Good to Great Book Report

GOOD TO GREAT BOOK REPORT

Good to great is one of the best reads I have had. From this book, I have learnt valuable lessons relating to me as an individual with regards to how I can improve myself from being good to becoming great. The author Jim Collins teaches valuable principles by using real world examples of companies he has studied and sharing how such went from being good to great. Collins opens his writing with the phrase "Good is the enemy of great." He establishes a true fact that the world today has few great people or companies because it see's it easy to attain the status of 'good' which requires a lesser effort as compared to being 'great', a status that requires much more effort (doing something different to distinguish one from all others) and commitment. In his quest to find companies that have the good to great pattern, Collins and his team studied a number of companies and found what such companies shared in common that distinguished them from each other. From the opening paragraphs of his book, I learned and set a goal to never settle for good alone. I made a goal as I read the book, to conduct a research into my own life and to see what I can do differently to make me better than i currently am.

Collins taught the principle of moving from being good to great with eight concepts namely; level 5 leadership, first who...then what, confront the brutal facts, the hedgehog concept, a culture of discipline, technology accelerators, the flywheel and the doom loop and concluded with 'from good to great to build to last.' Each of the above came with a learning experience for me as an individual as it opened my eyes to various things I could do to make myself better or great according to Collins.

Level 5 Leadership:

Collins described level 5 leaders to be an individuals who are very humble on a personal level, but possesses a great deal of drive and desire to succeed, where “success” is not personal, but defined by creating something great that will outlast their time of leadership or control. Collins nominated Darwin Smith (A once CEO of Kimberly-Clark) as an example of a level 5 leader.

Doubts surrounded the company's environment when Smith was nominated to be CEO of the company at a time the company struggled the most. He was reminded by the company's director of his lack of qualification for the position. However the company saw its greatest success and transformation during Smith's twenty years tenure than it had ever witnessed. In referring to his exceptional performance after retirement, Smith stated "I never stopped trying to become qualified for the job."

I learnt that key attributes possessed by level 5 leaders were humility and will. These leaders were humble but fearless in. Thus such leaders did not only show humility but were