ABLE WAS I ...During the famous "100 Days" after his escape from exile on Elba, Napoleon took control of France, reconstituted his army and threw Europe into panic. No one expects quite that much from a new managing partner, but those first days in the corner office can make or break a new leader's tenure. Consultant Patrick McKenna's short e-book, The First 100 Days: Transitioning a New Managing Partner, is full of trenchant advice for the new firm MP on setting your agenda, what to do before you take the position, developing support, and understanding why and how people treat you differently.
The monograph also includes the insights of a number of MPs from different professional services firms. Taken together, McKenna's advice and the MPs' comments offer a far better guide to a successful beginning than Napoleon; his 100 days, after all, ended at Waterloo.
Price: Free.
NXTbook Media
http://nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/nxtbigthing/julyaugust2006/%20
IMA SMAS
The Institute of Management Accountants has reintroduced its Statements on Management Accounting - comprehensive summaries of bodies of knowledge that competent management accountants need to know. Each peer-reviewed SMA includes resources on its topic, as well as definitions, business issues and, where applicable, implementation steps and processes, and case studies.
Among those currently available - for free! - at www.imanet.org/publications_statements.asp, are SMAs on lean enterprise fundamentals, lean accounting, implementing target costing, and enterprise risk management. The IMA is also accepting suggestions for future topics; for more information, contact Dr. Raef Lawson at rlawson@imanet.org.
Price: Free.
Institute of Management Accountants
www.imanet.org
'AUDIT PLANNING'
It used to be that the worst you could say about audits was that they were both mind-numbingly complex and tedious. They're still all that, but with more regulations than ever and heightened public scrutiny, they now have to be performed on a tightrope over a tank of angry piranhas.
Auditors looking to keep out of the tank should seek all the help they can get; for internal auditors, one place to consult is Audit Planning: A Risk-Based Approach, which is part of the Practical Auditor Series co-
developed with the Institute of Internal Auditors. The book delivers a step-by-step plan for addressing risk in the audit plan, sample models, controls and reviews, case studies, and diagrams and checklists.
Price: $50.
John Wiley & Sons
www.wiley.com/business
(800) 762-2974
WE HATE EVERYBODY
The reason there's so much tension at our office is because everyone here is deeply stupid, an obnoxious jerk or personally unattractive. We tell them this all the time - or at least, we tell those we're willing to talk to - but they refuse to change.
Their managers probably ought to read Coaching for Emotional Intelligence, which offers coaching and mentoring techniques for improving interpersonal relationships and boosting productivity in the workplace. If they were all smarter and more in touch with their emotional intelligence, we might be able to stomach them.
Price: $24.95.
Amacom
www.amacombooks.org
(212) 903-8316
POUNDS AND OUNCES
An ounce of prevention is worth $9 billion dollars worth of fraud-related losses every year. Prevention, as explained in Policies and Procedures to Prevent Fraud and Embezzlement, involves well-publicized policies, strong internal controls, a documented fraud action plan, and an understanding of where your company is vulnerable. No business is immune to fraud, but the lessons and advice in this book can significantly boost your resistance.
Price: $45.
John Wiley & Sons
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