Book Recommendation: The Afghan (fiction)

So I was off for a long weekend because of Deepavali public holiday. The family and I went to Malaysia (Johor State) for some golf, horse-riding and general R&R. I picked up this book, The Afghan (By Frederick Forsyth) coming back from the UK the week before. I figured I have been reading enough non-fiction that I needed to let my mind have a bit of exercise. The bookshop girl recommended this, so why not?



It was actually a good quick read. Like many books these days, there is a mix of reality and fiction so you feel like you are actually learning a lot while reading. In this case, it is about the terrorist network and how it came about and some historical info as well. I always like these kinds of stories. Just try to keep the the fact from fiction.

Overall, great read, if you are in for a good espionage/action/modern setting storytelling.

Recommended Book: "Microtrends" - A Very Interesting Read

I just finished reading Microtrends: The Small Forces Behind Tomorrow's Big Changes by Mark Penn and E. Kinney Zalesne. I actually read it cover to cover (except for the Footnotes and Glossary of course). The authors goes through the book highlighting 75 small trends (mainly in the US) that have reached the 1% threshhold i.e. 3 million people. Each trend is bitesized at 4 or so pages so you can lay the book down easily and quickly pick up where you left off. It is a great complementary to "Competing on Analytics" in that all these trends were backed up by solid numbers and statistics that Burson-Marsteller is know for (Mark Penn is the CEO of Burson-Marsteller).

Overall, it is funny, well-researched, cleverly written and makes great talking points.

See also review from Publishers Weekly:
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From "Soccer Moms," the legendary swing voters of the mid-1990s, to "Late-Breaking Gays" such as former Gov. Games McGreevey (out at age 47), Burson-Marsteller CEO (and campaign adviser to Sen. Hillary Clinton) Penn delves into the ever-splintering societal subsets with which Americans are increasingly identifying, and what they mean. For instance, because of "Extreme Commuters," people who travel more than 90 minutes each way to work, carmakers must come up with ever more luxury seat features, and "fast food restaurants are coming out with whole meals that fit in cup holders." In a chapter titled "Archery Moms?", Penn reports on the "Niching of Sports": much to the consternation of Major League Baseball, "we don't like sports less, we just like little sports more." The net result of all this "niching" is "greater individual satisfaction"; as Penn notes, "not one of the fastest-growing sports in America... depends substantially on teamwork." Penn draws similar lessons in areas of business, culture, technology, diet, politics and education (among other areas), reporting on 70 groups ("Impressionable Elites," "Caffeine Crazies," "Neglected Dads," "Unisexuals," "America's Home-Schooled") while remaining energetic and entertaining throughout. Culture buffs, retailers and especially businesspeople for whom "small is the new big" will value this exercise in nano-sociology.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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"Competing on Analytics" - a Must Read

I was at Singapore Changi airport on the way to Vietnam in early June for a holiday with the family when I decided that I needed to get some reading material. One of the new books that just came out that caught my attention was "Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning". This was published by Harvard Business School Press. The writers are Thomas Davenport and Jeanne Harris; both write articles for Harvard Business Review while being professor or research fellow or director of some institute or other.


Anyhow, I bought it as I was getting more and more involved in the web analytics implementation for my new site using Omniture. It turned out to be a very, very interesting read and I have been recommending it. Here's why:

1) Analytics Defined: "the extensive use of data, statistical and quantitative analysis, explanatory and predictive models and fact based management to drive decision and actions".

This may seem straightforward (and "duh") to some of you as it was to me, but this clear and concise definition is what is need to make others understand what it is and how it should be used. Trust me, there are those out there with other "definitions".

2) "The five stages of analytical competition":

• Stage 1: analytically impaired ("flying blind")


• Stage 2: Localized analytics (isolated, fragmented, disconnected, inconsistent, etc.)
• Stage 3: Analytical aspirations (sees need, begins to explore options)
• Stage 4: Analytical companies (enterprise-wide perspective, eager to innovate and differentiate)
• Stage 5: Analytical competitors (analytics are the primary driver of performance and value)

"Flying blind" cracked me up in an ironic, cynical kind of way. Stage 2 just smacked me in the face as that is exactly where Millennium & Copthorne is (more on that later). I salivate by the time I get to reading about Stage 5 companies.

3) Emphasis on company-wide understanding and adoption of Analytics. (Another "Duh!!!") Great case studies/examples with NetFlix , Amazon Google as well as Capital One, Boston Red Sox, Walmart and P & G.

4) There are a lot of strategic advice but there many tactical ones too, like:
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Effective management of data requires correct answers to:

1. Which data are needed to compete on analytics?
2. Where can these data be obtained?
3. How much are needed?
4. How can the data be made more accurate and valuable for analysis?
5. What rules and processes are needed to manage data from their creation through their retirement?

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However, with all these management books, it does tend to get dry half-way through. To be quite honest, I have only gotten halfway through, and had not opened the book for a month (prior to writing this post that is.). I don't know if I will ever read the book in full, but more likely I will skim the balance. The first half of the book is well worth it in any case. I have half a dozen pages dog-eared for future reference - pages 8, 23, 40, 52, 62, 72. ;-)

Amazon's got a good deal on the hardcover. Probably since the paperback is gonna come out soon...
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