Saving the Corporate Soul--and (Who Knows?) Maybe Your Own: Eight Principles for Creating and Preserving Wealth and Well-Being for You and Your Company Without Selling Out
Author: David Batstone
List Price: $26.95
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ISBN: 0787964808
Publisher: Jossey-Bass (10 March, 2003)
Sales Rank: 38,838
Average Customer Rating: 4.86 out of 5
Customer Reviews
Rating: 5 out of 5
The must-have book for business readers today
Finally, a book that outlines what CAN BE RIGHT with the corporate world. I've been a fan of David Batstone's journalism for years. In Saving the Corporate Soul, he outlines what all of us--leaders, managers, office workers--need to do to fix what's wrong with business in America. His eight principles are right on--and readily implementable. I've bought a copy for everyone on my management team. Read it now.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Excellent and Essential Advice
David Batstone's excellent book on corporate integrity is a must-read for executives and managers who want ideas on how to create profitable but soulful businesses that show heart as well as logic. This is not a text that preaches from the pulpit or revels in moral condemnation of Enron's misdeeds. For those of us who are sick to the teeth of reading Enron/Anderson post-mortems, Batstone's book will come as a refreshing change. Reputation building has always been a profitable way to grow a business. 'Reputation is not the same thing as a brand' Batstone says. Instead he says, 'Reputation is the perceived character a company holds to public eye', which is probably the best definition this reviewer has read. Using the eight principles outlined in the book, managers are guided through examples that have helped or hindered individual companies. IKEA vs Home Depot for example is cited in the Community section of the book - the underlying principle being 'A company will think of itself as part of a community as well as a market'. Which one would you rather have open a store in your community, and why? For the record, the residents of Mountain View, CA (a pretty town near to Silicon Valley) said they'd prefer an IKEA, and not because they like modular Swedish furniture.
The eight principles outlined in the book are:
Principle One: The directors and executives of a company will align their personal interests with the fate of stakeholders and act in a responsible way to ensure the vitality of the enterprise.
Principle Two: A company's business operations will be transparent to shareholder, employees and the public and its executives will stand by the integrity of their decisions.
Principle Three: A company will think of itself as part of a community as well as a market.
Principle Four: A company will represent its products honestly to customers and honor their dignity up to and beyond a transaction.
Principle Five: The worker will be treated as a valuable team member, not just a hired hand.
Principle Six: The environment will be treated as a silent stakeholder, a party to which the company is wholly accountable.
Principle Seven: A company will strive for balance, diversity and equality in its relationships with workers, customers and suppliers.
Principle Eight: A company will pursue international trade and production based on respect for the rights of workers and citizens of trade partner nations.
If you are looking for one book to share with others in your organization to start a discussion on integrity and reputation, Saving the Corporate Soul should be it.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Picked low fruit missed the Agribusiness
This book is written very well and is pretty straightforward. So straight forward you can get most of the concepts of the book by reading the table of contents. There can't be much to argue with in the book because virtually every corporate hack who raked in the money during the obscene years is now preaching the same messages of corporate redemption. Expense stock options, treat employees fairly, create an environmental scorecard.... wake me up when it is over. In short, there is nothing new in these pages but the way it is recapped is very sweet primer on the subject. But my question is why did Batstone stop where he did? Where are the chapters relating to the ethics of afdvertising and PR? The ethics of obscene campaign contributions and political lobbying efforts? Where are the chapters about companies holding communities hostage by leveraging the threat of relocation for sweet tax deals? The chapters about what truly sustainable business practices mean about the globalization of companies?
Batstone does a nice job on the content he handles but fails miserably in addressing the core problems at the heart and soul of corporations today. Similar Products
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