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Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't (Good to Great, 1) Hardcover – October 16, 2001
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The Challenge:
Built to Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over time and how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the verybeginning.
But what about the company that is not born with great DNA? How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness?
The Study:
For years, this question preyed on the mind of Jim Collins. Are there companies that defy gravity and convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? And if so, what are the universal distinguishing characteristics that cause a company to go from good to great?
The Standards:
Using tough benchmarks, Collins and his research team identified a set of elite companies that made the leap to great results and sustained those results for at least fifteen years. How great? After the leap, the good-to-great companies generated cumulative stock returns that beat the general stock market by an average of seven times in fifteen years, better than twice the results delivered by a composite index of the world's greatest companies, including Coca-Cola, Intel, General Electric, and Merck.
The Comparisons:
The research team contrasted the good-to-great companies with a carefully selected set of comparison companies that failed to make the leap from good to great. What was different? Why did one set of companies become truly great performers while the other set remained only good?
Over five years, the team analyzed the histories of all twenty-eight companies in the study. After sifting through mountains of data and thousands of pages of interviews, Collins and his crew discovered the key determinants of greatness -- why some companies make the leap and others don't.
The Findings:
The findings of the Good to Great study will surprise many readers and shed light on virtually every area of management strategy and practice. The findings include:
- Level 5 Leaders: The research team was shocked to discover the type of leadership required to achieve greatness.
- The Hedgehog Concept: (Simplicity within the Three Circles): To go from good to great requires transcending the curse of competence.
- A Culture of Discipline: When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great results. Technology Accelerators: Good-to-great companies think differently about the role of technology.
- The Flywheel and the Doom Loop: Those who launch radical change programs and wrenching restructurings will almost certainly fail to make the leap.
“Some of the key concepts discerned in the study,” comments Jim Collins, "fly in the face of our modern business culture and will, quite frankly, upset some people.”
Perhaps, but who can afford to ignore these findings?
- Print length300 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherHarper Business
- Publication dateOctober 16, 2001
- Dimensions6.12 x 1.05 x 9.25 inches
- ISBN-109780066620992
- ISBN-13978-0066620992
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Get to know this book
What's it about?
A research study uncovering the key determinants that enable good companies to achieve enduring greatness.Popular highlight
Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice.14,840 Kindle readers highlighted thisPopular highlight
When you have disciplined people, you don’t need hierarchy. When you have disciplined thought, you don’t need bureaucracy. When you have disciplined action, you don’t need excessive controls. When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great performance.13,521 Kindle readers highlighted thisPopular highlight
The good-to-great companies did not focus principally on what to do to become great; they focused equally on what not to do and what to stop doing.12,888 Kindle readers highlighted thisPopular highlight
Practical Discipline #3: Put your best people on your biggest opportunities, not your biggest problems.11,043 Kindle readers highlighted thisPopular highlight
Practical Discipline #1: When in doubt, don’t hire—keep looking.10,341 Kindle readers highlighted this
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
One of the top ten business books of 2001 — Business Week
From the Back Cover
The Challenge
Built to Last, the defining management study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over time and how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the very beginning.
But what about the company that is not born with great DNA? How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness?
The Study
For years, this question preyed on the mind of Jim Collins. Are there companies that defy gravity and convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? And if so, what are the universal distinguishing characteristics that cause a company to go from good to great?
The Standards
Using tough benchmarks, Collins and his research team identified a set of elite companies that made the leap to great results and sustained those results for at least fifteen years. How great? After the leap, the good-to-great companies generated cumulative stock returns that beat the general stock market by an average of seven times in fifteen years, better than twice the results delivered by a composite index of the world's greatest companies, including Coca-Cola, Intel, General Electric, and Merck.
The Comparisons
The research team contrasted the good-to-great companies with a carefully selected set of comparison companies that failed to make the leap from good to great. What was different? Why did one set of companies become truly great performers while the other set remained only good?
Over five years, the team analyzed the histories of all twenty-eight companies in the study. After sifting through mountains of data and thousands of pages of interviews, Collins and his crew discovered the key determinants of greatness -- why some companies make the leap and others don't.
The Findings
The findings of the Good to Great study will surprise many readers and shed light on virtually every area of management strategy and practice. The findings include:
- Level 5 Leaders: The research team was shocked to discover the type of leadership required to achieve greatness.
- The Hedgehog Concept (Simplicity within the Three Circles): To go from good to great requires transcending the curse of competence.
- A Culture of Discipline: When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great results. Technology Accelerators: Good-to-great companies think differently about the role of technology.
- The Flywheel and the Doom Loop: Those who launch radical change programs and wrenching restructurings will almost certainly fail to make the leap.
“Some of the key concepts discerned in the study,” comments Jim Collins, "fly in the face of our modern business culture and will, quite frankly, upset some people.”
Perhaps, but who can afford to ignore these findings?
About the Author
Jim Collins is a student and teacher of what makes great companies tick, and a Socratic advisor to leaders in the business and social sectors. Having invested more than a quarter-century in rigorous research, he has authored or coauthored six books that have sold in total more than 10 million copies worldwide. They include Good to Great, Built to Last, How the Mighty Fall, and Great by Choice.
Driven by a relentless curiosity, Jim began his research and teaching career on the faculty at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he received the Distinguished Teaching Award in 1992. In 1995, he founded a management laboratory in Boulder, Colorado.
In addition to his work in the business sector, Jim has a passion for learning and teaching in the social sectors, including education, healthcare, government, faith-based organizations, social ventures, and cause-driven nonprofits.
In 2012 and 2013, he had the honor to serve a two-year appointment as the Class of 1951 Chair for the Study of Leadership at the United States Military Academy at West Point. In 2017, Forbes selected Jim as one of the 100 Greatest Living Business Minds.
Jim has been an avid rock climber for more than forty years and has completed single-day ascents of El Capitan and Half Dome in Yosemite Valley.
Learn more about Jim and his concepts at his website, where you’ll find articles, videos, and useful tools. jimcollins.com
Product details
- ASIN : 0066620996
- Publisher : Harper Business; First Edition (October 16, 2001)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 300 pages
- ISBN-10 : 9780066620992
- ISBN-13 : 978-0066620992
- Item Weight : 1.1 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.12 x 1.05 x 9.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #893 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1 in Company Business Profiles (Books)
- #2 in Systems & Planning
- #3 in Strategic Business Planning
- Customer Reviews:
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My Point of View on the Book: Good to Great
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About the author
Jim Collins is a student and teacher of what makes great companies tick, and a Socratic advisor to leaders in the business and social sectors. Having invested more than a quarter century in rigorous research, he has authored or coauthored a series of books that have sold in total more than 10 million copies worldwide. They include Good to Great, the #1 bestseller, which examines why some companies make the leap and others don’t; the enduring classic Built to Last, which discovers why some companies remain visionary for generations; How the Mighty Fall, which delves into how once-great companies can self-destruct; and Great by Choice, which uncovers the leadership behaviors for thriving in chaos and uncertainty. Jim has also published two monographs that extend the ideas in his primary books: Good to Great and the Social Sectors and Turning the Flywheel.
His most recent publication is BE 2.0 (Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0), an ambitious upgrade of his very first book; it returns Jim to his original focus on small, entrepreneurial companies and honors his coauthor and mentor Bill Lazier.
Driven by a relentless curiosity, Jim began his research and teaching career on the faculty at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he received the Distinguished Teaching Award in 1992. In 1995, he founded a management laboratory in Boulder, Colorado, where he conducts research and engages with CEOs and senior-leadership teams.
In addition to his work in the business sector, Jim has a passion for learning and teaching in the social sectors, including education, healthcare, government, faith-based organizations, social ventures, and cause-driven nonprofits. In 2012 and 2013, he had the honor to serve a two-year appointment as the Class of 1951 Chair for the Study of Leadership at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Jim holds a bachelor's degree in mathematical sciences and an MBA from Stanford University, and honorary doctoral degrees from the University of Colorado and the Peter F. Drucker Graduate School of Management at Claremont Graduate University. In 2017, Forbes selected Jim as one of the 100 Greatest Living Business Minds.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book provides useful insights and solid content that rings true. They also describe the book as concise yet thorough. Readers describe the content as interesting and excellent. Opinions are mixed on the listening experience, with some finding it great and others saying it's boring.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book interesting, containing great ideas, and an excellent work by Jim Collins. They also say it's one of the best primers for starting new businesses.
"...This book offers a lot of thought-provoking information. It is a widely-read book because of the methodology Collins used in his data collection...." Read more
"...to gain momentum. Throughout the book Collins gives great examples for each discipline and its component and how it either went from good to..." Read more
"...Collins artfully combines rigorous research with engaging storytelling, pulling out lessons that are both actionable and profound...." Read more
"Good to Great by Jim Collins is a compelling and informative book about how to be successful, and how to stay successful...." Read more
Customers find the book gives plenty of useful insights into ways in which successful companies operate. They appreciate that it's based on research and well structured. Readers also say it'll help them re-construct their leadership mentality and organization skill. They also say the book is intriguing, applicable, and practical.
"...This book offers a lot of thought-provoking information. It is a widely-read book because of the methodology Collins used in his data collection...." Read more
"...which becomes a great reference for the reader and creates a better understanding of what is needed to go from a good company to a great company...." Read more
"...Despite its publication over two decades ago, the principles it espouses remain relevant, making this book a worthwhile read for anyone interested..." Read more
"Good to Great by Jim Collins is a compelling and informative book about how to be successful, and how to stay successful...." Read more
Customers find the book concise yet thorough, well-written, and organized. They appreciate the graphs and diagrams that help them understand and visualize. Readers also mention that the book is presented in logical order, so they don't get lost.
"...It helps that this book is well-written and a quick read...." Read more
"...Highly recommended for its clear concepts and transformative insights. A solid 8/10." Read more
"...This book is very well laid out, divided into easy to follow chapters that flow one right into the other; I found myself reading over 20 pages at a..." Read more
"...while at the same time providing the reader with an easy to understand explanation of how others failed to make the giant leap...." Read more
Customers find the book humble, realistic, but demanding. They also say the best leaders are humble and selfless. Readers also mention the book is easy to read, not slogany or shallow, and simple to read. They say it has no dull academic language.
"...of sorts — someone who is basically modest, but willful and stubborn, almost introverted and shy, but simultaneously fearless..." Read more
"...Level 5 leaders are a study in duality: modest and willful, humble and fearless”- Jim Collins..." Read more
"...On the contrary, they were quiet, humble, and intensely driven...." Read more
"...leaders that display “a compelling modesty, are self-effacing, and understated...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the listening experience. Some find the book great, providing significant additional value to the listener. They say it serves many audiences well, resonates deeply, and is clear. However, others say it's boring, outdated, and not insightful.
"...provides significant additional value to the listener...." Read more
"...on factors of how a company can become good to great, his content was somewhat mediocre and dry in a simple show-and-tell format of investigative..." Read more
"...Jim Collins is extremely dynamic and easy to listen to. You will gain a great perspective of leadership after reading this book." Read more
"This book serves many audiences well...." Read more
Customers are mixed about the length. Some find the book easy to read, with not too much jargon. They also appreciate the simplicity of the concepts and the effectiveness of the book. However, some customers feel the book can get repetitive toward the end.
"...then it just kept repeating itself over and over. Boring read, but some good ideas." Read more
"...based on a long research period by Collins and his team yet it is not technical and rarely get statistical...." Read more
"...to stress that points he is trying to make, making his stories seem a bit redundant...." Read more
"...It's a very easy read and definitely not boring. Jim's website is a great second resource to the book: [...]...." Read more
Customers find the book dated and stale. They say the book is not new as stated and has aged poorly.
"...Partially, it has aged poorly — many of the companies selected have since had meltdowns of epic proportions (for example: Fannie Mae, Circuit City)..." Read more
"...with these companies after the publication of this book makes it feel a little stale...." Read more
"...unfair, however, to discredit the book due to the fact that the book is a little old...." Read more
"...However, the book suffers from its original publication date - which was well before the economic crisis that began in the late 2000's...." Read more
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Once these 11 companies were chosen along with comparison companies, Jim Collins and his research team looked for common characteristics between these companies. What they believe they found they defined as: having level 5 leadership; having the right people in the company; confronting the brutal facts of their situation; defining what a company is good at; discipline; and the flywheel effect. Collins also discusses the role of technology with an interesting conclusion. While you could likely have guessed some of what they found, Collin's assertion is that a company that has transitioned from good to great and sustained that performance would have each of these characteristics.
What makes this book a great read? The support Collins provides for his conclusions. Collins rigorously assembled facts and then attempted to infer the common factors between the selected companies. While you may argue whether the selected companies will be great in the future, or whether other great companies exist that also made a good to great transition, the fact remains that he and his team did not waver in their criteria and they were able to observe the common characteristics that are described in this book.
The greatest difficulty with the book is that it does not provide a roadmap for any particular company to make the transition. The reader is left to determine how his company might be able to achieve the characteristics of a good-to-great company, or perhaps, how to eliminate the characteristics of a company that would prevent the company from being great, or perhaps even good. One general point of agreement is that each of the defined characteristics is worthy of achieving.
There are a few weaknesses in book. One question that we asked (the leadership team of my company) was whether level 5 leadership could exist with second tier management and not with the top leader. Collins seemed to think that the top leader in the company needed to be a level 5 leader, but we thought that a level 4 leader with a strong level 5 leadership at the second tier could well accomplish the same goal. We also looked at the recent stock market performance of the 11 companies chosen and discovered that more recently some of these companies had performed very poorly. We believe that an effective follow up to this book would be an analysis of companies that went from good to great to good or less than good to see whether a failure in one of the identified factors was the cause of the drop.
This book offers a lot of thought-provoking information. It is a widely-read book because of the methodology Collins used in his data collection. It helps that this book is well-written and a quick read. Neither makes this book a perfect business book, but certainly the conclusions should make us all consider how we can make our companies better. An excellent companion book to "Built to Last."
I. Discipline People
a. Level 5 Leadership
b. First Who... Then What
II. Discipline Thought
a. Confront the Brutal facts
b. Hedgehog Concepts
III. Discipline Action
a. Culture of Discipline
b. Technology Accelerators
I believe by organizing the book in this matter enabled me to really understand the severity of the critical components and how their relationships if applied will in allow a good company to become a great company. Starting with Discipline People, Collins conducted and analyzed his research by introducing the types of leaders you would find in a great company versus those in a just a good company and the characteristics that these great leaders possessed, such as humility and will. They lead with the interest of the company and not for their own selfish reasoning. Next was the First Who ...Then what which discuss getting the right people on board and the wrong people out. Collins states, "People are not your most important assets. The right people are." Collins stresses the importance of first getting the right people in the right places in your company and weeding out the wrong and then figure out where your company wants to go.
Next is the Discipline Thought, within the subset of discipline thought a company must possess the ability to confront the brutal facts and not live in denial. Being able to do this will allow the company to stay updated and proactive when faced with making decisions. Collins presented a methodology for the companies to be able to face the truth. He says an organization must lead with questions not answers, engage in dialogue and debate, and use the "red flag mechanism" where anything that is red flagged is information that cannot be ignored and must be handled immediately. Collins also mentioned under the category of discipline thought is the Hedgehog Concept. The Hedgehog Concept is about a Fox and Hedgehog, where the Fox (good companies) knows a lot about variety of things whereas the Hedgehog (great companies) knew a lot about one thing. Being hedgehog is more beneficial for both the company and the individual because it the clarity drives focus and direction whereas the fox has neither one direction nor focus which can backfire later down the road.
Lastly, having discipline people with discipline thoughts will drive to discipline action which uses the culture of discipline and technology as another tool to help transform the company from good to great. Collins also refers to the Flywheel Concept. He says that a good to great company never happens all at once it take a lot of effort and time to get it going, like the flywheel. The flywheel requires a lot of pushing to get it to turn and after x amount of time it will begin to gain momentum.
Throughout the book Collins gives great examples for each discipline and its component and how it either went from good to great or continued to be good. Along with the examples Collins provides pleather of diagrams and charts in the appendix, which becomes a great reference for the reader and creates a better understanding of what is needed to go from a good company to a great company. Generally the book is a very easy read which makes it that much more interesting to want to apply to your company or even for yourself. It takes the feeling of the impossible away, like Collin stated, "We believe that almost any organization can substantially improve its stature and performance, perhaps even become great, if it conscientiously applies the frame work of ideas we've uncovered." Overall if you are looking to transform your company, Good to Great is a read that I highly recommend.
Collins artfully combines rigorous research with engaging storytelling, pulling out lessons that are both actionable and profound. Some of the most striking quotes from the book—such as "The good-to-great companies did not focus principally on what to do to become great; they focused equally on what not to do and what to stop doing" and "Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice"—underscore the book’s central message that great achievements stem from deliberate decisions and disciplined people.
While the book might feel a bit dated in some of its examples, the core ideas about disciplined people, thought, and action provide crucial guidance for anyone aiming to transform their organizational culture from good to great. Highly recommended for its clear concepts and transformative insights. A solid 8/10.
Top reviews from other countries
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't" is essential reading for anyone interested in the pursuit of excellence in business. With its rigorous research, compelling narrative, and practical wisdom, it offers a roadmap for achieving enduring success in an ever-changing world. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone seeking to unlock the secrets of business greatness
Reviewed in Canada on May 10, 2024
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't" is essential reading for anyone interested in the pursuit of excellence in business. With its rigorous research, compelling narrative, and practical wisdom, it offers a roadmap for achieving enduring success in an ever-changing world. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone seeking to unlock the secrets of business greatness
The most powerful key takeway for me is, when we align the right people, the right thinking, the right action course, over the long term, we're dramatically increasing the odds of success. No matter the industry, the geography, and the product we sell (whether bleeding edge tech or legacy consumer business)