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Books

In ZOOZ we strongly believe in self education. In other words, we think you can increase your horizons and improve your performance through reading. However, reading books can also be a BIG waste of time: while some management books provide real value, many are poorly written and of pretty low quality. With dozens of books about marketing and management on the shelf, and considering your limited time resources, selecting the books YOU really need becomes crucial.

To save your precious reading time, we have compounded a list of recommended books covering various marketing and management topics. These books were carefully selected on the basis of practicality (ability to actually enhance your everyday work) and readability (clear explanations, attractive texts). For your convenience, we added some details on every book in the list.

1. Built to last - Successful Habits of Visionary Companies
 
Name Built to Last / James Collins and Jerry Porras 
English: Collins and Porras, 1994 
Hebrew: Pecker Literary Agency, Ltd., 1995
Topics Management, Strategy, Corporate Vision, Core Abilities, Innovation
Main Point What makes #1 companies better than #2 companies? In short: Mechanisms which ensure a clear corporate vision, focus on core abilities, and constant innovation. 
Value Learn how to increase the chances of your company to survive and to lead. If there is one management book you will read this year, make sure it is this book! 
 
 
2. The One Minute Manager
     
    Name The One Minute Manager / Kenneth Blanchard & Spencer Johnson 
    ISBN 0-425-09847-8 
    English: Berkeley Books, New-York, 1983 
    Hebrew: Modan Publishing
    Topics Management
    Main Point How can you manage other people better while saving your time and efforts? Define your workers' goals, then catch them doing something RIGHT.
    Value If you need to improve the way you manage other people, this book should be your first stop. 
     
     
    3. Six Thinking Hats
     
    Name Six Thinking Hats / Edward de Bono 
    ISBN 965-286-516-8 
    English: Mica Management Resources, 1985 
    Hebrew: Kineret Publishing, 1996
    Topics Thinking Skills, Creativity, Corporate Culture
    Main Point Combine 6 different ways of thinking (Emotional, Factual, Critical, Positive, Creative, and Managerial) to improve your thinking and collaboration skills.
    Value If you need to solve pressing problems, and are tired of endless disputes at work,  this book will teach you how to think deeper, and collaborate better.
     

     
    4. Blur - The Speed of Change in the Connected Economy
     
    Name Blur / Stan Davis, Christopher Meyer 
    ISBN 0-201-33987-0 
    English: Ernst & Young LLP, 1998 
    Hebrew: The Int. Businessmen Library Ltd., 1998
    Topics E-Commerce, Globalization, Virtual Assets 
    Main Point The old rules of commerce are over. New ways to exchange goods, INFORMATION, and EMOTIONS with your clients are here to stay. 
    Value Afraid of being left out? Learn to grow and profit in the information age era.
     
     
    5. Ogilvy on Advertising
     
    Name Ogilvy on Advertising / David Ogilvy 
    ISBN 1-85375-196-0 
    English: Multimedia Books (UK) Ltd., 1983 
    Hebrew: Keter Publishing, 
    Topics Advertising, Marketing Communications
    Main Point An ad is supposed to sell - make sure the consumers react to it.
    Value The best introduction to advertising. Learn simple rules that make advertising work, and get better value for your advertising money.
     
     
    6. Only the Paranoid Survive
     
    Name Only the Paranoid Survive / Andrew Grove 
    English: Andrew Grove, 1996 
    Hebrew: Matar Publishing House, 1997
    Topics Change Management, Crisis Management, Strategy
    Main Point "10 fold" changes are bound to happen in your industry. They will hurt less if you will be prepared. 
    Value Learn to identify changes that can destroy your company, and to transform your strategy fast enough.
     
     
     7. The Principles of Marketing
     
    Name The Principles of marketing / Philip Kotler & Gary Armstrong 
    ISBN 0-13-705360-6 
    English: Prentice-Hall, Inc., New Jersey, 1989 
    Hebrew: The Institute for Productivity, 1994
    Topics Marketing Management
    Main Point A great introduction to marketing management.
    Value This comprehensive text book is very readable, includes dozens of valuable examples, and covers almost anything you may want to know about marketing. Keep it handy!
     
     
    8. Selling the Invisible - A Field Guide to Modern Marketing
     
    Name Selling the Invisible/ Harry Beckwith 
    English: Warner Books, New-York, 1997 
    Hebrew: Commerce Chambers Union, 1998
    Topics Marketing Services
    Main Point There are dozens of "main points" in this book. Here are some: 
    1. Marketing a service starts with the service itself 
    2. Don't try to be 10% better, try to be DIFFERENT. 
    3. Don't be "the best" service,  it sounds pretentious: very good is good enough.
    Value If you are selling services - you must read this book. If not - you probably have to anyhow... Learn what turns potential customers into actual clients, when no one can touch, smell, or even see your "goods".
     
     
    9. The Fifth Discipline
     
    Name The Fifth Discipline / Peter Senge 
    English: Doubleday - Currency, Inc., New-York 
    Hebrew: Matar Publishing House, Tel Aviv, 1998
    Topics Learning Organizations, Planning, Feedback loops
    Main Point If something bad happens, the actual reason is usually hidden deep beneath the surface.
    Value If when you try to improve things (e.g. - save wasted money) they become even worse (e.g. - you lose even more money) - read this book.
     
     
     10. The Goal
     
    Name The Goal / Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt 
    English: Eliyahu Goldratt, 1986 
    Hebrew: Eliyahu Goldratt, 1988
    Topics Production, Performance Scales, Theory of Constraints
    Main Point Focus on the bottle necks. Let them dictate the pace of production.
    Value Learn how to eliminate costs, decrease storage space, and speed up production, by replacing your performance scale. 
     
     
    11. Major Account Sales Strategy
     
    Name SPIN / Neil Rackham 
    English: McGraw-Hill
    0070511136 
    Hebrew: Tcherikover Publishing Ltd. , Company Ltd.
    ISBN 965-16-0107-8 
    Topics Large scale sales, bids, the SPIN method
    Main Point Focus on your clients, not on your products.
    Value Win large sales by adjusting your tactics to the way clients make their decisions. If you are after big money, following the proven step-by-step process outlined in this book will get you there. 
     
     
      12. The Witch Doctors - Making Sense of Management Gurus
     
    Name The Witch Doctors / John Micklethwait & Adrian Wooldridge 
    ISBN 0-8129-2988-8 
    English: Times Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York, 1996 
    Hebrew: Not translated yet.
    Topics Management Theory, Business Consulting.
    Main Point Seeking for advice? It is a jungle out there, and most business gurus do better for their own pockets then to your organization. 
    Value A visit beneath the curtains of the business consulting industry, that will make you very worried. It should! If you can overcome the (British) English, it will save you a lot of future reading.

     
    13. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…
          and Others Don’t
     
     
    Name Good to Great / Jim Collins      ISBN   0-8129-2988-8 English: Harper Business, New York, 2001 Hebrew: Pecker Publishing.
    Topics Strategy, Management, Competitive Advantage.
    Main Point How does a good company become a great one? You have to recruit the right people, manage in a humble yet firm manner, and create momentum using a series of small changes. 
    Value If you want to lead your market and deliver your company from the ranks of mediocrity, this book will show you how.

     
    14. Leading the Revolution
     
    Name Leading the Revolution / Gary Hamel English: Plume, 2002 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Innovation Management, Growth, Organizational Politics.
    Main Point In order to succeed in today’s business world, you need to be extremely innovative. Therefore, you have to manage innovation like you would a high-risk investment portfolio – invest a little in a lot of daring innovative directions. 
    Value Acquire tools that will help you turn your company into a truly innovative one, and take advantage of economic models that can lead you to high revenue growth.

     
    15. My Years with General Motors
     
    Name My Years with General Motors / Alfred Sloan English: Currency, 1990 Hebrew: Cherikover Publishing.
    Topics Corporate Management, Organizational Development, Marketing Strategy.
    Main Point Management is a professional and methodical affair that has no bounds.  
    Value Learn the principles of modern management as they were originally designed. They are still valid today.

     
    16. The New Positioning: The Latest on the World’s #1
          Business Strategy
     
     
    Name The New Positioning / Jack Trout English: McGraw-Hill, 1997 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Marketing Communications, Strategy, Marketing, Positioning.
    Main Point The human mind works in set patterns, and this is also the key to effective brand positioning.
    Value Are you creating a new brand? This is the recommended place to start, with Dos and Don’ts essential for success.

     
    17. The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing: Violate Them at
          Your Own Risk!
     
     
    Name The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing / Al Ries & Jack Trout English: Harper Business, 1994 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Marketing, Marketing Communications.
    Main Point Marketing is a battle waged in the customers’ minds, and therefore there are very clear constraints that you can use to your advantage.
    Value 22 direct and proven paths to differentiation and marketing success. A must-read for any marketing professional.

     
    18. Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping
     
    Name Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping / Paco Underhill English: Simon & Schuster, 2000 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Commercialization and the Retail Trade.
    Main Point People behave in fixed patterns when shopping, and when you learn these patterns it is possible to sell more. 
    Value Learn how to optimally organize shelves, place displays, signs, sales packages, etc.

     
    19. The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR
     
    Name The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR / Al Ries, Laura Ries English: HarperCollins Publishers, 2002 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Public Relations.
    Main Point PR will yield better results than advertising, if you are patient. 
    Value Learn why advertising is less effective today, and how PR can give you the boost your business needs.

     
    20. Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for
          Business Revolution
     
     
    Name Reengineering the Corporation / Michael Hammer, James Champy English: HarperCollins Publishers, 2003 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Process Management.
    Main Point Departmentalization harms an organization’s effectiveness. It’s better to create teams around business processes. 
    Value If your organization has become ineffective, learn how to improve the situation from the bottom up, and focus on customers and on the critical processes.

     
    21. Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested
          Market Space and Make Competition Irrelevant

     
    Name Blue Ocean Strategy / W. Chan Kim, Renee Mauborgne English: Harvard Business School Press, 2005 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Strategy
    Main Point In order to make competitors irrelevant you have to offer an exceptional benefit coveted by the majority of customers, and save in other areas. 
    Value If you are fed up with the crowded competitive market, read this book to learn how to escape the competition and grow.

     
    22. Integrated Direct Marketing  
     
    Name Integrated Direct Marketing / Ernan Roman English: McGraw-Hill, 1995 Hebrew: Meter Publishing.
    Topics Direct Marketing
    Main Point A well-timed integration of a number of simultaneous marketing channels can increase sales by 10 fold. 
    Value Learn how to take maximum advantage of your sales promotions budget.

     
    23. Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being
          Remarkable
     
     
    Name The Purple Cow / Seth Godin English: Portfolio Hardcover, 2003 Hebrew: Opus Publishing.
    Topics Strategy, Differentiation, Viral Distribution.
    Main Point In order to really stand out among your competitors, you need extreme differentiation – if you are not a purple cow then you are invisible. 
    Value Learn how to make your business remarkable, and be the talk of the day among customers and potential customers (viral distribution).

     
    24. Bag the Elephant! How to Win and Keep Big Customers
     
    Name Bag the Elephant! / Steve Kaplan English: Bard Press, 2005 Hebrew: Meter Publishing
    Topics Marketing and Selling to Corporations
    Main Point If you want to bag the elephants (large corporations), you have to think just like they do, even if you are small. 
    Value Acquire tools on marketing and selling to organizations that are 100 or more times bigger than you.

     
    25. State of the World 2004: The Consumer
     
    Name State of the World 2004: the consumer / The Worldwatch Institude
    Topics Green Economy, Environment
    Main Point Even is you're not "green", you can flourish with green businesses 
    Value Insights on world consumption trends, and how to profit from them in "green" as well as in regular businesses.

     
    26. How Customers Think
     
    Name How Customers Think / Gerald Zaltman
    Topics Market Researches, Consuming.
    Main Point New research methods can uncover the sub-conscience of your customers. 
    Value Up-to-date (but not easily read) review on consumer's mind and ways to explore it.

     
    27. The Innovator's Solution
     
    Name The Innovators Solution / Clayton M. Cristensen & Michael M. Rayner
    Topics Strategic Innovation, Value Chain
    Main Point Leading brands collapse when the market gets commoditized
    Value Learn how value shifts, and how to use it to your advantage

     
    28. The Origin of the Brands
     
    Name The Origin of the Brands / Al & Laura Ries
    Topics Marketing, Positioning
    Main Point New brands come up from splitting old brands
    Value Use Darwin's survival theory  for creating new and successful brands

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