Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done - By Larry Bossidy, Ram Charan, Charles Burck (Hardcover, released 11 June, 2002)
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Manufacturer: Crown Business
ISBN: 0609610570
ASIN:
0609610570
SalesRank: 105
Execution is "the missing link between aspirations and results," and as such, making it happen is the business leader's most important job. While failure in today's business environment is often attributed to other causes, Bossidy and Charan argue that the biggest obstacle to success is the absence of execution. They point out that without execution, breakthrough thinking on managing change breaks down, and they emphasize the fact that execution is a discipline to learn, not merely the tactical side of business. Supporting this with stories of the "execution difference" being won (EDS) and lost (Xerox and Lucent), the authors describe the building blocks--leaders with the right behaviors, a culture that rewards execution, and a reliable system for having the right people in the right jobs--that need to be in place to manage the three core business processes of people, strategy, and operations. Both Bossidy, CEO of Honeywell International, Inc., and Charan, advisor to corporate executives and author of such books as What the CEO Wants You to Know and Boards That Work, present experience-tested insight into how the smooth linking of these three processes can differentiate one company from the rest. Developing the discipline of execution isn't made out to be simple, nor is this book a quick, easy read. Bossidy and Charan do, however, offer good advice on a neglected topic, making Execution a smart business leader's guide to enacting success rather than permitting demise. --S. Ketchum
REVIEWS:
- By Larry Bossidy, Ram Charan, Charles Burck
Rating: 5 This book describe a necessary leadership behavior in the Execution paradigm -- Insist on realism. As thinking is the basis of action, this concept requires more exploration and explanation. Prior to the introduction of Optimal Thinking into the corporate world, the pervasive motto was Think Positive. Optimism promotes persistence, but it is a poor strategy when the cost of failure or probability of failure are high. With the current integration of Optimal Thinking into leading corporations, the transformation from AnyCorp (consisting of any thinkers) to Opticorp (consisting of Optimal Thinkers) empowers the corporate culture to practice optimal realism. Optimal Thinkers accept what is out of their control, and optimize what is within their control. Using Optimal Thinking to ask questions like, What is within my/our control here? What are my/our options here? What is the worst event scenario? What is our optimal contingency plan? What is in our best interest? What is our highest priority? What are the best actions we can take to achieve it? What is the best thing you/we can do under the circumstances? empowers us to set clear priorities, and take the most constructive actions to follow through -- essential for optimal leadership and optimized execution. Execution-driven leaders who thrive on accountability and reward performance, must select the right people for the right jobs. This is achieved with Optimal Thinking. Read these two books, get your key people to read them too, and you will OPTIMIZE productivity. Rating: 5 This is perhaps one of the best business books I have ever read. Unlike many books which use extensive academia and complex formulas which rarely see the light of day or work well outside of a controlled environment, this book is simple. That said this simplicity can be a bit deceiving. When I worked for GE, as did Bossidy and Jack Welch, the concepts which turned that business into a global leader in industry were remarkably simple. It wasn't the simplicity of the ideas, but rather the ability to get a hundred thousand people executing flawlessly on them that makes the difference. In the book Bossidy describes how he personally would ensure execution occurs within his businesses. Start with the right people. Too many times we assume people are merely interchangeable cogs, but great business leaders who get results know differently. Chapter 5 discusses the responsibility and focus required to ensure the right people are in the right jobs. Even as a CEO he spent up to 40% of his time on developing and hiring the right people. Another interesting aspect is the ability to speak directly and level set expectations and have a firm grasp on reality, regardless of how painful that reality may be at the time. Throughout the book is example after example that illustrates the value of direct conversation and clear feedback and communication. As you read the book, look for not only the content of what is discussed, but how it is discussed. Nearly always the method is to truly listen and engage people in a dialog which will set expectations, and ensure misunderstandings or mixed messages are limited. This allows people to focus on what needs to be done instead of being distracted with politics and other non value added issues. While some may see the content as too simplistic, those same people are usually unable to deliver results in the same manner as Bossidy did at GE, or Honeywell. The value of this book is both in content and style. The book itself is never dry, is easy to read, flows smoothly in conversational format, and is highly engaging. Highly recommended to anyone in a business situation who wants to improve execution and results. Rating: 3 In the "Introduction" and the first chapter "The Gap Nobody Knows", the authors did promise their book to be superior to most of the common "leadership", "strategy", "corporate culture" management books with its ability to explain and solve the universal problem of why business outcomes almost always fall short of those predicted under the grand strategic plans laid down by golden parachute protected American top corp CEOs. Though it is fluently written, it just resembles most of its competitors in any book store, except by an author coming from a big enterprise called "Honeywell" carrying an eye catching rare term named "Execution". Before I conclude my review, I would like to give you a brief summary of what this book is about. To understand execution, readers have to keep three key points in their mind: 1) Execution is a discipline, and integral to strategy 2) Execution is the major job of the business leader 3)Execution must be a core element of an organisation's culture. The discipline of execution is based on a set of three building blocks that every leader must use to design, install and operate effectively the three core processes rigorously and consistently. The seven essential behavour of Building block I are: know your people and your business, insist on realism, set clear goals and priorities, follow through, reward the doers, expand people's capabilities and know yourself. Building block II is about creating the framework for cultural change whereas building block III is about having the right people in the right place. Meanwhile, the three core processes are those of making links between people, strategy and operations. Without prejudice, the above ideas are quite fundamental. However, I am not saying that this is a bad management book. After reading tens, if not over a hundred books of the same kind, I really cant agree that this book is exceptionally outstanding. Can be a leisure reading, but definitely not on the priority list.
Execute optimally!
The book that Jack should have written.
And the gap still exists