Rating: 
Summary: "In Search of Excellence"... Abridged and Updated
Review: "Work 2.0" deserves attention simply because it's one of the first business books to reflect the post-dotcom, post-9/11 business environment. Beyond that, however, it reads largely like recycled Tom Peters... which isn't necessarily a bad thing. In today's business climate, themes like personal accountability and risk taking are more relevant than ever -- certainly more so than when Peters and his contemporaries first advocated them in the '80s. Jensen is right: the younger generation expects to be challenged in new and different ways, and successful managers will adapt their management styles accordingly. Jensen even adopt's Peters' self-conscious, jaunty style of writing and heavy use of bullets and callouts. But if "Work 2.0" is a business book for the new millenium, one must wonder whether the new breed of workers is truly as fearless as Jensen argues. "My work, my way" in an "extreme" workplace is all very cool, but after the pink slip and several months of unemployment, it doesn't mean very much. And (harsh as it may sound) Work 2.0 also isn't very applicable to workers with lower levels of skill or education. One gets the sense that "Work 2.0" was initially conceived and written at the height of the dotcom boom, then hastily retooled as the economy went south. Nevertheless, the book has some important things to say, especially to managers who might be supervising young knowledge workers for the first time. Plus, it's short and can be read in a couple of sittings.
Rating: 
Summary: I Learned How to Count What Counts
Review: >From page 76: "Work 2.0 employees know that, of all the numbers that matter to you [leaders] and them, one is immutable: 1440. That's the number of minutes in a day. Whatever percentage of those minutes they spend with your company, they want more out of what they invest, with less waste." Enron has taught all of us a lot about numbers. How companies can shape and control our future with them. 9.11.01 taught us what truly matters: that life is so precious. That day, reporter Diane Sawyer picked up a piece of paper blown out of the towers and thought: "Until a few hours ago, somebody thought _this_ was really important." This book opened my eyes like those other events did. I realized how many ways the companies I've worked for have stolen many of my 1440 minutes. They did it unintentionally. But still, they did. I was struck when Jensen wrote: "It's no longer acceptable to say that there's _work_ and there's _life_ and it's up to employees to balance the two." I still figuring out how to change
that. But at least now I know I have to.
Rating:
Summary: I Learned How to Count What Counts
Review: >From page 76: "Work 2.0 employees know that, of all the numbers that matter to you [leaders] and them, one is immutable: 1440. That's the number of minutes in a day. Whatever percentage of those minutes they spend with your company, they want more out of what they invest, with less waste." Enron has taught all of us a lot about numbers. How companies can shape and control our future with them. 9.11.01 taught us what truly matters: that life is so precious. That day, reporter Diane Sawyer picked up a piece of paper blown out of the towers and thought: "Until a few hours ago, somebody thought _this_ was really important." This book opened my eyes like those other events did. I realized how many ways the companies I've worked for have stolen many of my 1440 minutes. They did it unintentionally. But still, they did. I was struck when Jensen wrote: "It's no longer acceptable to say that there's _work_ and there's _life_ and it's up to employees to balance the two." I still figuring out how to change
that. But at least now I know I have to.
Rating:
Summary: Guru of Gurus
Review: A book by the title of "Management Gurus and Management Fashion" puts forth the argument that there are three master analogues or deep structures to explain how someone becomes a guru in the management field, or an idea tips and spreads like wildfire through our places at work. The three analogues are: Pragmatic analogue - grounded in expediency, efficiency, survival (a la Hammer and Champy); Righteous analogue - based on ethics, integrity, authenticity, and doing what's right (a la Stephen Covey); and the Social analogue - addressing human relations and connectedness (a la Peter Senge). Well, if you buy into this argument then Bill Jensen is the "guru of gurus" because Work 2.0 sits squarely at the intersection of Hammer and Champy, Covey, and Senge. Jensen taps into the pragmatic by providing us all a wake-up call about how the time, attention, ideas, knowledge, passion, energy, and social networks of people will ultimately determine the success or failure of our places of work. He drills down into the righteous by challenging all of us to take on the responsibility of creating a better workplace, to speak the truth to those in power, and to quit the platitudes and go after our own unique destiny. And he brings focused attention to the social by stating that at the end of the day, the new contract is all about helping people to make an impact, to learn and grow, and to take our relationships to new levels. Whether you are an employee and/or employer, read this book to be both challenged and inspired by the world of work, 2.0.
Rating:
Summary: Energizing Workbook for Success
Review: Appealing to everyone who works for a living and wants to strive for the shear fun of it (shades of Maslow's self actualization), Work 2.0 is a concise, direct and practical fieldbook full of insights and "how to" approaches. With a brutally frank focus on personal productivity in a global context, it will cause you to assess "as is" (your job, company or country) so that long-term fulfillment can be attained. Don't worry though- this is not one of those mysterious pop-psychology texts. Entertaining, dynamic chapters span:
1-the asset revolution begins- work 2.0 new contract, leaders and managers, workforce
2-if you're serious rules- embrace the asset revolution, build my work my way, deliver pee-to-peer value, develop extreme leaders
3-under construction- views of work ahead, privacy matters Full of ideas, checklists, and examples of Work 2.0, this is one of the best books in the domain. Share it at work if you want to shake the place up. [note- based upon complimentary review copy sent by author]
Rating:
Summary: Work, Life, Control: Condensed and Clarified
Review: Bill Jensen has researched how we all work for more than a decade. I know: I participated in part of his study ten years ago. Here's what I've learned both from his two books and his research... * HIS SKILL is as an aggregator, simplifier, and clarifier.
I laugh at reviews that are obviously searching for the next big thing: ("Nothing new here. So-and-so said that back in...") He openly covers ideas that others cover. But he integrates them all together, and finds the patterns and overlaps between dots that we couldn't otherwise connect. * HE IS PASSIONATE about respect for the individual.
Work 2.0 and Simplicity are not about *business* success. They are about people issues, and finding more ways for each individual to succeed. He's holding leaders accountable for employees' time, energy, and
passion that they waste. When he wrote "It is no longer acceptable to say that there's *work* and there's *life* and it's up to employees to balance the two," he was taking a stand for all the thousands of people he's heard from during his research. Again, I was one of those he stood up for. * HE ASKS tough questions.
Do not buy his books unless you're willing to look in the mirror. While he includes checklists and writes in a very accessible way, he is definitely not about mice-moving-cheese, or fish-throwing, or Five Steps to Eternal Bliss. He's seen our personal foibles and the stupidity in our workplaces, and he tells the truth. * HE POKES a finger in the eye of those in power, then winks at us. * HE RESPECTS his readers.
Sure, he gets some things wrong. I don't agree with all his findings or recommendations. But at the end of the day, he respects us to think more deeply and come up with better solutions because he played truth-teller and dots-connector. He sees his role as witness, reporter, clarifier, and provocateur. He figures we're smart enough to figure out the rest. For me, that's more than good enough.
Rating:
Summary: High Motivation and Tough Love Bundled Together
Review: For the past decade, Bill Jensen has studied how more than a thousand companies get done. What he has to stay both motivates me -- that's there's real hope for all of us who want to work in great environments -- and challenged me. Motivation: Work 2.0 is a journey that redefines R-E-S-P-E-C-T (as he spells it out). Jensen asks us to seek more when we seek respect. He says some companies (like a Belgian department store, IBM, Trilogy, Corning, and more) are actually focused on respecting people's time, attention and how their needs change how the company gets work done. After reading this book, part of me felt elated and joyful that I had a vocabulary and ideas to take my relationship with whomever I work for to completely new levels. Tough Love: Jensen also lays out a new work contract...Things we must ask for, like more value in return from the company in how they organize work for us. Some readers, as evidenced by at least one review, saw this as la-la-land. Pitiful optimism. I felt what Jensen was really writing about in the pit of my stomach. He's
challenging all of us -- anyone who takes a paycheck -- to stop whining about how things are, are start changing them. The scary part of this book is that he openly challenges us to go after our dreams. I now know I'm a key part of building a better workplace. With tools like the SimplerWork Index and examples of leaders who have taken work to a 2.0 level, the only question that remains is if I'm up to the challenge. He's done his part. Now it's up to me (us).
Rating: 
Summary: Good book - expands ways of thinking about employees
Review: The book was very well written, and very insightful.
I thought that "Rule 3. Deliver Peer-to-Peer Value" was full of a lot of jargon and buzzwords. That chapter did not get me really thinking much, nor did it help. But the others were great. Although I am no longer a manager of any sort I found myself wanting to work for managers that have read this book and agree with its founding principles. The driving theme of maximizing your employees time and providing them with challenging work is at the core of what this book is all about.
Rating:
Summary: Great Buy! A new map for uncertain times...
Review: The dust will settle soon. Wrenching uncertainty may not go away, but we will have progressed. Or will we? Jensen wants us to stop first, and ask new questions. Like: What returns should we expect for all that we invest into an employer? He states flat out that "for most employees, the more they invest in their company, the more they lose control of their own destiny." He details a new and different covenant. And tells the stories of a few companies who have started. Just one page (77), his SimplerWork Index, and the instructions on how to use it, are worth the price of the book. When the Index asks us to respond to statements like, "My company is respectful of my time and attention, and is focused on using it wisely and effectively" -- Wow! It stops the platitudes, and energizes new debates about what it means to be in a "great place to work." What makes Work 2.0 so useful and important is not that Jensen gets everything right. (I'd quibble with a few of his points.) It's that he's taken the conversation about work/life balance and the war for talent to excitingly new places. Get this book! Get lots, and give the other copies to people who need to "get it."
Rating: 
Summary: Don't come looking for much here
Review: This book is about 4 years too late. Nothing revoluntionary here. Same "my work, my way" and "Free Agent Nation" stuff we've been hearing for years now. Do yourself a favor, if you have to read it, get it at the library. It'll take you a couple of hours to read and save you a few bucks.
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