Cracking the Value Code: How Successful Businesses are Creating Wealth in the New Economy

It seems some guru with a PalmPilot reminds us daily of the current breach between our Old and New economies, with immense riches awaiting those who play by the rules of the New, and certain oblivion looming for those who disdain such tidings. Come to think of it, that's essentially what Cracking the Value Code says. At the heart of this rigorously researched, cogently argued, and sensibly organized manifesto is this: New Economy success stories like Charles Schwab, Microsoft, and the Gap have outstripped their older industrial-age counterparts because they have devised new business models that hook into "what matters" to customers. How? By using their organizational assets--both concrete and intangible--as the building blocks to true customer value. The book examines the full gamut of these possible assets (physical, financial, employee-supplier, customer, and those intrinsic to the organization) and, to show them in action, provides plenty of fun, fact- and figure-filled miniprofiles of New Economy dynamos, from robustly reengineered old warhorses like IBM, Coke, Pepsi and Sara Lee to brash, new digital-age brats: Dell, Compaq, Cisco, idealab!, and Starbucks.

The book, which is based on a three-year study by the consulting firm Arthur Andersen, gives clear, plain-English guidance for helping your organization identify, create, and consolidate the valued assets it needs to vault high above the competition. Each chapter ends with questions and actions you can directly apply to your own workplace, and an entire section is devoted to helping your company add value by stressing assets and build a new business model that reflects those central strengths. So if you want the smart tip from one of the world's most influential consultants on exactly what companies are doing or have done to put themselves on the international market radar, you'll eat this book up. And if you're looking to reposition your biz for unprecedented market success by cracking your own value code, you might even come back for seconds and thirds. --Timothy Murphy