Surviving Transformation: Lessons from GM's Surprising Turnaround

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Summary: Sound, Practical Advice for Business Managers
Review: As the founder and CEO of a successful market research-based consulting firm, I'm privy to the inner workings of a number of Fortune 500 companies. One of my perennial frustrations with books on business strategy is that the theories they present don't often correspond to the practical realities involved in running a large organization. The beauty of this book is that Vince Barabba's strategic guidance is informed by his first-hand experiences at General Motors. In drawing on his time at GM, Barabba makes compelling and insightful links between theory and practice.

As a business consultant, what I valued most was his 'systems thinking' approach to solving business problems--an approach that better ensures decision-makers identify and address core issues rather than merely tinker at the margins. This holistic approach to problem-solving goes beyond rote McKinsey-esque formulas and is what makes this book so broadly appealing. Using clear and forceful language (no annoying b-school patois here), Barabba gets right to the heart of things with a combination of robust theory and practical examples. Business decision-makers at every level would benefit from a close reading of this book.








Rating:
Summary: There's nothing more practical than a theory
Review: Every once in a while you read a book that's different in a way that makes you question all the other books. In other books, theories fit very nicely on top of pat little stories called cases. When you read them, you don't notice that there is a lot of experience (i.e., struggle and confusion) that is missing from the account. Barabba shows what it is really like to have and hold a theory and strategy, adapt and compromise as necessary, and live to see some effects after a lengthy evolution. Of course there are business histories or memoirs, but they are missing any clear account of the theory that was in play. The books is worth reading just because of its rare perspective -- that of a thinking man who also happens to be an executive. But the thoughts are good too. Plenty of useful stuff for people who worry about large institutions and their renewal.


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Summary: Great insights into buisness approach
Review: I was frustrated with the business book that claimed to have THE answer however as I read them they did not fit my circumstances - ever! Surviving Transformation is the first book that gave me a toolkit to understand and apply to many business challenges. The great insight provided by Mr. Barabba is that multiple business models not only can but most likely should exist within one company. Rather than presenting one answer for success in the future, I got an understanding of three types of businesses that must be mixed according to a market and company's characteristics. There are ample great examples to help you understand the drivers behind each model. I think it is also great that Mr. Barabba uses General Motors as his test bed. I always thought of GM as stodgy and lagging the "high tech" companies as far as business approaches. I now understand that GM's business approach is highly sophisticated and actually a better model for most companies facing increasing market challenges. Also, I really enjoyed the discussion on the "zone of discomfort" where a business must face the reality of being a leader in an underperforming or declining industry. I have been in many of those meetings and I now have some perspective on the solution. I would highly recommend Surviving Transformation to expand your awareness of the variables to consider when formulating your business strategy.

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Summary: Clear , Concise & Compelling
Review: I would like to begin by taking exception to the first line in forward by C.K. Prahalad..."The focus of this book is "how to think": not just to survive a large-scale transformation, but to start, sustain, and thrive in a world of continuous change." The exception I wish to take is that Vince Barabba has taken a large organizations problem and translated it in a way that all organizations (large or small) can benefit equally. Organizations are all about having the right strategy,dealing with complexity and risk, making the right decisions, and making the right decisions right.

Vince Barabba has written a book that will find an audience from the executive decision maker, decision support groups, portfolio managers and the myriad of projects that make the right decisions actionable.

Open your mind to new ways of thinking and then right size it to your own organization.

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Summary: Knowing we can create the future is key!
Review: If you only focus on just one thing from this book, you will get tremendous benefit. I am referring to coming to term with the core concept that the future is something your company can influence...can create for the benefit of both itself and its customers. Taken to it maximum opportunity-generating dimension, this philosophy can lead business leaders to what is, in my humble opinion, the future of business leadership...for corporate leaders to help redesign all of society so that it adapts - in a healthy and constructive way - to the global challenges all corporations face today.

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Summary: Practical insights into complex problems
Review: Most books that follow a specific case of corporate strategy tell a "just so" story where the true messiness of the decisions gets masked. I applaud Mr. Barabba for breaking that mold. He lets us see the context of uncertainty that surrounded decisions taken in GM's transformation. He gives us the added benefit of laying-out the theories behind the decision making approach. I found his concrete recommendations on dealing with organizational complexity and identifying key market development assumptions to be very useful. His discussion of deploying a "Sense & Respond" business model in spite of GM's financial stress gives great examples identifying the opportunity costs from alternative strategies. Lastly, his discussion of using the destination-focused, "Anticipate & Lead" business model is an eye-opener of everyone dealing with rapidly changing, turbulent markets. A great read.

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Summary: Combining Theory and Practice
Review: Most case studies on organization transformation simply tell what was planned and what happened, sprinkling in a little theory here and there, but generally as an afterthought. Vince Barabba's book on "Surviving Transformation" offers something different, a well-composed blend of theory and practice. The author enjoys two advantages. First, he was instrumental as a senior executive in designing and orchestrating the changes that occurred at GM. Second, he has a sound background in the "systems approach to change." Combining the two,the author has been able to offer the inside story of the redesign of one of the world's largest corporations while, at the same time, framing it in a conceptual context that helps us to understand exactly why it succeeded. Finally, Vince Barabba offers a model for change that is not unique to his company' situation, but can be used by a wide range of other organizations. I recommend the book highly to those who understand the need for on-going organization learning and adaptability.

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Summary: Relating the GM Experience to Government Transformation
Review: Mr. Barabba has managed to capture the essence of what it means to become an enterprise that can adapt to current conditions and environments in a way that is compelling and entertaining. The perspectives he offers on how to achieve this sort of agility are key lessons that every industry and Federal Government executive should spend some time learning. The simple fact that General Motors, once the poster child for big, entrenched industry, is now in the transportation services business vice just selling vehicles should be a powerful eye-opener! If GM can do this, so can our federal bureaucracies. The practitioners of government transformation and those businesses that sell to government can benefit greatly from understanding the business designs Mr. Barabba presents in this book.

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Summary: "Surviving 'Personal' Transformation"
Review: The strength of Vince Barabba's "Surviving Transformation" comes in how one personalizes transformations so that she or he not only survives the transformation, but develops into a learning and adapting individual striving to achieve the "Idealized Design." The stories Vince uses throughout the book help the reader to understand the principles and practices that worked and did not work throughout the GM transformation.

Do not be tempted to pass this thoroughly well written and engaging book just because it is about the automobile industry. Regardless of the industry or the bureaucracy you are in, this book will provide you with deep insights into undertaking a transformation journey and not only surviving, but thriving on the other side. Once the journey begins it never ends.

Rating:
Summary: Transformation
Review: Without much ado, I must say this is an excellent reading on transformation, particularly from systems thinking perspective, which is often missing in organizational transformational accounts (see paper Systems Thinking and Its Implications in Organizational Transformation by Pourdehnad and Bharathy).

Being part of the effort, Vince Barabba narrates with a number of annectdotes and information, which would be a valuable source for writing several business cases. I am sure, the book will spawn many case studies in the future.

It is also refreshing to see risk management treated well in a transformation book.

It is a must read for anybody interested in transformation and business models.