Rating: 
Summary: An Absolute Must-Read for Anyone in Business
Review: I heard a teaser spot on a radio ad for the book. They used the "WTGBRFDT" question used by one of the most productive companies in Jason's book. That hooked me, and am I glad it did. This book is full of real-world situations and strategies for how to become productive in any business. As a manager and entrepreneur, I know how many businesses struggle to achieve "productivity", and I know how many miss the goal..sometimes badly. Stop guessing and get this book. This guy has done the research and he knows what he's talking about. Without a doubt, I think this book is one you should buy for your entire office, read and discuss, and then go to work on making changes that will make a difference.
Rating:
Summary: Elegant, Simple and Profound
Review: I read this book in one sitting, and am going to return to it again and again. The style of writing is not only easy to read, but more importantly, the messages are simple yet profound. It is not often that I have read a book that from the first few pages gave me an insight into something that I had almost taken for granted. The concept of productivity is both easy and complex and Mr. Jennings has done what few authors are able to do and that is make the complex simple. Every owner of a business has to read this book. It is not filled with platitudes that sound good, it is filled with ideas and insights that can change a business and a life. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed the book. It clearly conveys the influence of business philosophy and the importance of culture on a successful company. It is a refreshing departure from some of the self-important B.S. so commonly espoused from today's business "leaders"! So often, the slash & burn and layoff solutions boasted by managers are perceived as courageous and tough. In reality, creating the type of company examined in this book requires real tenacity, and real courage.
Rating:
Summary: Less Is More: How Great Companies Use Productivity As...
Review: I've read a lot of business books before and I can tell you most of the time they're boring as hell. Jason's style of writing is cutting edge. Not only is the information extremely helpful, it's actually fun to read! A compelling read is a compelling read; whether or not the book is fiction or business-focused. It's rare, actually it's the first time, I've gotten a "work" book and read it cover to cover the first day I had it. As I was reading the book I found myself running the numbers on my companies revenue per employee to see how we compared to the competition. It's an eyeopener if nothing else. I can also tell you that I'm now looking for ways to aggressively increase our productivity - now. Thank you Mr. Jennings!
Rating:
Summary: get out your hi-lighter
Review: I've read lots of books about business and this is by far the best one I have ever read. I am on my third time through with hi-lighter in hand. It is down to earth, easy to read and even entertaining.I have been impacted so much by this book that I have purchased copies for my each of my 3 partners.We have started implementing ideas from this book and are very excited about the future of our business. Thank you Jason Jennings!!
Rating:
Summary: Not to be missed
Review: Jason Jennings comes to the table with rare qualifications for a business-book author. He has the done-it-myself insider's perspective of someone who has built and run highly successful businesses of his own, with the seen-the-good-and-the-bad perspective of a consultant who has been privvy to company secrets of the successes and failures that few outside a company ever get to hear. Those qualifications must be what accounts for his gaining access to corporate leaders who have never before talked to a business journalist or author.
And then he obviously knew what questions to ask. These business leaders have shared with him some of the best advice on improving and running an organization, or making a dysfunctional organization into a model of success, that have ever appeared on the printed page.
This is a book not to be missed by anyone in business. In fact, the stories make such delightful reading that the book holds the promise of fascinating you even if you are NOT in business!
Rating:
Summary: Finally - A Productivity Book That Respects the Workforce
Review: Jason Jennings latest book, Less Is More, has two very rare features that establish it as a classic, head-and-shoulders above other books in this category. The first outstanding item is easy to spot: the writing style is incisive and entertaining. When was the last time you read a book about business productivity that you thoroughly enjoyed? Even those completely unfamiliar with business tactics, financial statements and the like will find this book not only understandable but as easy to read as great fiction. And those with no background in business may be inspired to learn more, as Jennings advocates for all employees. The second rarity is the unflinching dedication to humility, respect for the work team, and adherence to building a culture of honesty. In the aftermath of the Enron & WorldCom scandals, we need a return to basic values and simplicity. The blueprint is here in this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Less is More - How Great Companies Use Productivity.....
Review: Jason Jennings provides an entertaining, informative and understandable view into the cultural and organizational methods used by some of the world's most successful companies in his new book LESS IS MORE. He provides relevant points which translate well into any business. The book reads well, it's edgy and fast paced but down to earth and it's content is highly applicable. Well done and worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Very interesting but divisive and of limited value
Review: Jennings reads his book on the unabridged audiocassette. He definitely has an announcers voice and is easy to understand. I found his inflections sort of larger-than-life/not natural at first but I quickly got acclimated, not a big issue. The book is fairly long and repeats many important themes like the need for healthy culture, process and vision in many different ways. It might be able to be shorter. The research method Jennings and his team utilized for the book is the driver that makes the book so interesting. By carrying out detailed analysis to locate several under-the-radar, but incredibly productive companies, they managed to isolate some of the common threads for corporate success without being sucked into the vortex of large mega-companies whose stories are already well known and perhaps over-documented. The companies chosen represent a fairly good cross-section of international business, but I would have like to have seen at least one very high tech computer vendor make the cut. There are probably good reasons why there wasn't one, but there was no mention of this if my memory serves... In addition to the excellent research on the case companies, there are also some good insights into legendary companies like Ford and Toyota briefly provided for specific instances. The significant flaw in this book is that when it is taken as a whole, it amounts to not much more than a very interesting, carefully crafted, indictment of most executive management in corporations today. The executives profiled all really know the nuts and bolts of their business and have been with them long enough to really cast Deming-like vision into reality. That plays well for well a while, but with 6 tapes, I'd like something more practical I can start at work tomorrow since I'm not an executive and probably never will be. The book does try to service this need for mid-managers like me towards the end of the book by encouraging that we apply at least some of the key principles to some degree in the hope of making a grass roots difference at least within our department. Actually, the department I work with abides by many of the principles given and they do help. But that doesn't stop large-scale lay-offs, frozen budgets and other realities that most managers really have to live with. The book's untitled theme is that strong success only flows from the top down. In the highly successful cases analyzed, each has exceptional Level 5 leaders (to use Jim Collins terminology). What if where I work is like 90% of all places where the executives turn-over a lot, are forced to optimize all decisions for short-term profit on Wall Street and de-rail some good plans due to economic realities? The book's primary advice to me would seem to be: go to work somewhere else, find that 10% club. Maybe true, but not particularly helpful today. Even for those top-level executives whom this book will reach, it is likely to fall on deaf ears. Not because executives really are the "wing tip shoe wearers, peacock strutting" jerks Jennings occasionally alludes to. No, it is Jennings own inflammatory and derisive language that will tend to make executives shut the book. I wanted to lend my tapes to the president of my company because of the good macro-productivity ideas, but decided I wouldn't because he might take it as my endorsement of this class-warfare attitude. There are other sources out there for most of the information here on egalitarian culture, continuous process improvement, open-book management, profit sharing incentives, etc. I'd be interested to know the average working hours of the employees in the case study companies as a cultural factor but I don't recall this being mentioned. In any case, the productivity measures would factor this in, just a cultural question I have about these companies. Much of what Jennings says is true and interesting. There are some things that can be learned here, but much of it comes down to re-invent almost everything, starting with your executives. Who can implement that? Again, it is the detailed case study research that puts compelling value into this book.
Rating:
Summary: Very interesting but divisive and of limited value
Review: Jennings reads his book on the unabridged audiocassette. He definitely has an announcers voice and is easy to understand. I found his inflections sort of larger-than-life/not natural at first but I quickly got acclimated, not a big issue. The book is fairly long and repeats many important themes like the need for healthy culture, process and vision in many different ways. It might be able to be shorter. The research method Jennings and his team utilized for the book is the driver that makes the book so interesting. By carrying out detailed analysis to locate several under-the-radar, but incredibly productive companies, they managed to isolate some of the common threads for corporate success without being sucked into the vortex of large mega-companies whose stories are already well known and perhaps over-documented. The companies chosen represent a fairly good cross-section of international business, but I would have like to have seen at least one very high tech computer vendor make the cut. There are probably good reasons why there wasn't one, but there was no mention of this if my memory serves... In addition to the excellent research on the case companies, there are also some good insights into legendary companies like Ford and Toyota briefly provided for specific instances. The significant flaw in this book is that when it is taken as a whole, it amounts to not much more than a very interesting, carefully crafted, indictment of most executive management in corporations today. The executives profiled all really know the nuts and bolts of their business and have been with them long enough to really cast Deming-like vision into reality. That plays well for well a while, but with 6 tapes, I'd like something more practical I can start at work tomorrow since I'm not an executive and probably never will be. The book does try to service this need for mid-managers like me towards the end of the book by encouraging that we apply at least some of the key principles to some degree in the hope of making a grass roots difference at least within our department. Actually, the department I work with abides by many of the principles given and they do help. But that doesn't stop large-scale lay-offs, frozen budgets and other realities that most managers really have to live with. The book's untitled theme is that strong success only flows from the top down. In the highly successful cases analyzed, each has exceptional Level 5 leaders (to use Jim Collins terminology). What if where I work is like 90% of all places where the executives turn-over a lot, are forced to optimize all decisions for short-term profit on Wall Street and de-rail some good plans due to economic realities? The book's primary advice to me would seem to be: go to work somewhere else, find that 10% club. Maybe true, but not particularly helpful today. Even for those top-level executives whom this book will reach, it is likely to fall on deaf ears. Not because executives really are the "wing tip shoe wearers, peacock strutting" jerks Jennings occasionally alludes to. No, it is Jennings own inflammatory and derisive language that will tend to make executives shut the book. I wanted to lend my tapes to the president of my company because of the good macro-productivity ideas, but decided I wouldn't because he might take it as my endorsement of this class-warfare attitude. There are other sources out there for most of the information here on egalitarian culture, continuous process improvement, open-book management, profit sharing incentives, etc. I'd be interested to know the average working hours of the employees in the case study companies as a cultural factor but I don't recall this being mentioned. In any case, the productivity measures would factor this in, just a cultural question I have about these companies. Much of what Jennings says is true and interesting. There are some things that can be learned here, but much of it comes down to re-invent almost everything, starting with your executives. Who can implement that? Again, it is the detailed case study research that puts compelling value into this book.
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