War in the Boardroom: Why Left-Brain Management and Right-Brain Marketing Don't See Eye-to-Eye--And What to Do about It »

Al Ries and his daughter and business partner Laura Ries are two of the world's best-known marketing consultants, and their firm, Ries & Ries, works with many Fortune 500 companies. They are the authors of The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding and The Fall of Advertising and the Rise of PR, which was a Wall Street Journal and a BusinessWeek bestseller, and, most recently, The Origin of Brands. Al was recently named one of the Top 10 Business Gurus by the Marketing Executives Networking Group. Laura is a frequent television commentator and has appeared on the Fox News and Fox Business Channels, CNN, CNBC, PBS, ABC, CBS, and others. Their Web site (Ries.com) has some simple tests that will help you determine whether you are a left brainer or a right brainer.

Renowned business gurus Al and Laura Ries give a blow-by-blow account of the battle between management and marketing—and argue that the solution lies not in what we think but in how we think

There's a reason why the marketing programs of the auto industry, the airline industry, and many other industries are not only ineffective, but bogged down by chaos and confusion.

Management minds are not on the same wavelength as marketing minds.

What makes a good chief executive? A person who is highly verbal, logical, and analytical. Typical characteristics of a left brainer.

What makes a good marketing executive? A person who is highly visual, intuitive, and holistic. Typical characteristics of a right brainer.

These different mind-sets often result in conflicting approaches to branding, and the Ries' thought-provoking observations—culled from years on the front lines—support this conclusion, including:

• Management deals in reality. Marketing deals in perception.
• Management demands better products. Marketing demands different products.
• Management deals in verbal abstractions. Marketing deals in visual hammers.

Using some of the world's most famous brands and products to illustrate their argument, the authors convincingly show why some brands succeed (Nokia, Nintendo, and Red Bull) while others decline (Saturn, Sony, and Motorola). In doing so, they sound a clarion call: to survive in today's media-saturated society, managers must understand how to think like marketers—and vice versa. Featuring the engaging, no-holds-barred writing that readers have come to expect from Al and Laura Ries, War in the Boardroom offers a fresh look at a perennial problem and provides a game plan for companies that want to break through the deadlock and start reaping the rewards.

Publishers Weekly

Father and daughter marketing experts and bestselling authors of The Fall of Advertising, the Rieses explore the gulf between management and marketing and show why this gulf is bad for business, customers and the economy. They demonstrate how the two groups think differently: management deals in reality (left brain), while marketing deals in perception (right brain). This dichotomy extends to every facet of operation, including product versus brand, better versus different products and communicating versus positioning. The authors use a multitude of company examples from Booz Allen Hamilton, McDonald's, Pepsi and MasterCard to elucidate their points, showing how the two groups approach vital issues such as growth, competition and branding, underscoring the need for both marketing and management to understand the other side's perspective and priorities. The Rieses are persuasive in their argument, examining tried-and-true brands as well as those that have faded. Entertaining and enlightening, this book has much for executives and managers at all levels to ponder. (Mar.)

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Preface: Your divided brain

Introduction: The velvet curtain

Ch. 1 Management deals in reality. Marketing deals in perception 1

Ch. 2 Management concentrates on the product. Marketing concentrates on the brand 9

Ch. 3 Management wants to own the brand. Marketing wants to own the category 23

Ch. 4 Management demands better products. Marketing demands different products 31

Ch. 5 Management favors a full line. Marketing favors a narrow line 41

Ch. 6 Management tries to expand the brand. Marketing tries to contract the brand 51

Ch. 7 Management strives to be the "first mover." Marketing strives to be the "first minder." 65

Ch. 8 Management expects a "big-bang" launch. Marketing expects a slow takeoff 77

Ch. 9 Management targets the center of the market. Marketing targets one of the ends 85

Ch. 10 Management would like to own everything. Marketing would like to own a word 95

Ch. 11 Management deals in verbal abstractions. Marketing deals in visual hammers 107

Ch. 12 Management prefers a single brand. Marketing prefers multiple brands 119

Ch. 13 Management values cleverness. Marketing values credentials 131

Ch. 14 Management believes in double branding. Marketing believes in single branding 149

Ch. 15 Management plans on perpetual growth. Marketing plans on market maturity 159

Ch. 16 Management tends to kill new categories. Marketing tends to build new categories 169

Ch. 17 Management wants to communicate. Marketing wants to position 181

Ch. 18 Management wants customers for life. Marketing is happy with a short-term fling 189

Ch. 19 Management loves coupons and sales. Marketing loathes them 195

Ch. 20 Management tries to copy the competition.Marketing tries to be the opposite 203

Ch. 21 Management hates to change a name. Marketing often welcomes a name change 215

Ch. 22 Management is bent on constant innovation. Marketing is happy with just one 227

Ch. 23 Management has the hots for multimedia. Marketing is not so sure 233

Ch. 24 Management focuses on the short term. Marketing focuses on the long term 243

Ch. 25 Management counts on common sense. Marketing counts on marketing sense 253

Note on Sources 261

Index 263