Becoming Lean or Bank Management

Becoming Lean: Inside Stories of U.S. Manufacturers

Author: Jeffrey K Liker

Detailed, first-hand accounts of lean production implemented by American firms. The best-seller contains performance records, real numbers to back up the power of going lean, lessons learned in the process of change (both logistics and people issues), and a realistic account of the journey to lean.

What is Lean?

Pure and simple, lean is reducing the time from customer order to manufacturing by eliminating non-value-added waste in the production stream. The ideal of a lean system is one-piece flow, because a lean manufacturer is continuously improving.

Most other books on lean management focus on technical methods and offer a picture of how a lean system should look like. Other books provide snapshots of companies before and after lean was implemented.

This is the first book to provide technical descriptions of successful solutions and performance improvements. It's also the first book to go beyond snapshots and includes powerful first-hand accounts of the complete process of change; its impact on the entire organization; and the rewards and benefits of becoming lean.

At the heart of Becoming Lean are the stories of American manufacturers that have successfully implemented lean methods. The writers offer personalized accounts of their organization's lean transformation. You have a unique opportunity to go inside the implementation process and see what worked, what didn't, and why.

Booknews

This volume, touting Lean Production, provides an explanation of the philosophy itself and compiles stories, recounted by the CEOs, consultants, and plant managers, from a variety of successful manufacturing companies that have implemented Lean Production. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.

See also: The Political Economy of International Relations or Great Minds in Management

Bank Management

Author: Timothy W Koch

The concept of risk management serves as the unifying theme. A bank?s asset and liability management committee (ALCO) or risk management committee is responsible for the overall financial planning and management of the bank?s profitability and risk profile. The book emphasizes how managers can develop and implement strategies to maximize stockholders? wealth by balancing the trade-off between banking risks and returns. One of the book?s primary purposes is to explain how market risk (interest rate risk, equity price risk, and foreign exchange rate risk), liquidity risk, credit risk, capital/solvency risk and operational risk are measured and how decisions to alter a bank?s risk profile affects profitability and growth opportunities. The book demonstrates how risk management decisions in different areas affect each other and the overall profitability and risk of the institution.

Booknews

Designed for use in upper division undergraduate and master's level banking and financial institutions courses, as well as professional banking programs, this text describes the range of banking activities, demonstrates how bank managers make financial decisions, and explains how decisions in one area affect other areas. Prerequisites include elementary accounting, interest rate and bond pricing concepts, and macroeconomics. This fifth edition includes updated material on regulations and discussion of the financial services industry on current developments in credit scoring. Koch teaches finance and chairs the Department of Banking at the University of South Carolina. MacDonald is president and CEO of the SW Graduate School of Banking and adjunct professor of finance at Southern Methodist University. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)