Contemporary Business, 20th Edition
By Louis E. Boone, David L. Kurtz, and Daniel Pfaltzgraf
Student-friendly, engaging, and accessible, Contemporary Business, 20th Edition equips students with the skills to assess and solve today’s global business challenges and succeed in a fast-paced environment. Designed to drive interest in business, our newest edition offers a comprehensive approach to the material, including a variety of resources to support today’s students. Its modern approach, wealth of videos, relevant and up-to-date content, and career readiness resources keep your course current and engaging.
WileyPLUS for Contemporary Business gives you and your students unique insights into the professional business world with author-produced videos, mini-simulations, and adaptive assignments.
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Original videos and podcasts bring the content to life.
New! AI in Business Videos focus on cutting-edge AI companies and their role in the business world.
New! Omni 11 Mini-Simulations allow students to step into the role of an intern. Each chapter unfolds common business scenarios and specific tasks associated with modern-day business decision making. This digital, interactive series merges both data and real-world context.
New! Video case studies highlight stories of companies and organizations and give students an inside look at what makes these businesses successful.
Adaptive assignments continuously adapt to each student’s needs through individualized, just-in-time feedback and instruction. Assign pre-lecture to introduce key concepts and post-lecture to reinforce their learning through practice.
Marco Mini-simulations put students in the driver’s seat, giving them interactive and experiential exposure to realworld business decision making.
Podcast Chapter Summaries give a brief overview of each chapter’s content.
Lecture overview videos feature Wiley authors delivering an overview of each chapter topic and learning objective.
Career-focused student case videos give students a look into the business careers of recent graduates.
Data and Analytics Business Module prepares students for the changing workplace. With the emergence of Data Analytics transforming the business environment, Wiley has partnered with business leaders in the Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) to identify the competencies graduates need to be successful in their careers. As a result, this module includes industry-validated content that prepares students for the changing workforce.
Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) Module introduces students to how organizations need to factor these important concepts into their business models.
Drive engagement and prepare students for the real world with relevant case content, hands-on mini simulations, and thoughtful videos.
Changemaker, the opening vignette for each chapter, highlights business leaders within a variety of industries. Each opener lays the groundwork for discussing chapter topics, with the goal of drawing the student’s attention to a professional within a company or organization, while highlighting an industry ripe with career opportunities for business majors. Examples include Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Brian Chesky of Airbnb, OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Canva CEO Melanie Perkins, Elon Musk of Tesla and SpaceX, Richard Branson of Virgin Group, and Ernst & Young CEO Janet Truncale.
End-of-Chapter Cases enhance learning and fine-tune decision-making skills. Companies and topics discussed include Shinola, Yelp, SoFi (Social Finance), the Heinz–Kraft merger, and tax implications for the Internet of Things.
AI in Business Videos focus on cutting-edge AI companies and their role in the business world.
Video case studies highlight stories of companies and organizations and give students an inside look at what makes these businesses successful.
Omni 11 Mini-Simulations allow students to step into the role of an intern. Each chapter unfolds common business scenarios and specific tasks associated with modern-day business decision making. This digital, interactive series merges both data and real-world context.
Marco Mini Simulations put students in the driver’s seat, giving them interactive and experiential exposure to real-world business decision-making. These short, game-like exercises help your students tie contemporary business concepts to the workplace.
Teach with confidence with just-in-time, adaptive support.
Adaptive assignments offer personalized, just-in-time support and targeted instruction for students. Through scaffolded learning and actionable analytics, Adaptive Assignments bridge knowledge and skills gaps and support student and class intervention.
What’s New to This Course
- Pair your course with You Got This! The Real Skills You Need for Career Success. Ten modules are included in this innovative, all-digital course, which addresses core content topics such as critical thinking, communication, emotional intelligence, and intercultural aptitude. The combo course integrates original videos, quizzes, animated simulations, and career resources seamlessly into your Boone Contemporary Business course. Modeled after the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) eight career readiness competencies, this paired combo course helps students build the skills they need to succeed in today’s workplace.
Content Changes
- Throughout the course, new material, updates, and overviews of new, global business and technology trends have been added:
- Updated examples, and statistics reflecting the latest marketplace trends, technologies, emerging companies, and best practices in the business world.
- Discussion on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and post-pandemic economic forces.
- Expanded coverage of emerging trends and technologies, such as generative artificial intelligence, e-commerce, digital marketing, social media, AR/VR, robotics, and their impact on various business functions and industries.
- Greater emphasis on the changing workforce dynamics, including the rise of the gig economy, remote work, and the importance of upskilling and adaptability amidst technological advancements.
- Inclusion of newer demographic cohorts, such as Generation Z, and their influence on business practices, marketing strategies, and workplace culture.
- Updated discussions on global business, trade, and economic challenges, considering recent geopolitical events, trade agreements, and the evolving role of international organizations.
- Integration of current events and high-profile cases, such as Taylor Swift’s record-breaking Eras tour, social media influencers, cause marketing, content creators, the GameStop stock saga, the downfall of Silicon Valley Bank, and the UAW strike, to illustrate key business concepts and ethical considerations.
- Updated commentary and figures regarding the small business landscape, global trading partners, country-level GDP, top franchises, entrepreneurship, mergers and acquisitions, startups, and other relevant, recent, newsworthy examples, amongst others.
- Enhanced examples to bring concepts to life using events, news, brands, and topics that resonate with GenZ learners.
- Career readiness, soft skills, and career opportunities in various industries and sectors.
- An explanation of digital marketing and analytics to quantify and analyze customer behavior through site visits and social media platforms, app downloads, mobile devices, and tweets.
DANIEL PFALTZGRAF is an Instructor at the University of Toledo’s Neff College of Business & Innovation. His courses span the disciplines of business: management, marketing, technology, and innovation. With one foot in the world of academia, and another in industry, Daniel is a “pracademic”, bridging the gap between theory and practice. In addition to teaching, Daniel works in industry for Nationwide on its innovation team where he serves as an Innovation Designer, creating new impactful products and services that people can’t imagine, and then can’t imagine living without. Prior, Daniel worked for Root Inc. (part of Accenture), a management consulting firm, bringing strategic change, interactive learning solutions, culture transformation, and engagement strategies to life for American Airlines, Fossil Group, Hilton Worldwide, Verizon, and numerous other Fortune 500 companies.
DAVID KURTZ and LOUIS (GENE) BOONE were longtime co-authors of many editions of this textbook. Kurtz is a former professor at the University of Arkansas and the author of many books and articles. Boone received his doctorate in marketing along with Kurtz and was late professor emeritus at the University of South Alabama in Mobile. Together, Kurtz and Boone produced more than 50 books and textbooks and collaborated on many other projects, as well as being involved in various entrepreneurial ventures. Their decades-long partnership ended with Gene’s death in 2005, but Contemporary Business will always bear the mark of their work together.
1. The Changing Face of Business 2. Economic Challenges Facing Business Today 3. International Business and Competing in World Markets 4. Business Ethics and Social Responsibility 5. Small Business and the Legal Forms of Business Ownership 6. Entrepreneurship and Starting a Business 7. Management, Leadership, and the Internal Organization 8. Human Resource Management: From Recruitment to Labor Relations 9. Top Performance through Empowerment, Teamwork, and Communication 10. Production and Operations Management 11. Using Technology to Manage Information 12. Customer-Driven Marketing 13. Product and Distribution Strategies 14. Promotion and Pricing Strategies 15. Trends in E-Commerce 16. Understanding Accounting and Financial Statements 17. The Financial System and Investing 18. Financial Management GLOSSARY / NOTES / NAME INDEX / SUBJECT INDEX ONLINE APPENDIX A Business Law ONLINE APPENDIX B Insurance and Risk Management ONLINE APPENDIX C Personal Financial Planning ONLINE APPENDIX D Developing a Business Plan ONLINE APPENDIX E Careers in Business Today ONLINE APPENDIX F Launching Your Career