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Ad/Sales Ratios
"B Schools For the 21st Century"
A BusinessWeek editorial about how graduate business schools are behind the times and are training
managers for the 20th century, not the 21st century--not teaching people or global business skills.
"Before You Say Yes, Look For the Signs of a Bad Boss"
A Wall Street Journal column by Joann Lublin about how to identify someone who will be a bad boss
to work for.
"Broadcast TV: Still Missing the Point Online"
Web developer Chris Westercamp outlines why TV station websites are missing an opportunity
to connect to their communities better and make more money.
"Breaking Bad News To The Boss"
In a perfect world managers bringing bad news to their boss would be showered
with appreciation, but in real life, "kill the messenger" is more often heard.
This paper suggests safe ways to break bad news to a boss.
"Breaking Point"
A National Magazine Award winning article by journalist Nick
Kotz that tells the story of the suicide of Admiral Boorda, Chief of Naval Operations,
and the tragic events and unethical reporting that were behind it.
"Budgeting is Broken"
"Business Plan Model for a Startup Business"
An outline for how to write a business plan for a startup business.
"Career Values"
Before taking a job, ensure your values match your new boss's.
"CBS and 'Memogate'"
What should CBS have done after it was revealed that the documents on Dan Rather's report on President
Bush's National Guard record were forged?
"Competing With Analysis"
An article that describes how winning companies are passionate and obsessive about using data to compete.
"Competition vs. Cooperation"
Which works better, competition or cooperation?
The answer, without equivocation, is cooperation. Although most people are
surprised by this, scientists have repeatedly verified it in
hundreds of studies since the late 1800s. Yet big business, the
educational system, the health-care community, and many parents
continue to encourage competition, almost totally neglecting the
power of cooperation.
"Daily Comedy Mission Statement"
"Dealing With The Problem Boss"
Tough times make bad chiefs worse. The standard wisdom
on them may not go far enough. Ready for the idea of employee abuse?
"The Devine, Too, Is In the Details"
NY Times interview of Jacqueline Kosecoff, chief executive of Prescription Solutions,
in which she gives some insightful advice about how to lead, how to hire, and how to run meetings.
"Dutch Auction"
A description of how a Dutch auction works.
"E-Readers #1"
"E-Readers #2"
A collection of articles about the future of the book business and the affect e-readers will
have on it. Two files because they are large.
"ESPN Mission Statement"
"Executive Suite Speech"
"Expectations May Alter Outcomes Far More Than We Realize"
Sharon Begley, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, writes about how rats and school children
learn faster if they are expected to.
"The Fallacy of Forecasting"
A wise, witty commentary on the business forecasting process.
Filmmaking/Television Production Outline
"First Step in Becoming a Winner: Act Like One."
Legendary Harvard women's basketball coach articulates one of the secrets of winning. Act like a winner.
"First, Know Yourself"
An article by Alexandra Levit about the first step in a successful job search and interview.
"Five Forces That Shape Industry Competition"
A Harvard Business Review video of competitive strategy guru Michael Porter talking about
his breakthrough article that defined competitive strategy.
"The Five Questions That Kill Marketing Careers"
Five questions that should be asked about marketing expenditures, even though
top management often doesn't want them asked.
"From Simple Story to Major Mess"
A Columbia Journalism Review article titled "From Simple Story to
Major Mess" about how a careless young reporter on her first television
reporting job didn't check the facts in a story and caused
major damage.
"The Future of Advertising"
A 2009 Wharton School study published in Advertising Age about the future of advertising
and what constitutes an effective ad campaign.
"The Future of TV"
A 2009 Advertising Age article that describes how new viewing devices will change the
Current state of the television business.
"Getting Comfortable With Couples In The Workplace"
Is love in the air at your office? A slew of social trends are converging to encourage
romance at work as never before. Surprising new research shows that this may be good
for productivity.
"The Good Company"
A survey of company social responsibility by The Economist magazine and an accompanying article titled
"Profit and the public good."
"Google Strategy?"
"Google IPO Tests Theories on Auctions"
Auction and game theory experts ponder how to game Google's auction for its hot IPO.
"Gross Points"
A New Yorker article that describes the current financial climate in Hollywood, which is dominated by
a blockbuster mentality.
"Guide to Developing a Media Plan"
"A Hippocratic Oath for Managers"
A Hippocratic Oath for Managers as recommended in a Harvard Business Review article by professors at that school.
"How to Build a Team"
A FORTUNE article about how harmony, cooperation, and synchronized effort build teams.
It's difficult, but it can be learned.
"How to Manage Salespeople"
Forget the glad-handing stereotypes. What these folks do is often more complicated than
even they realize.
"How to Run a Company Well"
An article from The Economist that provides a ten-point checklist of qualities that a successful
leader must have.
"How to Win Support From Colleagues At Your New Job"
Wall Street Journal reporter Joann Lublin gives excellent advice about how to make the right first impression
on a new job.
"How HR Can Be "Actively Harmful""
A BusinessWeek Online article by Marcus Buckingham making a credible claim that the majority of performance
evaluation systems used by corporate HR departments and well as other HR policies and procedures are worse than
worthless; they are actively harmful.
"IBM's Top Salesman"
A FORTUNE article about IBM's number-one salesperson -- an Indian in India.
"If Money Isn't Everything, What Is?"
The results of a national survey of salespeople that ranked "money" as the sixth of seventh most important
motivational factor affecting sales performance. In my experience managing salespeople, money should be
closer to the top of the list. Who is right?
"Increasing Empathetic Responses (Effective Listening)"
"The Innovator's DNA"
An HBR article on what makes a great, innovative leader such as Jeff Bezos or Steve Jobs.
"Interactive Campaign Setup Best Practices"
An IAB paper outlining the best practices for online salespeople in setting
up an online advertising campaign.
"The Interview That'll Bag a Job"
An extremely helpful article by Sarah Needleman about how to interview for a job.
"Local TV Stations Face a Fuzzy Future"
"KNSD-TV Mission Statement"
"Management Tools That Work"
Benchmarking, TQM, reengineering. So many management tools, so little time. What's a manager to do?
A new survey separates fads from systems that really pay off.
"Managers See Feedback From Their Staffers As the Most Valuable"
Columnist Carol Hymowitz of the Wall Street Journal writes that feedback
from employees is more helpful to managers than performance reviews.
The MBA Oath
In 2009, Harvard Business School Students wrote and promoted a voluntary oath
that begins by stating that "as a manager, my purpose is to serve the greater good."
"Measuring What Matters Most"
A Media Post article about measuring what counts to achieve your marketing goals.
Media/Journalism Ethics
Hutchins Commission Report
Radio-Television News Directors Code of Ethics
Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics
Walter Williams' Journalist's Creed
Joseph Pulitzer's Journalism Principles
ASME Editorial and Advertising Guidelines
Types of Criticism
"Middle Managers Are Unsung Heroes On Corporate Stage"
WSJ columnist Carol Hymowitz writes about the importance of middle managers.
"Mission Statements"
Most corporate mission statements are worthless. They
consist largely of pious platitudes such as: "We will hold
ourselves to the highest standards of professionalism and ethical
behavior." They often formulate necessities as objectives; for
example, "to achieve sufficient profit." This is like a person
saying his mission is to breathe sufficiently.
"The Morality of Advertising"
The classic article by Theodore Levitt about the good things
about advertising.
Jerry Nachman New York Post Columns
"Everything they wrote was accurate," Page 1.
"Everything they wrote was accurate," Page 2.
"Marital monikers tradition tackled," Page 1.
"Marital monikers tradition tackled," Page 2.
"The Nagging Problem of the Plateaued Salesperson"
Just mention the problem of plateauing to anyone in sales management and
you'll get a nod of recognition. It's a problem that's been around for
a long time, and one that continues to plague sales managers.
"Negotiation? Auction? A Deal Maker's Guide"
An HBR article about under what condidtions it's best to negotitate or hold an auction.
"Negotiating Baseball, 1996"
Randy Levine does a superb job of negotiating an agreement
between Major League Baseball owners and the players union by building trust.
"NFL Players Evaluate Their Coaches"
A New York Times article about how NFL players evaluate their coaches. The most
desirable attributes in a head coach were good communication skills, followed
by motivational skills, approachability, management skills, and leading by example.
"Nucor Steel - The Art of Motivation"
How Nucor Steel motivates employees with the right incentives.
"Online Revenue Budgeting"
This paper by Paul Talbot outlines how to create an online revenue budget.
"People Believe A 'Fact' That Fits Their Views Even if It's False"
WSJ Columnist Sharon Begley refers to scientific research that indicates that people believe what they want to
believe, regardless of the facts.
"Performance Reviews Need Some Work, Don't Meet Potential"
WSJ Columnist Jared Sandberg writes about how ineffective annual performance reviews are.
The Pitch Doctor, David Rose, TED Conference video.
How to pitch VCs.
"A Question to Make a Monkey of You"
Interviewers often ask "What are your greatest weaknesses?" This article by WSJ columnist Joann Lublin
advises how to answer this tough question.
"Rate Your Readiness To Change"
Executives say that as many as two-thirds of total quality management efforts flop because their companies
and not ready to change. Is your organization ready to change? Take the test in this article to assess
your readiness to change.
Reading Financial Reports
A chapter from Media Selling by William Redpath provides details on how to read financial reports
such as Balance Sheets, Income Statements, Internal Income Statements, and Statements of Cash
Flows, all of which can be downloaded via the links below.
Balance Sheet
Income Statement
Internal Income Statement
Statement of Cash Flows
"Realistic Job Previews"
A Wall Street Journal column by Jared Sandberg that stresses the importance of not overselling a
job to an applicant.
Resumes:
"Re-thinking Objectivity"
Link to a Columbia Journalism Review article that makes the point that in a
world of awkward spin, our awkward embrace of an ideal can make us passive
recipients of the news.
"Rich Media"
A primer on rich media.
"Role Functions in Group Discussions"
An outline that details the multiple roles that are necessary for effective group decision making.
"Sales Slip Ups"
A sidebar in a FORTUNE article about selling that lists the major don'ts in selling.
"Sabotage 101: The Sinister Art of Backstabbing"
A Wall Street Journal column by Jared Sandberg about how some unscrupulous people get ahead by
knocking others down.
The Search Party
Ken Auletta's New Yorker article on Google that is the forerunner to his brilliant,
comprehensive book, Googled: The End of the World As We Know It.
"A Short Path to Trouble"
Brokers who tout a stock because of a "short squeeze," or betting on
short sellers to sell large blocks of stock is a bad bet.
"Slipped Disc"
"Social Intelligence and the Biology of Leadership"
An HBR article about the importance of social intelligence and how being able to empathaize
changes the chemistry of the brain.
"Student Expectations Seen as Causing Grade Disputes"
A NY Times article that reports that many students feel entitled to receive As if
they work hard and do the assignments.
"Teamwork Raises Everyone's Game"
A Wall Street Journal column that reveals that having employees bond benefits companies more
promoting "stars."
"Terms of Authority"
Link to a Columbia Journalism Review article by Jay Rosen
who believes that because readers have alternative sources of news, especially on the Web,
they are more assertive and far less in awe of the traditional press.
"The Trouble With Women"
An article from The Economist that gives three main reasons why
women aren't running more major major corporations. One reason is that
they aren't great salary negotiators.
"Try, Try Again, or Maybe Not"
A NY Times article that reports on research from the Harvard Business School that indicates
failure may not be the best teacher for entrepreneuers; success is a better teacher.
TS-Business Plan
"Vickrey Auction"
A description of a Vickrey auction.
Warren Buffett on EBITDA
"We the People, We the Press"
An article adapted from an address author and Pulitzer Prize-winner William Kennedy
delivered May 15, 2004 at the graduate school commencement at the State University of New York
at Albany.
"What's the Point?"
An American Journalism Review article that asks, "Few voters are swayed by newspaper
endorsements of presidential candidates. So why do editorial pages keep publishing them?"
"We May Be Born With an Urge to Help"
A NY Times article about some recent discoveries in psychology about the "altruism gene."
"Where Leaders Come From"
If our age seems lacking in leadership, take heart. Warren Bennis says leaders aren't born,
they're made, mostly self-made.
"Why Changing the CEO May Not Change the Company"
Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Zweig refers to research that indicates that change in company
leadership accounts for roughly 10 percent of the variance in corporate profitability. The biggest
factor in CEO success? Luck.
"The Wisdom of Teams"
A team is a small number of people with complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose,
performance goals, and approach for which they hold themselves
mutually accountable.
"Why Budgets Are Bad For Business"
A FORTUNE article by Tom Stewart that tells it like it is.
"Why IPOs Still Use the Old Way"
Even after Google's successful use of a modified Dutch auction for its IPO, many companies still use the old way for their IPOs.
"Women Fall Behind When They Don't Hone Their Negotiating Skills"
A Wall Street Journal column that recommends that women become more aggressive negotiators when asking
for raises and promotions.
"A World of Hits"
An article for The Economist that gives factual evidence that profits in the media and entertainment businesses
are still driven by blockbuster hits.
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