Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Fired Up or Burned Out

Authors: Michael Lee Stannard: Carolyn Dewing-Hommes:

Jason Pankau

ISBN: 0785223584

As manufacturing technology matures and spreads around the world, following the availability of low-cost but productive labour, then the excess of supply over demand in most consumer goods markets becomes ever more apparent. While it is certainly true that millions continue to struggle to survive on one or two dollars a day, consumer societies of the developed world have an ever increasing number of choices. Some readers may be reminded of the three questions posed by Douglas Adams which outlined in brief the development of modern society: how can we eat? Why do we eat? Where shall we have lunch?

Faced with this level of choice for consumers, business-owners have had to work harder to attract and, more importantly, keep their customers. Technical ability and capacity is generally available and can easily be replicated – there is little hope for sustaining a competitive advantage there. Business owners are increasingly turning to the human resources (i.e. employees) in the hope of inspiring them and thereby making the telling difference that brings profitability.

The underlying assumption is one that may be traced back through a century of organisational or behavioural studies – people will work like crazy for something they love, such as a hobby or on behalf of a loved one, demonstrating amazing levels of creativity, energy and determination. Can those virtues, which is generally referred to in the literature as ‘passion,’ be inspired in employees in the workplace? If so, then the workplace will not only become a more invigorating place to work but also a place of higher turnover for the benefit of the owners.

This requires business owners or operators to ‘fire up’ employees, get full value from them and move out those who are ‘burned out.’ There is rarely much consideration in this genre of business books as to how increased performance by those employees, which is almost inevitably short-lived, should be remunerated appropriately. This is, therefore, a very American approach, as compared to a European or Japanese one, for example, in which investment in an employee is customarily considered to be more of a long-term process. Indeed, this book is packed full of American-centric references and concepts which are likely to mean little to international readers.

However, the sphere of reference does extend a little further afield and, in any case, good managerial practice should extend across borders if the lessons of the past fifty years of research are not all wrong.

Is this book any good? It certainly presents a new and vigorous approach to stirring up employees and also some useful self-analytical tools for the manager. It will, I am sure, inspire many readers to try to improve their businesses and this must surely be a good thing. Treat the book like a buffet and use the ideas that appeal. It is as good a sourcebook in this context as anything else that I have encountered.

The above review was contributed by: John Walsh PhD:  Professor at Shinawatra International University CLICK TO VIEW MORE OF John Walsh's Reviews

Click Here To Purchase From Amazon Fired Up or Burned Out