Alumni Books

I Thought We Were Making Movies, Not History

by Walter Mirisch (IA ’43)
(University of Wisconsin Press)

The producer of such film classics as West Side Story, Some Like It Hot, In the Heat of the Night, and The Magnificent Seven, Mirisch tells the story of his climb to the top of the film industry while witnessing the end of the studio system, the development of indepen-dent production, and the rise and fall of some of Hollywood’s most gifted (and notorious) cultural icons.

Satisfied Customers Tell Three Friends, Angry Customers Tell 3,000: Running a Business in Today’s Consumer-Driven World

by Pete Blackshaw (MBA ’95)
(Doubleday/Currency)

In today’s Internet-driven world, customers have a great deal of power: on blogs, social-networking pages, and product-review sites, disgruntled customers can broadcast their complaints to millions. Relating stories of his experiences working with brands like Toyota, Nike, Sony, and Nestlé, Blackshaw shows managers and marketers how to establish and maintain credibility for their brand by being authentic, listening and responding to customers, and forming relationships built on openness and trust.

Giving Back: Connecting You, Business, and Community

by Bert Berkley (MBA ’50) and Peter Economy
(Wiley)

Profiling many highly effective charitable organizations — for example, Kiva, Horizons for Homeless Children, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and Stonyfield Farm Profits for the Planet — and the businesspeople involved with them, this book demonstrates the benefits of affiliating a business with charities and nonprofits. They include an increase in the bottom line and employee morale as well as a boost to the company’s brand and reputation.

Plugged In: The Generation Y Guide to Thriving at Work

by Tamara Erickson (MBA ’78)
(Harvard Business Press)

With values markedly different from those of earlier generations, Generation Y, born after 1980, makes up almost a third of all Americans living today. Erickson shows Generation Y-ers how to understand and influence their professional relationships, how to define “success,” how to craft the lives they want, and how the different generations can collaborate more effectively at work.

Fortune & Freedom: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Success

by Jim Hirshfield (MBA ’66)
(Millennium Ventures Press)

Based on his experiences over years of entrepreneurial success, Hirshfield gives practical advice on how to own and run a business, find the right deal, negotiate, determine when to get in and get out, and much more.

Dubai & Co.: Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States

by Aamir A. Rehman (MBA ’04)
(McGraw-Hill)

No truly global firm can afford to ignore the booming Gulf region and its hub, Dubai, which is experiencing unprecedented growth in the energy, financial services, consumer goods, hospitality, and many other industries. This book lays out the historical, demographic, political, economic, and regulatory characteristics of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman as a basis for crafting business models for each country.

Strategic Alliances: Three Ways to Make Them Work

by Steve Steinhilber (MBA ’80)
(Harvard Business Press)

Alliances are critical to the business strategy of companies competing globally. Steinhilber describes the three essential building blocks of successful alliances: the right framework (to help achieve company goals and identify potential partners), the right organization (the right people constantly honing their skills), and the right relationships (trust among many key contacts).

Who? The A Method for Hiring

by Geoff Smart and Randy Street (MBA ’97)
(Random House)

The authors provide a solution to what the Economist calls “the single biggest problem in business today”: unsuccessful hiring. The average hiring mistake costs a company $1.5 million or more a year and countless wasted hours. And the typical hiring success rate of managers is only 50 percent. But hiring problems are easily preventable. This book presents a method for hiring that stresses fundamental elements that anyone can implement.

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Your Perfect Fit

by Paige Adams-Geller and Ashley Borden with Zibby Right (MBA ’03)
(McGraw-Hill)

Your Career OnRamp: A Woman’s Guide to Re-Entering the Workforce

by Catherine Clifford and Millie Froeb (MBA ’00)
(YOR Media)

A Time to Vote: Is It Too Late to Save America?

by Jim Moyer (MBA ’70)
(Tate Publishing)

Free and Laughing: Spiritual Insights in Everyday Moments

by Marguerite Orane (MBA ’85)
(BookSurge Publishing)

Horses for Courses: Adventures in Thoroughbred Racehorse Ownership

by Dick Pollard (AMP 86, 1981)
(Vantage Press)

The Contrarian Edge for Football Offense

by John T. Reed (MBA ’77)
(John T. Reed)