The Best Business Books of 2009

The Best Business Books of 2009 12/22/09 3:39 AM
Published on Slideshows (http://www.fastcompany.com/pics)
The Best Business Books of 2009

By dlidsky@fastcompany.com
Created Dec 18 2009 - 4:00pm
The best books of the year have two stories to tell: How we got into this economic crisis (and
how we can prevent it from happening again) and how there's a class of companies wreaking
their own brand of havoc on their industries. Both offer fascinating tales of innovation, and you'll
learn everything from the secret underpinning some of the world's fastest-growing companies to
strategies and insights for building a more sustainable society in the wake of the recession.
http://www.fastcompany.com/pics/print/162 Page 1 of 16
The best books of the year have two stories to tell: How we got into this economic crisis (and
how we can prevent it from happening again) and how there's a class of companies wreaking
their own brand of havoc on their industries. Both offer fascinating tales of innovation, and you'll
learn everything from the secret underpinning some of the world's fastest-growing companies to
strategies and insights for building a more sustainable society in the wake of the recession.
"In Cheap We Trust" by Lauren Weber
This history of frugality in America--why it's been stigmatized and whether there's a sustainable
alternative to a purely consumption-based economy--is consistently surprising and clever. A very
worthwhile indulgence.
Essence in a quote: "The fact is, as [Ben] Franklin well knew, Americans have had a troubled,
complicated relationship with frugality almost since the first boatloads of Puritans landed on
these shores."
"Viral Loop" by Adam L. Penenberg
No book better explains the rocket-ship growth of a service like Facebook or Twitter and how
their rapid spread through the culture isn't accidental but carefully baked into the product.
Essence in a quote: "The trick is they created something people really want, so much so that
their customers happily spread their product for them through their own social network of friends,
family, colleagues, and peers."
"Create Your Own Economy" by Tyler Cowen
At first glance, our time communicating with friends on Facebook, Googling, organizing photos
on Flickr, and other social activity seems like a waste of time. But Cowen, an economist,
provocatively argues that they are all forms of economic activity and we need to account for the
internal production inside our minds.
Essence in a quote: "Facebook and Twitter are fun, but they don't generate that much in the
way of traditional revenue and jobs. More and more of our economic growth is coming in such
forms. This is one unnoticed side effect of our financial crisis. We're still having a kind of
economic growth, but it shows up less in the statistics. Our economy will need to make some
very sudden adjustments. This will be beneficial in the long run but right now we are feeling the
revenue squeeze very acutely, in part because few people expected this."
"Bright-Sided" by Barbara Ehrenreich
The author of Nickel and Dimed gleefully pops the positive-thinking bubble that, she argues, has
propped up everything from banks' belief in complex derivatives to the pink-ribboned industry
surrounding breast cancer. Amazingly, she'll make you laugh, albeit ruefully, as she presents
how society's relentless focus on being upbeat has eroded our ability to ask--and heed--the kind
of uncomfortable questions that could have fended off economic disaster.
Essence in a quote: "[Positive thinking] was also a liberating ideology for top-level executives.
What was the point in agonizing over balance sheets and tedious analyses of risk--and why
bother worrying about dizzying levels of debt and exposure to potential defaults--when all good
things come to those who are optimistic enough to expect them?"
"Googled" by Ken Auletta
Hardly a week goes by without someone describing Google as "the most important company in
the history of the world." Veteran media reporter and New Yorker writer Ken Auletta has the
inside scoop on how Google reached such heights in such short order, and he explores its
relentless ambitions and the impact that insatiability has across the rest of the media landscape.
Essence in a quote: "If we solve search," Google cofounder Larry Page told a class at Stanford
in 2002, "that means you can answer any question. Which means you can do basically anything."
"Busted" by Edmund Andrews
The "innovations" that led to the housing crisis and economic meltdown are made concrete--and
all the more damning--when told through the personal story of the author, who bought too much
house for all the wrong reasons and found himself on the wrong side of the American dream.
Essence in a quote: "I had succumbed to the same foolish temptations that had trapped millions
of other Americans. My credit scores were shot. Bill collectors called constantly. I was flirting with
foreclosure. Almost none of our friends and neighbors had any idea how close to the edge my
wife Patty and I were. Like countless others trapped in the mortgage meltdown, we looked like
average suburban homeowners."
"Change by Design" by Tim Brown
The CEO of the uber design-firm Ideo takes us on a journey through the flexibility and power of
design thinking that also serves as a primer on Ideo's evolving larger ambitions. Brown
convincingly depicts how design can be used to improve the every day utility of objects we might
take for granted, but more important, how it can address larger societal issues such as health
care, education, and economic opportunity in the developing world.
Essence in a quote: "Design thinking relies on our ability to be intuitive, to recognize patterns, to
construct ideas that have emotional meaning as well as functionality, to express ourselves in
media other than words or symbols. Nobody wants to run a business based on feeling, intuition,
and inspiration, but an overreliance on the rational and the analytical can be just as dangerous.
The integrated approach at the core of the design process suggests a 'third way.'"
"Adland" by James Othmer
State-of-the-industry advertising manifestos are usually written by titans of the business, not
former mid-level creatives who bounced around a number of large agencies. Yet this unlikely
guide is the perfect one to take us through the apocalypse current roiling "Adland." Othmer
shows us what's wrong about the old model by telling war stories with a jaundiced eye, and he
then uses that same eye to look in on the cutting-edge, next-generation "don't call us an ad
agency" creative shops defining the future.
Essence in a quote: "Instead of the traditional copywriter/art-director dynamic employed by

most ad agencies, 42 Entertainment (which is also the company behind the campaign for the
highly successful launch of the box-office-record-breaking Batman film The Dark Knight) typically
relies on its alternate-reality-game background and involves everyone from sci-fi authors and
sitcom writers to video game developers to create an experience that they say is exponentially
more engaging and immersive than any traditional TV commercial."
"In-N-Out Burger" by Stacy Perman
The West Coast burger chain with an international cult of fans is a paragon of simplicity, from its
menu of burgers, fries, and shakes to how it slowly grows its business. Perman constructs the
building blocks of In-N-Out's success and presents them in stark relief to the rest of the fast-food
industry, depicting how strong values-based businesses can trump their peers on their own
terms. And as In-N-Out's story also shows, abiding principles can even overcome the most lurid
behind-the-scenes drama.
Essence in a quote: "'Keep it real simple,' [In-N-Out founder Harry Snyder] always said. 'Do one
thing and do it the best you can.'"
"Strategy for Sustainability" by Adam Werbach
The noted environmentalist lays out his green business ideas, formed by working with the likes
of Sierra Club and Wal-Mart, for how corporations can be a force for good on the planet.
Essence in a quote: "I began identifying the simple rules that nature follows to survive
conditions far harsher than the worst market meltdown. Working with rather than against large
corporations, which are members of ecosystems in their own right, I looked for strategic and
operational solutions to their sustainability problems in the longest-running and still functioning
system on Earth--the planet itself."
Tags:
Adland Bright-Sided business books Busted Change by Design Create Your Own
Economy Googled In Cheap We Trust In-N-Out Burger Leadership Strategy for
Sustainability Viral Loop
Copyright © 2009 Mansueto Ventures LLC. All rights reserved. Fast Company, 7 World Trade
Center, New York, NY 10007-2195
About Us | Advertise | Articles by Topic | FAQ | FC Expert Blogs | Events | Subscribe | Manage Subscriptions | Privacy | Terms of
Service | Contact Us | Multimedia | About Company of Friends
Source URL: http://www.fastcompany.com/pics/best-business-books-2009

The Best Business Books of 2009

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Best Business Books of 2009

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Best Business Books of 2009 12/22/09 3:39 AM

Published on Slideshows (http://www.fastcompany.com/pics)

The Best Business Books of 2009

"In Cheap We Trust" by Lauren Weber

"Viral Loop" by Adam L. Penenberg

"Create Your Own Economy" by Tyler Cowen

"Bright-Sided" by Barbara Ehrenreich

"Googled" by Ken Auletta

"Busted" by Edmund Andrews

"Change by Design" by Tim Brown

"Adland" by James Othmer

Essence in a quote: "Instead of the traditional copywriter/art-director dynamic employed by

"In-N-Out Burger" by Stacy Perman

"Strategy for Sustainability" by Adam Werbach

Source URL: http://www.fastcompany.com/pics/best-business-books-2009

You might also like