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THE CHANGEMAKING CHECKLISTS

Name: THE CHANGEMAKING CHECKLISTS
Author: Richard Bevan
ISBN: 978-0-9835588-3-5

A TOOLKIT FOR PLANNING, LEADING, AND SUSTAINING CHANGE

by Richard Bevan ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A

A coherent, concise look at the elements that go into new business initiatives.

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A detailed guide to the practical aspects of organizational change.

Bevan (Changemaking, 2011) presents a companion volume to his previous business book. This one focuses on the specifics of how to successfully manage significant changes within a corporation. Each chapter provides an overview of fundamental management aspects, such as negotiating stakeholder support or measuring outcomes. Much of the book’s substance, however, is contained in its numerous checklists, which provide readers with an overall framework for planning and executing major corporate activities. Clear communication is at the heart of Bevan’s approach, and it’s a key theme that appears in nearly every chapter: “[I]f the core message is not reduced to a few key points, audiences will draw their own conclusions. Unable or unwilling to study the full, long, and complex story, they will instead rely on hearsay and their own assumptions.” Many checklists cover various aspects of communication, such as explaining details to employees or convincing another manager to assign staff to a project. Other checklists enumerate common problems that may be encountered during the change process, along with strategies for overcoming them. Along with communication, the book stresses the importance of allowing company leadership to constantly evaluate the success of new activities, and make necessary changes if goals aren’t being met. Each chapter also contains a well-written case study that illustrates its particular concept, which helps enhance the book’s practical utility. The book does have its quirks—in particular, a distracting tendency to list examples in footnotes instead of in the narrative itself—and one case study appears twice, in the body of the text and in an appendix. However, its overall checklist structure, and its approach of breaking down each aspect of success into its components, make it a worthwhile addition to a manager’s bookshelf.

A coherent, concise look at the elements that go into new business initiatives.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: 978-0-9835588-3-5

Page Count: -

Publisher: ChangeStart Press

Review Posted Online: Jan. 2, 2015

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.