Economic Acceleration Tour Continues In Texas

Six Disciplines, sponsor of the 50-city "Economic Acceleration: Breaking The 3% Speed Limit" speaking tour, has announced that best-selling author Gary Harpst will continue to spread his positive economic acceleration news during 2009 - this time, in Texas.

On January 27, Gary will be visiting Austin, TX at the Hyatt Regency Austin, and on January 28, he will be bringing the speaking tour to San Antonio, at the Hyatt Regency San Antonio.

"Only 3 percent of Austin's and San Antonio's businesses are considered to be high-impact. Why does it only have to be 3 percent? More importantly, what are we going to do to accelerate growth for the other 97 percent of businesses? That's specifically what I'll be revealing during the Economic Acceleration events on January 27 and 28," said Harpst.

The Economic Acceleration Tour continues in February, as Harpst will be speaking in Dallas and Houston.

For a detailed agenda and registration intructions, visit www.GaryHarpst.com/tour/.

Top 10 Books for 2008 from ASTD

2008 was a great year for books on business, management, and learning.

Here are 10 that made the ASTD's (American Society for Training and Development) T+D readers’ lists over the last 12 months.

Among them?

Six Disciplines Execution Revolution by Gary Harpst.

CEOs: Time To Rethink Your Strategy

The December issue of Strategy+Business includes an article, "Rethink Your Strategy: An Urgent Memo to the CEO."

According to the memo, your first objective is to become as strong as possible, as fast as possible, with these five main lines of action.

1. Focus on your future.
2. Prepare to weather the storm.
3. Anticipate the future industry structure.
4. Resolve your game plan.
5. Prepare to take intelligent risks.

BOTTOMLINE: "The current economy will not get better immediately. We are in for more rough seas. But we are also entering a period during which the value of being able to act strategically and decisively for the long term will increase enormously. Preparing for this moment of opportunity is of paramount importance for your businesses’ position for years to come."

Best Business Book of 2008

According to an article published in Management-Issues, Dan Bobinski, CEO of the Center for Workplace Excellence, has released his annual recommendations for best business books.

According to Dan, "My number one recommendation this year is Gary Harpst's Six Disciplines Execution Revolution: Solving the One Business Problem That Makes Solving All the Other Problems Easier. by successful entrepreneur, CEO, and strategy execution expert, Gary Harpst.

Excerpt of Dan's review:

"If you are a business leader or if you run a business unit, you will be impressed with Gary Harpst's down-to-earth, practical, and very workable solutions. This book is number one on my list for several reasons. First, it's aimed directly at small and mid-sized companies - the majority of businesses. Second, Harpst emphasizes the need for a balance between execution and strategy, and never have I seen it explained so well.

Using clear instructions with easy-to-understand examples, Harpst shows that achieving excellence is not enough. Many companies reach what they define as excellence, but then fall out of it, usually floating back and forth between strategy and execution. Harpst explains how to avoid that and create enduring excellence. Also, the book has well-thought out diagrams that help readers "see" what to do."

Read the entire review here.