25 Best 「operations management」 Books of 2024| Books Explorer

In this article, we will rank the recommended books for operations management. The list is compiled and ranked by our own score based on reviews and reputation on the Internet.
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Table of Contents
  1. The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right
  2. The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World Smaller and The World Economy Bigger
  3. Demand Driven Performance: Using Smart Metrics
  4. The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon
  5. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
  6. Storynomics: Story-Driven Marketing in the Post-Advertising World
  7. Strategy and the Fat Smoker: Doing What's Obvious but Not Easy
  8. The Innovator's Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail (Management of Innovation and Change)
  9. This is Lean: Resolving the Efficiency Paradox
  10. Demand Driven Material Requirements Planning (DDMRP)
Other 15 books
No.1
100

In his latest bestseller, Atul Gawande shows what the simple idea of the checklist reveals about the complexity of our lives and how we can deal with it.The modern world has given us stupendous know-how. Yet avoidable failures continue to plague us in health care, government, the law, the financial industry—in almost every realm of organized activity. And the reason is simple: the volume and complexity of knowledge today has exceeded our ability as individuals to properly deliver it to people—consistently, correctly, safely. We train longer, specialize more, use ever-advancing technologies, and still we fail. Atul Gawande makes a compelling argument that we can do better, using the simplest of methods: the checklist. In riveting stories, he reveals what checklists can do, what they can’t, and how they could bring about striking improvements in a variety of fields, from medicine and disaster recovery to professions and businesses of all kinds. And the insights are making a difference. Already, a simple surgical checklist from the World Health Organization designed by following the ideas described here has been adopted in more than twenty countries as a standard for care and has been heralded as “the biggest clinical invention in thirty years” (The Independent).

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No.2
81

In April 1956, a refitted oil tanker carried fifty-eight shipping containers from Newark to Houston. From that modest beginning, container shipping developed into a huge industry that made the boom in global trade possible. The Box tells the dramatic story of the container's creation, the decade of struggle before it was widely adopted, and the sweeping economic consequences of the sharp fall in transportation costs that containerization brought about.Published on the fiftieth anniversary of the first container voyage, this is the first comprehensive history of the shipping container. It recounts how the drive and imagination of an iconoclastic entrepreneur, Malcom McLean, turned containerization from an impractical idea into a massive industry that slashed the cost of transporting goods around the world and made the boom in global trade possible.But the container didn't just happen. Its adoption required huge sums of money, both from private investors and from ports that aspired to be on the leading edge of a new technology. It required years of high-stakes bargaining with two of the titans of organized labor, Harry Bridges and Teddy Gleason, as well as delicate negotiations on standards that made it possible for almost any container to travel on any truck or train or ship. Ultimately, it took McLean's success in supplying U.S. forces in Vietnam to persuade the world of the container's potential.Drawing on previously neglected sources, economist Marc Levinson shows how the container transformed economic geography, devastating traditional ports such as New York and London and fueling the growth of previously obscure ones, such as Oakland. By making shipping so cheap that industry could locate factories far from its customers, the container paved the way for Asia to become the world's workshop and brought consumers a previously unimaginable variety of low-cost products from around the globe.

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No.3
73

Implement demand driven smart metrics to drive andsustain dramatic gains in flow and improve ROI performanceWhat if the objective of minimizing unit product cost that is hard coded into all reporting and measurement systems is simply "bad math" that drives decisions and actions that destroy ROI?In today's volatile, globally competitive environment, new decision-making tools are required to monitor, measure, and improve total organizational performance.Adherence to "old" operational rules, tools, and behaviors is killing competitiveness in most enterprises. A fundamental shift is required. Cowritten by internationallyrecognized experts in the field, Demand Driven Performance explains why current measurement forms must be replaced. The authors present a demand driven blueprint and the smart metrics to maximize flow and ROI."The methods described in this book worked in one of the most complex manufacturing operations that you can imagine with very effective results." -- From the Foreword by Dan Eckermann, former President and CEO, LeTourneau Technologies, Inc.THIS PRACTICAL, TIMELY GUIDE OFFERS: The case against conventional unitcost-focused metrics, and proof of their negative effects The new rules needed to succeed in the complex and volatile global demand and supply landscape Historical perspectives on flow, cost, and rise and demise of management accounting The evolution of flow and ROI as strategy A case study--the Boeing Dreamliner Instructions on how to design and implement a demand driven information system The smart metrics required to sustain and drive improvements in demand driven operating models

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No.4
73

The authoritative account of the rise of Amazon and its intensely driven founder, Jeff Bezos, praised by the Seattle Times as "the definitive account of how a tech icon came to life."Amazon.com started off delivering books through the mail. But its visionary founder, Jeff Bezos, wasn't content with being a bookseller. He wanted Amazon to become the everything store, offering limitless selection and seductive convenience at disruptively low prices. To do so, he developed a corporate culture of relentless ambition and secrecy that's never been cracked. Until now. Brad Stone enjoyed unprecedented access to current and former Amazon employees and Bezos family members, giving readers the first in-depth, fly-on-the-wall account of life at Amazon. Compared to tech's other elite innovators -- Jobs, Gates, Zuckerberg -- Bezos is a private man. But he stands out for his restless pursuit of new markets, leading Amazon into risky new ventures like the Kindle and cloud computing, and transforming retail in the same way Henry Ford revolutionized manufacturing.The Everything Store is the revealing, definitive biography of the company that placed one of the first and largest bets on the Internet and forever changed the way we shop and read.

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No.5
73

In today's world, yesterday's methods just don't work. In Getting Things Done, veteran coach and management consultant David Allen shares the breakthrough methods for stress-free performance that he has introduced to tens of thousands of people across the country. Allen's premise is simple: our productivity is directly proportional to our ability to relax. Only when our minds are clear and our thoughts are organized can we achieve effective productivity and unleash our creative potential. In Getting Things Done Allen shows how to:* Apply the "do it, delegate it, defer it, drop it" rule to get your in-box to empty* Reassess goals and stay focused in changing situations* Plan projects as well as get them unstuck* Overcome feelings of confusion, anxiety, and being overwhelmed* Feel fine about what you're not doingFrom core principles to proven tricks, Getting Things Done can transform the way you work, showing you how to pick up the pace without wearing yourself down.

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No.6
73

Based on the hottest, most in-demand seminar offered by the legendary story master Robert McKee -- Storynomics translates the lessons of storytelling in business into economic and leadership success.Robert McKee's popular writing workshops have earned him an international reputation. The list of alumni with Academy Awards and Emmy Awards runs off the page. The cornerstone of his program is his singular book, Story, which has defined how we talk about the art of story creation.Now in Storynomics, McKee partners with digital marketing expert and Skyword CEO Tom Gerace to map a path for brands seeking to navigate the rapid decline of interrupt advertising. After successfully guiding organizations as diverse as Samsung, Marriott International, Philips, Microsoft, Nike, IBM, and Siemens to transform their marketing from an ad-centric to story-centric approach, McKee and Gerace now bring this knowledge to business leaders and entrepreneurs alike.Drawing from dozens of story-driven strategies and case studies taken from leading B2B and B2C brands, Storynomics demonstrates how original storytelling delivers results that surpass traditional advertising. How will brands and their customers connect in the future? Storynomics provides the answer.

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No.7
73

We often (or even usually) know what we should be doing in both personal and professional life. We also know why we should be doing it and (often) how to do it. Figuring all that out is not too difficult. What is very hard is actually doing what you know to be good for you in the long-run, in spite of short-run temptations. The same is true for organizations. What is noteworthy is how similar (if not identical) most firms' strategies really are: provide outstanding client service, act like team players, provide a good place to work, invest in your future. No sensible firm (or person) would enunciate a strategy that advocated anything else. However, just because something is obvious does not make it easy. Real strategy lies not in figuring out what to do, but in devising ways to ensure that, compared to others, we actually do more of what everybody knows they should do. This simple insight, if accepted, has profound implications forHow organizations should think about strategy How they should think about clients, marketing and selling and How they should think about management.In 18 chapters, Maister explores the fat smoker syndrome and how individuals, managers and organizations can overcome the temptations of the short-term and actually do what they already know is good for them.

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No.8
73

Named one of 100 Leadership & Success Books to Read in a Lifetime by Amazon EditorsAn innovation classic. From Steve Jobs to Jeff Bezos, Clay Christensen’s work continues to underpin today’s most innovative leaders and organizations.The bestselling classic on disruptive innovation, by renowned author Clayton M. Christensen.His work is cited by the world’s best-known thought leaders, from Steve Jobs to Malcolm Gladwell. In this classic bestseller—one of the most influential business books of all time—innovation expert Clayton Christensen shows how even the most outstanding companies can do everything right—yet still lose market leadership.Christensen explains why most companies miss out on new waves of innovation. No matter the industry, he says, a successful company with established products will get pushed aside unless managers know how and when to abandon traditional business practices.Offering both successes and failures from leading companies as a guide, The Innovator’s Dilemma gives you a set of rules for capitalizing on the phenomenon of disruptive innovation.Sharp, cogent, and provocative—and consistently noted as one of the most valuable business ideas of all time—The Innovator’s Dilemma is the book no manager, leader, or entrepreneur should be without.

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No.9
71

This-is-Lean

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No.10
71

In the 1950s, a planning method was conceived called “Material Requirements Planning (or MRP).” MRP changed the world of manufacturing forever. But times have changed—customer tolerance times are much shorter, product variety and complexity has increased, and supply chains have spread around the world. MRP is dramatically failing in this “New Normal.” Demand Driven Material Requirements Planning (DDMRP) is a practical, proven, and emerging method for supply chain planning and execution that effectively brings the 1950s concept into the modern era. The foundation of DDMRP is based upon the connection between the creation, protection, and acceleration of the flow of relevant materials and information to drive returns on asset performance.Using an innovative multi-echelon “Position, Protect, and Pull” methodology, DDMRP helps plan and manage inventories and materials in today’s more complex supply scenarios, with attention being paid to ownership, the market, engineering, sales, and the supply base. This method enables a company to decouple forecast error from supply order generation and build in line to actual market requirements, and promotes better and quicker decisions and actions at the planning and execution level. DDMRP is already in use by MAJOR Global 1000 companies. Demand Driven Material Requirements Planning is THE definitive work on DDMRP, and will be required as courseware for all those taking the Certified Demand Driven Planner (CDDP) Program.Features THE authoritative work on the emerging DDMRP methodology. Provides a clear, concise, and compelling explanation of the breakdown of conventional planning systems. Includes immersive and extensive examples that bring DDMRP to life across multiple industries, including vertically integrated supply chains, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), heavy fabrication and assembly, and retail and wholesale distribution. Features over 300 graphical figures. Ptak and Smith are world renowned leaders in the fields of MRP, Theory of Contraints (TOC), Quality Improvement, and Supply Chain Management.

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No.11
71

The latest groundbreaking tome from Tim Ferriss, the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The 4-Hour Workweek.From the author:“For the last two years, I’ve interviewed more than 200 world-class performers for my podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show. The guests range from super celebs (Jamie Foxx, Arnold Schwarzenegger, etc.) and athletes (icons of powerlifting, gymnastics, surfing, etc.) to legendary Special Operations commanders and black-market biochemists. For most of my guests, it’s the first time they’ve agreed to a two-to-three-hour interview. This unusual depth has helped make The Tim Ferriss Show the first business/interview podcast to pass 100 million downloads.“This book contains the distilled tools, tactics, and ‘inside baseball’ you won’t find anywhere else. It also includes new tips from past guests, and life lessons from new ‘guests’ you haven’t met.“What makes the show different is a relentless focus on actionable details. This is reflected in the questions. For example: What do these people do in the first sixty minutes of each morning? What do their workout routines look like, and why? What books have they gifted most to other people? What are the biggest wastes of time for novices in their field? What supplements do they take on a daily basis?“I don’t view myself as an interviewer. I view myself as an experimenter. If I can’t test something and replicate results in the messy reality of everyday life, I’m not interested.“Everything within these pages has been vetted, explored, and applied to my own life in some fashion. I’ve used dozens of the tactics and philosophies in high-stakes negotiations, high-risk environments, or large business dealings. The lessons have made me millions of dollars and saved me years of wasted effort and frustration.“I created this book, my ultimate notebook of high-leverage tools, for myself. It’s changed my life, and I hope the same for you.”

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No.12
71

The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World's Greatest Manufacturer-McGraw Hill Education (India) Private Limited-Jeffrey Liker, David Meier-2004-EDN-1

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No.13
69

BRAND NEW, Exactly same ISBN as listed, Please double check ISBN carefully before ordering.

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No.14
69

Conquer the most essential adaptation to the knowledge economyThe Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth offers practical guidance for teams and organizations who are serious about success in the modern economy. With so much riding on innovation, creativity, and spark, it is essential to attract and retain quality talent―but what good does this talent do if no one is able to speak their mind? The traditional culture of "fitting in" and "going along" spells doom in the knowledge economy. Success requires a continuous influx of new ideas, new challenges, and critical thought, and the interpersonal climate must not suppress, silence, ridicule or intimidate. Not every idea is good, and yes there are stupid questions, and yes dissent can slow things down, but talking through these things is an essential part of the creative process. People must be allowed to voice half-finished thoughts, ask questions from left field, and brainstorm out loud; it creates a culture in which a minor flub or momentary lapse is no big deal, and where actual mistakes are owned and corrected, and where the next left-field idea could be the next big thing.This book explores this culture of psychological safety, and provides a blueprint for bringing it to life. The road is sometimes bumpy, but succinct and informative scenario-based explanations provide a clear path forward to constant learning and healthy innovation. Explore the link between psychological safety and high performance Create a culture where it’s “safe” to express ideas, ask questions, and admit mistakes Nurture the level of engagement and candor required in today’s knowledge economy Follow a step-by-step framework for establishing psychological safety in your team or organizationShed the "yes-men" approach and step into real performance. Fertilize creativity, clarify goals, achieve accountability, redefine leadership, and much more. The Fearless Organization helps you bring about this most critical transformation.

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No.15
69

#1 New York Times BestsellerLegendary venture capitalist John Doerr reveals how the goal-setting system of Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) has helped tech giants from Intel to Google achieve explosive growth—and how it can help any organization thrive.In the fall of 1999, John Doerr met with the founders of a start-up whom he'd just given $12.5 million, the biggest investment of his career. Larry Page and Sergey Brin had amazing technology, entrepreneurial energy, and sky-high ambitions, but no real business plan. For Google to change the world (or even to survive), Page and Brin had to learn how to make tough choices on priorities while keeping their team on track. They'd have to know when to pull the plug on losing propositions, to fail fast. And they needed timely, relevant data to track their progress—to measure what mattered.Doerr taught them about a proven approach to operating excellence: Objectives and Key Results. He had first discovered OKRs in the 1970s as an engineer at Intel, where the legendary Andy Grove ("the greatest manager of his or any era") drove the best-run company Doerr had ever seen. Later, as a venture capitalist, Doerr shared Grove's brainchild with more than fifty companies. Wherever the process was faithfully practiced, it worked.In this goal-setting system, objectives define what we seek to achieve; key results are how those top-priority goals will be attained with specific, measurable actions within a set time frame. Everyone's goals, from entry level to CEO, are transparent to the entire organization.The benefits are profound. OKRs surface an organization's most important work. They focus effort and foster coordination. They keep employees on track. They link objectives across silos to unify and strengthen the entire company. Along the way, OKRs enhance workplace satisfaction and boost retention.In Measure What Matters, Doerr shares a broad range of first-person, behind-the-scenes case studies, with narrators including Bono and Bill Gates, to demonstrate the focus, agility, and explosive growth that OKRs have spurred at so many great organizations. This book will help a new generation of leaders capture the same magic.

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No.16
68

Hardcover published by Quadragle/The New York Times Book Co., third printing, August 1977, copyright 1975.

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No.17
68

Ben Horowitz, cofounder of Andreessen Horowitz and one of Silicon Valley's most respected and experienced entrepreneurs, offers essential advice on building and running a startup—practical wisdom for managing the toughest problems business school doesn’t cover, based on his popular ben’s blog.While many people talk about how great it is to start a business, very few are honest about how difficult it is to run one. Ben Horowitz analyzes the problems that confront leaders every day, sharing the insights he’s gained developing, managing, selling, buying, investing in, and supervising technology companies. A lifelong rap fanatic, he amplifies business lessons with lyrics from his favorite songs, telling it straight about everything from firing friends to poaching competitors, cultivating and sustaining a CEO mentality to knowing the right time to cash in.Filled with his trademark humor and straight talk, The Hard Thing About Hard Things is invaluable for veteran entrepreneurs as well as those aspiring to their own new ventures, drawing from Horowitz's personal and often humbling experiences.

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No.18
68

Images of Organization

Morgan, Gareth
SAGE Publications, Inc
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No.19
68

In this classic text, Taiichi Ohno--inventor of the Toyota Production System and Lean manufacturing--shares the genius that sets him apart as one of the most disciplined and creative thinkers of our time. Combining his candid insights with a rigorous analysis of Toyota's attempts at Lean production, Ohno's book explains how Lean principles can improve any production endeavor. A historical and philosophical description of just-in-time and Lean manufacturing, this work is a must read for all students of human progress. On a more practical level, it continues to provide inspiration and instruction for those seeking to improve efficiency through the elimination of waste.

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No.20
67

Written in a fast-paced thriller style, 'The Goal' contains a serious message for all managers in industry and explains the ideas which underline the Theory of Constraints developed by the author.

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No.21
67

Tempo is a modern treatment of decision-making that weaves together concepts and principles from the mathematical decision sciences, cognitive psychology, philosophy and theories of narrative and metaphor. Drawing on examples from familiar domains such as the kitchen and the office, the author, Venkatesh Rao, illustrates the subtleties underlying everyday behavior, and explains how you can strengthen the foundations of your decision-making skills. "TEMPO is one of the most insightful and original books on decision-making I've ever read..." -- Daniel H. Pink, author of DRIVE and A WHOLE NEW MIND "An uncannily accurate analysis of our choice-making behaviors" -- David Allen, author of GETTING THINGS DONE "Tempo is a highly original and engaging book...In a world where timing is increasingly central to success, this is an essential read, not just for executives, but for everyone." -- John Hagel, co-author of THE POWER OF PULL

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No.22
67

Publication Date, Third Edition: October 3, 2011 (In July of 2018, Carpenter extensively revised the 6th printing of the 3rd Edition)Work The System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less, Third Edition, guides the reader in modifying his or her fundamental perception of the world, moving from an inaccurate vision of barely controlled chaos, to a more accurate one: that life is an orderly collection of individual linear systems each of which can be improved and perfected one at a time. The reader is guided through the process of ''getting'' this new vision, and then through the specifics of applying it via Carpenter's "system improvement" methodology.For start-ups or multinationals, the methodology is simple, believable, and mechanical; not mystical or theoretical. Carpenter developed the "systems mindset" protocol in the business he purchased in 1984 and still owns today. With that company, he moved from an 80-100 hour workweek to a 2 hour workweek, while multiplying his income dozens of times over. He is CEO of an international business consulting firm, and several other spin-off businesses, as well as an international non-profit, all of which are operated in the same systems mindset fashion. With a diverse background in engineering, construction and business management, publishing, telecommunications and journalism, he calls his approach a "workingman's philosophy." See workthesystem.com.Work the System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working Less will show the business owner how to achieve a positive macro result by looking at business and work on a micro level; by analyzing and refining the separate internal sub-systems, the systems that, added together, comprise the whole primary system business entity. Readers will learn how to "tweak" this "system of systems" in order to maximize profits, create client loyalty, and develop autonomous employees.The strategies help business owners to quickly and dramatically improve performance as well as decrease the stress of being overtaxed and disorganized, ultimately resulting in a substantially shorter work week and a much-improved bottom line. See testimonials of readers at workthesystem.com/testimonials.In an unusual publishing arrangement, Carpenter gives away his unabridged book in both PDF and audible formats via his website workthesystem.com. This adversely affects Amazon, NY Times, etc. book sales ratings but meets his objective of wide distribution. The book is also available in hard copy in multiple languages including Chinese, Russian, and Japanese.

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No.23
67

"I'm a huge fan of High Output Management and Setting the Table […] Luca's Best Practices for Operational Excellence took my management to the next level.It's been almost a month since I started implementing the principles, but I can already say that I've noticed a significant improvement in my company's morale […] That feels amazing."– Molson Hart, Viahart CEOInside:– The 4 Principles of Operational Excellence that determine whether your organization will operate smoothly or always react to the last problem, whether your subordinates respect you and each other or operate with defensiveness and distrust.– The 8 Best Practices of Operational Excellence that effective managers use on a weekly and monthly basis to ensure that the Principles are followed in practice every day, even when conditions are not optimal, even when they are not around.– How to get top-management buy-in, a roadmap for an effective roll-out, and systems to sustain the change. This book does not let you alone with the complex reality of implementing change in a big company where multiple projects and agendas are involved.This is the second edition.

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No.25
66

Working Backwards is an insider's breakdown of Amazon's approach to culture, leadership, and best practices from two long-time Amazon executives―with lessons and techniques you can apply to your own company, and career, right now.In Working Backwards, two long-serving Amazon executives reveal the principles and practices that have driven the success of one of the most extraordinary companies the world has ever known. With twenty-seven years of Amazon experience between them―much of it during the period of unmatched innovation that created products and services including Kindle, Amazon Prime, Amazon Studios, and Amazon Web Services―Bryar and Carr offer unprecedented access to the Amazon way as it was developed and proven to be repeatable, scalable, and adaptable.With keen analysis and practical steps for applying it at your own company―no matter the size―the authors illuminate how Amazon’s fourteen leadership principles inform decision-making at all levels of the company. With a focus on customer obsession, long-term thinking, eagerness to invent, and operational excellence, Amazon’s ground-level practices ensure these characteristics are translated into action and flow through all aspects of the business.Working Backwards is both a practical guidebook and the story of how the company grew to become so successful. It is filled with the authors’ in-the-room recollections of what “Being Amazonian” is like and how their time at the company affected their personal and professional lives. They demonstrate that success on Amazon’s scale is not achieved by the genius of any single leader, but rather through commitment to and execution of a set of well-defined, rigorously-executed principles and practices―shared here for the very first time.Whatever your talent, career or organization might be, find out how you can put Working Backwards to work for you.

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