Book reviews

Citation

(2003), "Book reviews", European Business Review, Vol. 15 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ebr.2003.05415bab.004

Book reviews

Soil and Soul: People versus Corporate Power

Alastair McIntoshAurum Press LtdLondon2001Soft cover£12.99

This is an extraordinary book, which explains in very personal terms the deep motivating roots driving the author's distinguished career as a campaigner and how he drew upon them to successfully confront the daunting oppression of landed interests and corporate power.

Part One of the book is as much autobiographical as it is explanatory of the author's deep rootedness in his native Scotland. It gives a fascinating and sobering account of how Highland Scotland was colonised by the Anglicised ruling classes and how, through a conscious and concerted severing of Scottish indigenous crofters from their land and way of life, much of Scotland came to be dominated by a feudal system of land ownership which endures to this very day. But, interwoven into this account, McIntosh brings the reader a rich tapestry of Celtic history and poetry and of the life of indigenous crofters, which explains not only their connectedness to the land and to their ancestors, but the connectedness of indigenous peoples the world over to their land and culture. It articulates the most profound motivations latent within all peoples who have any rooted connection to the land, which can, if awakened and harnessed, lead to the most astonishing and liberating results.

In Part Two, the author tells of how he and other committed campaigners helped the people of the island of Eigg to release those profound motivations, thus overcoming their centuries old mind-set of helplessness and oppression induced by the intolerable and Draconian treatment of successive "lairds" or landlords – usually excessively rich types from south of the border or beyond. Once shown they had the power to reject the laird – in this case businessman, Keith Schellenberg – the people of Eigg eventually succeeded in making the island unmarketable to any outside buyer and could thus take it out of the feudal system of land ownership, purchasing it instead for the benefit of their island community. Eigg's liberation sent shock waves through Scotland and elsewhere and became an example for people everywhere seeking to take back their rightful heritage.

Similarly, McIntosh became involved in thwarting Lafarge Redland's attempt to turn Mount Roineabhal in South Harris, designated a National Scenic Area, into a monstrous "superquarry". Enlisting the help of indigenous peoples from other parts of the world engaged in similar struggles – in this case Sulian Stone Eagle Herney, Mi'Kmaq warrior chief from Canada – the author was eventually able to overcome massive corporate financial power and dirty tricks and see off the superquarry.

But the campaigning success stories of Eigg and the superquarry represent merely the happy flowering of plants whose roots – the local people themselves – draw on a deep knowledge of their history, on conviction and tenacity, and on a thirst for justice and liberation. Soil and Soul shows of what successful campaigns to preserve local cultures and environments are made: the soils and souls of those who are oppressed and who refuse to remain so.

John BunzlFounder of the International Simultaneous Policy Organisation (ISPO)

Resisting McDonaldization

Edited by Barry SmartSage Publications1999SoftbackISBN 0-7619-5518-6

The idea that George Ritzer expounded as The McDonaldization of Society first appeared in 1993 and became a bestseller. Although a sociologist (professor at the University of Maryland), Ritzer intended the book for "a general literate audience rather than an academic" one. In the event it became an influential text in the social sciences; hence this collection of critiques edited by Professor Barry Smart of the University of Portsmouth.

The term "McDonaldization" was used by Ritzer to explain the particular aspect of "rationalization" McDonald's practised in producing hamburgers – and this followed through from cattle ranch, battery chicken plant, potato farm, and so on, right through to the cooked meal, its preparation, location, advertisement, sale, consumption, disposal, etc.

Ritzer did not claim to have originated the idea of rationalization and he acknowledged that the basis of our understanding of the process was laid down by Max Weber at the turn of the previous century. This is the nub of Smart's inquiry: does Ritzer have anything new to add to Weber's explorative work? Undoubtedly, he says, "the frontiers of rationalization" have extended since Weber's time, not only through McDonald-style fast food but in health care, education and many other expressions of modern living. But ultimately has McDonald's become the new "model" for the rationalization of all modern life? He concludes, in passing, that it is "the pursuit of increasing capital accumulation which lies at the foundation of most, if not all, of the instances of rationalization considered by Ritzer to be an exemplification of McDonaldization".

Other contributors take up aspects of Ritzer's argument. Bender and Poggi, for example, observe his fear of "de-humanization" taking place through the McDonaldization of birth and death, that is, the trend toward impersonally structured organizations, and standardization and commercialization of child care and higher education.

Nevertheless, O'Neill considers Ritzer's argument to be gravely simplistic as a description of US (or any) society, although Ritzer, he says, "is certainly right that McDonald's is no postmodern fun-house". Deena and Michael Weinstein see Ritzer's conflation of rationalization and McDonald's as a symptom of standardization of tastes and habits, as "a quick, predictable and inexpensive" – i.e. fast-food-type – theory.

The Australian sociologist Joanne Finkelstein perceives McDonald's to be "a debased application of technical virtuosity" and a successful application of Taylorist principles – that is, time and motion study. However, what may loosely be termed McDonaldization is a catch-phrase for the modern workplace as a locus made safer and more efficient but where the individual's relationship to work has been dehumanized, and these conclusions stretch to other aspects of modern life, like shopping, holidays, etc. But Finkelstein also finds that typifying fast foods and other forms of commodification, and then extrapolating them as generally characterizing the globalization and homogenization of all culture and cultures, are unconvincing. Cultures continue to arise, develop, and diverge, alongside McDonald's.

Modern humans, says Bryan Turner, are more self-critically aware of the society they keep. Corporations like McDonald's operate in a volatile environment full of contradictions, including heightened risk and the dereliction of traditions. After discussing the effects of commitment to democracy and religion, the latter of which has been known to lead to nationalist fervour and genocide (Bosnia, Cambodia), he concludes, with upbeat coolness, that "we may be better to look to neither Athens nor Jerusalem … but to McDonald's for our political models of association".

This book with its 17 contributors is a fascinating read on a deeply important topic: resisting McDonaldization in the most stimulating way – by understanding it.

Brian BlackshawWriter and engineer

Innovating at the Edge – How Organizations Evolve and Embed Innovation Capability

Tim JonesButterworth-Heinemann/ElsevierOxford (www.bh.com/management or www.elsevier.com)2002350 pp., softcoverISBN: 0 7506 5519 4$21.99

In the new work culture, innovation must become a norm of twenty-first century organizations. It is essential not only for growth and profitability, but also for survival, especially in entrepreneurial or start-up enterprises. The post-industrial work environment requires constant creativity on the part of all personnel, especially those in management, if the institution is to flourish in changing knowledge society.

To meet such challenges, Dr Tim Jones has provided a new "bible" – Innovating at the Edge! In the book's introduction, the author provides the case for innovation, while dispelling its myths. In an easily readable format, this UK consultant organizes his message into three major parts dealing with: how innovation evolves, innovation at the leading edge, and focus and integration. Under these headings, he offers 20 pithy chapters whose content ranges from how innovation relates to business basics and globalization, to case studies of corporate innovators. The third part reveals astute observations on how to embed innovation into the very fibre of a system by evaluation, focus, design, implementation, and review.

Finally, in the last two additional chapters, the writer shares his conclusions and resources with those who would heed his appeal. Jones, a principal of his own European consultancy called Innovaro, envisions innovation as an organizational imperative related to both performance and strategy. His pragmatic insights are coupled with critical incidents of companies which manage to succeed on the leading edge of their markets. The author unveils a blueprint for a futuristic corporation or association to build the capabilities and culture that keep them ahead of their peers. Jones ends with ten "truths" about innovation and how it:

1. 1.

   impacts the bottom line;

2. 2.

   applies equally to products and services;

3. 3.

   is relevant to all industries;

4. 4.

   does not require high investment in new technology;

5. 5.

   can occur anywhere within an organization;

6. 6.

   is a capability that everyone can exploit;

7. 7.

   is possible for both large and small systems;

8. 8.

   contributes to organizational stimulation and renewal;

9. 9.

   can be managed; and

10. 10.

    can be measured.

Then he indicates where global managers may seek external assistance to improve their innovation skills, and develop their organizations.

In addition, Butterworth-Heinemann has just released two more seminal business books in its Managing Cultural Differences series. Both of these have been previously reviewed in this EBR publication, namely Eurodiversity – A Business Guide to Managing Differences, and Uniting North American Business – NAFTA Best Practices (www.bh.com/management).

Philip R. HarrisManagement Psychologist, La Jolla, California, USA