Showing results by publisher "Penguin Audio" in Economics

Since its appearance in Zuccotti Park, New York, in September 2011, the Occupy movement has spread to hundreds of towns and cities across the world. No longer occupying small tent camps, the movement now occupies the global conscience as its messages spread from street protests to op-ed pages to the highest seats of power. From the movement's onset, Noam Chomsky has supported its critique of corporate corruption and encouraged its efforts to increase civic participation, economic equality, democracy and freedom.

America runs on women—women who are tasked with holding society together at the seams and fixing it when things fall apart. In this tour de force, acclaimed Sociologist Jessica Calarco lays bare the devastating consequences of our status quo. Holding It Together draws on five years of research in which Calarco surveyed over 4000 parents and conducted more than 400 hours of interviews with women who bear the brunt of our broken system.

Drawing on four decades of hands-on management experience, the founder of Richer Sounds argues that ethically run businesses are invariably more efficient, more motivated and more innovative than those that care only about the bottom line. He uncovers the simple tools that the best leaders use to make their businesses fair, revealing how others can follow suit. And he also delves into the big questions that modern capitalism has to answer if it is to survive and to thrive.

Economic theories and models shape our everyday lives. They are relied on by politicians when tax rises or cuts are being considered. They inform debates about everything from bonuses for CEOs to minimum wage rates, to the level of job protection enshrined in law. They determine what levels of tobacco or petrol duty are charged and influence government approaches to issues as diverse as obesity and climate change. But are policy makers right to be so slavishly reliant on them? Tom Bergin is sceptical, and he subjects eight of the most prevalent economic mantras to close scrutiny.

In Back to Work, Bill Clinton addresses the urgent economic challenges facing the United States and offers a plan to get America "back into the future business". He details how to get out of the current economic crisis and lay a foundation for long-term prosperity, offering specific recommendations on how to put people back to work, increase bank lending and corporate investment, double exports, restore the manufacturing base, and create new businesses.

When Gene Sperling was in charge of coordinating economic policy in the Obama White House, he found himself surprised when serious people in Washington told him that the Obama focus on healthcare was a distraction because it was “not focused on the economy.” How, he asked, was the fear felt by millions of Americans of being one serious illness away from financial ruin not considered an economic issue? Too often, Sperling found that we measured economic success by metrics like GDP.

The US tax code is a total write-off. Overstuffed with loopholes and special interest provisions, it works for no one - except tax lawyers, accountants, and corporations, that is - certainly not me and you. Not for the first time, we have to tear it up and start over. That happened in 1922, and again in 1954, and again in 1986. There's a pattern here; we reach this point every 32 years. Which means the next complete re-write of the tax code is due in 2018. Can we write a new tax code that is fair and simple? In fact, we can.

Ah, money. We all use it, but most of us feel like we don't 'get' it. Enter: a personal finance book you’ll actually want to read. With absolutely no judgement or jargon, The Book of Money breaks down big, complex topics into bite-sized chunks.

In today’s data-driven world, maths is a weapon wielded by banks, insurance companies, tech firms, and government agencies. These organizations use sophisticated algorithms to calculate odds, make predictions, uncover patterns, manage risk, and optimize actions. And they treat you as another number to crunch along the way. Robin Hood Maths explains the mathematical methods these companies and agencies use to manipulate and profit off of you.

Geopolitical thought leader Ian Bremmer issues a clarion call to America: redefine your place in the world, or the world will define it for you. America's identity abroad has long been defined by the Second World War and years of Cold War struggle. But the new America has changed; its role and identity are in flux - and with them the global balance of power. In Superpower, president and founder of the Eurasia Group Ian Bremmer calls for a completely new definition of America as a superpower - one that adheres to distinct priorities and values.

BRAIN SHOTS: Not everyone has the time to listen to long recordings of their favourite books- which is where Brain Shots come in. These are ‘big ideas’ books in a bite-sized audio format- taken complete and unabridged from the ebook edition.

These stories are about the people who make our lives run every day—and yet we barely think of them. Laskas spent weeks in an Ohio coal mine and on an Alaskan oil rig; in a Maine migrant labor camp, a Texas beef ranch, the air traffic control tower at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, a California landfill, an Arizona gun shop, the cab of a long-haul truck in Iowa, and the stadium of the Cincinnati Ben-Gals cheerleaders. All are part of hidden America, and you will be amazed by what Laskas tells you about them.

It’s the Middle Class, Stupid! confirms what we have all suspected: Washington and Wall Street have really screwed things up for the average American. Work has been devalued. Education costs are out of sight. Effort and ambition have never been so scantily rewarded. Political guru James Carville and pollster extraordinaire Stan Greenberg argue that our political parties must admit their failures and the electorate must reclaim its voice, because taking on the wealthy and the privileged is not class warfare—it is a matter of survival.

Sensational books like Freakonomics have shown how human behaviour follows predictable patterns. But how do you take these radical ideas and apply them to your business? How do you make money from them? Secrets of the Moneylab sets out what business can learn from the findings of the new economics and social psychology. It shows how you can shape desires, use incentives and reduce risks to consistently improve the bottom line.

By focusing on corporations rather than people, we've put our faith in empty trends and brand-focused window dressing. Why should those responsible for our current crisis be trusted to fix it? In Accountable, authors Michael O'Leary and Warren Valdmanis offer a blueprint for everyone to take responsibility for using their economic power as consumers, as investors, as employees and as voters to trigger a fundamental shift away from an economy that is unethical, unfair and destructive to our environment and institutions.