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". . . unique and insightful."

". . . their presentation of human capital management and the accompanying issues is fresh and exciting."

"Perhaps the most stimulating is that they lay out a new way of viewing the business challenges that are right in front of us."

"The book is well-organized . . ."

" The introduction clearly lays out (of course it does) the challenges, key questions, and context and introduces their core principles: 'insist on systems thinking,' 'get the right facts,' and 'focus on value.' These principles are indeed the essence of the book."

"The chapter on business risk provides an excellent opportunity to stretch one's business acumen . . ."

"Myth busters . . . that are debunked in the book – are clearly marked . . . the discussion of these truisms is fun while challenging to old ways of thinking . . ."

"I recommend this book to the business reader and HR practitioner, as well as the I-O student interested in gaining insights into the world of business."

Reviewed by: Jeanne Carsten, Vice President, JPMorgan Chase Bank – NYC

“At National City, we make disciplined investments to support our customer-driven strategy. Our people are a focal point of that strategy – and they represent our biggest single investment. Naturally, we want to know what we get in return and exactly what impact these investments have on our business goals. We have successfully applied the approaches described in this book to answer these questions. We have also used this fact-based approach to find new ways to solve old problems. I encourage every executive who takes seriously the idea that people drive revenue, profit, growth, and customer satisfaction to consider the tactics discussed in this book.”

David A. Daberko, Chairman and CEO, National City Corporation

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"The authors have outlined a practicable, real-world framework for companies to analyze and implement change. Any organization that sees its people as an asset can benefit from this approach."

Daniel H. Mudd, Vice Chairman & COO, Fannie Mae, and former President and CEO of GE Capital, Japan

“This book is a key read not only for HR managers, but for all managers who want to invest astutely in their people to enable great performance for their company."

Adrian J. Slywotzky, best-selling author of The Profit Zone and How to Grow When Markets Don’t

"This is the new thinking in business. And it works. More than once I have applied the principles and tools presented here. The book simply provides an innovative way of getting the facts about how a company really is managing its people and how that affects its business results. With these insights you can do a lot, from setting long-range strategies to solving specific, pressing business problems."

Kurt Fischer, Vice President Human Resources and Diversity Officer, Corning Incorporated

"Measurement is important. I think it provides rigor to any process. If  you don't take time to measure investments in human capital, you can be investing in the wrong things." 

Michele Burns, CFO, Delta Airlines (excerpted from jointly-funded research project with CFO Research Services)

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“This book will be a significant stimulant to research and a significant contributor to competitive advantage for those companies that buy the concepts and methods presented.

Just as the book makes clear there is no silver bullet to success, I cannot summarize in one pithy sentence why the book is so terrific – so let me try in a few sentences:

• First, the book focuses on human capital issues in new ways, revealing with clear case studies how to use HRIS data a company already has but has not known how to use in the past as a source of hard facts about needed intervention and change to promote effectiveness.
  
  

• Second, the book effectively debunks the impulse to gather data on best practices from other companies and shows how companies need to focus on themselves and their context because it is they in their world that must be successful.
  
  

• Third, the book is elegant in its simplicity and simply elegant in its presentation of the notion that organizations are complex systems of interrelated parts, all of which must be understood and managed to promote competitive advantage.
  
  

• Finally, the book shows how an active management of human capital always outperforms talking about the value of human capital and how a focus on the value of human capital rather than its costs promotes competitive advantage.
  

Buy it, actively read it, and you will be informed and ready to approach your business and build on the strengths you probably do not yet know you have.”

Benjamin Schneider, Ph.D., Department of Psychology, University of Maryland and Author of "Winning the Service Game" with David Bowen

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