Recommending Books for Purchase (Bulletin 7 - January 2018) - Choice Review: Entrepreneurship

The Millennials—those born from 1982 to 2000 and also known as Generation Y—are coming, and they will change the workplace. This is the argument Pollak, a corporate consultant and recognized expert on Millennial generation career and workplace issues, raises. Drawing on original research, her own experience, and interviews with Gen Y managers and entrepreneurs around the world, Pollak has written a book about Millennials for Millennials. For older readers, the book's first three chapters provide valuable insights into how Millennials operate differently in the workplace; the remaining five chapters provide Gen Y readers advice and tips on improving leadership skills and honing a management style. For example, there is a helpful quiz for discerning a person’s time management style. These later chapters are also valuable to older readers trying to understand how best to manage younger workers. The writing is crisp, but the style at times appears to be a series of blog posts strung together. The book is reminiscent of Sheryl Sandberg’s Lean In (CH, Dec'13, 51-2183), although Pollack focuses on youth in general, not just on women as Sandberg does.

Bridge (Univ. of Ulster, UK) and Hegarty (director, PLATO EBR) propose an alternative to traditional business planning by outlining a practical set of principles that are partially rooted in the work on effectuation by Saras Sarasvathy. These principles are meant to give the reader a framework for how to approach the creation of an enterprise, which the authors define as a goal realization device for new venture explorers. While the authors acknowledge that some planning is required to get the venture exploration process started, they emphasize the importance of goals, calculated risks, social capital, and real-life testing. Following the step-by-step elaboration of how the principles can help new venture explorers, the authors give recommendations for when to favor an exploration-based approach over a traditional business plan-based approach. The 10 principles are easy to follow and serve as a simple guide for anyone who is ready to do instead of planning to do. The book may serve as an introductory text or good supplementary reading for aspiring entrepreneurs who intend to start small ventures.

Some see a conflict between art and business, but Khaire argues that the market has a positive influence on culture. Commerce can change culture through the role of pioneer entrepreneurs who introduce radical changes in the creative industries (music, art, theater, fashion). Clearly, the iPhone impacted society's culture and values, but so did rap music; however, the process through which each impacts culture can be quite different. The creative industries require intermediaries that influence consumers, such as DJs in the early days of rock and roll. The book is organized into four parts that discuss the overall framework for understanding business and art and the role of pioneer entrepreneurs, the role of intermediaries such as critics and reviewers, the artist creators and producers, and the impact of globalization and digitalization. As the author notes, it has never been easy to make a living as an artist, and with more artists entering the market through the internet, it is even more difficult today. This interesting book will be of special interest to scholars working on the impact of the creative industries and the relationship between art and business.

The intent of Designed Leadership is to establish principles, methods, and practices of strategic design to apply them to business, government, and other institutions. Quayle (Univ. of British Columbia) outlines ten principles that make up strategic design, such as making values explicit, valuing diversity of thinking, bridging gaps in knowledge and making connections, evaluating for fit, scale, and context, and attending to patterns in the environment and organization. She mentions some of her experience as director of the Master of Landscape Architecture program and involvement with urban design. Throughout the book, she lists general principles from urban planner Jane Jacobs, several authors, and discussions with colleagues. She shares a variety of accomplishments without going into detail about how she achieved them. One of her principles is using visual aids to promote innovative thinking. In that light, the book features numerous drawings, but some appear unreadable and most are not understandable. A formal research area of “design thinking” is mentioned, but its connection with the book is not explained.

Palmer, a senior editor and personal finance columnist for U.S. News & World Report, claims that, due to our uncertain economy, people need to find ways of earning income beyond their full-time jobs. The author believes that one of the biggest trends in business today is the micro-business, and he posits that even small amounts of monthly earnings can make a huge impact on people's incomes over time. This is a practical book, interweaving profiles of "side-giggers"—people who have kept their full-time jobs while running a part-time business on the side—and concrete guidelines for readers looking to launch rewarding part-time businesses of their own. When it comes to the book's architecture, there are nine chapters: each chapter introduces a concept and provides stories of people successfully applying those ideas. Every chapter ends with a "Top Takeaways" section, a bullet list of the main points of the chapter. There are also three appendixes: "The Top Fifty Side-Gigs," "Star Side-Giggers," and "Five Common Pitfalls to Avoid." Overall, the book is simplistic but full of great ideas.

This clearly written book by Faley (Univ. of the Virgin Islands) presents a unique, detailed method for identifying and evaluating new business ventures. The book's core methodology is based on the "entrepreneurial arch," which provides a holistic view of entrepreneurship by dividing the business development process into distinct segments. The author emphasizes that developing a successful new venture involves more than creating a business plan, getting resources, and growing a business—which is the usual way in which entrepreneurial ventures are analyzed. Instead, this book emphasizes how to identify an opportunity and an attractive product or service that fits the opportunity. The author explains how to describe the customers and suppliers in precise terms, how to determine one's own capabilities, and how to create long-run profits in business. It is only after the opportunity is clearly identified that the author explains how to write an effective business plan, secure human and financial resources, and manage the growth of the venture. Many useful business examples, figures, and references are provided throughout the text. Although the book is appropriate for anyone who wants to start a new venture, it is most helpful for researchers and professors of business.

This omnibus volume encapsulates a broad, robust, and encyclopedic view of its subject. Rather than advocating for one particular view of entrepreneurship, the authors have compiled a useful, embracing view of what some experts call the entrepreneurship ecosystem. The text focuses on the core concepts of venture initiation and venture development; these two elements form the foundation of a broad discussion that links theory and practice. The book is organized in an entrepreneurial arc that logically takes the reader through venture initiation, venture management, and venture development, all of which are rooted in a detailed introduction to entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship. The volume is clearly and concisely organized and presented with robust web resources and firsthand, real-life experiences from the front line. In this respect, the text serves as the entry point that continues the discussion even more broadly with rich details and interesting information. With the explosion of texts advocating one view of entrepreneurship or another, this book is particularly important to those who teach in the field of entrepreneurship, as well as students who study the topic. The latter will find the learning objectives, outlines, terms, and review questions particularly useful.

A mashup is “something created by combining elements from two or more sources” in a format that may be more useful or appealing than the disparate parts on their own. A mashup may be a deliberate creation, but it often results in part from serendipity, an unexpected but beneficial connection or linkage. Mashup and serendipity are popular terms in Silicon Valley, where successful entrepreneurs start, fail in, and restart careers and companies by “pivoting” quickly to leverage new opportunities. A self-described “master of the career pivot,” the author shares her experiences and those of many other successful professional women in an entertaining account meant to help women understand that the days of linear career paths are over; all must “learn how to pivot” and re-brand themselves as new opportunities serendipitously turn up. Chapter titles such as “Strike a Pose and Feel the Power,” “Create Your Own Serendipity,” “Networking in the Girls’ Lounge,” “Congratulations, You’re Fired,” and “Flipping Off Failure” characterize the book’s lively, catchy approach. The author turns research into conversation, referring casually to “studies” (documented by endnotes) that support her points, but the interest and potential value to readers come from the women’s own stories.

Guthrie has put together an engaging, easy to read, and difficult-to-put-down examination of the inherent conflict between managers and shareholders in modern corporate governance. Guthrie breaks down his analysis of the ways in which shareholders can monitor the work of managers into several distinct groupings: monitor, motivate, delegate (monitoring to other groups), and sell (as in a hostile takeover). In doing so, he uses economic concepts such as free-riding, informational asymmetry, and bargaining to explain the tensions, ensuing problems, and final outcomes as shareholders continue to relate to corporate managers and CEOs. His explanations are highly nontechnical but still maintain the theoretical rigor of explanation that would please an economist. Of particular value alone are the examples that make up the scaffold for each chapter, using a different example for each topic. This book is ultimately written for a lay audience, so practitioners and researchers may find it of limited use—with the exception of the governance examples—but it is highly recommend for general audiences.

Successful bottom of the pyramid entrepreneurship requires more than just low-cost innovation. Though using limited resources and cheap materials is necessary for developing products that consumers can afford, the real challenge of such entrepreneurship is to create products under these limitations that consumers really want. Leadbeater, former industrial editor of Financial Times, argues that frugal innovation is critical to the future. As the world cannot long sustain seven billion people consuming resources at the rate of the world’s top 5 percent consumers, there is an urgent need for innovations that appeal to the bottom of the pyramid while preserving resources and materials. Leadbeater identifies four common design principles that successful frugal products share (they are lean, simple, clean, and social), and he dedicates a chapter to each of them, giving examples of successful entrepreneurs whose products illustrate each principle. Leadbeater’s emphasis on clean and social product innovation sets his work apart from other books on bottom of the pyramid innovation, such as Radjou, Prabhu, and Ahuja’s Jugaad Innovation: Think Frugal, Be Flexible, Generate Breakthrough Growth (2012). This new wave of innovation, which started in the developing world, is spreading globally.

Martin and Osberg (Skoll Foundation) envision a future driven by significantly increased social benefits obtained from more extensive social entrepreneurship than currently exists. They offer a model with four key stages for using social entrepreneurship to bring about transformative change for the good: understanding the world they wish to change and how it works rather than rushing a simplistic answer to the problem; envisioning a compellingly superior new future for targeted constituents; building a powerful model for change with a winning value equation; and scaling the solution to obtain economies by designing a model that includes falling unit costs with increasing volume. The authors include many practical and theoretical questions to address. All organizations should grapple with these questions, but they may have special importance for social entrepreneurs.

Browne (41 years with British Petroleum, culminating in being BP’s chief executive officer from 1995 to 2007) combines a self-examination of his corporate downfall with a thorough, research-based discussion exploring the philosophical, psychological, psychiatric, medical, economic, sociological, and personal outcomes of nonheterosexual individuals who “come out of the closet," or reside “in the closet.” This engaging and accessible book goes beyond exploring gay rights, and includes interviews with people who have undergone transsexual operations, as well as bisexuals and dozens of gay men and lesbians who are pursuing their personal goals while moving up corporate ladders. The author provides a costs and benefits style of analysis of whether individuals should remain closeted or show their authentic selves. Browne does not attempt to hide his agenda, and clearly recommends that people should come out--at their own pace--whenever it is most comfortable for them. He is a very big supporter of straight allies, noting that their participation is often key in the success of work-related LGBT support groups. Sadly, 28 percent of the reference sources come from confidential interviews or correspondents (90 unsung people) who refused to let their names be linked to this humanistic book.

This very important book is a contribution to the literature revolving around global entrepreneurship. There is increasing recognition that entrepreneurship is essential for economic development, and this book explains how to create a successful entrepreneurship economy as well as how to measure its success. As entrepreneurs exploit opportunities and create value in economies across the world, they meet with interesting challenges, and Kshetri (Univ. of North Carolina at Greensboro) explores many of those financial, cultural, political, geographical, and technological challenges. Clearly written, the book includes chapter objectives, definitions, abbreviations of terms, figures, and tables. Useful discussion and review questions are offered at the end of each chapter. In addition to providing examples for the concepts presented, the author includes short, end-of-chapter cases and longer chapter cases on countries worldwide. Other helpful apparatus includes sources of global entrepreneurship-related statistics, quality notes at the end of each chapter, and instructions for how to prepare an international business plan. This book is essential reading for all researchers, instructors of entrepreneurship, international business undergraduate students majoring in entrepreneurship, and MBA students.

This book sends the reader on a collision course with two huge myths that have been debunked in the world of science and the social sciences: myth 1, that left-brain versus right-brain functions are primarily and distinctively rational and creative, respectively; and myth 2, that mastering certain traits will allow top women leaders to succeed in a way that male leaders have not. Décosterd (Lead Life Institute) describes four traits she believes distinguish successful women leaders. However, decades of scholarship since the original trait theory gained popularity in the 1940s-50s have underscored that no magic checklist of leadership traits exists; that leadership is contextual and adaptive (Ronald Heifetz); and that both genders have multiple intelligences (Howard Gardner). Thus, to selectively profile women whose situations fit this flawed framework discredits the strides women leaders have made in working for equal footing, and ignores powerful scholarly voices such as Barbara Kellerman and Deborah Rhodes, who also lament that trait theory is being revived in a new century, this time cloaked in pink. If the narratives of the women profiled in this book are indeed as inspiring as Décosterd purports, she should expand those stories and leave the "framework" behind in the 20th century where it belongs.

Harris (Community Connections) and O’Leary (Georgetown) present an interesting, practical guide to the challenges of creating a new organization. They use their experience as a case study, and the book’s eight brief and easy-to-read chapters provide an experiential perspective on the issues the authors faced and the imaginative ways in which they accepted and overcame them. From their original idea to the integration of their creativity, managerial expertise, and organizational leadership, they cleverly, without the lists, charts, and formalities traditionally associated with books of this type, draw on their experiences with the Community Connections endeavor to engage readers in their story and to introduce, illustrate, and blend the application of contemporary organizational theory, principles, and practices into a model for organizational success and sustainability. Although the book is oriented around the not-for-profit business format, the principles and practices used to grow from a start-up organization to a thriving, multimillion dollar, influential company are equally applicable to all entities. Anyone with an entrepreneurial interest will find this a unique, useful introduction and overview.

Rottenberg has written with verve about the well known yet still somewhat enigmatic Philadelphia real estate and retail mogul Albert Greenfield (1887–1967). His biography is the story of a young Jewish immigrant who successfully ignored—when he could—barriers to eventually become a man with enough financial power to telephone several presidents. Over the course of a lifetime punctuated by spectacular failures and successes, Greenfield owned some of the most notable Philadelphia institutions, played an active role in the revitalization of Society Hill, and was an influential voice in national and even, on occasion, international affairs. Rottenberg based his research on archival collections, newspapers, oral interviews, and an unpublished Temple Univ. dissertation on Greenfield, and the resulting account is mainly laudatory. However, the author does examine many contradictions: varying opinions of Greenfield, his friendships and partnerships that transcended religious and political boundaries, his ruthless deal making but shortsighted management of retail concerns, and his generous philanthropy. Rottenberg also demonstrates that the Philadelphia WASP elite was never completely closed to Catholics and Jews. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Rottenberg's biography may be found in the intersection of Greenfield’s activities with the changing times in which he lived and acted.

Caplan (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, and formerly Goldman Sachs) traces women's involvement in the areas of finance, securities trading, and banking. She begins in earnest with the American Revolution, wherein women were substantial fund-raisers for the American cause. They even demanded a voice to General Washington as to how the money was to be spent. Very slowly women began to invest in bonds and securities, even though they were denied the right to own property. Caplan discusses women's major role in fund-raisers during WW I, and how this played a part in the granting of woman's suffrage. During and after WW II, women's interest in business careers began to grow, and their advancement in the ranks of brokers, dealers, and bankers became noticed. Women's successes and their ability to work hard earned them the sometimes begrudging respect of their male peers. The end of the book includes an alphabetical list of "Leading Ladies" in the field and a time line of their progress from the 1600s to 2012. Complete notes and an excellent bibliography follow. A useful addition to business and women's studies collections, and especially worthwhile reading for female students.

Anyone can start a business. But only leaders can succeed. Most entrepreneurs know the long odds: only a fraction of them will lead their enterprises through the rocky stages of growth to launch self-sustaining companies. Very few know how to outflank the failures that await them at every turn, including the most painful--being abandoned by key members of their team or getting pushed out by their board just as their business starts to generate real value. Derek Lidow is on a mission to improve these odds and change these outcomes. Throughout his long career--as CEO, innovator, and entrepreneur--he has tested virtually every aspect of launching a business. Lidow now argues that success is far less dependent upon a firm's idea or any grand strategy than it is upon something more personal: leadership. Emerging companies have specific leadership requirements, stage by fast-moving stage. Few founders have been able to leverage the tremendous power of this underrecognized reality--until now. Startup Leadership demonstrates how founders can adopt the skills that are required at each stage of their journey. Whether you are at the idea stage or managing a more mature enterprise, you can start to recognize the fundamental conflict: how to balance your selfish drives with the more selfless leadership required by the organization at any given time. The book shows you how to achieve this balance by: Assessing your unique motivations, traits, and skills Creating a personal leadership strategy that leverages your strengths and mitigates your weaknesses Mastering how to lead teams, including boards Understanding the five prerequisites for driving change Taking control of your inevitable crises, thereby strengthening your team and your leadership With Lidow's help, you will learn how to become the startup leader your business needs, and you'll move forward with your plans with greater confidence and success.

Isenberg (Babson College) uniquely explores the entrepreneurial spirit of lesser-known (no Jobs, Zuckerberg, or Gates) but equally successful global entrepreneurs who have overcome the challenges and naysayers to build enduring organizations that provide lasting value. He provides coverage of some start-ups that have experienced extraordinary losses as well. The book's 12 chapters are divided into four parts: "Who Is an Entrepreneur? Three Myths," "Running Away from the Crowd," "When Adversity Meets Reward," and "Making Sense of It All." Throughout the book, Isenberg dispels the traditional myths of entrepreneurship (e.g., regarding age and expertise) with well-written vignettes that provide genuine real-life insights into the ways in which extraordinary value can result from what others might regard as "worthless, impossible, and stupid" ideas. If there is a theme or lesson to be learned from the stories presented in this book, it is that entrepreneurs are unpredictable and entrepreneurship remains elusive, but that there are some commonalities among those who achieve success. Despite the book's effusiveness or perhaps because of it, most readers will find the book provocative, insightful, inspiring, and fun to read.