web site of the week: www.thinkers50.com

If you’re looking for some inspiration in your coffee break, or want a quick
fix of management wisdom before your next executive meeting, the Thinkers 50
website is the perfect destination. Created by Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove,
who’ve done so much to make business writing accessible and digestible, it is
the first ranking of management gurus. They sent around 4,000 e-mails to
businesspeople, consultants, academics and MBA students across the globe and
asked them to vote. From the responses, a shortlist of 68 names was drawn up,
then an expert panel ranked them against 10 criteria, including originality,
practicality and impact of ideas and guru factor. There are also biographies
and plenty of substantive material, as well as quick links to specific subjects,
like the absence of women and the triumph of academics. So who’s number one? We
wouldn’t dream of stealing their thunder – or ruining your coffee break.