Isaacson Walter

Based on more than forty interviews with Steve Jobs conducted over two years - as well as interviews with more than a hundred family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and colleagues - this is the acclaimed, internationally bestselling biography of the ultimate icon of inventiveness. Walter Isaacson tells the story of the rollercoaster life and searingly intense personality of creative entrepreneur whose passion for perfection and ferocious drive revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing. Although Jobs cooperated with this book, he asked for no control over what was written, nor even the right to read it before it was published. He put nothing off limits. He encouraged the people he knew to speak honestly. And Jobs speaks candidly, sometimes brutally so, about the people he worked with and competed against. His friends, foes, and colleagues provide an unvarnished view of the passions, perfectionism, obsessions, artistry, devilry, and compulsion for control that shaped his approach to business and the innovative products that resulted.

After seven years of service as the president of Tulane University, Scott Cowen watched the devastation of his beloved New Orleans at the hands of Hurricane Katrina. When federal, state, and city officials couldn't find their way to decisive action, Cowen, known for his gutsy leadership, quickly partnered with a coalition of civic, business, and nonprofit leaders looking to work around the old institutions to revitalize and transform New Orleans. This team led the charge to restore equilibrium and eventually to rebuild. For the past nine years, Cowen has continued this work, helping to bring the city of New Orleans back from the brink. The Inevitable City presents 10 principles that changed the game for this city, and, if adopted, can alter the curve for any business, endeavor, community - and perhaps even a nation.This is the story of the resurgence and reinvention of one of America's greatest cities. Ordinary citizens, empowered to actively rescue their own city after politicians and government officials failed them, have succeeded in rebuilding their world. Cowen was at the leading edge of those who articulated, shaped, and implemented a vision of transformative change that has yielded surprising social progress and economic growth: a drowned city identified with the shocking images of devastation and breakdown has transformed itself into a mecca of growth, opportunity, and hope.

In this pioneering book, four senior managers of the global consultancy Booz Allen Hamilton show how leaders in business, government, and civil society can reach across national and sector divisions, forming collaborative 'megacommunities' that are directed toward a common goal. The authors share the success stories of megacommunities already at work today, looking at examples that range from tackling monopolies to urban revitalization to conservation efforts. They also explain to leaders how to achieve balance between organizational differences and be able to operate optimally. What Megacommunities around the globe can achieve: IMPROVING ENERGY AVAILABILITY AROUND THE WORLD In order to tackle one of today's major problems, local companies need to be working with national energy providers, residents, government bodies, NGOS, and universities HELPING COMMUNITIES GROW In changing neighborhoods like Harlem, the megacommunity includes local small businesses, community groups, global companies, and foundations like Bill Clinton's CONSERVING THE ENVIRONMENT In saving the world's rainforests, providers, distributors, sellers, and consumers of lumber team up with local communities, the World Wildlife Fund, and Goldman Sachs PREVENTING THE SPREAD OF HIV/AIDS In India, a megacommunity brings together both public, private, and civil-sector organizations, including PepsiCo, the Gates Foundation, U.S. healthcare experts, UN development programs, and local NGOs