 | By: Allen, Kathleen ,Dr. Ph.D. Peter Economy Binding: Paperback Publisher: John Wiley & Sons ISBN: 0470194294 ISBN-13: 9780470194294 Released: 04 Jan 2008 RRP: Average Rating:  |
Unfortunately, it bears little resemblance to a UK MBA. Many of the theories explained (eg accounting, stock trading & govt bonds) are US centric & the whole thing is woefully out of date & superficial (I was prepared for superficial as I wanted to use it as an aide memoire). Topics include sections on staff interviewing / hiring, how to conduct a meeting & negotiation - important for managers but hardly strategic in nature. Where are the sections on organisational design? Cultural ownership & fit? Brand? Strategic human resource management? Competitive advantage & differentiation? Net Present Value & WACC for calculating future value of projects?
I wanted a book that quickly recounted how to use the various business models much beloved by strategists - from Ansoff to BCG to Porter to Mckinsey & back again. Looking through I can't see any of these - let alone a critique. The only one covered seems to be the perennial SWOT.
For me, the book is characterised by the section on "your new employee's first day at work". I'm not sure where this would have been covered in the 2 year / $40,000 MBA that this book is supposed to be able to replace in some way, but it sure wasn't on my £13k 3 year OUBS MBA - & neither would I want it to be. The book is overly tactical in nature, written for the practicing US manager (and then not particularly well). It does not give much insight into the skills & modelling required of the strategic manager. Even the section on the marketing plan is weak - giving little guidance on any aspect other than a quick nod to the 5 Ps (what happened to the other 2? We were up to at least 7Ps in the marketing mix at last count!) What about relationship marketing? Product portfolio management? Environmental scanning? Segmentation & target marketing? Etc., etc. etc.
The perforated section in the "Dummies" series gives a good indication of what is important in the book - a tear out & keep quick reference. As an idea of the dearth of material in this badly misnamed guide (how far from complete could it be!) the topics of greatest importance deemed are: the right way to delegate tasks, advertising guidelines, the basics of managing risks & how to create a marketing plan. The first two clearly have no place in any MBA, the third & fourth are of interest - but both are badly written & superficial.
Steer clear. I want my money back!
-Thomas
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