About the Authors

Steven D. Peterson is founder and CEO of Strategic Play, a management training company specializing in software tools designed to enhance business strategy, business planning, and general management skills. He's the creator of the Protean Strategist, a business simulation that reproduces a dynamic business environment where participant teams run companies and compete against each other in a fast-changing marketplace. He is coauthor, along with Paul Tiffany, of Business Plans For Dummies, which was nominated as one of the best business books of the year by The Financial Times. He holds advanced degrees in mathematics and physics and received his doctorate from Cornell University. For more information, visit www.StrategicPlay.com.

Peter Jaret has written for The New York Times, Newsweek, National Geographic, Health, Reader's Digest, and dozens of other magazines. He is the author of seven books, including In Self-Defense, From the Frontlines of Global Public Health, Nurse: A World of Care, and Active Living Every Day. He has developed written materials for the Electric Power Research Institute, Lucas Arts, The California Endowment, WebMD, BabyCenter, Stanford University, Collabria, Home Planet Technologies, and others. In 1992, he received the American Medical Association's first-place award for medical reporting. In 1997 and again in 2007, he won James Beard Awards for food and nutrition writing. He holds degrees from Northwestern University and the University of Virginia.

Barbara Findlay Schenck has spent her career helping business owners start, grow, market, and brand their companies. She's worked internationally in community development, served as a college administrator and instructor in Hawaii, and cofounded an advertising agency in Oregon. She writes marketing advice columns for MSN and participates in programs that help businesses adapt to their ever-changing media and consumer markets. She is the author of Small Business Marketing For Dummies and Selling Your Business For Dummies and the coauthor of Branding For Dummies and Business Plans Kit For Dummies. For more information on her background, books, and business advice, visit her Web site at www.bizstrong.com.