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Rome, Inc.: The Rise and Fall of the First Multinational Corporation (Enterprise) Hardcover – March 15, 2006

by Stanley Bing (Author)

16 customer reviews

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The world's first corporate case study, as only the best-selling Stanley Bing could tell it.

A family business prospers through a productive series of brutal consolidations and rational growth. Then the rise of an executive class that pits one egotistical senior manager against another in senseless internal conflicts eventually leads to a long line of demented CEOs, excessive expansion, and foolish diversification—and a high cost in shattered lives. In the end, a series of reverse takeovers leave the once-proud but now overextended and corrupt parent company at the mercy of the mom-and-pop operations that previously cringed at the grandeur of the corporate brand.

Enron? WorldCom? Try Rome, whose rise and fall carry a moral that lingers to this day for the managers, employees, and students of any global enterprise. Stanley Bing—whose satirical business books are as savagely funny as they are insightful—mingles business parable and cautionary tale into an ingenious, often hilarious new telling of the story of the Roman Empire.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Fortune columnist Bing (Sun-Tzu Was a Sissy) condenses the 1,200-year history of Rome into a slim, wildly entertaining satire for businessmen, particularly those who happen to be fans of HBO's Rome. Irreverent without ever slipping into Dave Barry–style logical anarchy, the volume renders epic history in corporate-speak, providing enough substance and insight along the way to keep readers' attention. As Bing notes, much of Roman history consists of "wars, wars and more wars," and he skips over big chunks of it. "I give up," he shrugs, focusing instead on the decisions and personalities of the colorful leaders, from Romulus to Caligula. Most interesting are the author's discourses on why Rome's "corporate strategy" worked so well for so long ("corporations willing to kill people do better than those which are not") and why its "corporate culture" was sufficiently strong to rally its citizens/soldiers/employees for an endless series of battles. And while wryly acknowledging that the Romans' use of "murder as a business tool" may be excessive in today's environment, Bing endorses many of their strategies as sound: "In any corporate transformation, a good housecleaning is absolutely called for." Word to the wise: if the guy in the next cubicle is reading Rome, Inc., watch your back—especially if it's the Ides of March. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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If the guy in the next cubicle is reading Rome, Inc., watch your back—especially if it's the Ides of March. -- Publishers Weekly

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Product details

Series: Enterprise
Hardcover: 192 pages
Publisher: W. W. Norton; 1 edition (March 15, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0393060268
ISBN-13: 978-0393060263
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 16 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #566,951 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #736 in Books > History > Europe > Italy
- #934 in Books > History > Ancient Civilizations > Rome
- #1631 in Books > Business & Money > Biography & History > Economic History

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Surprisingly insightful and entertaining

August 28, 2006

Verified Purchase

A good read with a fair dose of drole wit and surpisingly insightful about the nature of Rome and its people. Sometimes history makes more sense when one uses common sense. For example, the part about the rationale for continual war in Roman culture was right on the mark, as well as the following humorous observations what kind of psychological qualities were required to be a functional senior manager. Also his discussion of the fall of Rome, while truncated, hits it on the head about the importance of the myth of Rome and its unifying power. A little bit of history and a little bit of management and a large bit of flippant humor makes for an enjoyable read

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Jesse Walker

I was hoping for more detail...

January 17, 2014

Verified Purchase

I bought this book thinking I'd heard it mentioned in Dan Carlin's wonderful Hardcore History podcast on the fall of the Roman Republic and he did reference it I'm sure in talking about the Roman client system and how that worked in governing the empire. This book turned out to be not about Roman History though so much as another business self help book. Totally my fault for not reading the reviews and just clicking buy. Research your books and you will be happy with what you get. That being said it was well written in a clear simple style, just not what I had been hoping for.

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Keri_402

Really enjoyed it.

December 16, 2012

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It was a funny, well written read. I really enjoyed it. It wasn't exactly a scholarly work, but didn't claim to be either, in several places suggesting you research more on your own if you want more info. If you're familiar with the outline of Roman history and in business, or either one of the two, you will probably enjoy this book.

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Rhiannon

An excellent volume that explains the economics of ancient Rome

June 28, 2015

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An excellent volume that explains the economics of ancient Rome. Some humorous anecdotes and superb comparisons with modern era economic practices. Grew as a supplementary / assigned reading for business majors and students studying ancient Rome.

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Jude

Go Rome

May 29, 2007

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This book was so funny while being educative and historical all at the same time. If this guy is running a corporation, sign me up to work with him.

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Larry Diamond

Hysterical

May 24, 2013

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Loved it. Great comments about doing whatever the McKinsey auditors are telling management to do. Loved the comments about the AOL merger. Great read.

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Gderf

Historical and corporate humor

June 26, 2013

This is historical humor written in the style of Richard Armour. The attempt to liken Rome and other political entities, like the Huns, to modern corporations doesn't quite work, but the book is saved by its entertaining style. Bing analyzes each Roman leader in light of qualities of a modern CEO. Citing the ruthless nature of corporate management, he points out that Romulus, the founder, murdered his brother and engineered the rape of his neighbor's women. He makes Augustus out to be the best CEO of all time as his governing paradigm survived for centuries in spite of some very bad emperors. Later Huns and Goths attempted reverse takeovers. For periods covering the foundation of Rome and the last century of the republic, it's actually an informative light history. At that point the author must have gotten tired as the book peters out. Credibility of the conclusion that the political legacy of Rome was assumed by a corporate Christianity requires much more development than given here.

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Ryan Mease

Review of Bing's Rome, Inc.

August 7, 2014

As a classicist currently at work among the titans of Silicon Valley, this book really hit home for me. Bing can be irreverent at times, often telling the reader about names that 'you don't need to know about,' which only serves to annoy the reader and spike his curiosity. That said, this is one of the more brilliant books that I've read all year, and because it functions as a great refresher on Roman history, I am likely to turn to it again. I strongly recommend that you *not* buy the audiobook if you have a background in Latin or in Roman History. The performer makes a lot of painful mispronunciations. The worst was the persistent pronunciation of Marius as 'Marry Us.' In sum, a short, hilarious take on history, with a few effective lessons/reminders for members of the executive world.

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