Good to Great CD: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't | 
 enlarge | Creator: Jim Collins
Publisher: HarperAudio
Category: Book
List Price: $39.95
Buy New: $18.74
You Save: $21.21 (53%)
New (32) Used (15) from $18.50
Rating:  697 reviews
Sales Rank: 9733
Format: Unabridged
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Unabridged
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 5.5 x 5.1 x 1
ISBN: 0060794410
Dewey Decimal Number: 658
EAN: 9780060794415
ASIN: 0060794410
Publication Date: June 1, 2005
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
| |
| Also Available In:
|
| Similar Items:
|
| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com's Best of 2001
Five years ago, Jim Collins asked the question, "Can a good company become a great company and if so, how?" In Good to Great Collins, the author of Built to Last, concludes that it is possible, but finds there are no silver bullets. Collins and his team of researchers began their quest by sorting through a list of 1,435 companies, looking for those that made substantial improvements in their performance over time. They finally settled on 11--including Fannie Mae, Gillette, Walgreens, and Wells Fargo--and discovered common traits that challenged many of the conventional notions of corporate success. Making the transition from good to great doesn't require a high-profile CEO, the latest technology, innovative change management, or even a fine-tuned business strategy. At the heart of those rare and truly great companies was a corporate culture that rigorously found and promoted disciplined people to think and act in a disciplined manner. Peppered with dozens of stories and examples from the great and not so great, the book offers a well-reasoned road map to excellence that any organization would do well to consider. Like Built to Last, Good to Great is one of those books that managers and CEOs will be reading and rereading for years to come. --Harry C. Edwards
Product Description
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 companies that are not born with great DNA? How can good companies, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness? Are there those that convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? If so, what are the distinguishing characteristics that cause a company to go from good to great? Over five years, Jim Collins and his research team have analyzed the histories of 28 companies, discovering why some companies make the leap and others don't. The findings include: - Level 5 Leadership: A surprising style, required for greatness.
- The Hedgehog Concept: Finding your three circles, to transcend the curse of competence.
- A Culture of Discipline: The alchemy of great results.
- Technology Accelerators: How good-to-great companies think differently about technology.
- The Flywheel and the Doom Loop: Why those who do frequent restructuring fail to make the leap.
|
| Customer Reviews: Read 692 more reviews...
 Good to Great -- the "fluffless" road to greatness September 5, 2008
Iris Sasaki (Portland, OR USA)
The CFO of one of my client companies was discussing Good to Great and it caught my attention! He's a smart man with outstanding work ethics, so it would stand to reason he would find this book a winner.
After reading it, I am amazed that someone finally articulated what many of us had suspected -- it isn't about being good. It isn't about hiring a team to come in and identify our "goals and objectives". It is about something much more quiet, and so much stronger. It is getting the right people on the train...and the wrong ones off. It is about working for the organization, not self.
This book has many fascinating facts which, if you keep them in the lead of your thoughts, will help you go from good to great as well.
The road to greatness is not for faint of heart, the under-dedicated, or those who cannot channel their egos into their organizations to work for the common good. BUT, if you are strong, determined and dedicated to the prize, look out--it's going to happen for your organization!
Definitely, read this book, regardless of where you are in your life/business process.
www.iris-sasakiHR.com
 Successful Business Practices September 2, 2008
Ken Lizotte (www.thoughtleading.com)
This book has generated so many successful business practices among my client base that who can genuinely put it down? As a companion to my own book, "The Expert's Edge," it completes the picture for business success. Read it over and over and over!
GREAT together September 1, 2008
Bill Watson (Chicago, USA)
20 out of 21 found this review helpful
I ordered Good to Great along with Amazon's recommended pairing Squawk!: How to Stop Making Noise and Start Getting Results and they are a great match!
First, Good to Great provides a macro level view of what strategies various companies have employed over the last few decades and speculates a link between these strategies and the company's stock performance. As a leader, this book is helpful to consider your own strategies for your organization against some of the best companies in the world.
Squawk! is the perfect pairing for G2G because it covers the strategies an individual leader needs to employ to get commitment from his or her employees, top-notch teamwork and top performance. No leader can operate optimally without the skills to succeed on the one-on-one level, and this is what makes Squawk! such a great match!
My Personal Number 1 Management Book August 23, 2008
Michael Gooch (Texas, USA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
A few years ago, the company I was with purchased copies of Good to Great for managers. I was blown away by the information the book contained. The book went against my thinking at the time. In quick order, I changed my mind-set about several topics and found my `new ways' were more productive to my employer and my career.
Perplexed, I wondered why the executive management of the organization didn't practice the theories advanced in this book. They were after all, the ones that had purchased copies for their managers. Sad to say, the company began a downward spiral and several divisions were sold - myself included.
To my surprise, my new CEO was a huge fan of Good to Great and referred to it often. Outside of his office was a copy of the book permanently resting on a coffee table. In my good fortune, I learned that this CEO and the organization, took the lessons from Good to Great to heart. The company grew and my career grew.
I highly recommend this book to anyone in management. I have included it on my Amazon lists and my Amazon guides. I have stated this is, quite simply, the best book on management available. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR Author of Wingtips with Spurs
It was Great August 19, 2008
John F. Collins
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The book arrived much sooner than expected and in great shape. Very pleased with the service and product.
|
|
|
