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Rating: 
Summary: A Master Strikes!
Review: I have been in the field of business development and Instructional Design for over 15 years. Over the years, I've seen many organizations resist change, attempt to change, fight to re-engineer, adopt TQM, QA, SOPs (sic)...you name it. Many have attempted to succeed by using a part and partial approach. It seems Roger Kaufman has taken Needs Assessment and shown how it can encompass the best practices to insure business success by careful, committed, comprehensive planning. The elements of change we have come to know as fundamental to world-wide business and organizational survival and success are woven into a convincing model.At a high level, his paradigm is truly holistic. At a "micro" level, it is detailed to the point where it can be put into practice step-by-step. Aside from the strength of his thinking, his writing style is refreshing. I found myself actually chuckling at points throughout the book. Once again, his parallels and examples are real-world and sometimes so simple that anyone should be able to comprehend and accept his rationale. I am currently working on a needs assessment for a VERY large Federal Agency. They have demanded that we follow this model from beginning to end; testimony to its acceptance beyond academic settings.
Rating:
Summary: A Master Strikes!
Review: I have been in the field of business development and Instructional Design for over 15 years. Over the years, I've seen many organizations resist change, attempt to change, fight to re-engineer, adopt TQM, QA, SOPs (sic)...you name it. Many have attempted to succeed by using a part and partial approach. It seems Roger Kaufman has taken Needs Assessment and shown how it can encompass the best practices to insure business success by careful, commited, comprehensive planning. The elements of change we have come to know as fundamental to world-wide business and organizational survival and success are woven into a convincing model. At a high level, his paradigm is truly wholistic. At a "micro" level, it is detailed to the point where it can be put into practice step-by-step. Aside from the strength of his thinking, his writing style is refreshing. I found myself actually chuckling at points throughout the book. Once again, his parallels and examples are real-world and sometimes so simple that anyone should be able to comprehend and accept his rationale. I am currently working on a needs assessment for a VERY large Federal Agency. They have demanded that we follow this model from beginning to end; testimony to its acceptance beyond academic settings.
Rating: 
Summary: Possibly useful information, poorly presented
Review: This book is a "must-read" for anyone with a serious sleep disturbance! Kaufman's treatise is wordy, poorly edited, and repetitive. I wonder what the editor was thinking when he/she accepted this sentence: "Deriving and using needs assessment and planning partner groups may, at first, seem a bit bothersome, but modern management thinking increasingly promotes such quality-type activities, and such partnership groups represent the growing trend toward involving significant others--your associates and partners--in organizational decisions and activities." I suspect that the editor was also sleeping. If Kaufman's viewpoint is important enough to warrant another edition, I would strongly suggest greater attention to visual presentation and editing. As currently presented, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
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