Reviews (21)

my opinion
Now we study the 1st edition in the school.All of us think it is a little difficult for beginners.Some examples are not familar with everyone,so we cannot konw these cases well.

Horrid!
Please, if you have a choice of textbooks, do NOT buy this one. I have a feeling the author knows nothing of eCommerce, yet was given 80 references, told to mash them together as non-sensically as possible and fire the result off to the publisher. Complicated basics
How on earth is it possible to make even the simplest of theories so complicated? The book is absolutely stuffed with useless words and figures. If the authors did not get paid per word, I am sure they could have written a splendid book with one third of the pages. The price is exorbitant, and what you get for more than a hundred dollars is close to nothing. Do NOT buy this book! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business / Economics / Finance    2. Business Enterprise    3. Business enterprises    4. Business/Economics    5. Computer Networks    6. Computers    7. E-Commerce - General    8. Electronic Commerce    9. Information Management    10. Information Technology    11. Management    12. Management - General   

Reviews (15)

Liberalism at its best and most accessible
The author of this book is a respected economist and also a former cabinet secretary in the Clinton administration.Published in the early 1990's, this book provides a short economic history of the US, describes the American economy at his time (the early 1990's) and what lies ahead for America.In it, Reich covers various topics such as: industrialization, outsourcing of labor, gap between incomes, the growth of financial markets in both the number of people involved, the sums of money involved, and the influence they have on world affairs, and the role of America in world economics.
Globalization 101
Although written way back in 1990-1, this book was prescient enough and insightful enough to still be relevant today. The trends Reich lays out -- toward globalization of capital, outsourcing of labor, the internationalizing of information through the internet and the growing Third World distrust of "American ideals" -- continue unabated in 2004 just as he said they would. He provides a clear analysis of why American hegemony in manufacturing evaporated in the '60s & '70s, and how this led inevitably in the '80s & '90s to the shrinkage of the middle class. He shows why the rich continue to get richer (through PACs) while the poor get poorer (through withdrawing from a system which continues to abandon them). Although the book is not overtly political, he exposes "Reaganomics," the trickle-down theory and their current euphemisms as self-aggrandizing pandering to political contributors. Contrary to some reactionary reviewers, Reich does NOT advocate a return to progressive income taxation (which created the biggest consumer boom in history), because he acknowledges it's too late for that.
Incomplete but Original and Worthy of a Second Look
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Subjects:  1. 1981-    2. Capitalism    3. Economic conditions    4. Economic forecasting    5. Economics - General    6. General    7. International - Economics    8. International economic relations    9. Politics - Current Events    10. Politics / Current Events    11. Sociology    12. United States    13. Business & Economics / General    14. Capitalist or free market economies    15. International economics    16. USA   

Features

• Illustrated

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Economics - General    5. International - Economics    6. Business & Economics / Economics / International    7. INTERNATIONAL TRADE    8. Political Science / International Relations / Trade & Tariffs   

Reviews (15)

povocative and meticulously researched!
The strengths: Very provocative, aiming straight at conventional wisdom, be it euro-centric or world-system ones. Solid research behind the comparative study of Europe, China, and to a lesser extend, Japan. Pomeranz gives out hard evidence in life-expectacy, birth rates, market condition, ecological stress etc., hightlighting striking similarites between these socities in the 18th century.
Europe Got Lucky
Pomeranz advances the thesis that Europe's rise to world power (instead of a potentially similar but not historically realized rise by China, Japan, or India) was not caused by any internal social advantage possessed by western Europe-at least not principally caused.Pomeranz uses extensive research to demonstrate that western Europe, China, and Japan were not fundamentally different societies at the beginning of the modern era.The author maintains that Europe had the good fortune of having the land and mineral resources of the New World available at the right time, along with the conveniently-located coal resources of England; and it is this collection of fortuitous advantages that enabled Europe to propel itself into industrial revolution and world power.
nonsense
In "The Great Divergence", Kenneth Pomeranz presents an exhaustive investigation of the minutest differences and similarities in development of China and Western Europe. His claim, and stated objective, is to show that Europe's emergence as a preeminent power was the result of privileged access to overseas colonies, exploitation of non-Europeans, and a fortunate `geographic accident' of the location of coal in England. However, considering China's significant, and much earlier, developments in science, technology, and shipping, not to mention their huge deposits of coal, and its use some 600 years before the Europeans to make iron, it's difficult to understand Pomeranz's rationalization of those claims and ultimately the whole point of his book.
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Subjects:  1. Business / Economics / Finance    2. History    3. History: World    4. International - Economics    5. Modern - 19th Century    6. Asian and Asian American Studies    7. China    8. Development economics    9. East Asia, Far East    10. Economic history    11. Economics    12. Europe    13. European History    14. History / Modern / 19th Century    15. Political Science and International Relations    16. Postcolonial Studies    17. World History/Comparative History   

Reviews (7)

See all the happy consumers!
I gave this book 3 stars because it is interesting and exciting to hear about China and what is happening with its youth.Unfortunately, the fact that the book seems to be solely written in order to allow Western corporations to infiltrate the Chinese market really cheapens the stories within.
A fun, informative beautiful book
A very interesting book.In the end it shows the young people of China are no different from those anywhere else.The excellent photos make the book even more enjoyable.

Informative and quick read on the Chinese market
This book sets out to describe the younger Chinese consumers who are shaking things up - and along the way, brings them to life with good storytelling and lots of photos.If you don't know what Li-Ning, Yonghe, Baidu and QQ are or why they're important, you should - and this book will get you thinking about them. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. International - General    5. Marketing - General    6. Business & Economics / Marketing / General    7. Management & management techniques   

Reviews (3)

Steve knows his subject cold
Steve Gresham has created a blueprint for the experienced Investment Management Consultant or Wealth Management Advisor to follow and propser from. His examples are clear and concise, his guidance has stood the test of time. Straight Talk
There are two words missing from the beginning of this book's title..which should be "How to Attract and Retain the Affluent Investor[etc.]." Gresham and Cooper take a very forthright approach to their topic, and use modern [no, not distracting!] graphics to get their points across. Relevant "case studies" make up much of the text, with messages reinforced by way ofchecklists, boxes, and short paragraphs titled "Winning Tactics." There are lots of advice books around for financial advisors. This one's great for people who thinkthey're too busy to read. You can read it through or open it almost anywhere, and learn something. What's more, the authors have come up with answers to questions you didn't even know you had!

A Wealth Advisor's Must Read!
Steve Gresham has really captured the information necessary to be successful in the ever changing financial services industry. He shares with you successful ideas from some of the industries most successful consultants and advisers.In addition, he tells you how to re-evaluate your business and assists directing you toward becoming very successful.Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Financial planners    5. International - General    6. Investment advisors    7. Investments & Securities - General    8. Business & Economics / Personal Finance / Investing    9. Customer services    10. Investment & securities   

Reviews (3)

A unique perspective on consumer behaviour
The book is unique in that Marieke K Mooij uses theories from cultural anthroplogy and interpersonal communication to present a framework for consumer behaviour. It is particularly useful for practioners who are working in underresearched markets and are looking for ways to explain why consumers behave the way they do. The book makes extensive use of Hofstede's 5-D model to locate members of different cultures along the dimensions of culture and then uses this to explain differences in buying behaviour, communication styles and advertising appeals. The conclusion of the book is that individual behaviour is shaped more by the culture they belong to than it is by income or other differentiators. The one limitation of the book is that most of the examples are European, but I would recommend it even for those interested in Asian markets

no book is as useful for students and practitioners of adv.
This book review is on a 'titre personnel" basis. For students and practitioners in cross-cultural communicati
From the author: With this book I have tried to develop a knowledge baseof cultural differences and similarities that can be used for developingglobal marketing and advertising strategies and meaningful localadaptations. The structure for understanding the consequences of culturefor marketing and advertising is based on Geert Hofstede's model forcomparing national cultures. I have applied it to consumer values andmotivations and found that it can explain culture's influence on marketingand advertising.To make the book useful for both students andpractitioners, it includes a mix of basic theory and the practicalapplications with many examples.Read more

Subjects:  1. Advertising    2. Advertising & Promotion    3. Business & Economics    4. Business / Economics / Finance    5. Business/Economics    6. Consumer behavior    7. Cross-cultural studies    8. International - Marketing    9. Target marketing    10. Business & Economics / Advertising & Promotion   

Reviews (11)

Strategy - It's a matter of life and death
As an active Business Consultant I'm often appalled at the lack of disregard for the importance of strategy. It's a matter of life and death (at least for your company).
Virtuosic analysis of national productivity and technology
Forty to fifty years ago economists and political theorists did much armwaving about what makes nations competitive. In the past 20 yearstools like analysis of patents, R&D expenditures, the numbers of scientifically educated people, have provided more quantitative insight. To these tools Porter adds realistic analyses of top industries in various countries - from shoes and couture in Italy, to Silicon Valley in the U.S. He points out that the fastest growth comes when favorable factors are concentrated in centers where diverse groups - industrial, academic, sometimes government or traditional industries come together and have intense interactions. This book glitters with insights and ideas. The author is among the leading US analysists of economic performance, heading a study discipline at Harvard and working with the National Bureau of Economic Research

Reasons for success and failures of nations
Michael E. Porter is a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School and a leading authority on competition and strategic management. Porter is the author of the legendary business and management books 'Competitive Strategy' (1980), and 'Competitive Advantage' (1985). I cannot start this review without a word of warning: This book is consists of 850 pages and is thus not a quick weekend-read.Read more

Subjects:  1. Business / Economics / Finance    2. Business/Economics    3. Competition, International    4. Development - Economic Development    5. Economic development    6. Economics - Theory    7. Industrial policy    8. International - General    9. International Economic Relations    10. International Relations - General    11. International business enterpr    12. International business enterprises    13. Political Science    14. Strategic planning    15. Business & Economics / Management Science    16. International economics    17. International relations   

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Corporate governance    5. Economic History    6. Economics - Comparative    7. History    8. International - Economics    9. Business & Economics / Economics / International    10. Management & management techniques   

Subjects:  1. Antitrust law    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Competition    6. Competition, International    7. Economics - General    8. Government policy    9. Industrial policy    10. Industries - General    11. Business & Economics / Economics / General    12. Business competition    13. International business    14. International economics    15. Political economy   

Reviews (4)

Biased, biased, biased
I had to read this book as part of a macroeconomics course.
A regrettably'Lite' treatment of an important issue
When I checked this out of my library, I was looking forward to an insightful read of a really critical topic for our time.What I found instead was a very fluffy book, long on statements, short on facts and real insights.Taking a good look at the references shows one of the problems - many of the references are from newspapers and magazines, not journals or analytical works.I can almost imagine the author sorting out a shoebox of clippings while outlining the chapters.
AnIncisive Examination of Globalization
Robert Isaak has written a well researched and an easy to understand critique of the phenomenon of globalization. He develops in aclear and persuasive style an argument that demonstrates the numerous serious faillings of this neoliberal idea .
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Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. General    5. Globalization    6. International - Economics    7. Investments & Securities - General    8. Politics / Current Events    9. Poor    10. Poverty    11. Rich people    12. Wealth    13. History / General   

Reviews (18)

Good book to follow Econ 101 macro/micro
Required reading for my MBA program. A short but good story. Interesting. Read in one day.
Ricardo fan
The Choice is an easy read with big benefits. In this concise, well written narrative, Roberts explains one of the most important concepts in economics--the importance of free trade. Everyone in America should read this book.

Simple, Elegant and Wrong
Roberts' little fable pits a wholly benign free-trade against absolute protectionism and guess which one looks better.Based on the theories of David Ricardo, the fable assumes that every worker in the world is always treated fairly and every boss is kind and responsible.In The Choice there are no sweat shops and no corrupt CEOs.Fables like The Choice (or the "free-market economy" for that matter) are easy to believe because we want the world to be that simple.That's why the book is dangerous.The Choice has almost nothing to do with the real world, but it sounds good.The argument is so seamless that it appears almost unassailable.If you buy Roberts' version of Ricardo, however, you must accept Wal-Mart as the epitome of business virtue.
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Subjects:  1. 1772-1823    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Economics - General    6. Economics - Theory    7. Free Enterprise    8. Free Trade    9. Protectionism    10. Ricardo, David,    11. United States    12. Business & Economics / Economics / General    13. Fiction: Special Features    14. International trade    15. Ricardo, David   

Reviews (1)

Antropology is a must
Very exciting journey using the strenght of metaphores. Just be careful that metaphores are a representation of reality, not exactly that! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. Cross-cultural orientation    5. Cross-cultural studies    6. Ethnic Studies - General    7. International - Economics    8. International - General    9. National characteristics    10. Business & Economics / International    11. Cultural studies    12. Globalization   

Reviews (7)

New thinking to marketing
Our company offers solutions for marketing and customer understanding. And we have seen that this book have opened a lot of eyes to see the future of marketing, specially in the internet and mobile; several our clients have read the book. Communities, social networks, and engagement marketing is the future, and this book really helps to understand, why and how. I recommend this everyone who is working with marketing and customer relationship management.

Relevant "Viral" Marketing Ideas
"Communities Dominate Brands" is a great reference for anyone attempting to develop market reach to connected mobile device communities of young consumers.It describes how to invite today's mobile device totting tech savvy 20 somethings to your products or services, -because conventional advertising isn't working.There's good background on the genesis of this community; and, how it socially evolved with relevant advances in technology, especially mobile devices.
Incredibly practical book on hottest business topics today
This amazing book continually impresses with vivid expert opinions and quotes with statistics and page after page of thoroughly documented examples. The book book proceeds logically through the management concerns of today, including disruptive technologies, convergence and fragmentation etc. Then it looks at the crisis facing traditional advertising, branding and marketing. The last three chapters of the book build on the earlier ones show how extensive a change is already happening with global players like Adidas, Red Bull, Boeing and Ford.
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Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business/Economics    4. E-Commerce - Internet Marketing    5. International - Marketing    6. Sales & Selling - General    7. Sales & Selling - Management    8. Advertising   

Reviews (3)

Unbelievabletour the force indeed
I can hardly agree with former reviewers. Worst book I have ever seen on the subject. No serious professor shall use it for lecturing. I can hardly believe it is gotten to a 7th edition and the price is really excessive. Not a single penny shall be spent on such a book. If you do not want to waste your money and time, buy any other book on the subject (or any other subject for that matter).A few examples will suffice. First look at the index. You will find several sections for each chapter. Most sections are only one page long. Look at references cited at the end of each chapter. Well, many are unrelated to the main text of the chapters. Nor references are ever mentioned during the main body of the text. There are no footnotes. For instance there is not a single reference onDornbusch overshooting papaer.Third, open economy macroeconomics are left to the final chapter and are covered rather superficially. So superficially that the open economy multiplier is introduced after an incomplete presentation of the Mundell Fleming model. The discussion on issues regarding capital inflows, which is only about one page long,appears well in advance of the introduction of basic concepts for open economy macroeconomics. This does not make any sense. The list goes on and on and on for. Now, if you just want to get a rough idea of what the subject is about (I mean like a novel), you will get some benefit by reading (not studying) this book. However, you should try other options instead.

A really good introduction to International Finance
If the previous reviewer thought *this* was too complicated and confusing, I don't know what they'd make of the leading textbook in the field, Krugman's International Economics, which is a confusing, disorganized, and bloated mess.In my opinion, this book is much simpler, clearer, better organized, and better written.I just took a course with Krugman's text, and now I'm reading this to figure out what the heck Krugman was talking about, with great success.

Very Imformative- but complicated
I have been using this book in an international finance class.It has been very imformative but is very slow going due to the complex nature of the text.I would suggest this to anyone who is not just interested in thesubjecrt, but dedicated. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Business / Economics / Finance    2. Finance    3. Globalization    4. International finance    5. Political Science    6. Politics/International Relations    7. Political Science / Globalization   

Subjects:  1. Development - Business Development    2. Philosophy & Social Aspects    3. Political Science    4. Politics / Current Events    5. Politics/International Relations    6. Public Policy - Social Policy    7. 21st century    8. Development economics    9. Development studies    10. International economics    11. Reference works   

Reviews (1)

vast potential
Rao and Mendoza appear to be targeting a business or technology audience, that might be eyeing these burgeoning markets and wondering if they should establish a presence. For this, the country profiles can be very useful, as these are focused on telecommunications and wireless. Rather than being a general interest introduction to those countries.
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Subjects:  1. Asia    2. Business & Economics    3. Business/Economics    4. Cellular telephone services in    5. Cellular telephone services industry    6. International - General    7. Mobile communication systems    8. Pacific Area    9. Technology & Industrial Arts    10. Telecommunications    11. Wireless Internet    12. Business & Economics / International    13. Media, information & communication industries   

Reviews (3)

Not what you might think from the title
Hegemony is a popular buzz word in international politics these days. Talking heads throw it around every Sunday morning. So one might expect a book entitled After Hegemony to be discussion on American foreign policy "after hegemony." In this case - Wrong!This is a nearly 20 year old book with a title that is currently a trendy topic. And it deals with political economy and "regime" formation, such as international monetary regime, international trade regime, and international oil regime, how these regimes were founded during the time period the author considers the time of US economic (and military) hegemony (the 1950's and 60's) and how they evolved during the years after US hegemony had passed according to the author. "Non-hegemonic cooperation is difficult but not impossible"
In After Hegemony neoliberal institutionalist Robert O. Keohane deals with the 'central political dilemma': How to organize international cooperation without hegemony? Or in other words, is cooperation possible in the post-hegemonic world? Keohane audaciously contends that cooperation is possible without hegemony since international regimes make this cooperation possible. In this sense, he criticizes hegemonic stability theory (HST) since HST necessitates a hegemon for regime maintenance specifically and for international cooperation in general. This book, however, might not be considered as a fundamental criticism of the realist theory since it accepts basic realist premises of international cooperation. For instance, he takes states as the major actors in international politics in which they have interest maximizing goals. On the other hand, Keohane also basically argues that 'although hegemony can facilitate cooperation, it is neither a necessary nor a sufficient condition for it...hegemony is less important for the continuation of cooperation, once after began, than for its creation'.In this respect, he differentiates hegemon's role in creation of international regimes from their maintenance. While he keeps hegemonic power important in creating regimes he does not see hegemon so significant for the their maintenance. What are the functions and/or benefits of international regimes? Institutions/regimes provide information, decrease transaction costs, monitor compliance, create issue linkages and prevent cehating. Then, they serve states' self-interests and generate international cooperation. Fear of retaliation and search for reputation are the key reasons why states eschew to break the rules of international regimes. The concept of 'bounded rationality' is also important in Keohane's functionalist theory of regimes. In this framework, states are willing to uphold international regimes for their self-interests. According to him 'bounded rationality' relaxes the strict assumptions of rationality and they make states emphatically interdependent to each other. Then it leads to shifts in state preferences and they will be more likely to cooperate by means of international regimes. In this respect, Keohane tends generally to see interdependence as a beneficial element for international cooperation. Moreover, After Hegemony have case studies in three issue areas; trade, money, and oil. Keohane examines international regimes in these areas for post-hegemonic period when the US power began to decline by the early 1970s. He finds hegemonic stability theory relevant for oil while he does notfor the issue areas of trade and money. in this sense, he also point out the limits and possibilities of both HST and his regime theory.Overarall, he makes the point: non-hegemonic cooperation is difficult but not impossible.

A groundbreaking book
Robert Keohane is one of the top five International Relations theorists today. His book "After Hegemony", written in 1984, is considered to be the iniciator of the neoliberal institutionalist school of IR. Inthis book, Keohane shows that although states live in an anarchic world andare racional actors, they can cooperate with each other throughinstitutions. This book revolutionalised the field and opened a fiercedebate on cooperation that lasts until now. A very interesting book writtenby a master in the field - that is enough recommendation. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. General    2. Government - International    3. History - General History    4. International - Economics    5. International Relations - General    6. Political Science    7. Politics/International Relations    8. World - General    9. Economics    10. International relations    11. Political Science / International Relations    12. Political Science and International Relations    13. Political economy   

Reviews (5)

History was VERY unkind to this book....
This is a sad book. History was very unkkind to this woman. Just when she thought she completed here masterpiece, a book that was supposed to ensure her tenure and fame and all the things that a sociologist may want, everything blew up in her face.
A solid reference work
Sassen aims to - unpack the concept of "the city" (p. xviii) - as a unit of analysis in sociology and economics from a global perspective. The scope of this endeavor is quite staggering and she has to bring an number of different fields under the same conceptual umbrella in order to capture the elusive character of 'the city'. Her method is the painstaking analysis of a huge amount of data from a vast array of sources. This might seem unnecessary to some people who are more interested in bold visions of the future � la Manuel Castells or Antonio Negri. The thing about Castells or Negri though is that you need a leap of faith to interpret the world according to their views. Sassen is more boring to read but one can always rely on her providing the data leading up to her conclusions. This is crucial to anyone wanting to take a stab at the interdisciplinary phenomenon of the global city and use availible data for comparison. The thorough research foundation of the book makes it easy to link the issues to areas that otherwise would be quite far apart such as urban planning and service management. Personally I think the most important message is that place and location matters maybe even more nowadays than it used to when production and consumption was explicitly bound by the physical limitations of our world. A must read in the globalization debate
In writing this review, I had to begin with one critical question: why on earth would I review a book already in print for almost four years?What better time than now, when anti-war advocates are seen in many eyes as un-American, to write about a book in which the author discusses the dangers of nationalism and xenophobia in the context of an ever-globalizing economy?In ten essays the doctor of sociology attempts to "expand the analytic terrain within which we need to understand the global economy in order to render visible what is now evicted" from our current picture of the global economy.She writes in such mouthfuls often, yet her textbook style of writ