Good to Great

Good to Great explores the concept of what characteristics of how companies become great. The author studied many corporations who have experienced sustainable growth and success over decades. It’s not a manner of a growing industry, a competitive advantage in information, or one specific leader that sets these companies apart. No, they uncovered a handful of concepts and patterns between these differing organizations.

Below I’ve listed some of the big ideas:

– The best students are those who never quite believe their professors. Never follow blind acceptance.

Leaders:

  • – Leadership: Many of the great company leaders never cultivated hero status or celebrity status.
  • – “I never stopped trying to become qualified for the job”
  • – Leaders can blend extreme personal humility with intense professional will.
  • – Their ambition is first and foremost for the institution, not themselves. They put the company ahead of themselves, always asking “What’s best for the company?” They don’t look for fame or riches. Always want to produce results. Show horse vs. a plow horse.
  • – Challenges and opposition are natural for a company. It’s how you deal with it that matters. These challenges are opportunities. But, in the other companies, they were boundaries. Can’t blame poor results on the people, external factors or luck. In the end, they blame themselves.
  • – Characteristics: quiet, humble, modest, reserved, shy, gracious, mild-mannered, self-effacing, understated, did not believe in his own clippings.

People

  • -Get the right people on the bus. Get the wrong people off the bus. Then figure out where to drive it.
  • -Right people do not need to be motivated. They are already passionate about what they do.
  • -The right people will do the right things and deliver the best results they’re capable of, regardless of incentive system.
  • -Compensation should be used to motivate the wrong people. It should be used to attract the right people in the first place. ]
  • -If the bus changes direction, the right people will be there to help to support. That’s why it’s important to have them first.
  • -If you have to make cuts, just do it once.
  • -When in doubt, don’t hire – keep looking.
  • -Good people don’t need to be managed. Guided, taught, led – yes. But not tightly managed.
  • -Put your best people on your biggest opportunities, not your biggest problems.

Confront the  Brutal Facts

  • -Lead with questions, not answers (Golden Rule)
  • – Role as a mediator to have healthy arguments
  • –Ability to confront issues, instead of overlook them.
  • -Never need to motivate people. Manage to not to de-motivate.
  • -Never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end regardless of difficulties. And confront those brutal facts with the current reality.
    People who put timelines to new fortunes and are optimistic die of a broken heart when it doesn’t happen.
Hedgehog Concept
  • – Take a complex world and simplify it.
  • – Comes from a hedgehog and fox. Fox tries to think of hundreds of ways to outsmart Hedgehog every day. And all the hedgehog simply does… is roll up in a ball of spikes, despite fox’s new plan. No matter how crafty the fox can be, the Hedgehog uses on strategy for all. Simple, straightforward.
  • – Three concepts:
    1. What can you be the best in the world at? (And equally important, what is it that you cannot be the best at?)
    2. What drive your economic engine? How does it make money?
    3. What are you deeply passionate about?
    That’s your idea.
  • – Denominator
    Concept of finding competitive advantage. ie Raleys makes profit per product from each customer. But Walmart profit per customer visit with purchase of many products. Or… Wells Fargo went from profit per loan to reducing staff with ATMs, and then had profit per employee go up.
Culture of Discipline
  • – A culture of Discpline + Entrepreneurial Spirit = Winining
  • – Displine can be: right processes, right systems, right accounting. Not micromanaging and useless meetings.
  • – Have freedom, but freedom with a framework
  • – Go back to hedgehog concept to build framework. And make sure things align with the simplicity.
  • – Have discipline to stick to three circles of Hedgehog concepts. Everything else should be removed. Takes much discipline to say “No Thank You” to big opportunities
  • – Budget decides which arenas should be funded and which should not.
  • – Always act from understanding
  • – Series of good decisions from hedgehog concept
Patience
  • Many of the successful upstarts took many years to be successful
  • Do not be a early adopter on technology.
  • Let the advance hit, and then adopt when it make business sense.
And always: 
It’s impossible to have a great life unless it i s a meaningful life. Know that your short time here on this earth has been well spent and that it mattered