This is the Safari online edition of the printed book.

What can business leaders learn from Barack Obama's improbable victory?  A great deal, says this brief, readable book,  which spells out the lessons of the Obama campaign and goes on to illustrate them, citing companies that have used similar techniques to succeed.  Obama ran a nearly flawless campaign that stayed on message, attracted tens of thousands of dedicated volunteers, and collected a record flood of dollars from donors large and small.  But his triumph was also to use social networking to create a vast online community that has changed politics forever.  And that's precisely what businesses need to do.  In a soundbyte, Obama's threefold approach was (1) to keep his cool, (2) to apply to politics the social technologies of the Internet, including blogs, texting, and viral videos, and (3) to embody in himself the change that he meant to bring to the country.  None of these goals are as simple as they sound.  Barack, Inc., not only spells them out clearly but offers actionable lessons that businesspeople can apply, beginning tomorrow. "Change" has become a tired political cliché, but Obama gave it new life by persuading a solid majority of voters that he could lead them to a whole new kind of politics and government, transcending the petty partisanship of recent years.  And he himself embodied that change.  "We are the ones we've been waiting for," he told his rallies.  "We are the change we seek. . . . Let's go change the world." Just so, says this important book, business leaders must embrace change and become the change they offer.  Only then will their constituencies -- shareholders, employees, suppliers, customers -- follow them to achieve it.  But having done that, their companies will have become communities -- and the authors tell us that community, in addition to products and profits, is what business is about in the Web 2.0 world of the 21st century.

Amazon.com® Reader Reviews (Ranked by Helpfulness)

Average Amazon.com® Rating:  Based on 97 Ratings

Excellent book for life lessons as well as business - 2009-08-17
Reviewer Rating:

If you are a Obama supporter, enjoying this book is a no-brianer -- but even if you are not, you can't deny the sober-minded logic and plain sense that it espouses.

This compact, easily digestible tome follows the last Presidential campaign and examines the Obama organiaation's responses and actions, as well as how the man himself reacted and proceeded. It's a helpful reminder of, more than anything else, grace under pressure. It's the sort of book to keep handy when you need a dose of sanity in the insance life we all lead.

Great piece of work - 2009-11-26
Reviewer Rating:
I thought this book was awesome. It was short and sweet, had a lot of good examples, and portrayed in a positive light our president in his run for office. I would recommend it.

Not impressed - 2009-11-24
Reviewer Rating:
This book feels like it is less about business lessons from the campaign and more about a report of how people worked. As a person who works with businesses I found it a bit thin. Perhaps this is the nature of books with such titles. I suspect it of being put together to capitalize on the Obama mystic which is considerable and which I greatly admire and to find a way into business book market. It is not a well developed thesis of ideas. It is not even innovative in reporting on the social networking although I suspect there was more than described here.

And it more about politics and position yourself to win against others which is not a message that needs reinforcing in business. The team internal is set against others. That is not the best way for business to work.

I feel at a loss of what else I would say about this book. I love my President. I love Obama. I love business. But this is not a good mix of the combination. I was disappointed

No matter where you stand in politics, this is a good, quick, common-sense tip book - 2009-10-21
Reviewer Rating:

How did the Obama campaign people, and the man himself, navigate one of the most historically dramatic presidential campaigns in history? Or, for your own purposes, how can you manage the minefield that is your workplace? This book answers both in simple terms without getting into too far into the weeds of armchair psychoanalysis.

In a way, the career and campaign of Barack Obama can be paraphrased, in this book's view, by Kipling's poem, "If," especially the part about keeping your head. It's not easy for most of us, so it's always good to have a handy reminder about how to do it, and this book shows how it can work for you, using the biggest arena imaginable in modern times.

And it's readable in nice little chunks, which is always welcome for those of us who haven't got long stretches of reading time.

AMAZON VINE: What an interesting and enlightening "behind the scenes" view... - 2009-09-10
Reviewer Rating:
I received this book through the Amazon Vine Program.

This book was an incredible overview of how Barack Obama utilized all the currently available web technology to get his message out, develop personal interaction, and build a huge campaign war chest beyond anyone's imagination. This is in stark comparison to the McCain campaign.

For people who are used to utilizing social interactive media, this is not "new" news.

For people who do NOT use computers/social interactive media, this is a wake-up call. Maybe even a call to action - learn how to use a computer to see what is happening, in addition to the traditional media (TV, radio, print, etc.) we have grown up with.

The book presented the information briefly but concisely, and provided valuable insight for business to adopt these same principles and applications for business success. It emphasized the importance of surrounding yourself with intelligent, competent people to effect positive change and, ultimately, help our country get back on track.

What a revealing look into how an EFFECTIVE and COMMUNICATIVE campaign led to winning the presidency.

There are many comparisons of this book to other authors with different views. This book was a quick read with many little reminders on how to conduct oneself in the public spotlight. Mr. Obama's conduct may have been "controlled", but isn't that the way society functions in the first place?

I highly recommend this book. If you don't want to spend a lot, borrow it from your local library, or wait for the Kindle/paperback edition. Nevertheless, it is too good to miss.

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Internet/Online

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Internet/Online > Business Strategy