Rating: 
Summary: Empirical Clarity
Review: Collins, in the tradition of the case study, names names and finds unique properties in the management of a number of Fortune 500 companies over a 30 year period. From a unique set of criteria he pursues, with no preconceived notions, what it takes to sustain profitability in a large public corporation which had previously been only mediocre. His findings are clear, well thought out and often surprising. In the realm of business books, this one is especially refreshing for a number of reasons. This is a hardheaded skeptic's book. What makes it so special is that it does not assign magic to anyone, neither to himself as a writer or to any of the officers interviewed. Collins exposes his own learning process and allows the reader to understand the nuance in the emphasis of each of his concepts as he spells out the skeptical questions that his research team posed and the deliberation they went through. Collins doesn't come off as a 'guru' who has found some magic that only he and a handful of CEOs can see so much as a disciplined and curious leader of a research team struggling with difficult questions. So not only do you understand what he means as he moves from 'chaos to concept', you also see arguments against his initial reasoning. And since he is dedicated only those conclusions supported by facts rather than fitting random companies into some grand theory we see exactly what he sees and why. There is none of breathless exuberance that characterizes so much of business writing. What is most refreshing and reassuring about this book's studies is that it puts us back in a sensible framework for understanding long term success without making a fetish of 'leadership' or 'innovation' or 'excellence' or other buzzwords. This is the kind of book that demonstrates the sort of objectivity possible in business - it doesn't obfuscate or take the position that there is something mysterious out there. Rather he makes the complex comprehensible and when the answers are simple, they are presented simply. He constantly checks and compares the difference between unsustainable and sustainable profitability. All of Collins' concepts lend themselves to the sorts of metrics upon which rugged methodologies can be built. This is more than a book of management theory; it is a learning tool, which explains itself. I cannot remember the last book where the appendices were as interesting (and sometimes more interesting) than the main text. It might be corny to say so, but I think his findings are self-rewarding. Working from the premises put forth, it makes sense for smaller companies and organizations some of which might not even be businesses at all. 'Good to Great' offers solid lessons among which are that it doesn't take more energy to behave smartly but it does take nerve. Collins dared to work smartly and has created a great book.
Rating:
Summary: Worked For Me
Review: I took the recommendation of a previous reader/reviewer and first read "Good To Great" by Collins for the "do it now" aspects of leadership and then read "West Point.." by Remick for the "understanding why" aspects of it and, maybe it's not for everyone, but, it worked for me. The Collins book tells you how to go from good to great, the Remick book tells you how to stay great by being "Good" ---- a different kind of "Good".
Rating: 
Summary: The 10,000th management guru ?
Review: This is another in a long line of overly simplistic books which purport to identify what all management books purport to identify, namely, what is great management? The conceptual errors here legion:
Firstly, if such a thing could be put in a little book all companies would be great.
Secondly, the author starts by singling out and dealing only with the magic 11 fortune 500 companies his huge staff could identify based on earnings growth over the last 15 years, but "best" really has no meaning in this context. For example, he starts with fortune 500 companies which automatically means they are all the best to begin with given they are the largest companies to have survived among the millions that come and go each year. Don't all fortune 500 companies have tremendous growth of some kind oven some 15 year period in their history?
Who can say that the magic 11 have great management and GM does not even though GM is huge compared to any of the magic 11? Did Mr. Collins do an experiment to prove his thesis? Without access to the earning numbers can he identify a great company from the million of choices? This guy should be making his money in the stock market rather than by selling books.
GM is a mature company in a mature market with moddest earning growth, but are they better or worse managers than Microsoft which has enjoyed tremendous earning growth largely because they got into a business they didn't even want (operating systems) that fortunately provided a base on which huge earnings grew. In fact it is a business school axiom that the companies who are the most successful lose to their own arrogance in the end. This is how IBM missed small computers and how GE & RCA missed big computers.
The team's findings about the importance of good leadership, of choosing the right people, of staying focused on a simple message seems laughable. Had the previous wisdom been that bad leadership was the path the higher earnings? The author talks about making a commitment, and having passion toward what you are doing in the context of describing how Kimberly Clark turned heroically away from some of its businesses toward what they were passionate about: Kleenex. It clearly seemed that the author could not understand that real passion does not exist toward Kleenex or that you could not attract and motivate talent if you required a passion for Kleenex. Money, prestige, and competence are more likely to motivate managers.
The research team's findings about the importance of good leadership, of choosing the right people, of staying focused on a simple message seem even worse as the author feebly tries to explain Walgreen's success versus Eckerts, CVS Rite Aid, and the 100s of others that have tried to put simple cookie cutter drug stores on every corner. Didn't the also-rans see what Walgreen was doing? Didn't they hire Walgreen Management, didn't they copy them, and try harder and harder as they desperately sank to 2nd and 3rd and then into bankruptcy? Figuring out why Walgreen won may be a little like figuring why the Beatles won? Perhaps because Paul was so cute, and Walgreens name, logo, colors, and ads were just a tiny bit cuter than the competition. We don't know and never will.
Circuit City is one of the Magic 11. But, its stock is off 66% so far this year. Who wants to bet it will be included in the next management guru book? IBM, Xerox, and Polaroid were all hailed has having great long term management but they all died (well, almost) because they happened on great products, not great managements. While their products were great, book entrepreneurs made a fortune talking about their managements.
Rating:
Summary: Nonlinear strategy beyond positive thinking
Review: Especially looking ahead into 2003, many of us are wondering: "Is it possible for a good, mediocre or even terrible organization to become great?" Apparently 'YES' -- as argued in Good to Great, a worthy contribution to our concerns. Two notable strengths are 1) stressing real commitment to stated values; and 2) moving beyond simplistic organizational psychology toward real psychology. In psychology, the newest realization not only includes accepting the reality of individual differences and team building, but also understands what is called "constructive pessimism" (as in Ed Chang's edited books on optimism-pessimism) -- Optimal management intelligence can see nonlinear pathways and operates beyond the old positive--negative polarity in a new zone of thinking that is both realistic and creative. Meanwhile, simplistic 'positive thinking' is now seen as unrealistic optimism that is dangerous to the US economy.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Book...Insightful and Thought Provoking
Review: When it comes to business books written about research work, I have tended to place them at the lower end of my reading stack. However, once I picked up this book, I could not put it down. The author even admits that the results were surprising, that many of the traits of the leaders, culture and style of the "great" businesses did not fit the mold of what we would normally expect. How timely to read about great companies when so many companies are being destroyed by their leadership. The findings were surprising to me also...but supported what I believe is the key problem with today's CEO's...short term focus to satisfy Wall Street. "Good to Great" confirms that these companies and their leaders are building businesses...not for this quarter's results, but for the long run. You will discover the findings of "Level 5 Leadership" to be eye-opening and refreshing...but very contrary to the "star" CEO stereotype that the media honors. You will also get very good insight into "First Who, Then What". This will be a hard concept for many executives to really grasp and adapt to, as it has the nuance that really good employees can better define the direction than the leader....Mmmm. I personally also enjoyed the "Technology Accelerators" section from my first-hand experience in dealing with corporate innovation initiatives. The author's findings support that great companies "apply" today's technology...you don't have to invent the new technology. This is really a hard concept for corporate executives to understand. This is a keeper...I highly recommend this book. A must read for business leaders that really, I mean, really have a passion for "building" a business that will last. I don't think that there are too many executives out there that truly understand that anymore...these findings just have not been a part of executive scorecards for quite some time. It is time to learn from these findings and change our leadership ways.
Rating:
Summary: Great Stuff
Review: I really enjoyed this audio book. I could not stop listening to it. While it was focused on companies that were probably turnaround good company poised for greatness, the steps were an affirmation of what I am doing now and I found it very entertaining, comforting and well researched. I enjoyed it.
Rating:
Summary: One more person selling jargon ...
Review: rather then real insight and ideas.
WARNING: Those who gave this book more then 2 stars are the same same business people who made "Who Moved My Cheese" a best seller.
Rating:
Summary: Aim To Be Great, But Never Cease To Be Good
Review: I subscribe to what James Collins tells us in "Good To Great". All businesses in America should aim to be "great". This book lays out how some of the leading companies have achieved that status. But, they should never cease to be "Good", meaning honest and ethical. Because, like America itself and Americans themselves, if they cease to be "Good" they will cease to be great. We have been seeing that lately in corporate America, havn't we. After reading James Collins' "Good To Great", I suggest that anyone interested in the subject of morals, ethics, honesty, and character in America should read Norman Thomas Remick's book which sets out West Point as a metaphor for America titled, "West Point: Character Leadership Education, A Book Developed From The Readings And Writings Of Thomas Jefferson".
Rating:
Summary: Jim Collins: REQUIRED READING (See why.)
Review: With an overall keen focus on discipline and accountability, Jim Collins was assisted by a large team of gifted, discerning graduate students. Hence, "Good to Great" is a most welcome piece of major solid research in our current time when "business spin" has contributed to the failure of corporations, market values, employee careers, etc. Unfortunately, similar books over the past few decades have relied more on "impressionism" from the author(s), including the now famous "In Search of Excellence" which has since been exposed as not fully grounded in the true facts of the time. While Warren Buffet is not identified as a "Level 5" leader in "Good to Great," this is a volume which could surely bear the imprimatur from that "Sage of Omaha." This book could even assist GE's Jack Welch "grow" into a more effective individual. [Prepare yourself for a surprise-jolt: based on Jim Collins' penetrating analyses across 11 major organizations, Mr. Welch would probably be considered as a "Level 4" leader.] This book is of significant value to anyone wanting to move from "good to great" no matter if it is within a profit, not-for-profit, or even in a home-family setting. Great, easy reading and, most importantly, an excellent, life-long reference manual to help you remain "tuned-up." Notably, this book should be a required supplemental text for all general management courses (undergraduate or graduate).
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not Great
Review: The book is very well researched and reads very smoothly. The insights are good but not great - they are simply not new.
The road to greatness according to Jim Collins is:
1. Get the right people
2. Set the right goals
3. Execute relentlessly
Sort-a like the eat better and exercise more health books. Having read close to 100 of these "guru books" I find them
valuable mostly for their anecdotes and case studies. It is
very valuable to be presented with good success stories of
how some companies achieved greatness. I am, however,
skeptical of making sweeping conclusions however well
researched.
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