A pretty facinating read at FC threadlinked above detailing Malcom Gladwell's past present and future - Gladwell is author of "The Tipping Point" - i've not read it but you'd have to have had your head in a bucket since 2000 not to have heard of it right?

But nowhere is Gladwell's influence being felt more than in business. Starbucks' Howard Schultz publicly attributed his company's success to the tipping-point phenomenon. The public- relations agency Ketchum created what it infelicitously named an "Influencer Relationship Management" database that emulates Gladwell's model of connectors, mavens, and salesmen. One tech company even named itself TippingPoint Technologies Inc. The mere mention of his name to creative directors or product developers results in nouns not typically associated with business thinkers: He's a rock star, a spiritual leader, a stud.

This story really makes me want to go out and buy his books (inc. the new one "Blick"), for those that have read him, are they really that good?