Glenn Rifkin

Powerful lessons in forward-thinking leadership from the visionary business pioneer who turned IDG into a $3 billion technology media and venture capital empireLike Steve Jobs, Patrick McGovern built a worldwide multibillion-dollar industry by thinking differently, disrupting old business models, and embracing new technology trends. He drove the future forward and never looked back. With magazines such as Computerworld, PCWorld, and Macworld, his company, International Data Group (IDG), quickly became a global powerhouse with information technology publications in nearly 100 countries.The story of IDG’s astonishing success has been a source of inspiration for entrepreneurs all around the world. No matter what industry you work in―whether you’re heading up a small startup, expanding a mid-sized company, or running a major global corporation―McGovern’s people-first principles, insights, and integrity will help you lead the way.Learn how •Define a clear mission early in the game―for long-term success.•Identify new markets and stay ahead of the curve.•Expand your business globally but have it managed locally.•Listen to your customers and empower your people.•Hire the best and challenge them to do their best work.•Never stop learning and always remain curious.•Foster a let’s-try-it attitude throughout the company.•Lead with optimism and stay true to your values and vision.In addition to these timeless lessons, you’ll learn how this future-forward leader broke new ground in the 1980s by opening offices in China, the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, and other markets deemed off-limits. You’ll discover how his company thrived in spite of major industry shifts―from mainframe computers to minicomputers to personal computers, from print to digital to smartphones―that upended many rivals. Living at the intersection of these classic disruptions, McGovern never missed a beat. He understood well before most that a revolution in information technology was underway and not only was there money to be made but that this would soon become the world’s largest industry. Most important, he never forgot the human element that is so crucial to any company’s success. His leadership in the creation of one of the world’s leading brain research institutes at MIT only served to cement his legacy.Future Forward shows you how to apply McGovern’s principles to your own organization. These are the lessons of a true visionary. This is how successful leaders take risks, take charge, and take the future by storm.

The first full-length portrait of Olsen and his company describes the hectic pace of DEC's growth; the engineers' revolt that led to the formation of Data General; the loss of the personal computer market to IBM and Apple; and Wall Street's call for the ouster of Ken Olsen in 1983.

In this unique collection, Glenn Rifkin, author, journalist and columnist, offers a series of his essays compiled from years of writing for the Concord, (Mass.) Journal, the local newspaper. Writing about the ties that bind a father to his son, a second marriage, new stepchildren, politics, spirituality, friends and characters who populate a special small town, Rifkin captures the feelings of life in a trying and challenging time. It is a mixture of humor, joy, sadness and insight into the lives we live today.

Fifty CEOs share their struggles with career and family in this unique look inside the minds of top managers--exposing the pressures, stresses, and rewards that come with the job. Original.

Practical ideas from the best brains in business. This is a sharp, jargon-free guide to the core curriculum of an MBA program. MBA in a Book shows how to master the big ideas of business and use them in a practical way to build and enhance career success.Great business thinkers, such as Michael Porter, Rosabeth Kanter, and Bill George of Harvard Business School; Paul Argenti of the Tuck School at Dartmouth; Jeffrey Sonnenfeld of Yale; Peter Senge of MIT; the entrepreneur and inventor Dean Kamen; and the financial innovator Michael Milken are just a few of the best brains in business, providing the intellectual nourishment that will help you play the game of business at the highest level.