Leslie W. Rue is professor emeritus of management and former holder of the Carl R. Zwerner chair of Family Owned Enterprises in the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University. He received his Bachelor of Industrial Engineering (with honor) and his Master of Industrial Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology. He received his Ph.D. in Management from Georgia State University.

Prior to joining Georgia State University, Dr. Rue was on the faculty of the School of Business, Indiana University at Bloomington, Indiana. He has worked as a data processing project officer for the U.S. Army Management Systems Support Agency, in the Pentagon, and as an industrial engineer for Delta Airlines. In addition, Dr. Rue has worked as a consultant and trainer to numerous private and public organizations in the area of planning, organizing, and strategy.

Dr. Rue is the author of over 50 published articles, cases, and papers that have appeared in academic and practitioner journals. In addition to this book, he has coauthored numerous other textbooks in the field of management. Several of these books have gone into multiple editions.

Dr. Rue has just celebrated his 38th wedding anniversary. He has two daughters, a son, three grandsons, and 2 granddaughters. His hobbies include the restoration of antique furniture and antique wooden speedboats.

Lloyd L. Byars received his Ph.D. from Georgia State University. He also received a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering and a Master of Science in Industrial Management from Georgia Tech. He has taught at Georgia State University, Clark Atlanta University, and is currently professor of management, College of Management at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

Dr. Byars has published articles in leading professional journals and is also the author of four textbooks that are used in colleges and universities. He has served on the editorial review board of the Journal of Systems Management and the Journal of Management Case Studies.

Dr. Byars has worked as a trainer and consultant to many organizations, including Duke Power Company, Georgia Kraft Company, Kraft, Inc., South Carolina Electric and Gas Company, the University of Florida-- Medical School, the Department of the Army, and the U.S. Social Security Administration. Dr. Byars also serves as a labor arbitrator, certified by both the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and the American Arbitration Association. He has arbitrated cases in the United States, Europe, Central America, and the Caribbean.

Dr. Byars has been married to Linda S. Byars for 36 years. They have two daughters, a son, and one grandson.