Major Companies of Latin America and the Caribbean 2001 (Major Companies of Latin America and the Caribbean)

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well-intentioned

MBA Book Review - Jameson Thottam (prior work: Homestore, IndyMac and Morgan Stanley)

Good, not perfect

For students and for parents, too

Must Read

Business School Confidential: A Complete Guide to the Business School Experience: By Students, for Students
Robert H. Miller , Katherine F. Koegler , Robert Miller , and Katherine Loucks
Manufacturer: St. Martin's Griffin
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Your MBA Game Plan: Proven Strategies for Getting into the Top Business Schools

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ASIN: 0312300867

Book Description

With the slowdown in the economy and the crash of the dot-com market, thousands of college graduates and young mid-level professionals are turning away from the lure of startups and flooding back to business school. Business School Confidential uses the same format that made Law School Confidential such a success. Featuring valuable firsthand input from current MBA students across the country, it offers what no other book currently does: a comprehensive, blow-by-blow, chronological account of the entire two-year MBA experience, from applying to a school to landing that perfect job after graduation. It will also feature a full chapter interview with the Director of Admissions and the Dean of Students at Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College-the #1 Business School in the U.S. according to The Wall Street Journal (beating out Harvard and Wharton). This is a definite must-have for any budding business tycoon-in-training.

Customer Reviews:

well-intentioned.......2006-04-17

this book is really intended for people who are considering business school. the first half covers admissions strategy (good essays, choosing the right target school, how to craft a good application), and the second half covers, in less depth, the wind-up to the start of your full-time mba education. like other reviewers mentioned, it tells you things that are somewhat given, like "research good neighborhoods to live in near your school", "make sure your study area is well lit and quiet", and "make sure you have a high-speed internet connection". while the interviews with ceo's are interesting, the book doesn't offer too much in the way of guiding your 'game-plan' for your mba education. there's some discussion of core classes in the b-school curriculum, as well as the importance of summer internship placement and group work in classes.

overall, i think that this is a great book for anyone thinking about b-school a year or so before applying, as it provides a broad breadth of mba-related issues to consider. in terms of anyone trying to craft their 'game-plan' for their mba education, you are probably better off getting in touch with students already in your program.

MBA Book Review - Jameson Thottam (prior work: Homestore, IndyMac and Morgan Stanley).......2005-09-10

Good source for Prospective MBA candidates

My name is Jameson Thottam and I used prior versions of this book in applying to Business School (currently attending Wharton's Exec MBA and with a focus on finance having worked for firms such as The Loan Page, IndyMac Bank, Homestore), I would give a qualified recommendation on this book to those pursuing higher levels of business education. If you are a academic like myself, there are some MBA programs that specialize in mathematical programing and simulation software (i.e., Linear programming, Monte Carlo Simulations, CRYSTAL BALL / SEC II / @RISK software packages). An MBA with Wharton in particular, has been incredibly useful to me from everything in managing my personal assets, my work environment and in managing my stock portfolio (if you like market/ stock / techincal / tracking insider trading (i.e., technical analysis)....

Hope you this was helpful,

Jameson Luke Thottam
(Job History: Battery Ventures/The Loan Page, IndyMac Bank, Homestore, Morgan Stanley Investment Banking, LEK Management Consulting)
Houston, Tx

Good, not perfect.......2005-07-15

First part of book is relatively insightful, they interview key ceo's about bschool and you get a relatively balanced perspective. The review of what a bschool course load could look like and an overview of common teaching styles was helpful. Yes, this book does not spend time on or recommend part time programs. Nearly all mentors / authors are from top tier bschools.

Second half of book is mostly useless with some good nuggets of info. The second half of the book outlines stuff like "buy a desk, so you can study while at home!" and "show up to class on-time" well duh.

Good news though, this book reads very very quickly.

For students and for parents, too.......2003-11-08

This book is a great gift for a parent to buy for their child when he or she is either considering going to or is in business school, because it sets out important practical information about how to approach goals, decisions and processes. In this world, most of us are going to be happy to have a possible leg up on success, and this book appears to be a big help in that direction. Naturally, if the parent is like many of us, he or she will want to read the book first to get the lowdown, too!

Must Read.......2003-09-06

I am a thorough researcher and have now broused or completely read tens of books on b-school, in an effort to really understand how to make business school the most valuable experience possible. This one is the best. It is clear that the authors have unparalleled perpective, understanding and ability to communicate the most important aspects of the whole process.

Book Description

Over the years, Productivity Press has located and shared with its customers the most powerful methodologies that exist to help improve operations: Just in Time, TPM Shingeo Shingo's work. The Science of Total Productivity Management is a way of aligning people, information and processes in an organization in an equation that continues to result, even today, in competitive advantage. This book provides amazing insight as to where Japanese are in their improvement efforts; and what currently sets them apart in terms of global competitiveness.

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These really are simple and classic knits

For Rowan fans

Other References Needed

Great knitting book for kids' attire

Simple Knits for Little Cherubs
Erika Knight
Manufacturer: Collins & Brown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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And So to Bed...: Handknits and Things

ASIN: 1843400189

Book Description

From cuddly toys to snuggly sweaters, these beautiful knits, meant just for two- to six-year olds, are easy enough for total beginners. All the items use wonderfully soft, natural yarns that make the clothes comfortable and wearable. Detailed illustrations show basic stitch techniques, along with alternative motifs and colors. Make an adorable classic cardigan, patchwork doll’s blanket, pinafore, striped muffler, and 14 other projects.

Customer Reviews:

These really are simple and classic knits.......2006-07-30

I really loved all the classic designs in this book, They are not the sort of designs that will only be popular for 1 season. They can be updated with new yarns etc and still be lovely in years to come. The sizing is perfect and the designs are easy to knit. I have come across no errors in the patterns attempted so far either. I have made the short sleeved sweater and I am 1/2 way through the fluffy bolero so far but there are boys patterns as well. All in all and easy to follow pattern book with simple sizing, she has pages on how to measure accurately as well as tips and techniques to finish your garments correctly and Erika also gives detailed explainations of the yarns used in the back of her book which makes substitution easy to do if you dont have access to all the beautiful yarns featured in the book. 5 stars, the only fault is that I want more!! I look forward to new books from this great designer in the future.

For Rowan fans.......2004-07-15

These patterns are quite simple (as in "plain, minimal decoration") and linear. I thought it meant "simple" as in easy, which is up to the knitter to interpret with their own skills. I suppose it can be somewhat interpreted as "easy" because it doesn't have cabling, bobbles, etc. or a lot of advanced techniques (though it does use a little intarsia, fair isle and some shaping.)

This book reminds me of Rowan books because the photos don't quite show all the details of the items on the kids and the pictures are "romantic hazy"; she also uses a fair number of Rowan-made yarns. The photos of the items off of the kids are shown in closeup to show details, or shown partially cropped, but it would have been nice to have seen just a clear, full shot of the items set down flat on a teble. It also uses many smaller yarns/gauge (7 stitches to the inch) and I personally prefer the items I make to be made out of at least worsted weight because they go faster. It would have been nice to have had the size ranges on each pattern instead of having to refer to a chart at the beginning of the book.

The items do have a pretty construction, cute but subtle details, and the patterns are varied, but if you're looking for a Debbie Bliss or Jil Eaton-like book, this isn't it. It would be great for people who like Rowan books, straightforward with small touches of whimsy. Look before you buy.

Other References Needed.......2004-06-28

I'm an advanced intermediate knitter, but I found myself consulting other books for clearer instructions. However, this is a book well-worth buying. The patterns are (mostly) easy to read, follow, and knit, and there's something for everyone: texture, colorwork, big projects and small projects.

Great knitting book for kids' attire.......2003-06-24

This book is great. I'm not sure that it's suited for beginners, but perhaps beginners-plus or intermediate. There is a wonderful retro pallet of colors/yarn and very nice, plain-but-lovely designs...just what's in style today. There is an adorable PJ bag for kids with an embroidered bunny pouch. Finally a pattern for simple slippers that are elegant and not too wild. This is a great investment for the price. Love the photography as well.

Book Description

This book describes and analyzes changes in J.S. Mill's economic and religious thought late in life and assesses the influence of Mill's disciples on these shifts. Mill's followers, surprisingly, were divided into two opposing camps. Influenced by the "heterodox" group--opponents of Ricardian political economy--and by pressing political concerns, Mill modified his principles in ways he would not earlier have countenanced. This resulted in inconsistencies and evasions in his final essays, which greatly upset the "orthodox" contingent.

Amazon.com

We live in an era where image is nearly everything, where the proliferation of brand-name culture has created, to take one hyperbolic example from Naomi Klein's No Logo, "walking, talking, life-sized Tommy [Hilfiger] dolls, mummified in fully branded Tommy worlds." Brand identities are even flourishing online, she notes--and for some retailers, perhaps best of all online: "Liberated from the real-world burdens of stores and product manufacturing, these brands are free to soar, less as the disseminators of goods or services than as collective hallucinations."

In No Logo, Klein patiently demonstrates, step by step, how brands have become ubiquitous, not just in media and on the street but increasingly in the schools as well. (The controversy over advertiser-sponsored Channel One may be old hat, but many readers will be surprised to learn about ads in school lavatories and exclusive concessions in school cafeterias.) The global companies claim to support diversity, but their version of "corporate multiculturalism" is merely intended to create more buying options for consumers. When Klein talks about how easy it is for retailers like Wal-Mart and Blockbuster to "censor" the contents of videotapes and albums, she also considers the role corporate conglomeration plays in the process. How much would one expect Paramount Pictures, for example, to protest against Blockbuster's policies, given that they're both divisions of Viacom?

Klein also looks at the workers who keep these companies running, most of whom never share in any of the great rewards. The president of Borders, when asked whether the bookstore chain could pay its clerks a "living wage," wrote that "while the concept is romantically appealing, it ignores the practicalities and realities of our business environment." Those clerks should probably just be grateful they're not stuck in an Asian sweatshop, making pennies an hour to produce Nike sneakers or other must-have fashion items. Klein also discusses at some length the tactic of hiring "permatemps" who can do most of the work and receive few, if any, benefits like health care, paid vacations, or stock options. While many workers are glad to be part of the "Free Agent Nation," observers note that, particularly in the high-tech industry, such policies make it increasingly difficult to organize workers and advocate for change.

But resistance is growing, and the backlash against the brands has set in. Street-level education programs have taught kids in the inner cities, for example, not only about Nike's abusive labor practices but about the astronomical markup in their prices. Boycotts have commenced: as one urban teen put it, "Nike, we made you. We can break you." But there's more to the revolution, as Klein optimistically recounts: "Ethical shareholders, culture jammers, street reclaimers, McUnion organizers, human-rights hacktivists, school-logo fighters and Internet corporate watchdogs are at the early stages of demanding a citizen-centered alternative to the international rule of the brands ... as global, and as capable of coordinated action, as the multinational corporations it seeks to subvert." No Logo is a comprehensive account of what the global economy has wrought and the actions taking place to thwart it. --Ron Hogan

Book Description

Once a poster boy for the new economy, Bill Gates has become a global whipping boy.The Nike swoosh is quickly losing its cachet, equated now with sweatshop labor. Teenage McDonald's workers are joining the Teamsters. What's going on? NO LOGO explains why some of the most revered brands in the world are finding themselves on the wrong end of a spray-can, a computer hack, or an international anti-corporate campaign. NO LOGO uncovers a betrayal of the central promises of the information age: choice, interactivity, and increased freedom.Instead, job security and consumer choice have been swallowed whole by companies who enlist us as their human billboards and spokesmen.Equal parts cultural analysis, political manifesto, mall-rat memoir, and journalistic expose, NO LOGO is the first book that both uncovers the sins of corporations run amok and explores and explains the new resistance that will change consumer culture in the 21st century.

Download Description

Once a poster boy for the new economy, Bill Gates has become a global whipping boy. The Nike swoosh is quickly losing its cachet, equated now with sweatshop labor. Teenage McDonald's workers are joining the Teamsters. What's going on? NO LOGO explains why some of the most revered brands in the world are finding themselves on the wrong end of a spray-can, a computer hack, or an international anti-corporate campaign. NO LOGO uncovers a betrayal of the central promises of the information age: choice, interactivity, and increased freedom. Instead, job security and consumer choice have been swallowed whole by companies who enlist us as their human billboards and spokesmen. Equal parts cultural analysis, political manifesto, mall-rat memoir, and journalistic expose, NO LOGO is the first book that both uncovers the sins of corporations run amok and explores and explains the new resistance that will change consumer culture in the 21st century.

Customer Reviews:

Informatively frustrating.......2007-08-17

It was well written exploring many aspects of branding, culture jamming, and production.

This book will leave you with frustration and questioning how you change change something, and what CAN you buy that isn't made from Export Processing Zones.

It does give great information but yet leaves you frustrated and feeling helpless that you can't change the current conditions or avoid buying products made in places like china, el salvador, indonesia where they treat their workers worse than dirt.

Insight into an Ad-driven culture.......2007-07-14

This book offers a deep insight on how advertising are creeping into our lives, even conveyed to us in a subliminal way. If left unchecked, the corporations would be the authors our culture. It also showcases the exploits of major corporations in employment.

However, one must be critical when reading the book, as some of the things Naomi bashes on, such as the Starbucks expansion strategy, are genuine business strategies. In some cases, we have to be realistic and not blindly adopt and anti-corporation stance.

The first 3 chapters, No Space, No Choice, and No Jobs are exceptionally informative, but the last chapter, No Logo, falls short and descends into a boring rant on countermeasures that in my opinion, are far from effective and often, impractical.

Buy the book, read the first 2, skip the last.

Anti-Corporate Handbook.......2007-05-20

What are the effects of multinational corporations in the Branding Age? Naomi Klein tackles that in this seminal work on the subject. While somewhat dated (published in 2000), it gives the most comprehensive picture of the transition corporations have undergone from providing competent products and services to providing ubiquitous branding and advertising to produce loyalty and sell peripherals. This book gives the total picture of the devastation left in the wake of total corporate dominance in the U.S., Canada, and worldwide.

As she details, what has emerged in the last half of the 20th century is a new kind of totality - an economic imperialism spearheaded by Nike, The Gap, McDonalds, Shell, and Microsoft and their lawyers, contractors, and advertising agencies. As they break open markets, crush competition, and lower wages across the globe they've gotten so powerful as to dictate to scores of countries what their trade and economic policies are going to be. These policies are always anti-Union and terrible for workers, leaving nations worse off than before they were Industrialized and Advertised - creating massive wealth gaps and uneven distributions across the board.

The four major sections of the book: No Space, No Choice, No Jobs, and No Logo, each show in example after example, case study upon study that advertising is the product now and the more money spent in that avenue, the more profitable the corporation can be while taking every opportunity away from the poor and disenfranchised, forcing horrible conditions and worse jobs on them, and decreasing their access to health care and nutrition. This is not an accident. This is a concerted policy foisted upon the world through the corporate enforcement arm of the WTO, World Bank, and U.S. Military.

Is it hopeless? Well, civil disobedience is one way to combat the trends and takeover and Klein offers many suggestions and examples in this book. However even she admits that the situation is bleak.

Good luck . . . and good read.

- CV Rick

NO LOGO will fundementally alter the way you think about the world........2006-11-04

Naomi Klien's treatise on the anti-corporate movement of the last decade provides tremendous insight into the philosophies behind today's anti-corporate culture, and more importantly, the "branded" society that has spawned it. Well written and intelligent on every level, NO LOGO carefully tracks such disturbing phenomenons as the disappearance of public space, the rise of corporate censorship, and the transformation of living wage jobs for Americans into sweatshop labor in the third world. If you are completely unfamiliar with today's cultural rebellion against corporate control, NO LOGO serves as an excellent introduction, clearly outlining the dubious marketing trend of promoting "brands not products" such that you will never be able to watch commercials the same way again. If you are a seasoned WTO protester or billboard adbuster, NO LOGO will provide you with all the philosophical and factual ammo necessary to start converting your friends away from their unthinking materialistic lifestyle. This book is a must read for anyone who considers themselves and independently thinking consumer, as well as anyone who is interested in the latest cultural rebellion taking place among today's young and disenfranchised.

The Third World has always existed for the comfort of the First.......2006-11-03

Naomi Klein sketches perfectly the major shift in corporate strategy today: transnational companies are not interested in production anymore, only in branding: products are made in factories, brands in the mind. Branding creates big margins, production in home countries meager earnings.

This strategy causes monstrous layoffs in the First World and creates EPZ (Export Processing Zones) in the Third World.
In the First world, corporations transformed themselves in `engines of wealth growth' for their shareholders, instead of `engines of job growth'. `CEO's of the 30 companies with the largest announced layoffs saw their total compensation increase by 67%.'
The jobs they need are predominantly outsourced, or are McJobs (no `adult wages') and temporary stop-jobs.
The First World stirs fierce competition between Third World countries in order to get rock-bottom prices for their `branded' products, creating colossal margins in the home countries.
Wages in EPZs are so low that most of the money is spent on shared dorm rooms and basic food. Workers cannot afford the consumer goods they produce.

Another aspect of our branded world is the sheer size of the (trans)national corporations created by relentless mergers and acquisitions. Their size permits them to decide what items (also magazines, DVDs) should be stocked in a store, in other words, they create a new kind of censorship.
Big mergers in the media landscape allow conglomerates to produce their own news and in this sense jeopardize basic civil liberties.

While Naomi Klein's analysis of our consumer planet is very revealing, the remedies she proposes are rather innocent, epidermic, symptom healing or too general: ad and brand busting, radical ecology (Reclaim the Streets), anti-globalization and anti-corporate mass protests, boycott, building greater critical social consciousness. Individual actions like attacking in court (Shell in Nigeria), revealing Nike's sweatshops or denouncing McDonald's food are ultimately not more than temporary needle pricks in elephant skins.
What the world needs is a global vision, which we can find in the works of Joseph Stiglitz or (for a view from the South) Walden Bello.

Highly recommended.

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No Logo : Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies
Naomi Klein
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTN8OW

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No Logo : Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies
Naomi Klein
Manufacturer: Random House of Canada, Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000O1HF0I

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No Logo; Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies
Naomi Klein
Manufacturer: Picador
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000X6H73E

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No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies: An article from: The Ecologist

Manufacturer: Ecosystems Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

Under the present waves of merger and acquisition, many multinational firms have a great need to effectively manage ever leaner and more divergent work-forces. Contributors focus particularly on the challenges faced by firms with multinational subsidiaries, within which human resource management systems has often been operating in very different ways. This book will help managers of multi-national firms to deploy staff more effectively and show how human intelligence deployment improves long-term profitability.

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