The Vigilant Investor: A Former SEC Enforcer Reveals How to Fraud-Proof Your Investments

Master the most important investing skill of all—DECISION MAKING

“De-risking your investments requires knowing that there is much you don’t know.”
–David X Martin

Risk exists because of one simple fact: Decisions are always based on incomplete information. Therefore, to meet your investment goals over the long term, you must learn to manage the risks associated with a decision-making process that is by nature flawed. Risk and the Smart Investor provides a framework for making such decisions.

Avoiding unrealistic promises of completely risk-free investing, world-renowned risk management expert David X Martin familiarizes you with the principles of risk management. Based on Martin’s experience in managing risk at several of the world’s largest financial institutions, this principlebased approach presents a unique perspective that helps you manage the risk in every investment you make.

Risk and the Smart Investor provides not only a framework for managing risk in today’s markets, it also prepares you to handle the next financial crisis—which is coming, sooner or later—by separating risk management into four separate processes:

• Assessment—know where you are, but accept the fact that you cannot know everything
• The Rules of the Game—determine your appetite for risk, diversify accordingly, demand transparency, and institute checks and balances
• Decision Making—consider all alternatives, fit your plans into specific time frames, and always have an exit strategy
• Reevaluation—continually monitor the outcomes of your decisions and learn from your mistakes

Praise for Risk and the Smart Investor

“Interesting and instructive. A good book for those who want to learn about risk and build this knowledge into their financial decisions.”
—John Reed, former CEO, Citigroup

“David Martin has produced a popular yet serious post-financial crisis reflection on the fundamentals of risk management as a living process. Rich in experience and wisdom, Risk and the Smart Investor is both a useful handbook brimming with insights, and a moral tale for our times. Simply a must-read for every serious investor, risk manager, and just about everyone else.”
—Michael Power, professor, London School of Economics and Political Science

“David Martin knows risk and the active investor and his book proves it.”
—Jerry Lieberman

“This book is like having your own mentor to guide you through risk management decisions.”
—William Rhodes, Chairman, Citigroup and Citibank

If you’re a manager or business owner, you need tools to make better decisions--about business strategy, marketing, competition, positioning, product development, and much more. In Analysis Without Paralysis, two renowned experts on business analysis and strategy bring you those tools, in plain English!

Babette Bensoussan and Craig Fleisher teach you exactly what you need to know, without dragging you through unnecessarily complex concepts or advanced mathematics. They start with a practical, realistic introduction to the analysis process; then they walk you through ten core sets of analysis techniques that every manager can use effectively.

You’ll master classic techniques like SWOT analysis and Porter’s Five Forces, in addition to the latest approaches to competitor, financial, issue, and value chain analysis. Next, Bensoussan and Fleisher guide you through analyzing the global social, political, and macroenvironmental challenges that will increasingly shape the future of your business.

For each tool, the authors present clear descriptions, context, rationales, strengths, weaknesses, step-by-step instructions, and case study examples. The result: a book you can rely on to address your strategic and business challenges--whatever your role, experience, industry, or environment. 

• Don’t just collect data--use it for competitive advantage
  Uncover correlations, assess trends, identify performance gaps, and identify your best opportunities
• Get truly actionable outputs from your analysis
  Perform future-oriented analysis that leads to better competitive strategies and tactics
• Use analysis to anticipate and adapt to rapid change
  Get early warnings of emerging threats--and respond more quickly

You can use business analysis to address your most crucial strategic and tactical challenges--without burying yourself in advanced math or arcane theory! This friendly guide walks you through the entire business analysis process and then explains each of today’s most valuable analysis tools--in plain English. You’ll be able to make better decisions and get better results--even if you’ve never been responsible for analysis before.

Babette Bensoussan and Craig Fleisher illuminate BCG matrix; Porter’s “Five Forces”; SWOT analysis; modern competitor, financial, issue, and value chain analysis; long-term scenario planning; emerging macroenvironmental (STEEP/PEST) techniques; and much more. You’ll find realistic case studies, in addition to practical guidance for choosing the right tools for each challenge. Even if you’ve never performed business analysis before, Analysis Without Paralysis can help you gain the insights and build the strategies for a winning future.

From one of the most respected names in business and leadership, a rare look at the specifics of how great leaders achieve "common purpose" and success within their organizations.

What is common purpose? It is that rare, almost-palpable experience that happens when a leader coalesces a group, team or community into a creative, dynamic, brave and nearly invincible we. It happens the moment the organization's values, tools, objectives and hopes are internalized in a way that enables people to work tirelessly toward a goal. Common purpose is rarely achieved. But Kurtzman has observed that when a leader is able to bring it about, the results are outsized, measurable and inspiring.

• Based on Kurtzman's all-new interviews with more than 50 leaders, including Ron Sargent, Ilene Lang, Micky Arison, Simon Cooper, Joel Klein, Janet Field, Steve Wynn, Shivan Subramaniam, Michael Dell, Richard Boyatzis, Tom Kelley, Michael Milken, and Warren Bennis
• Contains research on leadership Kurtzman has conducted during his years at The New York Times, the Harvard Business Review, Booz & Company, as well as with PricewaterhouseCoopers, Mercer, and Korn/Ferry

A practical guide to managing wealth in modern times

Wealth Management in the New Economy addresses a wide array of wealth management topics and established financial theories. Author Norbert Mindel has successfully advised his clients for more than three decades in the business. Now, with this new book, he shares the wisdom he has acquired and offers valuable insights into successful wealth management in an economy that has changed dramatically over the past year. Along the way, Mindel explores the essential aspects of this discipline, including the keys to wealth creation, properly managing risk, asset protection, planning for a prosperous retirement, and many other issues that you need to understand in order to survive and flourish in today's economy. While market forces are far too complex to be fully predicted or exploited, it is still possible to protect and grow your-or your client's-wealth. Wealth Management in the New Economy will show you how to achieve this important goal.

• Reveals how you can reduce market risk by using proven theories of portfolio management
• Written by accomplished financial advisor, attorney, and CPA Norbert Mindel
• Lays out strategies wealth managers and investors both can use to protect and grow wealth in the new economy