Our Reference Library contains Books and Reference Materials that we highly recommend. Each book is listed in conjunction with the Fosterbrook RPA Key Component that it supports. Although they are not necessary for participation in the RPA Process - they are helpful for further reading and research.

Many of these are available online - simply click on the chosen title and you will be brought to the Amazon Online Bookstore. Alternatively you can print this page and purchase or order through your local Bookstore.

External Assessment

The External Assessment reflects your organisation’s approach to gathering and analyzing essential market data. Included in this data would be competition profiles, macro and micro economic studies, industry opportunities and threats, and key success factors.

Recommended Reading

State of the Art Marketing Research, Blankenship & Breen

Macroenvironmental Analysis for Strategic Management, Liam Fahey & V. K. Narayanan, West

–Competitive Strategy Techniques for Analyzing Industries & Competitors, Michael Porter

Contemporary Strategy Analysis, Robert M. Grant, Blackwell

Smart Thinking for Crazy Times:The Art of Solving the Right Problems, Ian Mitroff

–Value Migration  How to Think Several Moves Ahead of the Competition, Adrian J. Slywotsky

Internal Assessment

The Internal Assessment reflects the company’s ability to objectively evaluate its strengths and weaknesses. This would include defining its market position, its management processes, and how effectively it utilizes a "value-chain" analysis approach.

Recommended Reading

Integrated Strategic Change, Worley, Hitchen, & Ross

Smart Thinking for Crazy Times:The Art of Solving the Right Problems, Ian Mitroff

Contemporary Strategy Analysis, Robert M. Grant

A Preface to Marketing Management, J. Paul Peter, James H. Donnelly

Financial Management – Theory and Practice, Eugene F. Brigham & Louis C. Gapenski

Setting the PACE in Product Development, A Guide to Product & Cycle-Time Excellence, Michael E. McGrath

Leading Product Development, Steven C. Wheelwright & Kim B. Clark

Dictionary of Marketing Terms, Peter D. Bennett

Crossing the Chasm : Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers, Geoffrey A. Moore

Intelligent Enterprise, James Brian Quinn

Customer Centered Selling: Eight Steps to Success from the World's Best Sales Force, Rob Jolles

Managing Channels of Distribution, Kenneth Rolnicki

Retailing Management, Michaal, Ph.D. Levy, Barton A., Ph.D. Weitz

Management of A Sales Force,William J. Stanton, Rosann Spiro, Richard Buskirk

The Balanced Scorecard, Robert S. Kaplan & David P. Norton

Strategic Management, Arthur A. Thompson, Jr. & A.J. Strickland III

Competing for the Future, Gary Hamel and C.K. Prahalad

Best Practices: Building Your Business With Customer-Focused services, Robert Hiebeler, Thomas Kelly (Contributor), Charles Ketteman