With Thanksgiving leftovers still in the refrigerator and the Holiday season in full swing, it’s an important time for all of us to recognize what is important in our lives. Much of leadership training involves prioritizing work and managing time in an effort to become more efficient, but now more than ever, a good work/life balance is essential for a healthy and productive workforce. Many companies have started offering benefits such as flextime and telecommuting to help workers reach a balance between their personal and professional lives, but this may not be enough in many cases. According to Jennifer Lacy, director of research for The New York Times Job Market, "There is a general perception among employees that working long hours is important for career advancement…This notion, and the pay and promotion policies that support it, often undermines attempts to promote work/life balance." For corporate work/life initiatives to succeed, they must be supported from the top. Culture is one of the largest driving forces in any initiative, but the recession has put even more pressure on those wishing to take advantage of work/life benefits because they are afraid of being viewed as not dedicated to the company. However, if companies can launch successful work/life programs, they can reap rewards that include less absenteeism, lower burn-out rates, and a more productive workforce. So, while enjoying those leftovers and planning the family festivities this season, leaders and managers should also be thinking about how to best serve both work and family all year round.

In Crush It! author Gary Vaynerchuk describes how anyone can harness the power of the Internet to turn their passion (no matter how obscure or crazy) into a revenue making business. His fervent theme: "monetize your passion" by using the unprecedented opportunities afforded through social media net-working platforms.  A self-made successful businessman and personal brand identity, Vaynerchuk made a name for himself by launching and promoting Wine Library TV, a video blog. Drawing upon his own experience, Vaynerchuk explains how to use all the social media networking tools to build a passion into a personal brand that creates wealth and personal happiness. He contends that launching a business on the Internet does not have to cost millions of dollars—or even thousands. What it requires is dedication, passion, time, patience and creativity. For a free trial of EBSCO Business Book Summaries click here. Related book summaries in the BBS library: The Digital Handshake, Social Media at Work, Changing the Channel

The concept of being first remains vital to all businesses no matter the economic conditions. Indeed, being foremost in value, sales, or market is never more important than when businesses are struggling to get by. When the economy slows, or when a recession hits, businesses must learn not only how to survive, but how to thrive in the new economic environment. With the right actions, businesses can become first in their market and dominate even in an economic contraction. Grant Cardone’s If You’re Not First, You’re Last lays out the sales ground rules to make this happen. For a free trial of EBSCO Business Book Summaries click here. Related book summaries in the BBS library: Accelerating Out of the Great Recession, How to Sell When Nobody’s Buying, The Adversity Paradox

It has recently been announced that AOL will be buying the Huffington Post for a tidy sum of $315 million. As businesses become increasingly content-driven, acquisitions seem like a good way of increasing a company’s brand and media presence without all the hassle of designing and maintaining large (and credible) media channels from scratch. AOL, like many companies, hopes that such acquisitions will help bring new consumers to the company’s existing product and service lines. Revenue growth alone is no longer the only driving force behind many acquisitions today. While successful acquisitions will increase revenue, content is what appeals to many interested buyers. Will the content complement what we currently produce? Does it fit with our current audience, or are we trying to capture a new audience? Who’s going to sustain its creation? How can we profit from it? These are all questions media-conscious companies are asking themselves while contemplating an acquisition. Online content may be relatively cheap to produce, but companies aren’t simply buying the content; they are buying the brand and the followers of that brand. I believe AOL did the intelligent thing by allowing the Huffington Post to take control its content channels. In too many cases, companies will acquire a media outlet only to ruin its viability by trying to control it. By giving the Huffington Post control, they are saving the brand, its followers, and putting their own content in the hands of a company who is used to creating content for the consumer. Unlike the AOL/Time Warner debacle, I foresee this partnership going the distance.

The news of the Democratic walk out in Wisconsin and the possibility of a government shut down in the near future emphasize the need for responsible leadership now more than ever. As politics become more extreme, it is not a matter of who is right or wrong, but whether or not our leaders can act responsibly and be held accountable for carrying out the functions of their position. In corporate life as in politics, leaders must be willing to fight for what they believe is right, but also have the courage to face challenges head on. There will always be opposition for any leader when working toward a vision or goal, but that opposition is necessary for pushing the leader to be his or her best. Individuals become stronger by having to surmount obstacles. Running away only delays the inevitable confrontation and weakens a person’s character. When a leader is hired or appointed, his or her followers have expectations concerning what their leader will accomplish. Leaders must do their best to come through on these expectations, but must work within the system they find themselves. When hired or appointed, leaders recognize and agree to the rules and terms of their position; they should fight for what they believe is right, but respect the responsibilities that come with the job. If victory is not possible, leaders must accept defeat graciously and hope the opposition will do the same in the future.

Today, many American companies are highly risk averse and are taking a short-term view of business. Greater focus on innovation is needed to make companies more competitive. In Innovate the Pixar Way, Bill Capodagli and Lynn Jackson discuss how leaders at animation giant Pixar have cultivated an innovative culture. They identify numerous ways that organizations can create their own "innovation playgrounds." While researching the sources of Pixar’s innovative genius, the authors examined the company’s culture, leadership, teaming, and training. Organizations that are both innovative and profitable require a delicate balance between two very different characteristics: 1) childlike dreaming and 2) task-driven execution. Pixar has been successful at achieving this balance. For a free trial of EBSCO Business Book Summaries click here. Related book summaries in the BBS library: Innovation X, Grabbing Lightning, Imagination First

The key to a successful business is customer loyalty. Building enduring business relationships is a timeless strategy that transcends factors that are out of a service organization’s control, including technological changes, economies of scale, and exchange rates. Solid customer loyalty serves as insurance against the risks of a commodity being viewed as replaceable or interchangeable. In Exceptional Service, Exceptional Profit, Leonardo Inghilleri and Micah Solomon share a variety of strategies to help organizations make the shift from reactive to anticipatory service and build a client base that will keep coming back for more. These positive relationships can then lead to free word-of-mouth advertising and boost employee pride and morale. For a free trial of EBSCO Business Book Summaries click here. Related book summaries in the BBS library: Lead with Your Customer, 10 Steps to Successful Customer Service, The Customer Rules

I’m happy to announce that our new website is now up and running. BizSum.com offers five new business book summaries every week, enhanced search functionality, browseable categories of the top business subjects, and access to our catalogue of over 1,000 summaries. In addition, companies have access to forums, customized reading lists, and the ability to comment on summaries. To sign up for our weekly newsletter highlighting our most recent summaries, please visit the site and submit your email in the newsletter box on the front page. We’re also offering three free summaries for you to view. We’re committed to offering the best business book summaries and hope you enjoy the new site.

In Predictable Success, Les McKeown explains that any business, any organization—any group of any sort—that grows and reaches for success is going to go through certain steps and will have to endure certain changes as it grows. There is a specific sequence to these steps, and with the right people operating within the right structures, any business can make its way through these steps to Predictable Success. McKeown describes what each step looks and feels like to those who are in it, and he offers remedies to companies who have attained success and then lost it, offering hope to company leaders who want to get back on top. For a free trial of EBSCO Business Book Summaries click here. Related book summaries in the BBS library: The Success Principles, Seduced by Success, The Strategy Paradox

The ASTD 2011 International Conference & Exposition will be held May 22-25 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, and EBSCO Publishing will be there. If you planned on attending the conference, please stop by booth 1209 to learn more about our company and what we have to offer the corporate learning community. About the conference: "Held each spring, this premier event for workplace learning and development professionals welcomes 8,000 attendees from more than 70 countries. These professionals manage all aspects of learning in their organizations. From CEO to specialist, from dean to student, ASTD 2011 welcomes people from across the globe. Learning is a key driver in companies big and small. At ASTD’s International Conference & Exposition, we typically bring Fortune 500 companies like Wal-Mart, Exxon Mobil, General Electric, Bank of America, and AT&T together to share what they are doing in learning to help grow businesses of all sizes." Please visit the conference website to learn more.