Key Takeaways from Good To Great: Under 2 minutes

A fox, with all its cunning and strategies, tries to catch the hedgehog. Yet it always fails. Why?? Because the hedgehog does one thing brilliantly – it rolls into a spiky ball, thwarting the fox's every attempt. The fox knows many things, but the hedgehog, whose sole mantra is to survive, knows one BIG thing.?

This clever metaphor from ‘Good to Great’ aptly says that companies that went from Good to Great imbibed the ‘Hedgehog Approach’. They weren't trying to catch every ball thrown their way. Instead, they zeroed in on that one monumental goal and mastered it to perfection.?

The Hedgehog Approach boils down to this simple yet powerful framework:?

1. Focusing on doing one big thing well

2. Finding a way to optimise profits?

3. Doing what they genuinely love

These Great companies are steered by Level 5 leaders, as Jim Collins depicts in the diagram below:?

Source: https://hbr.org/2001/01/level-5-leadership-the-triumph-of-humility-and-fierce-resolve-2

Moving on, Jim Collins gives us the Bus metaphor where he says, “You are a bus driver and the bus is your company. Keeping it rolling is your main gig.” In fact, he is so invested in this idea that he asserts that a bus filled with the right people will naturally find its direction, even if the road ahead is a bit foggy. On the flip side, a bus loaded with the wrong crowd, even with the clearest of maps, is bound to get lost.

Here’s how Collins breaks down the route to greatness:

A. Get the right people on the bus

B. Get the right people in the right seats

C. Get the wrong people off the bus

He drives the point home with a critical piece of advice:?

"Put your best people on your biggest opportunities, not your biggest problems."

This is an extreme take but one many entrepreneurs will agree to,? recognizing that the initial step — and one to be continually revisited — is making sure the right mix of people are on board. Or to put it succinctly? — “First Who, then What”

Jim Collins further points out that companies making the leap from Good To Great had the leanest teams, fattest profits and continuous growth in the public market.?

This is a just a quick glimpse into the book’s rich insights. For a deeper dive, do read this leadership magnum opus.