others and this has resulted in some companies not achieving the desired results from implementing Six Sigma.
                2. The author brings up some very interesting points in regards to how companies can improve their efficiency through new management techniques as well as through Ultimate Six Sigma. What is really nice about this book is that the author provides accompanying graphs, charts, and checklists in each chapter.
                3. Since there is no one perfect book on the topic of Six Sigma, and since it is always a good idea to keep learning, this book is well worth the money. For those who buy this book and understand that it isn't a "how to" book on Six Sigma will be satisfied.

                Do I recommend this book? Yes. However, if this is the first book you're thinking of buying on Six Sigma I suggest that you buy one of the following books first or in conjunction with this book:

                A. Sailing through Six Sigma
                B. What is Six Sigma?
                C. Lean Six Sigma
                D. The Six Sigma Way: How GE, Motorola, and other Top Companies are Honing Their Performance
                E. The Six Sigma Handbook, Revised and Expanded: The Complete Guide for Greenbelts, Blackbelts, and Managers at All Levels
                F. Implementing Six Sigma: Smarter Solutions Using Statistical Methods, 2nd Edition

                1 out of 5 stars Worst Book on Six Sigma.......2003-01-13

                This book is a time waster. One of the terrible book on Six Sigma.

                Books:

                1. World Marketing Data and Statistics 1998 (Marketing Data and Statistics Series)
                2. World Resources 1992-93: A Guide to the Global Environment
                3. Wto Analytical Index Guide to Wto Law and Practice
                4. Wto Annual Report, 2004 (Wto World Trade Organization Annual Report)
                5. Yankin' and Liftin' Their Whole Lives: A Mississippi River Commercial Fisherman (Shawnee Books)
                6. Yearbook of Tourism Statistics 2006: Data 2000-2004 (Yearbook of Tourism Statistics)
                7. 101 Best Cover Letters
                8. 1997 Accolade Episcopal High School Yearbook Baton Rouge Louisiana
                9. 1998 Harvard Business School Core Collection: An Author, Title, and Subject Guide (Harvard Business School Core Collection)
                10. 1999-2000 Indiana Business Directory: The Ultimate Sales and Credit Tool (Serial)

                Books Index

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