http://www.businessweek.com Each month BusinessWeek editors will distill useful insights and practical guidelines from select stories in BusinessWeek magazine. Playbook: Best Practice Ideas will explore the broad spectrum of issues facing top managers. Best Practice Ideas BusinessWeek Management, best practices, business advice, tips, innovation no Twice each month BusinessWeek editors will distill useful insights and practical guidelines from select stories in BusinessWeek magazine. Playbook: Best Practice Ideas will explore the broad spectrum of issues facing top managers. en-us Copyright 2008, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved. Jaime Beauchamp#bw_online_media@businessweek.com Wed, 09 Jul 2008 15:36:02 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss bwwebmaster@businessweek.com 1000 http://images.businessweek.com/icons/bw_podcast_88x31.jpghttp://www.businessweek.com8831 The Secrets Behind Our Customer Service Champs Jeanne Bliss http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_03_15_07.htm To examine the best practices of our customer-service elite, BW Management Editor Jena McGregor spoke with Jeanne Bliss, author of Chief Customer Officer and a former Land's End head of customer service, about what works and what doesn't Thu, 15 Mar 2007 00:00:00 -0400 16:06 Jena McGregor, Jeanne Bliss, Customer Service Champs, UPS, Cabela's Cadillac, JetBlue, Wegmans, customer experience, customer satisfaction, management, leadership, compensation http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_03_15_07.mp3 Stepping in When a Powerful Boss Steps Out James Citrin http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_02_14_07.htm Starting any new job is hard. New leadership roles - especially those that follow a particularly strong predecessor - are even harder. Management editor Jena McGregor checks in with executive recruiter Jim Citrin, author of the new leadership guide "You're in Charge - Now What?" about getting a running start, separating yourself from your predecessor, and managing those tricky first 100 days Wed, 14 Feb 2007 23:00:00 -0500 13:32 Jim Citrin James M Citrin Jena McGregor leadership first 100 days new leaders new job careers Iger Eisner Disney onboarding http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_02_15_07.mp3 Ready for Lift-Outs? Brian Sullivan http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_01_17_07.htm Recruiters are seeing a rise in "lift outs," the practice of hiring an entire team at one time. Jena McGregor spoke with Brian M. Sullivan of executive search firm Christian & Timbers about what managers need to know about doing it - or preventing it Wed, 17 Jan 2007 23:00:00 -0500 10:34 Brian Sullivan lift-out recruiting executive search team Jena McGregor playbook financial services legal professional services management consulting http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_01_18_07.mp3 Say Goodbye to Face-time Jody Thompson & Cali Ressler http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_12_13_06.htm What if work was something you did, rather than somewhere you went? In today's Blackberry-filled, laptop-laden, 24/7 global corporation, that's entirely possible. And some companies, including Best Buy, are realizing it's not only possible, but profitable, as truly flexible schedules, rather than structured flextime arrangements, give way to greater productivity. But radically altering the boundaries between work and life takes the right culture, the right metrics, and open minds. BusinessWeek Management Editor Jena McGregor speaks with Cali Ressler and Jody Thompson, whose consulting firm, CultureRX, plans to help companies make the shift to a new way of working Wed, 13 Dec 2006 23:00:00 -0500 13:32 CultureRX Jena McGregor Jody Thompson Cali Ressler Best Buy flesible work arrangements flextime work life balance meetings schedules part-time http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_12_14_06.mp3 Brainstorming, Texas-Style Roy Spence http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_11_22_06.htm Advertising maverick Roy Spence, whose many original slogans include "Don't Mess with Texas," discusses the idea development process and how leaders in other fields can apply the same methods he and colleagues at firm GSD & M use Wed, 22 Nov 2006 23:00:00 -0500 16:40 Rob Cross University of Virginia Jena McGregor management culture BMW chaos social network analysis social network mapping flat organizations innovation http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_11_23_06.mp3 Flat Organizations, Towering Ideas Rob Cross http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_10_26_06.htm BMW is an idea machine, driven by a culture that listens to entry-level workers and rewards the risks they take. As others try to repeat that feat - ideas flow better in more cooperative, flat organizations - chaos has the potential to reign. Managers need a way to cut through the clutter and new ways to stay better aware of their organization's collaborative cultures. Management Editor Jena McGregor speaks with Rob Cross, a University of Virginia professor and expert on visualizing the social networks that are so essential to great innovation in an organization Thu, 26 Oct 2006 00:00:00 -0400 9:57 Rob Cross University of Virginia Jena McGregor management culture BMW chaos social network analysis social network mapping flat organizations innovation http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_10_26_06.mp3 Making cash out of trash Nabil Nasr http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_09_28_06.htm Professor Nabil Nasr from Rochester Institute of Technology talks about remanufacturing. It's a process by which companies reclaim used products, break them down, clean them, and inspect them, to rebuild a "like-new" version of the same or a similar product. It's most often done in heavy industry, because of the high material, labor, and energy costs involved in making big industrial equipment from scratch. But it's being applied in other areas, too. Nasr discusses what companies have to do to make the process workable and efficient Thu, 28 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0400 11:00 NASR HINDO ROCHESTER RIT REMANUFACTURING REMAN RECYCLING CAPITAL GOODS CATERPILLAR XEROX MANUFACTRUING INDUSTRIALS ENVIRONMENT GREEN BUSINESS http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_09_28_06.mp3 A recipe for authentic branding John Moore http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_09_11_06.htm Before Safeway redesigned its grocery stores and advertising campaigns, it made sure its markets met the message. That's a key tenet of authentic marketing - delivering before you promise - and more important than ever for engaging customers looking for a distinctive but honest experience with the brands they buy. BW's Management Editor Jena McGregor speaks with John Moore, the author of the popular blog Brand Autopsy and a former marketing manager at Whole Foods and Starbucks, about creating bona fide brand stories and a memorable customer experience that stands out from the crowd Mon, 11 Sep 2006 00:00:00 -0400 17:39 Jena McGregor John Moore Brand Autopsy Starbucks Whole Foods Market Whole Foods Safeway authentic marketing brand culture customer experience story Tribal Knowledge http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_09_11_06.mp3 Reaching consumers in a short-attention-span world Don Tapscott http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/podcasts/playbook/playbook_07_31_06.htm In a time when blogs, wikis and online communities are helping consumers participate in their favorite brands, traditional broadcasting models on their own won't cut it anymore. BW's management editor Jena McGregor chats with Don Tapscott, co-author of Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything and chief executive of research and consulting firm New Paradigm about practical new ideas for engaging your hard-to-reach customers Mon, 31 Jul 2006 00:00:00 -0400 23:11 Wikinomics Jena McGregor advertising new media blogs wikis http://www.businessweek.com/mediacenter/qt/podcasts/playbook/playbook_07_31_06.mp3