For Introduction to Business courses. This best-selling text provides students with a comprehensive overview of every aspect of business and the environment in which business prospers. Business, Sixth Edition, has captured the flavor and excitement of the new economy in all of its rapidly evolving practices. The new edition continues the book's user-friendly tradition and its commitment to relevant material and hands-on learning. It also focuses on people in business and the decisions they make on a daily basis. The authors have taken this commitment to new levels in an effort to provide more personal—and, at the same time, more practical—access to people who do business by letting students ask them questions about cutting-edge business issues and practices.

Table of Contents:
(NOTE: Each chapter ends with a Summary of Learning Objectives, Questions and Exercises, Exploring the Web, Building Your Business Skills, Crafting Your Business Plan, Video Exercise, and several chapters conclude with Mastering Business Essentials.)I. UNDERSTANDING THE CONTEMPORARY BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT. 1. Understanding the U.S. Business System. What's Hot on the Cyberspace Hit List. The Concept of Business and the Concept of Profit. Economic Systems Around the World. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Sowing the Seeds of a Good Idea. It's a Wired World: Electronic B2B in the Auto Industry. The U.S. Economic System. Evaluating Economic Systems. The Global Economy in the Twenty-First Century. Sounding Out the Music Industry Oligopoly. 2. Conducting Business in the United States. Twin Pacts. A Short History of Business in the United States. Types of Business Organizations. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Getting off the Ground at Garden.com. Managing a Corporation. It's a Wired World: Profit Is No Object. Special Issues in Corporate Ownership. Alliance by Location. 3. Understanding the Global Context of Business. The New ETO (European Theater of Operations). The Rise of International Business. It's A Wired World: Nokia Puts the Finishing Touches on a Telecommunications Giant. International Business Management. Barriers to International Trade. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Setting out Roots across the Border. It's a Smallworld.com after All. 4. Conducting Business Ethically and Responsibly. A Tale of Two Companies. Ethics in the Workplace. It's a Wired World: When It Comes to Privacy, It's a Small World After All. Social Responsibility. Areas of Social Responsibility. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Putting Down Good Roots at Garden.com. Implementing Social Responsibility Programs. Some Ethical Rants and Raves. II. THE BUSINESS OF MANAGING. 5. Managing the Business Enterprise. Grounds for the Defense. Setting Goals and Formulating Strategy. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Preparing for Plan B at Garden.com. The Management Process. Types of Managers. Basic Management Skills. It's a Wired World: How to Spot the e-CEO. Management and the Corporate Culture. Down East Showdown. 6. Organizing the Business Enterprise. Forging e-Connections. What Is Organizational Structure? It's a Wired World: Hot-Wiring Ford. The Building Blocks of Organizational Structure. Establishing the Decision-Making Hierarchy. Basic Forms of Organizational Structure. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Structuring Garden.com. Informal Organization. Building on Cybersites. 7. Understanding Entrepreneurship and the Small Business. Please Turn to Chapter 11. What Is a Small Business? Entrepreneurship. Success and Failure in Small Business. Starting and Operating the Small Business. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Sprouting the Entrepreneurial Spirit at Garden.com. It's a Wired World: A Wealth of Investors for Picky Start-Ups. Franchising. The Next Installment. III. UNDERSTANDING PEOPLE IN ORGANIZATIONS. 8. Managing Human Resources. And All the M&Ms You Can Eat. . . The Foundations of Human Resource Management. Staffing the Organization. It's a Wired World: Companies Put Web to Work as Recruiter. Developing Human Resources. Evaluating Employee Performance. Providing Compensation and Benefits. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Massage Breaks and Pet Accommodations. The Legal Context of HR Management. New Challenges in the Changing Workplace. How Paternal Is too Paternal? 9. Understanding Employee Motivation and Leadership. A New Deal in the Workplace. Psychological Contracts in Organizations. The Importance of Satisfaction and Morale. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Cultivating Morale and Motivation at Garden.com. Motivation in the Workplace. It's a Wired World: The Future of Compensation? Strategies for Enhancing Job Satisfaction and Morale. Managerial Styles and Leadership. What Did You Expect? 10. Understanding Labor and Management Relations. Labor Rolls the Dice in Las Vegas. Why Do Workers Unionize? The Evolution of Unionism in the United States. Unionism Today. Life Cycle of an e-Business: The Common Grounds of Labor Relations. Laws Governing Labor-Management Relations. How Unions Are Organized and Certified. It's a Wired World: The Web as a Bargaining Tool. Collective Bargaining. Membership Is Job #1. IV. UNDERSTANDING PRINCIPLES OF MARKETING. 11. Understanding Marketing Processes and Consumer Behavior. Baggy Brands and Deep Pockets. What Is Marketing? Target Marketing and Market. Segmentation. It's a Wired World: Better Health through Cyberspace Demographics. Marketing Research. Understanding Consumer Behavior. Life Cycle of an e-Business: “Narrowcasting” the Enthusiast. Organizational Marketing and Buying Behavior. The International Marketing Mix. Small Business and the Marketing Mix. Between the Barbie Doll and the Driver's License. 12. Developing and Pricing Products. Everybody Has a Price. What Is a Product? Developing New Products. Identifying Products. Determining Prices. Pricing Strategies and Tactics. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Cultivating Products and Winnowing Prices. It's a Wired World: The World of Cyberprice Bidding. The Joy of Take-It-or-Leave-It Shopping. 13. Promoting Products. Log On and Get Rational. The Importance of Promotion. Advertising Promotions. It's a Wired World: The Sound Approach to Internet Marketing. Personal Selling. Sales Promotions. Publicity and Public Relations. International Promotional Strategies. Life Cycle of an e- Business: How to Make the Brand Flower. Promotional Practices in Small Business. The Rationale of Alienating Traditional Partners. 14. Distributing Products. Strike Up the Bandwidth. The Distribution Mix. Wholesaling. Retailing. It's a Wired World: How Far Is It to Detroit.com? Physical Distribution. Life Cycle of an e-Business: How to Farm Out the Supply Function. Why RIGA Is Riled. V. MANAGING OPERATIONS AND INFORMATION. 15. Producing Goods and Services. Getting the Big Bird to Fly Right. What Does Production Mean Today? Creating Value through Production. Operations Planning. Life Cycle of an e-Business: “The Assembly Line of This Business Is Processing Orders”. Operations Scheduling. It's a Wired World: Hershey Kisses off Profits. Operations Control. The Art and Science of Disciplinary Finance. 16. Managing for Quality and Productivity. “Speed Is Everything”. The Productivity-Quality Connection. Responding to the Productivity Challenge. Total Quality Management. Tools for Total Quality Management. Trends in Productivity and Quality Management. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Tapping into Customer Input. Productivity and Quality as Competitive Tools. It's a Wired World: Selling the Idea of Culture Shift. Got a Problem with Your Peripheral? Ask Dudley. 17. Managing Information Systems and Communication Technology. “Life, the Universe, and Everything”. Information Management: An Overview. New Business Technologies in the Information Age. Types of Information Systems. Elements of the Information System. Telecommunications and Networks. Life Cycle as an e-Business: The Seeds of Netpreneurial Success. It's a Wired World: “These Two Companies Are a Natural Fit”. Researching with a Purpose. 18. Understanding Principles of Accounting. How Cooking the Books Left One Accountant with a Bad Taste. What Is Accounting and Who Uses Accounting Information? Who Are Accountants and What Do They Do? It's a Wired World: A Roundabout Look at Conflicting Interests. Tools of the Accounting Trade. Financial Statements. Analyzing Financial Statements. Life Cycle of an e- Business How to Account for Growth. The Shrill Sound of Financial Repercussions. VI. UNDERSTANDING FINANCIAL ISSUES. 19. Understanding Money and Banking. A Popular Bank in a Big Niche. What Is Money? The U.S. Financial System. Life Cycle of an e-Business: Bank Services Help a Young Company Grow. It's a Wired World: To e-Bank or Not to e-Bank. The Federal Reserve System. The Changing Money and Banking System. International Banking and Finance. Extending Credit Where Credit Is Due. 20. Understanding Securities and Investments. Is Volatility Here to Stay? Securities Markets. Stocks. Life Cycle of an e-Business A Prospectus for Growth. It's a Wired World: Opening the Portals to Cross-Border Trading. Bonds. Other Investments. Buying and Selling Securities. Securities Market Regulation. The Stuff That Rumors and Inflated Expectations Are Made of. 21. Understanding Financial and Risk Management. From Clueless to a Juicy Future. The Role of the Financial Manager. Why Do Businesses Need Funds? Sources of Short-Term Funds. Sources of Long-Term Funds. Financial Management for Small Business. Risk Management. Life Cycle of an e-Business: The Job of Pruning. It's a Wired World: A Healthy Approach to Risk Response. Getting Juiced for New Age Business. Appendix 1-Understanding the Legal Context of Business. Glossary. Notes, Sources, and Credits. Indexes.