Mexico Since 1980

by Stephen Haber, Herbert S. Klein, Noel Maurer, and Kevin J. Middlebrook
(Cambridge University Press)

Associate Professor Maurer and his co-authors address two questions that are crucial to understanding Mexico’s current economic and political challenges. Why did opening up the economy to foreign trade and investment not result in sustained economic growth? Why has electoral democracy not produced the rule of law? The answers to these questions lie in the ways in which Mexico’s long history with authoritarian government shaped its judicial, taxation, and property-rights institutions. These institutions represent powerful constraints on the ability of the government to fund reforms, of firms to write contracts, and of citizens to enforce their basic rights.

Borrowing to Live: Consumer and Mortgage Credit Revisited

edited by Nicolas P. Retsinas and Eric S. Belsky
(Brookings Institution Press)

Awash in debt, most low- and moderate-income Americans borrow to stay afloat rather than to keep up with the Joneses. How did things go so wrong? How can we maintain and expand access to credit while protecting the consumer and avoiding another crisis? Lecturer Retsinas, his coeditor, and academic and public service experts dissect the state of consumer and mortgage credit in the United States and point the way out of the current impasse.

Managing Your Boss

by John J. Gabarro and John P. Kotter
(Harvard Business Press; HBR Classics)

By managing your boss — clarifying your own and your supervisor’s strengths, weaknesses, goals, work styles, and needs — you cultivate a relationship based on mutual respect and understanding. The result? A healthy, productive bond that helps you both to excel. Professors emeriti Gabarro and Kotter provide guidelines for building this essential relationship, including strategies for determining how your boss prefers to process information and make decisions, tips for communicating mutual expectations, and tactics for negotiating priorities.

The Adventures of an IT Leader

by Robert D. Austin, Richard L. Nolan, and Shannon O’Donnell
(Harvard Business Press)

Becoming an effective IT manager presents a host of challenges, from anticipating emerging technology to managing relationships with vendors, employees, and other managers. Ultimately, a good IT manager must be a strong business leader, not just a technical specialist. Associate Professor Austin, Professor Emeritus Nolan, and their coauthor invite you to “walk in the shoes” of an IT leader to help you better understand the role of IT in your organization and navigate your own career with greater confidence.

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