Book Talk

GOOD TO GREAT
JIM COLLINS
Jim Collins, the Author
• He is an American Business consultant, author and
lecturer on the subject of company sustainability and
growth
• Jim Collins frequently contributes to Harvard business
Review, Business week, fortune and other magazines,
journals, etc
• His other books are: How the Mighty Fall: And Why
Some Companies Never Give In, Built to Last:
Successful Habits of Visionary Companies, and Good
to Great.
 Good is the enemy of Great

• The author sets off a exciting journey explaining the findings

from his and his team’s half a decade of research in the conquest
of how to make good companies great.
• ‘Good to Great’ happens very rarely as it is damn difficult.
• The purpose of this book is to identify and elaborate on each
element that has made good companies great.
The Framework
 The framework has got three main
1. components
Process

2. Phases

1. Disciplined People

2. Disciplined Thought

3. Disciplined Action

3. Flywheel: A quiet and deliberate process of figuring out what needs to be done for
best future results and taking those step one by one, pushing the flywheel in a
consistent direction until it achieves a breakthrough point.
1. Level 5 Leadership
 Traits of a level 5 leader
• They first and foremost think about the success of their organisation and then
personal riches
• These are the leaders who are shy but show extreme fierceness in getting the job done
• These people think about the future of their companies without them and plan about
their succession
• They are modest and rarely like to talk about themselves or their achievements. They
prefer to share the credit with others as opposed to other “good” company leaders
who are self-obsessed and egalitarians
• Level 5 leaders always apportioned the credit of success to others and if there were no
one to credit they credited towards ‘Luck’
• In times of failures they took the responsibility. This was exactly the opposite in case
of leaders of ‘good’ or failed organisations
2. First who ..then what
 3. Confront the brutal facts
• Lead with questions, not answers. Constantly probe until you have a clear picture.
• Engage in dialog and debate, not coercion. It is important to get involved in intense discussions because they
have the capability to evolve into a successful conclusion rather than just being amicable to maintain
relationships
• Conduct autopsies, without blame. The climate of truth prospers when you analyse the debacles without
blaming anyone for it. Consider these debacles as learnings and move on to build robust systems to avoid
similar debacles in the future
 4. The Hedgehog Concept

What can you be the best in the

world at ?

What drives your economic

engine ?

What you are deeply passionate

about ?
 5. Culture of Discipline

• Build a culture around the idea of freedom and

responsibility, within a framework.
• Fill that culture with self-disciplined people who are willing
to go to the extrme lengths to fulfill their responsibilities.
• Don’t confuse a culture of discipline with tyrannical
disciplinarian. “They will rinse their cottage cheese”
• Adhere with great consistency to the Hedgehog Concept
 6. Technology Accelerators

1. The good to great companies used technology as an accelerator of

momentum, not a creator of it.
2. The question is, “Does the technology fit with Hedgehog Concept? If
no, don’t use it.”
3. Great companies respond with thoughtfulness and creativity, driven by
a compulsion to turn unrealized potential into results; mediocre
companies react and launch motivated by fear of being left behind
7. The Flywheel & the Doom Loop
Takeaways
 To be great is a matter of conscious choice. It demands discipline of thought and action

 Find your Hedgehog Concept

 Focus on “who” not “what”

 Consistency is one of the most important factor

 Preserving the core values throughout the life

Welcome to become Great

Wish you all the very best!

Thank you