American steelmakers used to say they'd rather own a market than a mill. On the evidence of this gripping take of industrial derring-do, however, the scrappy mavericks who run Nucor Corp. are about to stand this adage on its head-to the discomfiture of global competitors and the advantage of midwestern economic prospects. Be that as it may, Preston (First Light, 1987) makes an absorbing narrative of how Nucor wagered over $270 million on building a so-called compact strip production facility featuring unproven German technology; the project was undertake by nonunion labor in an erstwhile cornfield outside Crawfordsville, Ind. Management's high-stakes gamble seems to have paid off handsomely; at any rate, the plant (for which ground was broken late in 1987) is now on-line, recycling waste material (shredded automobiles, tin cans, and allied refuse) into carbon steel in a continuous process. The total cost of manufacturing rolled sheet in this revolutionary, computer-controlled fashion comes to about 12.5õ per pound (less than chicken parts, Preston points out), giving Nucor a per-ton edge of $50 or more over its bigger domestic rivals and offshore suppliers. Here, Preston comes to grips with the iconoclastic reasons why the lean, mean corporate culture created by CEO Ken Iverson works so well in the company's 20-odd mills as well as the marketplace. He also makes clear that the rewards of boldness are not without mortal and financial risks. Construction of the plant, for example, was marred by several deaths and budget overruns. In the wake of an abortive cast during a test run early in 1009, moreover, a ladle nearly full of hot metal plunged to the ground, spewing its fiery contents throughout the melt shop. As is its aggressive wont, Nucor bulled past the potentially disastrous accident and remains on the lookout for new worlds to conquer. A well-told tale that suggests heartland enterprise is neither down nor out.
Pub Date: April 25, 1991
ISBN: 0-13-029604-X
Page Count: 288
Publisher: Prentice Hall
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 1991
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our...
A psychologist and Nobel Prize winner summarizes and synthesizes the recent decades of research on intuition and systematic thinking.
The author of several scholarly texts, Kahneman (Emeritus Psychology and Public Affairs/Princeton Univ.) now offers general readers not just the findings of psychological research but also a better understanding of how research questions arise and how scholars systematically frame and answer them. He begins with the distinction between System 1 and System 2 mental operations, the former referring to quick, automatic thought, the latter to more effortful, overt thinking. We rely heavily, writes, on System 1, resorting to the higher-energy System 2 only when we need or want to. Kahneman continually refers to System 2 as “lazy”: We don’t want to think rigorously about something. The author then explores the nuances of our two-system minds, showing how they perform in various situations. Psychological experiments have repeatedly revealed that our intuitions are generally wrong, that our assessments are based on biases and that our System 1 hates doubt and despises ambiguity. Kahneman largely avoids jargon; when he does use some (“heuristics,” for example), he argues that such terms really ought to join our everyday vocabulary. He reviews many fundamental concepts in psychology and statistics (regression to the mean, the narrative fallacy, the optimistic bias), showing how they relate to his overall concerns about how we think and why we make the decisions that we do. Some of the later chapters (dealing with risk-taking and statistics and probabilities) are denser than others (some readers may resent such demands on System 2!), but the passages that deal with the economic and political implications of the research are gripping.
Striking research showing the immense complexity of ordinary thought and revealing the identities of the gatekeepers in our minds.Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-374-27563-1
Page Count: 512
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Review Posted Online: Sept. 3, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2011
BOOK REVIEW
IN THE NEWS
IN THE NEWS
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.
A helpful guide to working effectively with people from other cultures.
“The sad truth is that the vast majority of managers who conduct business internationally have little understanding about how culture is impacting their work,” writes Meyer, a professor at INSEAD, an international business school. Yet they face a wider array of work styles than ever before in dealing with clients, suppliers and colleagues from around the world. When is it best to speak or stay quiet? What is the role of the leader in the room? When working with foreign business people, failing to take cultural differences into account can lead to frustration, misunderstanding or worse. Based on research and her experiences teaching cross-cultural behaviors to executive students, the author examines a handful of key areas. Among others, they include communicating (Anglo-Saxons are explicit; Asians communicate implicitly, requiring listeners to read between the lines), developing a sense of trust (Brazilians do it over long lunches), and decision-making (Germans rely on consensus, Americans on one decider). In each area, the author provides a “culture map scale” that positions behaviors in more than 20 countries along a continuum, allowing readers to anticipate the preferences of individuals from a particular country: Do they like direct or indirect negative feedback? Are they rigid or flexible regarding deadlines? Do they favor verbal or written commitments? And so on. Meyer discusses managers who have faced perplexing situations, such as knowledgeable team members who fail to speak up in meetings or Indians who offer a puzzling half-shake, half-nod of the head. Cultural differences—not personality quirks—are the motivating factors behind many behavioral styles. Depending on our cultures, we understand the world in a particular way, find certain arguments persuasive or lacking merit, and consider some ways of making decisions or measuring time natural and others quite strange.
These are not hard and fast rules, but Meyer delivers important reading for those engaged in international business.Pub Date: May 27, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-61039-250-1
Page Count: 288
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: April 15, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2014
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