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A review by kimball_hansen
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...and Other's Don't by Jim Collins
2.0
Almost three stars. I read the author's other book [b:Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies|4122|Built to Last Successful Habits of Visionary Companies|James C. Collins|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1412047084s/4122.jpg|147916] a few years ago. I really, really liked that book. This one is the prequel to that. I thought that was pretty neat to have a prequel of a non-fiction book. However, like many prequels, this one just wasn't up to par. It was nice to get a refresher on BHAGs, though. No BHAGs aren't your grandmother-in-law, they are Big Hairy Audacious Goals. The author was a little too over-zealous and passionate with this book (I listened to it on audio and could tell. speaking of audio, they would play music that reminded me of RBD's Ensename song). I suppose we can say this book was Good but Built to Last was Great. But, as with Built to Last, the author's team did do a really thorough, comprehensive job of finding companies to study that are Great. (For example, they weeded out those companies that rode the tech bubble and grew from technology rather than innovation itself. This is because technology cannot ignite a change from Good to Great. It can accelerate it but it can't be the spark.) This just didn't seem as clear cut of why the companies were Great. It seemed like the author was kinda beating around the bush. Some of the Great companies were Kroger, Walgreen's, Wells Fargo, and a few others who's names I didn't recognize at all.
I would like to read a revised edition of this book along with Built to Last. For example, Circuit City is one of the Greats. And as we know from 2008, they died. But the author did explain why it's OK if a company does poorly after they've placed them on the great pedestal (for example IBM).
I hope the author takes the themes of these two books and applies them to sports teams. I would love to learn why some are dynasties and others aren't. He would do a really good job because he's so thorough.
The Q/A at the end was a nice touch.
I'll just share some notes I jotted down:
People don't have the Great life because it's so easy to settle down with the Good life.
You don't need an outside leader to go from Good to Great. In fact, there is a negative correlation with a sustained transformation with outside leaders.
A level 5 leader is one who's first and foremost ambition for the cause, the company, the work. They have professional will and personal hurry.
The best people don't need to be managed.
Greatness is a function of conscious choices and discipline, not circumstances.
The great manage the systems, not the people.
"stop doing lists" and more important than "to do lists." I ought to try that one out. There's a whole of things I need to stop. But then it might become a paradox with the whole positive mindset and using the "stop" phrase.
I didn't quite get the hedgehog concept he talked a lot about.
Bad BHAGS are set with bravado. Good BHAGs are set with understanding.
It is much easier to become Great than remain Great. Greatness doesn't depend on size. It is no harder to build something Great than to build something Good. In fact it could be easier to build something Great. Resiliency is the signature of Greatness.
Teams should have their themes be "we run best at the end."
"The ultimate success in life is that your wife likes and respects you evermore as the years go by." Very true.
I would like to read a revised edition of this book along with Built to Last. For example, Circuit City is one of the Greats. And as we know from 2008, they died. But the author did explain why it's OK if a company does poorly after they've placed them on the great pedestal (for example IBM).
I hope the author takes the themes of these two books and applies them to sports teams. I would love to learn why some are dynasties and others aren't. He would do a really good job because he's so thorough.
The Q/A at the end was a nice touch.
I'll just share some notes I jotted down:
People don't have the Great life because it's so easy to settle down with the Good life.
You don't need an outside leader to go from Good to Great. In fact, there is a negative correlation with a sustained transformation with outside leaders.
A level 5 leader is one who's first and foremost ambition for the cause, the company, the work. They have professional will and personal hurry.
The best people don't need to be managed.
Greatness is a function of conscious choices and discipline, not circumstances.
The great manage the systems, not the people.
"stop doing lists" and more important than "to do lists." I ought to try that one out. There's a whole of things I need to stop. But then it might become a paradox with the whole positive mindset and using the "stop" phrase.
I didn't quite get the hedgehog concept he talked a lot about.
Bad BHAGS are set with bravado. Good BHAGs are set with understanding.
It is much easier to become Great than remain Great. Greatness doesn't depend on size. It is no harder to build something Great than to build something Good. In fact it could be easier to build something Great. Resiliency is the signature of Greatness.
Teams should have their themes be "we run best at the end."
"The ultimate success in life is that your wife likes and respects you evermore as the years go by." Very true.