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In Good Company: How Social Capital Makes Organizations Work
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 302.35
EAN: 9780875849133
Edition: 1
ISBN: 087584913X
Label: Harvard Business School Press
Manufacturer: Harvard Business School Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 224
Publication Date: 2001-02
Publisher: Harvard Business School Press
Studio: Harvard Business School Press
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Editorial Review:Knowledge has always resided in organizations-but it wasn't until the Information Age put a premium on ideas that intellectual capital was recognized as a critical resource. Now, forces like technology, globalization, and the rise of free agency and virtual workplaces are bringing another form of "hidden" capital to the forefront.
In Good Company is the first book to examine the role that social capital-a company's "stock" of human connections such as trust, personal networks, and a sense of community-plays in thriving organizations. Written by leading knowledge management experts Don Cohen and Laurence Prusak, this groundbreaking book argues that social capital is so integral to business life that without it, cooperative action-and consequently productive work-isn't possible. The authors help today's leaders understand the nature and value of social capital, suggest ways they can encourage and enhance it, and explore how they can protect this vital but increasingly vulnerable resource in a volatile, virtual world.
Drawing on major social and economic theories, and the experiences of organizations including the World Bank, Aventis Pharma, Alcoa, Russell Reynolds, and UPS, In Good Company identifies the social elements that contribute to knowledge sharing, innovation, and high productivity. The authors convincingly show how almost every managerial decision-from hiring, firing, and promotion to implementing new technologies to designing office space-is an opportunity for social capital investment or loss. They also reveal the benefits that derive from investments in social capital, such as greater commitment and cooperation, increased talent retention, and more intelligent responses to customer needs.
A landmark book on the critical role that relationships play in organizational success, In Good Company helps employees at all levels recognize the power of social capital to help people work better, and make organizations better places to work.
Don Cohen is a writer, consultant, and the editor of Knowledge Directions. Laurence Prusak is Executive Director of the IBM Institute for Knowledge Management and co-author of Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage What They Know.
In Good Company is the first book to examine and explain the role that social capital--the value inherent in human connections, including trust, personal networks, and a sense of community--plays in the successful running of organizations. Knowledge management experts Don Cohen and Laurence Prusak identify the social elements that contribute to knowledge sharing, innovation, and high productivity--and show how nearly every managerial action can enhance or diminish an organization's social capital. Drawing on the social sciences, economics, and engaging stories from organizations including the World Bank, IBM, the New York City Diamond Trade, and UPS, this book offers practical advice on how to recognize and develop this hidden resource for employee fulfillment and economic gain.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Social Capital is the leading edge for HR measurement- pay attention
The Information Age has put a premium on ideas and intellectual capital is more valuable today than ever. Knowledge has always resided within organizations, therefore the very sought after intellectual capital is a critical resource that resides within the employees of a company. Although these employees possess intellectual capital, with the emergence of technology, globalization, and the rise of free agency, another resource has emerged: social capital. This social capital is made-up of human ... Read More
Rating: - Work as Social Process
Why do new CEOs staff the company with their men?
Why are women under-represented un the business world?
Why could some succeed in launching and establishing new enterprises while other couldn¡¯t manage do so?
Why are the MBA degree craved, while there is no link between MBA results and future salary?
Social capital is supposed to be the answer to these questions. Social capital is widely exploited to emphasize the social nature of work: the work is the social process. Previously, ... Read More
Rating:  - I was glad someone noticed!
This is a good and helpful read. While Cohen and Prusak do tend to say a lot of things that one has a gut feeling of but has never read or heard someone say aloud about working relationships, some of it was really fascinating. They have a particularly interesting chapter on chat and storytelling and the functions those activities serve at work. The theme of the book is that organizations should invest in social capital the way they invest in other kinds of capital, but that such investments can't be faked. ... Read More
Rating:  - Pointing Out the Intangible Values of Positive Connection
"Social capital consists of the stock of active connections among people, the trust, mutual understanding, and shared values and behaviors that bind the members of human networks and communities and make cooperative action possible." What is new about this book is that it applies this sociological concept to business enterprises.
As the authors point out, having more social capital inside an organization is good, but it is not sufficient to create a successful enterprise. Digital Equipment is used ... Read More
Rating: - Common sense, uncommon insight
If I could inflict one book on business executives this year, this would be it. In arguing that social capital within organisations has a value, and that there are ways to encourage it, the authors will not surprise most corporate infantry. But they draw together the human strands of this topic - trust, networking, the office environment, gossip - in an elegant and compelling way, and turn an insightful lens towards everyday facets of employee interaction. While the approach is scholarly, there's enough case ... Read More
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