EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
Tom Peters/Excellence Overview/20June2006
Good Night and
Good Luck.
Chicagoland’s
Mystery
Disappearances …
THREE
BILLION NEW
CAPITALISTS
—Clyde Prestowitz
43,000
“Deutsche Bank Moves Half of Its
Back-office Jobs to India”/
headline/FT/0327; 500
of
900 Research;
JPMorgan Chase—30% backoffice by 12.31.07
Wal*Mart + Home
Depot + Walt Disney +
Intel + Microsoft +
Pfizer = Flat
Source: “Blue Chip Blues”, Cover, BW, 0417.06
New Economy?!
Genentech09,
Amgen09
> Merck09
(70K-3/394B-5)
Good Morning
and Good News.
New Economy?!
Sergey +
Larry >
Harvard/370
“Forget China,
India and the
Internet: Economic
Growth Is Driven
by Women.”
—Headline, Economist,
April 15, 2006, Leader, page 14
EXCELLENCE.
THE MANDATE.
“If you don’t like
change, you’re
going to like
irrelevance even
less.”
—General Eric Shinseki, Chief of Staff. U. S. Army
“It is not the strongest
of the species that
survives, nor the most
intelligent, but the one
most responsive
to change.” —Charles Darwin
“We are in a
brawl with no
rules.”
—Paul Allaire
Sam’s
Secret
#1!
“We made mistakes, of course. Most of them
were omissions we didn’t think of when we
initially wrote the software. We fixed them by
doing it over and over, again and again. We do
the same today. While our competitors are still
sucking their thumbs trying to make the
design perfect, we’re already on prototype
version No. 5. By the time our rivals are ready
with wires and screws, we are on version
It gets back to planning
versus acting: We act from day
one; others plan how to plan—
for months.” —Bloomberg by Bloomberg
No. 10.
"I think it is very important
for you to do two things:
act on your temporary
conviction as if it was a
real conviction; and when
you realize that you are
wrong, correct course very
quickly.” —Andy Grove
“This is so simple it sounds stupid, but it is amazing
you
only find oil if you
drill wells.
how few oil people really understand that
You may think you’re
finding it when you’re drawing maps and
studying logs, but you have to drill.”
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
“Reward excellent
failures. Punish
mediocre
successes.”
Phil Daniels, Sydney exec
“[Other]
admirals more
frightened of
losing than anxious
to win”
Nelson’s secret:
EXCELLENCE.
STARTERS.
Radio City Music Hall
September 2005
Franchise Lost!
TP:
“How many of you
[600]
crave
really
a new Chevy?”
NYC/IIR/061205
P.P.E.E.R.R.E.
People.
Product.
Execution.
Enthusiasm.
Relentless.
Re-invent.
Excellence.
Franchise Lost!
TP:
“How many of you
[600]
crave
really
a new Chevy?”
NYC/IIR/061205
My (Les’s) Dinner with Henri
JUSTWHATIZZITUMAKE?
My (Les’s) Dinner with Henri
JUST WHAT IS IT
YOU MAKE?
Did one of ’em ever turn to
the other and say: “Wow, I
wonder what unimaginable
new tools, otherwise not
possible, will be brought
forth for my daughter
Alice, age 17, because
of this deal?”
EXCELLENCE.
THE WORD.
Synonyms
Purity
Transcendence
Virtue
Elegance
Majesty
Antonyms
Mediocrity
EXCELLENCE.
GAMECHANGER1982.
Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
A Bias for Action
Close to the Customer
Autonomy and Entrepreneurship
Productivity Through People
Hands On, Value-Driven
Stick to the Knitting
Simple Form, Lean Staff
Simultaneous Loose-Tight
Properties”
What is In Search of Excellence all about:
People. Emotion. Engagement.
Exuberance. Action-Execution.
Empowerment. Independence. Initiative.
Imagination. Great Stories. Incredible
Adventures. Trust. Caring. Fun. Joy.
Customer-centrism. Profit. Growth.
“Brand You.” “Dramatic Differences.”
Experiences that Make You “Gasp.”
Excellence. Always.
ExIn*: 1982-2002/Forbes.com
DJIA: $10,000 yields $85,000
EI: $10,000 yields $140,050
*Forbes/Excellence Index /Basket of 32 publicly traded stocks
A Comment on Tom Peters in the
Context of the Reagan Revolution …
“Tom Peters and Steve
Jobs did more to make
business cool ‘for the
rest of us’ than any
others.” —Rich Karlgaard, publisher, Forbes
EXCELLENCE.
CAUSES.
ADVERSARIES.
Hardball: Are You Playing to Play or Playing to Win? by
George Stalk & Rob Lachenauer/HBS Press
“The winners in business have always played hardball.”
“Unleash massive and overwhelming force.” “Exploit
anomalies.” “Threaten your competitor’s profit
sanctuaries.” “Entice your competitor into retreat.”
Approximately 640 Index entries: Customer/s
(service, retention, loyalty),
worker/s),
0.
4.
People (employees, motivation, morale,
Innovation (product development, research &
development, new products),
0.
M.I.A.*: Talk. (Present.) Listen. (Interview.)
Sell. (Life = Sales.) Do. (Execution-Implementation.)
Talent. (Recruit-Develop-Retain.) Project
Management. (Create. Solicit support.
Execution. Adoption-Client “Culture Change.”)
Product. (“It.”) Innovation. (Design.
Creativity. “Buzz-building.” Politics.) Leadership.
(USMA, etc.) E.Q. (Connect.) “Culture”
Change. (Lasting impact.) Diversity. (Crosscultural Effectiveness.) Career Creation.
(Brand You life-lifestyle.) Wellness. (Life.)
*B.Schools (“M.I.A.” or at most “B.I.A.”—barely in action)
Causes/1966-2006
Implementation/Small Wins
(Stanford GSB/PhD thesis;
1st on implementation per se)
EXCELLENCE (as a worthy business pursuit)
Management Style/Corporate Culture
Soft “Ss”/7-S (Waterman-Peters complete “business model”;
waaaaay beyond Strategy & Structure)
Structure > Strategy (“We shape our structures, then they shape
us …”—Churchillian paraphrase)
Soft Change Levers (> structure; symbols, patterns & settings)
Close to the Customer (novel idea, circa 1982)
MBWA (Managing By Wandering Around—courtesy a much
more intimate than today HP)
Productivity through People (novel idea, circa 1982)
Chaos/Crazy Times Call for Crazy Organizations
Middle-sized companies are cool
Re-imagine!/Innovate or Die!
Small-ish/Scale & Synergy limits-delusions/anti-Big
Mergers
Causes/1966-2006
Women/Market opportunity
Women/Leaders (right for the times)
Design/Design-as-soul
Wow! (Hot language)
Weird!
Passion!/Enthusiasm!/Exuberance! (as Leader Lever #1)
Brand You (or else)
PSF = Bedrock (add value or bust—every group must
demonstrate economic viability)
PSF + Brand You + WOW Projects = New Biz Logic
Sales/+R > -C (increasing revenue more important than cutting cost)
HealthCare/Wellness-Safety-H5N1
Brand = Talent (best roster wins)
New VA Ladder/Products-Services-SOLUTIONSEXPERIENCES-DREAMKETING (Dream Marketing)-LOVEMARK
Different > > Better
Boomers & Geezers/marketing to new “mega-segment”
Adversaries
B-schools (crappy at soft skills, implementation, leadership)
Strategy-is-all
By-the-numbers management
Dis-passionate management
Focus groups
Intuition discounted
Leading as an intellectual task
Leading without passion
Cool language in Hot times
Dilbert (accepting cubicle slavery)
Bigness per se (severe scale limitations—even at Microsoft)
White guys! (not really, but enough already)
18-44 emphasis in marketing (geezers > youth for foreseeable future)
-Cost > +Revenue (cost cutting more important than organic revenue
growth)
CI (continuous improvement in an age of discontinuous world)
LESS THAN THE NO-HOLDS-BARRED PURSUIT OF
EXCELLENCE
EXCELLENCE.
RE-DEFINED.
“It is not the strongest
of the species that
survives, nor the most
intelligent, but the one
most responsive
to change.” —Charles Darwin
SET
THE
AGENDA.* (Period.)
Great Companies …
* “disturb the sleep of …
AGENDA SETTERS: “Set the Table”/
Pioneers/ Questors/ Adventurers
US Steel … Ford … Toyota … Sears …
GM … ITT … The Gap … Limited …
Wal*Mart … Tesco … P&G … 3M …
Intel … IBM … Apple … Nokia …
Cisco … Dell … MCI … Sun …
Microsoft … Google … Enron …
Schwab … GE … Laker … Southwest
… People Express … Ogilvy … Virgin
… eBay … Amazon … Sony …
Amgen … BMW … CNN … Nike
Built to Last vs Built for Impact
“But what if [former head of strategic planning at Royal
Dutch Shell] Arie De Geus is wrong in suggesting, in The
Living Company, that firms should aspire to live
forever? Greatness is fleeting and, for corporations, it
The ultimate
aim of a business organization, an
artist, an athlete or a stockbroker
may be to explode in a dramatic
frenzy of value creation during a
short space of time, rather than to
live forever.”
will become ever more fleeting.
—Kjell Nordström and Jonas Ridderstråle, Funky Business
EXCELLENCE.
RENOVATION2006.
X06/Excellence2006: The Bedrock Baker’s Dozen
1. A Bias For Action/Culture of Execution = Job One!
2. DECENTRALIZATION! ACCOUNTABILITY!
3. Fail. Forward. Fast.
4. Velocity! Tempo! “Metabolic Management” Matters!
5. INNOVATE … or Die.
6. A Damn Good Product. A Damn Cool Product.
7. Ride the Value Added Curve to the Sky: Insure
“Gamechanging Solutions”; Provide “Spellbinding
Experiences”; Become a “Dream Merchant”; Strive to Be
a “Lovemark;” Seek “Tattoo Brand” status.
8. Relentlessly Pursue the “Big Two” Markets: Women,
Boomers & Geezers.
9. Best Talent Wins! Women Rule! HR at the Head Table!
10. Educate for Creativity, Entrepreneurship & “Brand You”
Independence.
11. Demanded: Radical Technology Strategies!
12. Passion! Enthusiasm! Energy! Excitement! Relentlessness!
13. No Less Than EXCELLENCE. Ever.
X06/Excellence2006: The Bedrock Baker’s Dozen
1. A Bias For Action/A “Culture of Execution” = Job One!
(Must be a Systematic Discipline.)
2. DECENTRALIZATION! ACCOUNTABILITY! (Tom’s “Top Two,” 1965-2005.)
3. Fail. Forward. Fast. (“Reward Excellent Failures, Punish Mediocre Successes.” “Most tries wins.”)
4. Velocity! Tempo! “Metabolic Management” Matters! (Hustle! Adapt!
Win the “O.O.D.A. Loop” War—Confuse Your Competitors!)
5. INNOVATE … or Die.
(“Game-changers” or Bust! Lead the Customer! Shout “NO” to Imitation!)
6. A Damn Good Product. A Damn Cool Product.
(Pursue “Dramatic Difference.”
Design Rules!)
7. Ride the Value Added Curve to the Sky: Insure
“Gamechanging Solutions”; Provide “Spellbinding
Experiences”; Become a “Dream Merchant”; Strive to Be
a “Lovemark;” Seek “Tattoo Brand” status.
8. Relentlessly Pursue the “Big Two” Markets: Women,
Boomers & Geezers. (WOMEN Buy Everything. BOOMERS & GEEZERS Have All the Money!)
9. Best Talent Wins! Women Rule! HR at the Head Table!
(“Weird” Matters Most! A Workplace to Brag About! Educate for Creativity!)
10. Educate for Creativity, Entrepreneurship & “Brand You”
Independence. (The schools have it all wrong!)
11. Demanded: Radical Technology Strategies! (“Incrementalism” Is for Wimps!)
12. Passion! Enthusiasm! Energy! Relentlessness! (Hard Is Soft! Soft Is Hard!)
13. No Less Than EXCELLENCE. Ever. (Excellence … the #1 Thing
That Vaults Us Out of Bed in the Morning, and Matters in the Long run.)
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
“Why in the
world did
you go to
Siberia?”
The Peters
Principles: Enthusiasm.
Emotion. Excellence. Energy.
Excitement. Service. Growth.
Creativity. Imagination. Vitality.
Joy. Surprise. Independence.
Spirit. Community. Limitless
human potential. Diversity. Profit.
Innovation. Design. Quality.
Entrepreneurialism. Wow.
An emotional,
vital, innovative, joyful, creative,
entrepreneurial endeavor that
elicits maximum concerted
human potential in the
wholehearted service
of others.***
Business* ** (*at its best):
**Excellence. Always.
***Employees, Customers, Suppliers, Communities, Owners, Temporary partners
The
Ultimate
Business:
Creative
Endeavor.
The
Ultimate
Business:
Personal
DevelopmentGrowth
Experience.
The
Ultimate
Business:
Transcendent
Service
Opportunity.
EXCELLENCE.
YOU & ME.
“In Tom’s world, it’s
always better to try a
swan dive and deliver a
colossal belly flop than
to step timidly off the
board while holding
your nose.”
—Fast Company /October2003
“This is the true joy of Life, the
being used for a purpose
recognized by yourself as a
mighty one … the being a force of
Nature instead of a feverish,
selfish little clod of ailments
and grievances complaining that
the world will not devote itself
to making you happy.”
—GB Shaw/Man and Superman
“My only goal is to
have no goals. The
goal, every time, is
that film, that very
moment.”
—Bernardo Bertolucci
“Life is not a journey to the
grave with the intention of
arriving safely in a pretty and
well-preserved body—but
rather a skid in broadside,
thoroughly used up, totally
worn out, and loudly
proclaiming, ‘Wow, what
a ride!’ ” —anon.
EXCELLENCE.
TRANSCENDENCE.
THRILLS.
Radically Thrilling Language!
“Radically
Thrilling.”
—BMW Z4 (ad)
C
O*
*Chief Thrills Officer
Synonyms
Purity
Transcendence
Virtue
Elegance
Majesty
Antonyms
Mediocrity
C
O*
*Chief Transcendence Officer
EXCELLENCE.
WOW. NOW.
C
O*
*Chief WOW Officer
C
*Chief
O
!
Officer
“It’s always
showtime.”
—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare
EXCELLENCE.
LET.
US.
MARCH.
“In classical times when
Cicero had finished speaking,
the people said, ‘How well he
spoke,’ but when
Demosthenes had finished
speaking, they said, ‘Let
march.’”
us
—Adlai Stevenson
“Never doubt that a small
group of committed
people can change the
world. Indeed it is
the only thing that ever
has.”
—Margaret Mead
EXCELLENCE.
You only find
oil if you
drill wells.
IT’s always
showtime.
let us
march.
EXCELLE
ALWAYS