Customer Reviews

Radical E : From GE to Enron Lessons on How to Rule the Web

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Well these authors should hide right now given that Enron, one of their prize companies, is selling below a dollar. You could say that I have the benefit of hindsight but if the authors had only looked up the hundreds of millions in stock sales by the company executives (yes, it's public info)during the course of their investigation, they might have questioned the motives of the Enron principals. Very poor research and a "puff piece" of a book. But they probably will generate incremental sales -- as a collectors item like the Dow 30000 masterpiece.

We were all enthralled by the incredible rise -- and awful fall -- of the dot-com start-ups, and many of us have already written off B-to-B and B-to-C as dead letters. Meanwhile, the authors tell us, the enduring story of e-business was being quietly written by older players who saw the Internet as an opportunity to remake the rules. Through a series of smart case studies, the authors explain how those players succeeded. In the process, they give the rest of us a map so that we, too, can find our way.

With shrewd insight and hard facts, Kurtzman and Rifkin explain that we are at the dawn, not the eve,of the real Internet Revolution, and they give us the information and inspiration needed to enter this new age successfully. As the frenzy of the dot.com fad settles down, Radical E serves as a guidebook for businesses that want not only to endure but also to thrive and prosper in this twenty-first century marketplace.

If the best way to learn is by example, Radical E offers us a tremendous opportunity: The creative and triumphant stories of Southwest Airlines, Victoria's Secret, General Motors and others who have embraced e-business and made it work.

This book is not only for business leaders and CEOs. I recommend it to anyone who is looking toward the future and doesn't want to be left behind.

As a marketing consultant, I am often asked: "How can I develop a more profitable web site?" I recommend Radical E. To anyone with a head not buried in sand, it is obvious that the Internet bubble popped, leaving messy debts splattered on the faces of embarrassed CFOs. Then why are so many companies continuing to generate great quantities of e-commerce dollars? Their success is the result of well-conceived plans that Kurtzman and Rifkin delineate in one brilliant case history after another. They show how it can and SHOULD! be done. They offer practical and necessary advice: they don't spit out jargon and abstractions that rattle and shatter like broken glass in the tin cans of silly categories. Kurtzman and Rifkin are men of the Commercial Enlightenment; their solid thinking has been proven to work in the real world of e-commerce. They offer senior mgmt. a map that leads, not to the illusory promise of glittering pots of gold at the end of a mythical rainbow, but to real bankable rewards. It is not only for companies who have established web sites, but also for those who want to create larger and more profitable web sites. Any CEO who wants to be a hero to his shareholders would be negligent not to read Radical E! Radical E is the key that opens the locks on the doors of success. Read it and reap...the rewards of e-commerce.

The book is about successful e-commerce companies - and despite Enron's accounting and other troubles, they did have one of the most successful web sites in the world, their on-line trading portal generated around 2 BILLION dollars a DAY in nominal trading revenue. That is a successful endeavor! At the time of Enron's trouble, it was the business unit that was attractive to Dynegy and other potential companies...

I was delighted to learn that some of the world's most established corporations transformed themselves into successful e-businesses by defying conventional wisdom. Through a series of well-researched case studies, Radical E manages to be both inspiring and actionable. The examples helped me to think about new ways my company can embrace the Web and better weather the current economic downturn. I've recommended the book to colleagues and friends -- particularly those who are inclined to think out of the box.

Finally, a book that tells the story of the Web's real (not virtual!) power. Rifkin and Kurtzman's book focuses on the click-and-mortar experiences of companies pioneering new business models combining the best of the on- and off-line worlds. A must read for executives, consultants, and anyone interested in understanding why the Web remains a potentially significant force despite the recent trashing it has taken on the capital markets and in the press.

An excellent practical book, full of inspiring case studies told with eloquence and pace. This is not a high level strategy model book, it is book about those who have a vision and are executing on it by using the web in a number of ways. The 10 case studies illustrate these key points:

1. The CEO Must Lead the Way to E-business

2. Launch and Learn

3. Reward the Nuts and Dissidents

4. Use the Web to Build a Community around Your Brand

5. The Internet Gives You the Power to Control the Customer Experience

6. The Business Use of the Internet Is to Incease Profits 7. Seek Agility over Speed

8. Expectations Are Higher on the Web, so Failure to Deliver Is More Destructive to Your Business

9. It Doesn't matter Whether You Develop or Acquire the Needed Technology as Long as You Have It

10. Seek Disruptive Customers Who Lead You to Needed Change and Advancement

The case studies are from companies such as SouthWest Airlines, Enron, Nortel, Progressive and Victoria's Secret. There is much to learn from this book, and much to inspire. Fast paced read, excellent for the plane and as motivation to think differently about your companies e-business efforts.

I really enjoyed this book, though to some it might not be saying anything that much different than what we all should know. These examples though show people who have really executed on their visions and as such are priceless.