Ulrich D (Ed.)Contains an anthology of ‘Harvard Business Review’ articles, aimed at creating a ‘resource that addresses the need for professionals to re-invent themselves as strategic players capable of generating organizational capabilities’. Includes contributions from some of the leading academics in management studies, such as Chris Argyris, Sumantra Ghoshal, Michael E Porter and Robert H Waterman. Explores how HR can contribute to improving organizational performance. Examines issues of organizational development with case study examples, mainly from the USA. Does not break any new ground but does provide a useful anthology of important articles on areas such as change, innovation and organizational learning. Does not hang together particularly well and may have benefited from more signposts for the reader at the start of each section. Constitutes a useful reference book for academics.

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A booklet detailing where to find the leading local government services in the land has been jointly produced by the DETR and the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA), whose job is to bring up standards in local government.Where to Go and What to See lists the qualities of the second phase of Beacon Councils – so named because they have developed pioneering approaches to providing essential local services – such as tackling vehicle crime, boosting town centre regeneration and securing higher standards of foster care.

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More details have emerged about the extent of the cross-sector working involved in the Care Direct project.Care Direct will provide a one-stop shop gateway to information about social care, health, housing and social security benefits and will be piloted in the South West next year.

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