Book Reviews Information

Kmart's Ten Deadly Sins: How Incompetence Tainted an American Icon was begging to be written. It probably would have surfaced much earlier if not for the fear of many authors that publishing too soon would result in the omission of who knows how many future bewildering tactics by the forever transforming retail giant, K-mart. Actually, contrary to my early assumption, this book is less an indictment of K-mart than it is a combination of warnings and lessons to everyone else. There are so many negative examples in the news today of how NOT to succeed in business. However, many organizations fail to acknowledge or learn from these examples.

This book was written for those of you who find yourselves wondering how a company with such bright prospects could end up filing for bankruptcy. How could a brand as widely recognized and firmly fixed in our cultural lexicon as K-mart be teetering on the brink of extinction? Depending on whom you talk to, K-mart's fall from grace can be attributed to any number of factors. In the first in-depth examination of K-mart, author Marcia Layton Turner reveals the real reason behind K-mart's troubles-bad management-and discusses how the large personalities and even larger dreams of K-mart's misguided leaders played a significant role in transforming this once profitable retail titan into a bankrupt behemoth.

This is not a collection of the author's personal opinions as to why the once mighty K-mart is now frantically treading the tumultuous retail waters. Marcia Layton Turner interviewed many financial analysts, former employees, and industry observers to get the inside scoop on what happened at K-mart. She coupled her research findings with in-depth studies of SEC filings, news reports, and background data to paint a very clear picture of exactly how K-mart management's thinking emerged as well as what went on behind the scenes and why.

Weaving corporate history with financial analysis and expert commentary, this engaging book identifies and examines the ten management mistakes, which ultimately brought K-mart to its knees. It spins an intriguing tale of the missteps of a retail giant that once had the industry in the palm of its hand and foolishly let it all slip away. Readers will achieve a better sense of where K-mart has been and what its potential is for a turnaround. This first in-depth examination of K-mart clearly identifies and discusses the ten miscalculations K-mart's CEOs have repeatedly made, including resisting investments in technology, brand mismanagement, and haphazard expansion, to name a few.

This book is a well-written comparative analysis of why K-mart failed and Wal-Mart continues to thrive. The management lessons found in the book can be widely applied and should be shared with and discussed among any leadership team members interested in continued growth and success.

More than 100 business book reviews written by Harry K. Jones are available at http://www.AchieveMax.com/books/.

Reprint Information

Your organization may reprint this article for your newsletter, online publication, or mailing list. We ask that you print the:

• article in its entirety;
• byline of the writer;
• information about the writer, which is available at the end of each article; and
• contact information, including our toll-free phone number in the U.S. (800-886-2MAX) and link to our website - www.AchieveMax.com.

We would appreciate a tear sheet or electronic copy of the articles you reprint.

Harry K. Jones is a professional speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a firm specializing in custom-designed keynote presentations, seminars, and consulting services. Harry has made presentations ranging from leadership to employee retention and time management to stress management for a number of industries, including education, financial, government, healthcare, hospitality, and manufacturing. He can be reached at 800-886-2MAX or by visiting http://www.AchieveMax.com.