Harvard Business Review - Good enough for Yalies

I picked up the most recent issue of HBR at the Atlanta Airport which set me back $10 or the equivalent of a 12 oz bottle of water and a Snickers bar from one of the HMS Travelhost spots. Normally, $10 for any magazine really will make one pause but in an airport concourse that level of spending is typically small time so it didn't engage my "Warning Will Robinson!" filter like it normally would hanging out at the reading couch at Border's.

I found it interesting that the issue had a cover dot promoting their own edit piece. Rather than whore themselves out for that last sliver of ancillary revenue the publisher decided to blatantly tout their own wares. Score one for growing a pair to fend off the ad creep on their cover.

The up front items were hit and miss with most of the main features solid save for one on Avatar-based Marketing (I don't expect fanboy based edit in HBR. It's bad enough seeing this dreck everywhere else).

I have to admit that I was intrigued by one of the cut lines: Eager Sellers and Stony Buyers: Understanding the Psychology of New-Product Adoption. That story had even more value than I had hoped and is exactly the type of useful and insightful edit from from a magazine flying the banner of an Ivy league school.

Speaking of that cover dot - it was heralding an exclusive interview with the Chairman and CEO of GE, Jeff Immelt. Well worth the read. Also, a surprising story on the benefits of making mistakes. That article alone should be sent annonymously to your bosses. If you haven't taken a look with an issue of HBR, take a flier on it or if you are not in an airport concourse, get on down to your local library and read the June 2006 issue for free and take the sub card home with you.