Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Slack : Getting Past Burnout, Busywork, and the Myth of Total Efficiency by Tom DeMarco ISBN: 0-7679-0769-8 Publisher: Broadway Pub. Date: 09 April, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.69 (26 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: An excellent challenge to Taylorism and its offspring
Comment: In Slack, I think writer Tom DeMarco delivers a simple and powerful message that bears repeating. The idea that we are actually increasing productivity by driving people in machine-like efficiency is an illusion. The fact is that when we do not give people "slack" in pre-selected areas of a workflow, we may find unplanned "slack" appearing in all the wrong places, at the wrong time and in larger quantities then what the planned "slack" would have been. I found DeMarco's challenge of the theories of Total Efficiency, Management by Objective and Internal Competition especially refreshing. I highly recommend this book especially to people who manage "knowledge workers."
Rating: 5
Summary: Highly Recommended!
Comment: Author Tom DeMarco presents a compelling case against total efficiency, which - he explains convincingly - can actually slow down work processes, undermine office morale and corrupt positive change. Leave some slack in your system, he says, so people have a chance to do their best and grow, which will result in a more effective organization. He includes some simple flow charts to help illustrate these ideas, along with examples of management methods that work and some that don't. We [...] particularly like his details about managing knowledge workers. The book is divided into almost three dozen short, to-the-point chapters. Each one highlights a different problem caused by lack of slack time, and suggests a solution. This pleasant read will intrigue both executives and managers. If you don't have time to read it, maybe you're being too efficient.
Rating: 4
Summary: Can you give me some Slack!
Comment: Slack blows the doors off the myths of total efficiency by breaking down the many fallacies that efficiency experts have been trying to sell us for years. Slack is not a book that is trying to "sell" you anything; but a book that advises you "don't buy it"!
Downsizing, busyness, aggressive schedules, overtime, the culture of fear, and the obsession we have with process improvement are just a few of the total efficiency crazes that DeMarco addresses. He lays down a convincing foundation for busting these myths beginning in the first chapter. He explains that knowledge workers are not fungible resources, that is that they can not easily and freely exchange their work from a variety of tasks or projects, basically challenging the biggest myth out there, that of multi-tasking knowledge workers.
The book is not all doom and gloom, but provides solid strategies for any manager willing to set aside the current corporate trends and enter a brave, new world of Slack. I have a few managers I'd like to share this book with!
 |
Title: Waltzing With Bears: Managing Risk on Software Projects by Tom Demarco, Timothy Lister ISBN: 0932633609 Publisher: Dorset House Pub. Date: March, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
 |
Title: Peopleware : Productive Projects and Teams, 2nd Ed. by Tom Demarco, Timothy Lister, Timothy R. Lister ISBN: 0932633439 Publisher: Dorset House Pub. Date: 01 February, 1999 List Price(USD): $33.95 |
 |
Title: The Deadline: A Novel About Project Management by Tom Demarco ISBN: 0932633390 Publisher: Dorset House Pub. Date: July, 1997 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
 |
Title: Death March: The Complete Software Developer's Guide to Surviving 'Mission Impossible' Projects (Yourdon Computing Series) by Edward Yourdon ISBN: 0130146595 Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR Pub. Date: 15 June, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.99 |
 |
Title: Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering by Robert L. Glass ISBN: 0321117425 Publisher: Addison-Wesley Pub Co Pub. Date: 28 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $29.99 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
