At Aegis Capital Corp., we believe that learning from the experience of others is important. Here, Robert Eide shares his thoughts on a business book that anyone could benefit from reading.
‘Good to Great’ is a classic business book by Jim Collins that talks about companies that were “good” for a long time and then became “great”. The book makes an attempt to find an answer to see how the companies became great.
The one word that describes this book is ‘Discipline’. A company that becomes great from good needs disciplined action, disciplined thought and disciplined people.
Disciplined People –It implies having proper business executives and keeping their focus on excellence.
Disciplined Thought – It means business should be honest about facts and avoid being sidetracked.
Disciplined Action – It indicates the right action that understands what should be achieved and what should not.
Diagrammatic Representation of Good to Great concept is right here:
- LEVEL 5 LEADERSHIP
Jim Collins has seen that all great companies have Level 5 Leaders. These are great leaders who have knowledge, good working habits, managerial qualities and effective leadership together with humility and will. This combination makes these business professionals great.
- FIRST WHO, THEN WHAT
It is the second concept under disciplined people. Quality of a leader together with other quality members in a team is important for a company to become great. Now, what is the meaning of “first who, then what”? It implies that a business should not first decide its goal and then hire professionals for doing it rather it should first have correct people in his organization. Then motivate those right people to work for what a business is aspiring to do.
- FACE BRUTAL FACTS
When a company has Level 5 Leadership and the right people, it is capable of excelling in its performance. This will help the organization to confront brutal facts without any loss of hope. An organization can achieve great results when it makes good decisions and executes them well. Again, for making good decisions a business has to confront facts no matter how uncomfortable or brutal they are.
- HEDGEHOG CONCEPT
A good company to become great should behave like a hedgehog. They should focus on doing what they are best at and should not get distracted. Getting distracted is very easy and even great companies have to strive to avoid distractions. Thus, a company should do what it is best at, passionate about and what its economy supports.
- CULTURE OF DISCIPLINE
Having discipline of action avoids bureaucracy meaning that there is no need to control the actions of people. Most companies cannot succeed not because there is lack of opportunity but because they are thinly spread and cannot use the opportunity. Culture of discipline implies that a company will have plenty of people capable of taking consistent actions together with the hedgehog principle.
- TECHNOLOGY ACCELERATOR
Companies that strive to become great from good think of technology but from a different view. They invest in new and advanced technology only if it is compatible with Hedgehog Concept. They ensure that the technology speeds up the momentum they have already. This is a disciplined approach to excel in their Hedgehog Concept. These companies focus on how the technology is being used instead of adopting them blindly.
‘Good to Great’ is absolutely a classic book and every business organization should read it. There are a number of examples in the book that will throw more light on the concepts discussed here and will invigorate them further.
