For students, recent grads, and executives of all levels

Critical thinking to solve problems and communication, especially writing, are the two most important skills managers look for in all hires. They are also two of the top skills of the most effective leaders. Get Your Ducks in a Rowe: Book 2 - Learn the A-D-A-P-T-E-R Method is a practical training tool and reference guide to help everyone think, write, present, sell, and execute in a simple, fun, and memorable time-tested approach.

Problem

Major skills set gap perception between managers and recent graduates:

Studies over the past 10 years show manager frustrations with recent grads aptitude in two key areas – writing and critical thinking skills. Three different studies (Inside Higher Ed, American Association of Colleges & Universities, and PayScale) all showed similar results; 45-74 percent of managers indicated recent grads lacked these two most important skills versus 66-80 percent of recent grads perceive they are proficient in both areas. It's called the skills gap, and it's a growing problem. Taking the issue a step further, while these are cited as work skills, thinking and communication are critically important life skills that everyone should have.

The Impact

The negative impact on corporations has been significant. INC. magazine articles report that poor communication is costing corporations $37 billion/year, and poor writing skills is costing $400 billion/year. That's the financial impact. Think of the impact on people--with higher stress and lower morale. Now it's estimated companies are spending $3 billion in remedial writing training.

The Solution

I didn't want to write another boring business book. Therefore, inspired by Who Moved My Cheese?, I wrote book 1 as a simple fable as a quick listen to provide managers and HR trainers to teach a structured process of critical thinking to write persuasively. It is based upon my 45 years in marketing in senior client side, agency president, and agency ownership positions.

While the initial focus was training recent grads in business, the exact same structured format is ideal for high school teachers and college professors to teach these fundamental skills to students before they graduate.

After finishing book 1, I felt I needed to add an appendix of things that could also help.

It grew into book 2: The A-D-A-P-T-E-R Method of Problem Solving and Business Communication. After 45 years in senior marketing roles, I created it to help students and executives learn how to analyze, deduce, author, perform, tackle, evaluate, and refine. It represents the typical business cycle of thinking.

Together they are practical training tools that can be used as references for the rest of their careers.