Customer Reviews

Competitive Advantage Through People: Unleashing the Power of the Work Force

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Throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, American businesses have struggled to gain an international advantage through financial policies, improved efficiencies, and aggressive marketing to develop new and more prosperous markets. Despite these efforts, many American corporations are no longer the dominant force in the global economy they were in the late fifties and early sixties. In his book Competitive Advantage Through People: Unleashing the Power of the Work Force (Harvard Business School Press, 252 pages), author Jeffrey Pfeffer offers one possible explanation for America's decreased dominance in the global economy and suggests how to maximize our most valuable asset in order to reverse this trend. Mr. Pfeffer makes several cogent arguments backed up by real world examples to convince the reader of the importance of treating workers as partners in order to achieve success. By using several real world examples to prove his points, Pfeffer clearly details the benefits of implementi

Jeffery Pffefer's Competitive Advantage through People is a timely statement which examines the elements that make business organizations successful, as well as theories why most firms continue to measure their work forces as "costs" rather than "investments." Pfeffer provides excellent empiracal examples of firms who have attached value to their workers through the commitment of their managers. He does contradict his own theory of leadership irrelevance in which he states that the responsibility for fixing the firm's problems lie with management. In addition, his discussion of organized labor as contributing to work place efficiency serves as a subjective endorsement in support of unions.

Pfeffer makes good arguments against Frederick Taylor's principles of scientific management and declares that the Tayloristic ideology would have today's workers functioning as mindless robots waiting on their next instructions to come from management. He also discusses sixteen practices that successful managers and firms use in achieving competitive advantages through their workforces. Pfeffer's passion for firms to change their behaviors is strong and readers view his work as communicating the necessary message: bad business theories communicated by poor managers using the wrong language leads to further dissatisfaction and inefficiency within the U.S. workforce.

Competive advantage through people is a great management book for the turn of the century. With a load of great ideas and innovative techniques, Pfeffer gets his message across. Although, one thing that I had notice when reading the book, is that Pfeffer repeats himself quite a lot. I feel that for a book aimed at the business world, management does not have time to read information twice. But, overall, it was a very interesting and enlighting book.

Jeffery Pfeffer's Competitive Advantage Through People is an appetizer for unlocking creative approaches to human resource management, hinting of powerful ideas but never able to satisfy. Pfeffer analyzes "effective management practices" of companies he classifies as successful. The author then highlights regressive organizational practices and the barriers to change. Finally, Pfeffer offers prospects for improvement in the management of employees. From an overall perspective, Competitive Advantage Through People asks three questions: Are corporations viewing their employees as assets or liabilities?, if as liabilities - What barriers need to be overcome? and What can corporations do to foster improvements in their use of human capital? Pfeffer adequately answers these questions - some better than others - unfortunately one has to wade through countless sermons on the benefits of organized labor to find the answers. This lack of objectivity concerning organized labor, chapter after chapter, dilutes a potentially powerful message and weakens this book's impact.

I have often read and reread Prof. Pfeffer's books. I give this one 3-stars because I found less than half the book of value. I find the examples quite colorful, interesting, and thought provoking. It's just too bad that the book didn't have a lot of value for the money (unlike his other books). I read this book the last time about 2 years ago, each time I pick it up I read less and less. The first time I read it, I read 5 chapters and now I'm down to 2. I wish I could say that it's because I see many of the concepts being implemented within corporate America and as such I have less need for the information.

The Stanford professor's most recent book, Managing With Power, sold very well. Among the companies he documents here are Southwest Airlines, Wal-Mart, Tyson Foods, Circuit City, and Plenum Publishing.