Transcript EXCELLENCE. ALWAYS. Istanbul/17October2006 Tom Peters’

LONG
Tom Peters’
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
Istanbul/17October2006
Slides at …
tompeters.com
The Irreducible209+/
Words+/
The Sales122/
60TIBs/
Tom-A-to, Tom-ah-to
A frustrated participant at a seminar for investment bankers in Mauritius listened
impatiently to my explanation of differences of opinion among me, Mike Porter,
“What,
if anything,” he asked,
“do you believe ‘for
sure’?”
Gary Hamel, Jim Collins, etc. Finally, he’d had enough.
I mumbled something, but his query started rumbling
around in my mind. Three days later, wandering on a Sunday in London, the idea of
“the irreducibles” occurred to
me—and I started jotting down notes on stuff I do indeed believe “for sure.” Before
I knew it, a few days later, the list had grown to
209 items. Hence “The
Irreducible209” that follows.
Tom Peters
1.
2.
3.
4.
Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)
Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)
MBWA.
Appreciation. (“Motivator” #1.)
(Can’t be faked. Good.)
5. Decency.
6. Hurry.
7. Time out.
8. One matters.
9. Big change. Short time. (Alt not work.)
10. Excellence. Always.
11. Passion. Energy. Hustle. Enthusiasm.
Exuberance. (Move mountains. No alt.)
12. You must care.
13. Emotion.
14. Hard is soft. (Soft is hard.)
EXCELLENCE.
ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW.
MBWA, Grameen Style!
“Conventional banks ask their clients to come
to their office. It’s a terrifying place for the poor
and illiterate. … The entire Grameen Bank
system runs on the principle that people
should not come to the bank, the bank
should go to the people. … If any staff
member is seen in the office, it should be taken
as a violation of the rules of the Grameen Bank.
… It is essential that [those setting up a new
village Branch] have no office and no place to
stay. The reason is to make us as different as
possible from government officials.”
Source: Muhammad Yunus, Banker to the Poor
That’s a
Big
Number ….
THREE
BILLION NEW
CAPITALISTS
—Clyde Prestowitz
5 /42
(Years)
(New Airports)
“Deutsche Bank Moves Half of Its
Back-office Jobs to India”/
(500
of 900
Research)
headline/FT/0327
EXCELLENCE.
EVERYWHERE.
ASPIRATION.
NECESSITY.
“One Singaporean worker
costs as much as …
3 … in Malaysia
8 … in Thailand
13 … in China
18 … in India.”
Source: The Straits Times/2003
Spain
Portugal
Italy
Ireland
Singapore
Taiwan
Thailand
Malaysia
Poland
Russia
Ukraine
Singapore
Philippines
UAE
Oman
Chile
Botswana
Romania
New Zealand
Australia
Germany
“THE FUTURE BELONGS TO …
SMALL POPULATIONS …
WHO BUILD EMPIRES OF
THE MIND … AND WHO IGNORE THE
TEMPTATION OF—OR DO NOT HAVE THE
OPTION OF—EXPLOITING NATURAL
RESOURCES.”
Source: Juan Enriquez/As the Future Catches You
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
“I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs
seeking escape from life within huge corporate
structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for
Buy
a very large one
and just wait.”
myself?’ The answer seems obvious:
—Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail:
Evolution, Extinction and Economics
“Forbes100” from 1917 to 1987
: 39
members of
the Class of ’17 were alive in ’87; 18 in ’87
F100; 18 F100 “survivors” significantly
underperformed the market;
just
2 (2%), GE & Kodak,
outperformed the market from
1917 to 1987.
S&P 500 from 1957 to 1997:
’97;
74 members of the Class of ’57 were alive in
12 (2.4%) of 500 outperformed the market from 1957 to 1997.
Source: Dick Foster & Sarah Kaplan, Creative Destruction:
Why Companies That Are Built to Last Underperform the Market
Flat as a Pancake (Or Worse)
Wal*Mart … Dell …
Intel … Home Depot
… Microsoft … GE
“It is generally much easier to
organization
kill an
than change it
substantially.”
—Kevin Kelly, Out of Control
C.E.O.
to
C.D.O.
(Practical)
Implication?
“Go for it!” (Why not—
alternative is slow death, at best)
EXCELLENCE.
STARTERS.
BASICS.
K.I.S.S.
Radio City Music Hall
September 2005
Franchise Lost!
TP:
“How many of you really
[600]
crave
a new Chevy?”
“Ford, GM and Chrysler
do not just make cars
expensively … they make
bad
cars expensively.”
—Investec analyst, International Herald, 0805.06
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?”
People.
Product.
Clients.
Execution.
Enthusiasm.
Excellence.
“To me business isn’t about
wearing suits or pleasing
stockholders. It’s about
being true to yourself,
your ideas and focusing on
the essentials.” —Richard Branson
BASICS
K.I.S.S.
People.
Product.
Clients.
Execution.
Enthusiasm.
Excellence.
Resilience.
“It is not the
strongest of the
species that survives,
nor the most
intelligent, but the
one most responsive
to change.”
—Charles Darwin
BASICS
K.I.S.S.
People.
Product.
Clients.
Execution.
Enthusiasm.
Excellence.
Resilience.
Relentlessness.
“Success seems to be
largely a matter of
hanging on after
others have let go.”
—William Feather, author* (*c.f. Woody Allen: “90% of
success is showing up.”)
BASICS
K.I.S.S.
People.
Product.
Clients.
Execution.
Enthusiasm.
Excellence.
Resilience.
Relentlessness.
Senility.
Forget>“Learn”
“The problem is never how to get
new, innovative thoughts into your
mind, but how to get the old
ones out.”
—Dee Hock
EXCELLENCE.
STARTERS.
BASICS.
K.I.S.S.
MBA-On-A-Single-Slide
P=R-C
C
*Chief
O*
Revenue
Officer
“Analysts … preferred cost cutting, as long as
they could see two or three years of EPS growth. I preached revenue
and the analysts’ eyes would glaze over. Now revenue is ‘in’ because
They
said, ‘Oh my gosh, you
need revenues to grow
earnings over time.’
Well, Duh!”
so many got caught, and earnings went to hell.
—Dick Kovacevich, Wells Fargo
EXCELLENCE.
THE WORD.
Synonyms
Purity
Transcendence
Virtue
Elegance
Majesty
Antonyms
Mediocrity
EXCELLENCE.
GAMECHANGER.
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”
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
EXCELLENCE.
ASPIRATION.
“Why in the
world did
you go to
Siberia?”
An emotional,
vital, audacious, innovative, joyful,
frightening, risky, creative,
entrepreneurial endeavor that breathes
life & fire into our work & life & elicits
maximum concerted human potential
in the wholehearted effort to help
others ** [**employees, clients, suppliers,
communities, owners, temporary partners] succeed &
profit & imagine & reach places they’d
never dreamed they could go.
Business* (*at its “excellent” best) can be:
“To me business isn’t about
wearing suits or pleasing
stockholders. It’s about
being true to yourself,
your ideas and focusing on
the essentials.” —Richard Branson
“In-sane-
ly-great”
EXCELLENCE.
HTSH.
HTSH/Hands That Shape Humanity: Engage!*
Commit! Engage! Try! Fail! Get up! Try
again! Fail again! Try again! But never,
ever stop moving on! Progress for
humanity is engendered by those who join
and savor the fray by giving one hundred
percent of themselves to their dreams!
Not by those timid souls who remain
glued to the sidelines, stifled by tradition,
and fearful of losing face or giving offense
to the reigning authorities.
Key words:
Commit! Engage! Try! Fail! Persist!
*HTST/Hands That Shape Humanity, Tom Peters’ contribution
to a Bishop Tutu Foundation exhibit
EXCELLENCE.
DEFINED.
Great Companies …
SET
THE
AGENDA.*
* “disturb the sleep of …
(PERIOD.)
TP#1*:
Netscape!
*Where would you rather have worked for those 5 years, Netscape
or IBM-HP-Microsoft-Oracle? (Where, 25 years from now, would you
rather to be able to tell someone—e.g., grandchild—that you worked?)
EXCELLENCE.
ASPIRATION.
YOU & ME.
“The First step in a
‘dramatic’
‘organizational change
program’ is obvious—
dramatic personal
change!”
—RG
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
ONE PERSON.
DRAMATIC
DIFFERENCE..
Muhammad Yunus:
Banker to the Poor/
Father of
“microlending”/
2006 nobel peace
prize winner
“It’s not people who
aren’t credit-worthy.
It’s banks that aren’t
people worthy.”
Muhammad Yunus
Grameen Bank/Bangladesh
Typical 1st loan: $15.
98% recovery rate
94% to women
1/3rd out of poverty; 1/3rd up
to non-poverty threshold
Muhammad Yunus, Banker to the Poor
94% of loans to …
women
“The Grameen loan is
not simply cash. It
becomes a kind of ticket
to self-discovery and
self-exploration.”
Muhammad Yunus
EXCELLENCE.
INNOVATE.
OR. DIE.
“A focus on cost-cutting and efficiency has
helped many organizations weather the
downturn, but this approach will ultimately
Only the
constant pursuit of
innovation can ensure
long-term success.”
render them obsolete.
—Daniel Muzyka, Dean, Sauder School of Business,
Univ of British Columbia
More than $$$$
R&D
spending,
last 25 years?
“I don’t believe in economies of
You don’t get
better by being
bigger. You get
worse.”
scale.
—Dick Kovacevich/Wells Fargo
“When asked to name just one big
merger that had lived up to
expectations, Leon Cooperman,
former cochairman of Goldman Sachs’
Investment Policy Committee,
I’m sure there
are success stories out
there, but at this
moment I draw a
blank.” —Mark Sirower, The Synergy Trap
answered:
There’s “A”
and then
there’s “A.”
“Acquisitions are about
buying market share. Our
challenge is to
create markets.
There is a big difference.”
—Peter Job, former CEO, Reuters
EVERYTHING YOU
THOUGHT YOU KNEW
ABOUT INNOVATION
IS WRONG
The Mess Is
the
Message!
Period!
The Mess Is the Message! Period!
An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution
of the United States —Charles Beard (1913)
The Box: How the Shipping Container Made the World
Smaller and the World Economy Bigger —Marc Levinson
Tube: The Invention of Television —David & Marshall Fisher
Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse,
and the Race to Electrify the World —Jill Jonnes
The Soul of a New Machine —Tracy Kidder
Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA —Brenda Maddox
The Blitzkrieg Myth —John Mosier
Get mad. Do
something
about it. Now.
What “We” Know “For Sure” About Innovation
Big mergers [by & large] don’t work
Scale is over-rated
Strategic planning is the last refuge of scoundrels
Focus groups are counter-productive
“Built to last” is a chimera (stupid)
Success kills
“Forgetting” is impossible
Re-imagine is a charming idea
“Orderly innovation process” is an oxymoronic phrase
(= Believed only by morons with ox-like brains)
“Tipping points” are easy to identify …
long after they will do you any good
“Facts” aren’t
All information making it to the top is filtered
to the point of danger and hilarity
“Success stories” are the illusions of egomaniacs (and “gurus”)
If you believe the memoirs of CEOs you should be institutionalized
“Herd behavior” (XYZ is “hot”) is ubiquitous
… and amusing
“Top teams” are “Dittoheads”
CEOs have little effect on performance
“Expert” prediction is rarely better than rolling the dice
InnoTacs
We become
who we hang
out with!
Employees:
“Are there
enough weird
people in the lab
these days?”
V. Chmn., pharmaceutical house, to a lab director
Why Do I love Freaks?
(1) Because when Anything Interesting happens … it was
a freak who did it. (Period.)
(2) Freaks are fun. (Freaks are also a pain.) (Freaks are
never boring.)
(3) We need freaks. Especially in freaky times. (Hint:
These are freaky times, for you & me & the CIA & the
Army & Avon.)
(4) A critical mass of freaks-in-our-midst automatically
make us-who-are-not-so-freaky at least somewhat more
freaky. (Which is a Good Thing in freaky times—see
immediately above.)
(5) Freaks are the only (ONLY) ones who succeed—as in,
make it into the history books.
(6) Freaks keep us from falling into ruts. (If we listen to
them.) (We seldom listen to them.) (Which is why most
organizations are in ruts. Make that chasms.)
C
O*
*Chief freaks acquisition Officer
Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality
Staff
Consultants
Vendors
Out-sourcing Partners (#, Quality)
Innovation Alliance Partners
Customers
Competitors (who we “benchmark” against)
Strategic Initiatives
Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap)
IS/IT Projects
HQ Location
Lunch Mates
Language
Board
“The
Bottleneck Is at
the Top of the Bottle”
“Where are you likely to find people with the least diversity of
experience, the largest investment in the past, and the greatest
reverence for industry dogma:
At the top!”
— Gary Hamel/Harvard Business Review
“To grow, companies need
to break out of a vicious
cycle of competitive
benchmarking and
imitation.”
—W. Chan Kim & Renée Mauborgne,
“Think for Yourself —Stop Copying a Rival,” Financial Times/2003
Find ’em!
“Some people look for
things that went wrong
and try to fix them. I
look for things that
went right, and try to
build off them.”
—Bob Stone (Mr ReGo)
Demos!
Heroes!
Stories!
invite ’em!
“In the end, management
doesn’t change culture.
Management
invites
the workforce itself to
change the culture.”
—Lou Gerstner
send ’em on
a quest!
“The role of the Director is
to create a space where the
actor or actress can
become more than they’ve
ever been before, more
than they’ve dreamed of
being.” —Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance
Organizing Genius / Warren Bennis
and Patricia Ward Biederman
“Groups become great only when
everyone in them, leaders and
members alike, is free to do his or
her absolute best.”
“The best thing a leader can do for a
Great Group is to allow its
members to discover their
greatness.”
Leadership’s Mt Everest/Mt Excellence
“free to do his or her
absolute best” …
“allow its members to
discover their
greatness.”
Concoct a
Parallel
universe!
“SkunkWorks”/ “ParallelUniverse”
“the
solution”
Source: Scott Bedbury (Others: 3M, Google, Shell, NAVFAC)
Try it. Try it. Try it
Try it. Try it. Try it
Try it. Try it. Try it
Try it. Try it. Try it
Try it. try it. Try it
Try it. try it. Try it
“This is so simple it sounds stupid, but it is amazing
how few oil people really understand that
you only find
oil if you drill
wells.
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
You only find
oil if you
drill wells.
Source: The Hunters, by John Masters, Canadian O & G wildcatter
“While many people big oil finds
with big companies, over the years
about 80 percent of the oil
found in the United States has been
brought in by wildcatters such
as Mr Findley, says Larry Nation,
spokesman for the American
Association of Petroleum
Geologists.” —WSJ, “Wildcat Producer Sparks Oil
Boom in Montana,” 0405.2006
“We have a
‘strategic plan.’
It’s called doing
things.”
— Herb Kelleher
“Experiment
fearlessly”
Source: BW0821.06, Type A Organization Strategies/
“How to Hit a Moving Target”—Tactic #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
No. 10. It gets back to
planning versus acting: We act
from day one; others plan how
to plan—for months.”
—Bloomberg by Bloomberg
READY.
FIRE!
AIM.
Ross Perot (vs “Aim! Aim! Aim!” /EDS vs GM/1985)
“You miss 100
percent of the
shots you never
take.”
—Wayne Gretzky
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”
tolerate
[encourage?]
failure
“FAIL, FAIL
AGAIN. FAIL
BETTER.”
—Samuel Beckett
“Fail . Forward.
Fast.”
High Tech CEO, Pennsylvania
“Fail faster.
Succeed Sooner.”
David Kelley/IDEO
Sam’s
Secret
#1!
Speed/
Tempo
“We don’t sell
insurance anymore.
We sell
speed.”
Peter Lewis, Progressive
FedEx
Economy”
“the
—headline/New York Times/10.08.05
Anything/
Anywhere/
Anytime
“Any3”:
bet the
farm
“I don’t intend to be
known as the ‘King of
the Tinkerers.’ ”
CEO, large financial services company
“[Immelt] is now identifying
technologies with which GE
systematically
set out to build
entirely new
industries”
will …
—Strategy+Business, Fall 2005
“Beware of the tyranny
of making Small Changes
to Small Things. Rather,
make Big Changes to
Big Things.”
—Roger Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo
“Reward
excellent failures.
Punish mediocre
successes.”
Phil Daniels, Sydney exec
Conscious
measurement
Innovation Index: How many
of your Top 5 Strategic
Initiatives/Key Projects score
8 or higher [out of 10] on a
“Weird”/ “Profound”/
“Wow”/“Game- changer”
Scale?
EXCELLENCE.
INNOVATION.
REVOLUTION.
ORGANIZATION.
Excellence: The SE22:
ORIGINS OF
SUSTAINABLE
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
EXCELLENCE.
VALUE ADDED.
UP THE LADDER.
EXCELLENCE.
VALUE-ADDED LADDER I.
SOLVE IT.
“Security ‘devices’”
to “Turnkey security
solutions” (A/C, elevators, DIY,
photo shops, etc, etc)
Huge: Customer
Satisfaction
versus
Customer
Success
Up,
Up,
Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/ STUFF ‘N’ THINGS
Goods
Raw Materials
The Value-added Ladder/Stuff & TRANSACTIONS
Services
Goods
Raw Materials
The Value-added Ladder/ OPPORTUNITY-SEEKING
Gamechanging
Solutions
Services
Goods
Raw Materials
EXCELLENCE.
NECESSITY.
OPPORTUNITY.
“ ‘Disintermediation’ is overrated. Those who fear
disintermediation-outsourcing should in fact be
afraid of irrelevance; ‘outsourcing’ is just another
you’ve
become irrelevant to
your customers.”
way of saying that …
—John Battelle/Point/Advertising Age/07.05
“support function” /
“cost center”/
“overhead”
or …
Are you …
“Rock
Stars of the
Age of
Talent”
Department Head
to …
Managing
Partner,
IS Inc.
[HR, R&D, etc.]
Core Mechanism:
“Game-changing Solutions”
PSF
(Professional Service Firm “model”/The Organizing Principle)
+
Brand You
(“Distinct” or “Extinct”/The Talent)
+
Wow! Projects
(“Different” vs “Better”/The Work)
“Solutions World”: The
Mega-PSF
Big Idea:
“Corporation” as
Mega-“PSF”
(Professional Service
Firm*)
* “Virtual” Collection of Entrepreneurially-minded
Professionals (“Talent”/“Roster”) Creating/Applying
Intellectual Capital (“Work Product”)
The “PSF35”:
Thirty-Five
Professional Service Firm
Marks of Excellence
Pointed
Point of
View!
EXCELLENCE.
ATTITUDE.
TRANSFORMATION.
PSF.
Cost
(at All Costs*) Minimization
Professional?
Or/to: Full Partner“Purchasing Officer” Thrust #1:
Leader in Lifetime
Value-added
Maximization?
(*Lopez: “Arguably ‘Villain #1’ in GM tragedy”/Anon VSE-Spain)
EXCELLENCE.
VALUE-ADDED LADDER II.
EXPERIENCE IT.
“Experiences
are as distinct
from services as
services are from
goods.”
—Joe Pine & Jim Gilmore, The
Experience Economy: Work Is Theatre & Every Business a
Stage
Experience: “Rebel Lifestyle!”
“What we sell is the
ability for a 43year-old accountant
to dress in black
leather, ride through
small towns and have
people be afraid
of him.”
Harley exec, quoted in Results-Based Leadership
Up,
Up,
Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/ MEMORABLE CONNECTION
Spellbinding
Experiences
Gamechanging Solutions
Services
Goods
Raw Materials
EXCELLENCE.
EXPERIENCE.
BONUS.
“Courtesies of a small and
trivial character are the
ones which strike
deepest in the grateful
and appreciating heart.”
—Henry Clay
And You?
blanket
at outside
table (August)
Stockholm:
EXCELLENCE.
DRAMATIC.
DIFFERENCE.
DOABLE.
$415/SqFt/Wal*Mart
$798/SqFt/Whole
Foods
#1/100
“Best Companies to
Work for”/2005
Wegmans
7X. 730A800P.
F12A.*
*’93-’03/10
yr annual return: CB: 29%; WM: 17%;
HD: 16%. Mkt Cap: 48% p.a.
EXCELLENCE.
#1.
Jim’s Group
Jim Penman/“Empire Builders”/MT /
Jan/Feb 2006/Australia
Jim’s Group: Jim Penman.*
1984: Jim’s Mowing. 2006: Jim’s Group.
2,600 franchisees (Australia, NZ, UK).
Cleaning. Dog washing. Handyman.
Fencing. Paving. Pool care. Etc.
“People first.” Private. Small staff. Franchisees
can leave at will. 0-1 complaint per year is
norm; cut bad ones quickly.
*Ph.D. cross-cultural anthropology; mowing on the side
Source: MT/Management Today (Australia), Jan-Feb 2006
The “Missing 900M”
Will the Boat Sink the
Water: The Life of
China’s Peasants
—Chen Guidi and Wu Chuntao
EXCELLENCE.
NO EXCUSES.
WallopWal*Mart16*
*Or: Why it’s so ABSURDLY EASY
to BEAT a GIANT Company
The “Small Guys” Guide: Wallop Wal*Mart16
*Niche-aimed. (Never, ever “all things for all people,” a “miniWal*Mart.)
*Never attack the monsters head
business and lukewarm customers.)
on! (Instead steal niche
*“Dramatically
Different”
(La Difference ... within our community, our
industry regionally, etc … is as obvious as the end of one’s nose!) (THIS IS
WHERE MOST MIDGETS COME UP SHORT.)
*Compete on value/experience/intimacy, not price. (You
ain’t gonna beat the behemoths on cost-price in 9.99 out of 10 cases.)
*Emotional bond with Clients,
ON EMOTION/CONNECTION!!)
Vendors. (BEAT THE BIGGIES
Small Giants:
Companies That
Choose To Be
Great Instead Of
Big
—by Bo Burlingham
EXCELLENCE.
VALUE-ADDED LADDER III.
DREAM IT.
Furniture vs. Dreams
“We do not sell ‘furniture’ at Domain.
We sell dreams. This
is accomplished by addressing the
half-formed needs in our customers’
heads. By uncovering these needs,
we, in essence, fill in the blanks. We
convert ‘needs’ into ‘dreams.’
Sales are the inevitable
result.”
— Judy George, Domain Home Fashions
Up,
Up,
Up,
Up
the Value-added Ladder.
The Value-added Ladder/ EMOTION
Dreams Come True
Spellbinding Experiences
Gamechanging Solutions
Services
Goods
Raw Materials
“Dreams Come
True”:
IBM
The (NEW) Value-added Ladder
Dreams Come True
Spellbinding Experiences
Gamechanging Solutions
Services
Goods
Raw Materials
EXCELLENCE.
SOUL.
DESIGN.
All Equal Except …
“At Sony we assume that all products
of our competitors have basically the
same technology, price, performance
and features. Design is the
only thing that
differentiates one product
from another in the
marketplace.” —Norio Ohga
“Design is treated
like a religion
at BMW.” —Fortune
EXCELLENCE.
SYSTEMS.
DESIGN.
K.I.S.S.
“One bank is currently
claiming to … ‘leverage its global
footprint to provide effective financial
solutions for its customers by providing
a gateway to diverse markets.”
—Charles Handy
“I assume that it is just
saying that it is there to
‘help its customers
wherever they are’.”
—Charles Handy
EXCELLENCE.
SYSTEMS.
DESIGN.
K.I.S.S.
450/8
"A business unit strategy
should be less than fifty pages
long and should be easy to
understand. Its essence should
be describable in one page ... If
you can't describe your strategy
in twenty minutes, simply and
in plain language, you haven't
got a plan.” —Larry Bossidy
EXCELLENCE.
NEW MARKETS.
ENORMOUS.
OPPORTUNITIES.
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
ENORMOUS.
WOMEN.
“Women are
the majority
market”
—Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse
Selling to men:
The
TRANSACTION Model
Selling to Women:
The
RELATIONAL Model
Source: Selling to Men, Selling to Women, Jeffery Tobias Halter
1. Men and women are different.
2. Very different.
3. VERY, VERY DIFFERENT.
4. Women & Men have a-b-s-o-l-u-t-e-l-y
nothing in common.
5. Women buy lotsa stuff.
6. WOMEN BUY A-L-L THE STUFF.
7. Women’s Market = Opportunity No. 1.
8. Men are (STILL) in charge.
9. MEN ARE … TOTALLY, HOPELESSLY
CLUELESS ABOUT WOMEN.
10. Women’s
Market =
Opportunity
No. 1.
WOMEN.
DOMINATE.
ECONOMIC.
GROWTH.
“Forget China,
India and the
Internet: Economic
Growth Is Driven
by
Women.”
—Headline,
Economist, April 15, 2006, Leader, page 14
“Since 1970, women
have held two
out of every
three new jobs
created.”
—FT, 10.03.2006
Impact! Add It Up!
Primary markets/Everything
(“Men buy
things that other men will buy for women. I buy things that women want.”—
successful jeweler/F. “Women are the majority market” —Fara Warner/The
Power of the Purse. Women as Purchasing Officers, CIOs, etc.)
Greater global workforce
participation rate (“bigger contributor to GDP
growth than technology, China, India”—Economist)
Higher wages
(more seniority, promotions—even if not to
CEO; greater pay equity—even if not equal)
Business “decision makers”
(more
seniority, promotions—even if not to CEO)
Women-owned businesses
(answer to the
Glass Ceiling—10.6M in USA; recipients of “micro-lending”—developing
world)
10 UNASSAILABLE REASONS WOMEN RULE
Women make [all] the financial decisions.
Women control [all] the wealth.
Women [substantially] outlive men.
Women start most of the new businesses.
Women’s work force participation rates have
soared worldwide.
Women are closing in on “same pay for same
job.”
Women are penetrating senior ranks rapidly
[even if the pace is slow for the corner
office per se].
Women’s leadership strengths are exceptionally well
aligned with new organizational effectiveness &
value-added imperatives.
Women are better salespersons than men.
Women buy [almost] everything—commercial
as well as consumer goods.
So what exactly is … the point of men?
94%
of loans to …
women*
*Microlending; “Banker to the poor”; Grameen Bank;
Muhammad Yunus; 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner
“One thing is certain: Women’s rise to power,
which is linked to the increase in wealth per
capita, is happening in all domains and at all
levels of society. Women are no longer content
to provide efficient labor or to be consumers
with rising budgets and more autonomy to
spend. … This is just the beginning. The
phenomenon will only grow as girls prove to be
more successful than boys in the school
For a number of observers, we
have already entered the age of
‘womenomics,’ the economy as
thought out and practiced by a
woman.” —Aude Zieseniss de Thuin, Financial Times, 10.03.2006
system.
EXCELLENCE.
OPPORTUNITY.
ENORMOUS.
BOOMERS.
GEEZERS.
2000-2010 Stats
18-44: -1%
55+: +21%
(55-64:
+47%)
44-65:
“New
Customer
Majority” *
*45% larger than 18-43; 60% larger by 2010
Source: Ageless Marketing, David Wolfe & Robert Snyder
“The New Customer
Majority is the only adult
market with realistic
prospects for significant
sales growth in dozens of
product lines for
thousands of companies.”
—David Wolfe & Robert Snyder, Ageless Marketing
EXCELLENCE.
ACTION.
“Ninety percent of what
we call ‘management’
consists of making it
difficult for people to get
things done.” – Peter Drucker
“too
much talk,
too little
do”
TP/BW on BigCo Sin #1:
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”
“Never forget
implementation boys.
In our work it’s what I
call the ‘missing 98
percent’ of the client
puzzle.” —Al McDonald, former Managing Director,
McKinsey & Co, to a project team that included TP
EXCELLENCE.
ACTION.
ROOTS.
EXCELLENCE.
4/40.
De-central-iza-tion!
“If if feels
painful and
scary—that’s
real delegation”
—Caspian Woods, small biz owner
The True Logic* of Decentralization:
6 divisions = 6 “tries”
6 divisions = 6 DIFFERENT leaders =
6 INDEPENDENT “tries” = Max
probability of “win”
6 divisions = 6 very DIFFERENT
leaders = 6 very INDEPENDENT
“tries” = Max probability of “far
out”/”3-sigma” “win”
*“Driver”: Law of Large #s
Ex-ecu-tion!
“Execution is
the job of the
business
leader.”
—Larry Bossidy & Ram
Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done
“Never forget
implementation
boys. In our work it’s
what I call the
‘missing 98
percent’ of the client
puzzle.”
—Al McDonald
Ac-counta-bil-ity!
“GE has set a standard
of candor. … There is no
puffery. … There isn’t
an ounce of denial in
the place.”
—Kevin Sharer, CEO Amgen,
on the “GE mystique” (Fortune)
6:15A.M.
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.
TALENT.
Hire very
good
people!
“We believe companies can increase their market cap
50 percent in 3 years. Steve Macadam at Georgia-
changed 20 of his
40 box plant managers
to put more talented,
higher paid managers in
charge. He increased profitability from
Pacific …
$25
million to
$80
million in
—Ed Michaels, War for Talent
2
years.”
INVITE THEM TO
JOIN US IN A
JOURNEY TO
EXCELLENCE!
“In the end, management
doesn’t change culture.
Management
invites
the workforce itself to
change the culture.”
—Lou Gerstner
Leadership’s Mt Everest/Mt Excellence
“free to do his or her
absolute best” …
“allow its members to
discover their
greatness.”
“The role of the Director is to
create a space where the
actor or actress can become
more than they’ve
ever been before, more
than they’ve dreamed
of being.”
—Robert Altman, Oscar
acceptance
EMPHASIZE
THE “SOFT
SKILLS.”
PUT HR AT THE
HEAD OF THE HEAD
TABLE. BEST
PEOPLE. NOBLEST
MISSION.
DD$21M
A review of Jack and Suzy Welch’s Winning claims there are but
two key differentiators that set GE “culture” apart from the herd:
First: Separating financial forecasting and performance
measurement. Performance measurement based, as it usually is, on budgeting
leads to an epidemic of gaming the system. GE’s performance measurement is
divorced from budgeting—and instead reflects how you do relative to your past
performance and relative to competitors’ performance; i.e., it’s about how you
actually do in the context of what happened in the real world, not as compared to a
gamed-abstract plan developed last year.
Putting HR on
a par with finance
and marketing.
Second:
SO YOU’RE A
“PEOPLE
PERSON”?
PROVE IT.
PARC’s Bob Taylor:
“Connoisseur
of Talent”
“The leaders of Great
Groups love talent and
know where to find it. They
revel in the talent of
others.”
—Warren Bennis &
Patricia Ward Biederman, Organizing Genius
“Leaders
‘do’ people.
Period.”
—Anon.
LIVE FOR
TALENT!
Our Mission
To develop and manage talent;
to apply that talent,
throughout the world,
for the benefit of clients;
to do so in partnership;
to do so with profit.
WPP
Brand =
Talent.
EXCELLENCE.
INDIVIDUAL.
BRAND YOU.
“If there is nothing
very special about
your work, no matter
how hard you apply yourself
you won’t get noticed, and
that increasingly means you
won’t get paid much either.”
—Michael Goldhaber, Wired
New Work SurvivalKit.2006
1. MASTERY! (Best/Absurdly Good at Something!)
2. “Manage” to Legacy (All Work = “Memorable”/“Braggable” WOW Projects!)
3. A “USP”/UNIQUE SELLING PROPOSITION 4. Rolodex Obsession
(From vertical/hierarchy/“suck up” loyalty to
horizontal/“colleague”/“mate” loyalty)
5. ENTREPRENEURIAL INSTINCT (A sleepless … Eye for Opportunity!
6.CEO/LEADER/BUSINESSPERSON/CLOSER (CEO, Me Inc. 24/7!)
7. Master of Improv (Play a dozen parts simultaneously, from
Chief Strategist to Chief Toilet Scrubber)
8. Sense of Humor (A willingness to Screw Up & Move On)
9. Comfortable with Your Skin (Bring “interesting you” to work!)
10. Intense Appetite for Technology (E.g.: How Cool-Active is your
Web site? Do you Blog?)
11. EMBRACE “MARKETING” (Your own CSO/Chief Storytelling Officer)
12. PASSION FOR RENEWAL (Your own CLO/Chief Learning Officer)
13. EXECUTION EXCELLENCE! (Show up on time! Leave last!)
Distinct
…
… or
Extinct
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.
LEADERSHIP.
EXCELLENCE.
BEDROCK.
PURPOSE.
“I never, ever thought
of myself as a
businessman. I was
interested in
creating things I
would be proud
of.”
—Richard Branson
“People want to be part
of something larger than
themselves. They want to
be part of something
they’re really proud of,
that they’ll fight for,
sacrifice for , trust.”
—Howard Schultz, Starbucks (IBD/09.05)
Ah, kids: “What is your vision for
the future?” “What have you
accomplished since your first book?”
“Close your eyes and imagine me
immediately doing something about
what you’ve just said. What would it
be?” “Do you feel you have an
obligation to ‘Make the world a
better place’?”
EXCELLENCE.
BY INVITATION.
“In the end, management
doesn’t change culture.
Management
invites
the workforce itself to
change the culture.”
—Lou Gerstner
EXCELLENCE.
ENTHUSIASM.
ENERGY.
PASSION.
“Nothing is so
contagious as
enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“Whenever anything is
being accomplished, I
have learned, it is being
done by a monomaniac
with a mission.”
—Peter Drucker
“Most important,
upped the
energy level at
he
Motorola.”
—Fortune on Ed Zander/08.05
EXCELLENCE.
RELENTLESSNESS.
"The reasonable man adapts
himself to the world. The
unreasonable one persists in
trying to adapt the world to
himself. Therefore, all
progress depends upon the
unreasonable man.” —GB Shaw,
Man and Superman: The Revolutionists' Handbook.
“This [adolescent] incident [of getting from point A to point B] is notable
not only because it underlines Grant’s fearless horsemanship and his
determination, but also it is the first known example of a very important
Grant had an
extreme, almost phobic
dislike of turning back
and retracing his steps.
peculiarity of his character:
If he
set out for somewhere, he would get there somehow, whatever the
difficulties that lay in his way. This idiosyncrasy would turn out to be one
the factors that made him such a formidable general. Grant would always,
always press on—turning back was not an option for him.”
—Michael Korda, Ulysses Grant
EXCELLENCE.
SHOWING UP.
MBWA
“You must
be
the change you wish
to see in the world.”
Gandhi
EXCELLENCE.
STRETCH.
The greatest danger
for most of us
is not that our aim is
too high
and we miss it,
but that it is
too low
and we reach it.
Michelangelo
Kevin Roberts’ Credo
1. Ready. Fire! Aim.
2. If it ain’t broke ... Break it!
3. Hire crazies.
4. Ask dumb questions.
5. Pursue failure.
6. Lead, follow ... or get out of the way!
7. Spread confusion.
8. Ditch your office.
9. Read odd stuff.
10.
Avoid moderation!
Sir Richard’s Rules:
Follow your passions.
Keep it simple.
Get the best people to help you.
Re-create yourself.
Play.
Source: Fortune on Branson
EXCELLENCE.
KABOOM.
No Wiggle Room!
“Incrementalism
is innovation’s
worst enemy.”
—Nicholas Negroponte
“Beware of the tyranny
of making Small Changes
to Small Things. Rather,
make Big Changes to
Big Things.”
—Roger Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo
EXCELLENCE.
THE LEADERSHIP23.
Leadership23/ML
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Enthusiasm. Energy. Exuberance.
Action. Execution.
Tempo. Metabolism.
Relentless.
Master of Plan B.
Accountability.
Meritocracy.
Leaders “do” people. Mentor. (“Success
creation business.”)
9. Women. Diversity.
10. Integrity. Credibility. Humanity. Grace.
11. Realism.
12. Cause. Adventures. Quests.
Leadership23/ML
13. Legacy.
14. Best story wins.
15. On the edge. (“Wildest chimera of a
moonstruck mind.”)
16. “Reward excellent failures. Punish
mediocre successes.”
17. Different > Better. (“Only ones who do
what we do.”)
18. MBWA. Customer MBWA.
19. Laughs.
20. Repot. Curiosity. Why?
21. You = Calendar. “To Don’t.” Two.
22. Excellence. Always.
23. Nelsonian! (“Other admirals more afraid
of losing than anxious to win.”)
Leaders:
gotta
say it!
“No leader sets out to be a
leader per se, but rather
to express him- or
herself freely and fully.
That is, leaders have no
interest in proving
themselves, but an abiding
interest in expressing
themselves.” —Warren Bennis,
On Becoming a Leader
“Everyone lives
by
selling
something.”
—Robert Louis Stevenson
You only
find oil if
you drill
wells.
—The Hunters, by John Masters,
Canadian O & G wildcatter
EXCELLE
ALWAYS
Tom Peters’
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
Lists.
XAlways.LISTS.17October2006
The Irreducible209+
One Word+
The Sales122
60TIBs
Tom-A-to,Tom-ah-to
The Irreducible209
A frustrated participant at a seminar for investment bankers in
Mauritius listened impatiently to my explanation of differences of
opinion among me, Mike Porter, Gary Hamel, Jim Collins, etc. Finally,
“What, if
anything,” he asked,
“do you believe ‘for
sure’?”
he’d had enough.
I mumbled something, but his query started
rumbling around in my mind. Three days later, wandering on a
Sunday in London, the idea of “the irreducibles” occurred to
me—and I started jotting down notes on stuff I do indeed believe “for
sure.” Before I knew it, a few days later, the list had grown to
209
items. Hence “The Irreducible209” that follows.
Tom Peters
1.
2.
3.
4.
Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)
Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)
MBWA.
Appreciation. (“Motivator” #1.)
(Can’t be faked. Good.)
5. Decency.
6. Hurry.
7. Time out.
8. One matters.
9. Big change. Short time. (Alt not work.)
10. Excellence. Always.
11. Passion. Energy. Hustle. Enthusiasm.
Exuberance. (Move mountains. No alt.)
12. You must care.
13. Emotion.
14. Hard is soft. (Soft is hard.)
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
Men. Women. Different. Contend. Connect.
Women. Buy. All. (RU listening?)
Quality. (“Mind-blowing.” Beyond 6-Sigma.)
Re-invent. Re-pot. (Required.)
Jaywalk.
Big change. Small # of people. (Always.)
Experiment. Now.
Failure. Normal.
Most failures, most success.
(Fail. Forward. Fast.)
24. “Reward excellent failures. Punish
mediocre successes.”
25. Women leaders. (Altered times.)
26. Extremism. (Good business. Bad politics.)
27. Innovation source. Only. Extreme irritation.
28. Smile.
29.
30.
31.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
38.
You must care.
Mentor. (Highest ROI.)
Best “roster” wins.
Wow. (Okay in biz.)
We all have customers. (Biz. Personal.)
All contacts = Experiences.
Cirque du Soleil. (Peerless.)
Leaders create space for growth.
Quests. (Only.)
High aspirations, “high” results.
(Self-fulfilling prophecy.)
39. Attitude 1, Skills 0. (Mostly.)
(Attitude 1, Skill 0.3?)
40. Sometimes: Skill 1, Attitude 0.1.
41. Must “love,” not “like.”
42. Wegmans.” (No excuses. “Mere” groceries.)
43. Less than your best. Cheating.
44.
45.
46.
47.
48.
49.
50.
51.
52.
53.
54.
55.
Brand You. (No alt.)
Self-sufficiency. (Biggest LT turn-on.)
In the moment.
The moment wins.
Tomorrow = Never.
Action 1, Plan 0.1.
“Execution” can be a “system.”
Realism.
Own up. Move on.
Accountability.
Work hard > Work smart. (Mostly.)
Feedback. Necessary. Fast. (R.F.A. in
“RFA times.”)
56. Customers. Listen. Lead. (Paradox.)
57. “On stage.” Always. (GW, FDR, RG =
Supreme actors.)
58.
59.
60.
61.
62.
63.
64.
65.
66.
Master statistical analysis.
Excellence = Set the table.
Legacy. (Will it have mattered?)
“Great.” (Why not?)
Radicals rule. (Think … Olympics.)
!!! = Good.
Red 1, Brown 0. (Red times.)
Talk. Listen. (“Big 2.” Master.)
Politics. (Normal-inevitable state
of affairs. Master.)
67. Student. Forever.
68. “Why?” (Question #1.)
69. Don’t belittle.
70. Respect.
71. All we have: this moment.
(“Moments matter most”?)
72. Now. (Procrastination. Death.)
73.
74.
75.
76.
Exercise.
Paint. (Leader. Portraits of Excellence.)
Best story wins.
“You must be the change you wish
to see in the world.”
77. Two “big ones.” Max. (Priorities.)
78. No “I” in Team. (“I” in Win.)
79. “I” in Win. (No “I” in Team.)
80. Different 1, Better 0. (Better = 0.1)
81. Imitation = Mistake. (Learn, from who?)
82. Choose/battle the “right” competitor.
83. Schools. Creativity. Entrepreneurship.
(Not.)
84. MBAs. Creativity. Entrepreneurship.
Leadership. (Not.)
85. Design. Under-rated. Wildly.
(Still.) (Everything.)
86.
87.
88.
89.
You = Calendar. (Calendar. Never. Lies.)
Laugh.
Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)
Don’t fold your hands in front of your
chest. Ever. (Never.)
90. Grace. (“Works” in biz.)
91. Weird. Wins. (Weird times.)
92. Crazy times. Crazy orgs.
93. Internet. All.
94. Women. Boomers-Geezers. Market. All.
95. Passion.
(Repeat. So what?)
96. Energy.
(Repeat. So what?)
97. Hustle.
(Repeat. So what?)
98. Enthusiasm. (Repeat. So what?)
99. Exuberance. (Repeat. So what?)
100. Smile.
(Repeat. So what?)
101. Care.
(Repeat. So what?)
102. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience. Bloodymindedness. Visible optimism. (Success.)
103. Act. (Repeat. So what?)
104. Appreciate. (Repeat. So what?)
105. Fun. (Biz. Why not?)
106. Joy. (Biz. Why not?)
107. Sales = Life.
108. Marketing = Life.
109. Long-term. “Top line.” c.r.o.
110. Great company = Creates the most
individual success stories. (RE/MAX)
111. Talent first, performance byproduct.
112. Sustained Wow* 1, “Shareholder
value,” 0.2 (*Product, People.)
113. Commitment. by invitation only.
114. Creativity. by invitation only.
115. HR = #1. (Ought to.)
116. Face-to-face. (5K miles, 5 minutes.) 117.
Negotiation. Make all winners.
(Save face.)
118. Grace makes enemies friends.
119. Network.
120. Invest in relationships. (Think ROIR.
Return On Investment in Relationships.)
118. Relationship investment. Forethought.
Calendar item. Intensity.
119. Innovation. Easy. (Hang out
with weird.)
120. Weird = Win. (Weird times.)
121. “The bottleneck is at the top
of the bottle.”
122. Good Board = Weird Board.
(At least, surprising.)
123. No contention, no progress.
R.O.I.R.*
*Return On Investment In Relationships
124. “Crucial conversations.” “Crucial
confrontations.” (Study. Learn. Do.)
125. Honest feedback.
126. Gaspworthy. Yes.
127. “Insanely great.”
128. “Astonish me.”
129. “Make it immortal.”
130. “Will you remember it in 20 years?”
131. No small opportunities. (Reframe.)
132. One playmate, one playpen = Enough.
133. End run. Sensible.
134. Allies are there for the finding.
135. Find successes. Build on successes.
(Pos > Neg. Encourage > Fix.)
136. Somebody’s doing it today. Find ’em.
137. Someone is living 2016 in 2006.
(Find ’em. Study ’em.)
138. Don’t “benchmark.” “futuremark.”
139. “PMA.” It works. (Positive. Mental.
Attitude.)
140. There are no experts. (You are the expert.)
141. Life is short.
142. “Sustained success.” Fat chance.
Make today matter. (“Sustained.” Ha.)
143. Collaborate. (Networked world.)
144. Go solo. (Individual. Unit of
Intellectual Capital.)
145. There are no “perfect” plans. (Do. Wins.)
146. Plans motivate. (Right or wrong.
Sense of purpose.)
147. Never rest.
148. Get some sleep.
149. Winning = Embracing paradox.
150. Ambiguity = Opportunity.
151. Resilience.
152. Relentless-ness.
153. None. Above. Comeuppance.
No. “ultimate.” “business model.”
(GM. Sears. U.S. Steel. DEC.)
154. Be yourself. Period.
155. Never work with jerks. Including
customers. (Life. Too short.)
156. Under-promise, over-deliver.
157. Talent. (Powerful word.)
158. “Customer = Anyone whose actions
affect your results.”
159. Competition stinks. (Seek the soft
spots where you can dominate.)
160. K.I.S.S./Keep It Simple, Stupid.
161. Beauty. (Good biz word.)
162. “See the beauty in a hamburger bun.”
(Go. Ray.)
163.
164.
165.
166.
Own up. Quick. ( Denial. Cancer.)
Celebrate. Often.
78 people = 78 approaches. (Each. Unique.)
Weed. Ceaselessly. (Prune. Stupid.
Rules. Non-stop.)
167. Get out of the way. (You = The problem.)
168. Smile. Sunny. Optimism. (If it kills you.)
169. Flowers. (Cheery workplace.)
170. Enjoy. (Or get the hell.)
171. Be intolerant of “sour.” (1 = Major pollution)
172. No “quick trigger” on promotion.
(Too important.)
173. Evaluation = Lots of study-time.
174. Evaluation = “Life or death” to evaluee.
175. “360” evaluation. No fad.
176. Exit when you’re done. (Done.
Sooner than you think.)
177. Today. Now. My Project. Am. Is. I. Period.
178. “Beautiful” systems. (Good biz phrase.
Not oxymoron.)
179. Build on strengths > Fix weaknesses.
180. “To don’t” = “To do.” (“To don’t” >
“To do” ?)
181. Leaders “Do” People. (Period.)
182. Leaders enjoy leading.
183. Serious leadership training = Serious.
184. Priorities. Obvious. (Or else.)
185. 5 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities.
(3 “Priorities” = 0 Priorities?)
186. People. First. Last. Always.
187. It. Is. Always. The. People.
188. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)
189. Don’t fold your hands in front of
your chest. Ever. (Never.)
190. Simplicity. Redundancy. Resilience.
Bloody-mindedness. Visible
optimism. (Success.) (Repeat.)
191. Employee Entrance = Guest
Entrance.
192. Put the customer … SECOND.
(Thanks, Hal.)
193. Flowers. (Or did I say that before?
No matter if I did.)
194. Big Mergers don’t work. Small
acquisitions can/do work—if you
don’t screw with their energy.
195. Instinctively “head for the front
line.” (In all contexts.)
196. Success = DDMMPR/"D-squared,
M-squared, PR” = DramDiff +
Money-Financial Acumen + Good
“Marketing” Instincts + Stellar People
+ Resilience (The “fab five”: What.
Every. Small. Biz. Needs.) (Big too.)
197. Core Mechanism (“Game-changing
Solutions”): PSF (Professional Service
Firm “model”) + Wow! Projects
(“Different” vs “Better”) + Brand You
(“Distinct” or “Extinct”)
198. 2011/2016 has already happened.
Find it.
199. Kids “know” kids. Oldies “know” oldies.
Women “know” women. (Staff accordingly.)
200. Everybody is my customer.
201. Cosset “vendors.”
202. I want to run a Housekeeping department.
(And you?)
203. The military doesn’t follow the “military
model.” (Initiative = Excellence.)
204. No such thing as “going to absurd lengths”
to serve the Customer. (HSM & Lefties.)
205. Forget the “customer.” All = “Clients.”
206. It takes decades to get over “sleights.”
(So don’t sleight.)
207. Don’t “dumb down.” Ever.
208.
209.
NO LESS THAN
EXCELLENCE.
EVER.
EXCELLENCE.
ALWAYS.
Work In Progress
XXX. One size fits. One. Only. (Evaluations. Period.)
XXX. Teaching. Individualized. Only. (6 billion people =
6 billion learning trajectories.) (Montessori.)
XXX. First impression. Matters. Shapes all that comes.
Hard to overcome. (Understatement.)
XXX. Jerks. Don’t work with. (Life = Too short.)
XXX. Manage [the hell out of] first impressions.
XXX. Last impression. Matters. Dominates memory.
Hard to overcome. (Understatement.)
XXX. Manage [the hell out of] last impressions.
XXX. Plain English.
XXX. K.I.S.S. (450/8.)
XXX. $798. $55,000,000,000. 3,000,000,000.
7AM-7PM. 6:15AM.
XXX. Donnelly Weatherstrip rules.
XXX. Managers do things right. Leaders do the
right thing. NOT.
ONE WORD+
ONE WORD+
Drill more wells
R.F.A.
Accountability
Realism
Decentralization
Execution
Action bias
Most mistakes wins
6:15am
Energy
Enthusiasm
Do>Plan
Act>Think
Behavior>Attitude
Passion
ONE WORD+
5 min/5,000 miles
Women
Decency
Grace
Innovate or Die
Re-imagine
Fight irrelevance
Just Do It
Care (You Must)
Flowers (Say It With)
I’m sorry
Thank You
Insanely Great
Silence
2-cent candy
ONE WORD+
Emotion
Intuition
Sell
O.O.D.A.
Integrity
Weird
Appreciate
Celebrate
Respect
Listen
Wander
Calendar rules
Calendar doesn’t lie
“To don’t
Max priorities = 3
ONE WORD+
Gasp-worthy
Insanely great
Different>better
Impact>longevity
Dramatic Difference
Only ones do what we do
Smile
$798
7-7-7
Design rules
Beautiful Systems
450/8
VP S.O.U.B.
Women buy all
Women lead better
ONE WORD+
MBWA
Why?
PSF
Wow!
! (red)
Buy a Mirror
Know thyself
Invite
Quest
Adventure
Talent
Brand You
Lovemark
Experience
Dreamketing
ONE WORD+
Boomers-geezers own all
2.6/21
25
25
3,000,000,000
(900,000,000)
26 minutes
43 hours
Perception Is All There Is
Enthusiasm: The Ultimate Virus
GE
(more or less)
:
The Sales122:
122 Ridiculously
Obvious Thoughts
About Selling Stuff
Tom Peters/0402.2006
This list was first prepared for GE Energy
sales & marketing people in January. It
started with a half-dozen items, and grew
like Topsy. Possibly, given its origins, it’s a
little tilted toward complex, engineeringbased sales. In any event, it makes a perfect
companion to “The Irreducibles209.” This,
too, is effectively a list of “irreducibles.”
Tom Peters
1. “Strategy” overrated, simply “doin’ stuff” underrated. See
Kelleher and Bossidy: “We have a ‘strategic plan,’ it’s called
doing things.”—Herb Kelleher. “Execution is a systematic
process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, tenaciously
following through, and ensuring accountability.” —Larry
Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting
Things Done. Action has its own logic—ask Genghis Khan,
Rommel, COL John Boyd, U.S. Grant, Patton, W.T. Sherman.
2. What are you personally great at? (Key word: “great.”) Play
to strengths! “Distinct or Extinct.” You should aim to be
“outrageously good”/B.I.W. at a niche area (or more).
3. Are you a “personality,” a de facto “brand” in the industry?
The Dr Phil of ...
4. Opportunism (with a little forethought) mostly wins.
(“Successful people are the ones who are good at Plan B.”)
5. Little starts can lead to big wins. Most true winners—think
search & Google—start as something small. Many big deals—
Disney & Pixar—could have been done as little-er deals if you’d
had the guts to jump before the value became obvious.
“Everyone lives
by selling
something.”
—Robert Louis Stevenson
6. Non-obvious targets have great potential. Among many
other things, everybody goes after the obvious ones. Also,
the “non-obvious” are often good Partners for technology
experiments.
7. The best relationships are often (usually?) not “top to
top”! (Often the best: hungry division GMs eager to make a
mark.)
8. IT’S RELATIONSHIPS, STUPID—DEEP AND FROM MULTIPLE
FUNCTIONS.
9. In any public-sector business, you must become an avid
student of “the politics,” the incentives and constraints,
mostly non-economic, facing all of the players. Politicians are
usually incredibly logical—if you (deeply!) understand the
matrix in which they exist.
10. Relationships from within our firm are as important—
often more important—as those from outside—again broad is
as important as deep. Allies—avid supporters!—within and
from non-obvious places may be more important than
relationships at the Client organization. Goal: an “insanely
unfair ‘market share’” of insiders’ time devoted to your
projects!
C(I)>C(X)
11. Interesting outsiders are essential to innovative proposal
and sales teams. An “exciting” sales-proposal team is as
important as a prestigious one.
12. Is the proposal-sales team weird enough—weirdos come
up with the most interesting, game-changer ideas. Period.
13. Lunch with at least one weirdo per month. (Goal: always
on the prowl for interesting new stuff.)
14. Gratuitous comment: Lunches with good friends are
typically a waste of (professional) time.
15. Don’t short-change (time, money, depth) the proposal
process. Miss one tiny nuance, one potential incentive that
“makes my day” for a key Client player—and watch the whole
gig be torpedoed.
16. “Sticking with it” sometimes pays, sometimes not—it
takes a lot of tries to forge the best path in. Sometimes you
never do, after a literal lifetime. (Ah, life.)
17. WOMEN ARE SIMPLY BETTER AT RELATIONSHIPS—don’t
get hung up—particularly in tech firms—on what industriescountries “women can’t do.” (Or some such bullshit.)
18. Work incessantly on your “story”—most economic value
springs from a good story (think Perrier)! In sensitive public
or quasi-public negotiations, a compelling story is of immense
value—politics is about the tension among competing stories.
(If you don’t believe me, ask Karl Rove or James Carville.)
(“Storytelling is the core of culture.” —Branded Nation: The
Marketing of Megachurch, College Inc., and Museumworld,
James Twitchell)
19. Call this 18A, or 18 repeat: Become a first-rate
Storyteller! (“A key – perhaps the key – to leadership is the
effective communication of a story.”—Howard Gardner,
Leading Minds: An Anatomy of Leadership)
20. Risk Assessment & Risk Management is more about
stories than advanced math—i.e., brilliant scenario
construction.
21. Good listeners are good sales people. Period.
22. Lousy listeners are lousy sales people. Period.
23. GREAT LISTENERS ARE GREAT SALES PEOPLE. (Listening
“skills” are hard to learn and subject to immense effort in
pursuit of Mastery. A virtuoso “listener” is as rare as a
virtuoso cello player.) (“If you don’t listen, you don’t sell
anything.”—Carolyn Marland/MD/Guardian Group)
24. Things that are funny to me (American) are often-mostly not
funny to those in other cultures. (Humor is as fine-edged as it
gets, and rarely travels.)
25. You don’t know Jack Squat about other peoples’ cultures—
especially if you are a typically myopic American. (Like me.)
26. Are you a great interviewer? It’s a make or break skill.
(Think Barbara Walters’ skill at extracting unwanted truths from
pros in persona-protection ... in front of 10s of millions of
people.
27. Are you a great (not merely “good”) presenter? Mastering
presentation skills is a life’s work—with stupendous payoff.
28. Work like hell on the Big 2: LISTENING/INTERVIEWING,
PRESENTING. These are “the essence of [sales] life”—and
usually picked-up in an amateurish fashion. Mistake! (Become a
“professional student” of these two areas, achieve Mastery.)
29. Are you good at flowers? Think: FLOWER POWER! (see Harvey
Mackay’s “Mackay 66”—what you should know about a Client;
e.g., birthdays & anniversaries.) (My “flowers budget” is out of
control. Hooray for me.)
30. You can’t do it all—be clear at what you are good at, bad at,
indifferent at. Hubris sucks.
FLOWER
POWER
31. The point is not to “prove yourself.” (That’s ego-talk.) Let
the best person present to the Client—perhaps a “lower level”
geek. (“Control freaks” get their just desserts in the long haul—
or sooner.)
32. The numbers will more or less take care of themselves over
the long haul—if the relationship/s is/are solid gold.
33. The Gold Standard in selling: INDISPENSABLE to the Client.
No other goal is worthy.
34. Never stop growing-broadening-deepening the relationship.
The key to “indispensability” is to get the Client more and more
… and more … and then more … imbedded in “our” web. Hence
the so-called “selling process” is only the first step!
35. USE THE WORD “WE” … CONSTANTLY & RELIGIOUSLY!
(E.g.: “We”—the Client & me—“are going to change the world
with this service.”)
36. Don’t waste your time on jerks—it’ll rarely work out in the
mid- to long-term.
37. Genius is walking away from lousy “scores” (deals)—and
accepting the attendant heat. Big Business is the premier home
to Big Egos overpaying by a factor of 2 to 22 with billion$$$$ at
stake. (Think Jerry Levin and AOL Time Warner.)
“If you don’t
listen,
you don’t sell
anything.”
—Carolyn Marland/
Managing Director/
Guardian Group
38. You haven’t a clue as to how this situation will actually play
out—be prepared to move fast in a different direction.
39. Keep your word.
40. KEEP YOUR WORD.
41. Underpromise (i.e., don’t over-promise; i.e., cut yourself a
little slack) even if it costs you business—winning is a long-term
affair. Over-promising is Sign #1 of a lack of integrity. You will
pay the piper.
42. There is such a thing as a “good loss”—if you’ve tested
something new and developed good relationships. A half-dozen
honorable, ingenious losses over a two-year period can pave the
way for a Big Victory in a New Space in year 3.
43. It’s a competitive world out there. New, innovative products
are harder to sell than old stand-bys. Nonetheless, you will be a
long-term star to the extent that you are willing to push the
harder-to-sell-at-the-moment Innovative Products that cement
long-term Client success (Indispensability!) —even if it means a
#s hit this quarter. PART OF YOUR JOB: TAKE CLIENTS ON AN
ADVENTURE THAT PUTS THEM AHEAD OF THE GAME CALLED
(GAMECHANGING—hopefully) COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE!
“You can make more
friends in two months by
becoming interested in
other people than you can
in two years by trying to
get other people
interested in you.”
—Dale Carnegie
44. Think “legacy”—what the hell is all this really about for you
and the world? (“Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one
wild and precious life?”
—Mary Oliver)
45. THERE ARE NO “MODERATES” IN THE HISTORY BOOKS!
46. Keep it simple! (Damn it!) No matter how “sophisticated” the
product. If you can’t explain it in a phrase, a page, or to your 14year-old ... you haven’t got it right yet.
47. Know more than the next guy. Homework pays. (of course
it’s obvious—but in my work it is too often honored in the
breach.)
48. Regardless of project size, winning or losing invariably
hinges on a raft of “little stuff.” Little stuff is and always has
been everything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!—or, “one man’s little stuff is
another man’s 7.6 Richter deal-breaker.”
49. In public settings in particular, face saving is all. When
something changes, allow the other guy to come out looking like
a winner, especially if he has lost. (Even if you must accept the
egg on your face—he will always remember you!)
50. Don’t hold grudges. (It is the ultimate in small mindedness—
and incredibly wasteful and ineffective. There’s always
tomorrow.)
51. IT’S ALWAYS “THE POLITICS”—wee private-sector deal or
giant public sector deal. (Every player, small or large, is angling
for something. Master the calculus of advantage.)
52. To beat the “turnover problem” in key Client posts amidst
long negotiations, invest outrageous amounts of time building a
wide & deep set of relationships with mid-level (& lower!!)
“plodding” “careerists.” The invisible careerists are the
bedrock upon which repeated success is built! (My “Capitol Hill
Axiom”: It’s the 24-year-old LA who in the end briefs the
Senator right before she goes to the Floor to vote.)
53. Speaking of “she”: Gender differences are Enormous—
dealing with a woman and dealing with a man are different
kettles of fish—you must become an A+ student of gender
differences. (E.g.: Men are typically more interested in the
short-term “score.” Women are more interested in the longterm consequences.)
54. “LITTLE PEOPLE” OFTEN HAVE BIG FRIENDS.
55. This is not war, damn it. All parties can win (or not lose,
anyway). And losing bidders can walk away from a deal with
increased respect for you and your team.
56. Never, ever dump on a competitor—the Tom Watson IBM
glory-days mantra.
57. Never forget the “Law of Cousins!” In developing nations
in particular, power brokers at all levels are at least cousins!
Consideration for a second cousin can pay off big time.
58. Speaking of “favors,” jail sucks.
59. Work hard beats work smart. (Mostly.)
60. REPEAT: HE/SHE WHO HAS THE MOST-BEST
RELATIONSHIPS WINS. RELATIONSHIPS ARE THE ESSENCE OF
THE WORK OF THE SALESPERSON. THE HARD ... AND LONG ...
WORK OF THE SALESPERSON.
61. Mano v mano “hardball” is seldom the answer—end runs
based and patient multi-level relationship building via deeperwider networks win.
62. If the deal is wired from below, truly wired, than the socalled “big negotiations” are essentially irrelevant.
63. If every quarter is a “little better” than the prior quarter—
then you are not taking any serious risks.
64. Phones beat email.
“Nothing is so
contagious as
enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
65. A THREE-MINUTE CALL TODAY CAN AVOID A GAME-LOSER
OF A FIASCO NEXT MONTH. There was always a time when a
little thing could have been addressed that headed off a
subsequent big thing. As to avoiding that call, didn’t someone
say, “Pride goeth before the fall”?
66. Be hyper-organized about relationship management—you
are in the anthropology business. Study the great pols! Brilliant
NRM (network relationship management) is not accidental! It is
not catch-as-catch can. (Football analogies are cute—but deep
political understanding pays the private-school tuition.)
67. Obsess on ROIR (Return On Investment In Relationships).
68. “THANK YOU” NOTES: World’s highest-return investment!!
69. The way to anyone’s heart: Doing a nice thing for their kid.
(But, gawd, does this take a gentle touch.)
70. Scoring off other people is stupid. Winners are always in the
business of creating the maximum # of winners—among
adversaries at least as much as among “partners.”
71. Your colleagues’ successes are your successes. Period.
(Trust me, my greatest personal success—financially as well as
artistically—has been creating a bigger pond in which everyone
wins, even if my “market share” is down.)
72. Lend a helping hand, especially when you don’t have the
time. E.g. share relationships—the more you give away the
more you get in return (just like they say in church).
73. Listen up: “It was much later that I realized Dad’s
secret. He gained respect by giving it. He talked and listened
to the fourth-grade kids in Spring Valley who shined shoes
the same way he talked and listened to a bishop or a college
president. He was seriously interested in who you were and
what you had to say.” —Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot, Respect.
(I.e., Respect is Cool.)
74. Mentoring is a thrill—and the practical payoff is
enormous. The best mentors have the whole world working
its buns off for them!
75. Hire for enthusiasm. Promote for enthusiasm. Cherish
enthusiasm. REMOVE NON-ENTHUSIASTS—THEY ARE
CANCERS. (“Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm.”—
Samuel Taylor Coleridge. “A man without a smiling face
must not open a shop.”—Chinese Proverb.)
76. IT’S ALWAYS YOUR PROBLEM—you sold it to them.
77. It’s never over: While there may be an excellent service
activity in your company, the “relationship” belongs to You!
Hence the “aftersales” “moments of truth” are at least as—if
not more than*--important to the Continuing Relationship as
the sale “transaction” itself. (*I vote for “more than.”) You’ll
get your biggest “points” with the Client for being an effective
after-the-fact go-between with your company.
78. Don’t get too hung up on “systems integration”—first &
foremost, the individual bits have got to work.
79. For God’s sake don’t over promise on “systems
integration”—it’s nigh on impossible to deliver.
80. On the other hand … winners clamber Up the Value-added
Ladder, and offer ever so much more than “mere” product. ALL
SUCCESSFUL SALES PEOPLE ARE IN THE “SOLUTIONS
BUSINESS”—no matter how jargony that may sound.
81. “Systems” / “Solutions” selling means grappling directly
with “culture change” in Client organizations. (“The business of
selling is not just about matching viable solutions to the
customers that require them. It’s equally about managing the
change process the customer will need to go through to
implement the solution and achieve the value promised by the
solution”—Jeff Thull, The Prime Solution: Close the Value Gap,
Increase Margins, and Win the Complex Sale)
82. Shit happens. That’s what they pay you for.
83. This is not a “GE” or “Ben & Jerry’s” sale—it is a Joe
Jones/Jane Jones sale. YOU ARE THE “BRAND” THE CLIENT
BUYS—especially over the long haul.
84. Duh: You make money, the company makes money—on
repeat business.
85. Master—yes, you—the “PR” Game. “Word of Mouth” is not
accidental! You want Word of Mouth? Make it happen!
86. GOAL #1: MAKE YOUR CLIENT A HERO—YOU ARE NOT THERE
TO GET CREDIT. (“Taking credit” is for egomaniacs. And losers.)
87. “Decent margins,” over the mid- to long-term, are a product
of better relationships, not better “negotiating skill.” (Mostly.)
“You can’t behave
in a calm, rational
manner. You’ve got
to be out there on
the lunatic fringe.”
—Jack Welch
88. In the immortal words of ex-GE Vice Chairman Larry
Bossidy, more or less, “Realism rocks.” (“Bullshit artist” and
“great salesperson,” contrary to conventional wisdom, are
Diametric Opposites. “Truthteller” and Great Salesperson is
more like it.)
89. Be the first to tell the Client bad news (e.g., slipped
delivery); his intelligence sources will tell him fast—you want to
be there first with your story and to enhance your rep as
Truthteller!
90. Work like hell to get a reputation as a valued industry
expert, to become an industry resource.
91. Work the Trade Association angle for all its worth—it may
take a decade to pay off—e.g., when you become an officer or
are on an important panel or testify Before Congress.
92. PAY YOUR DUES IN THE CLIENT ORG AND IN YOUR OWN
ORG!
93. It’s all bloody tactics.
94. You must ... LOVE .... the product! (Period.)
95. YOU MUST LOVE THE PRODUCT!
96. Don’t over-schedule. “Running late” is inexcusable at any
level of seniority; it is the ultimate mark of self-importance
mixed with contempt.
97. Women are better salespeople. (See Addendum.)
98. Women alone understand Women.
99. Actually, Women by and large understand Men better than
Men understand Men.
100.Women purchasers buy Stories and recommendations.
101. Women take longer to become Loyal purchasers, but then
stay Loyal.
102. Men buy Stats.
103. Men decide fast, but are fickle.
104. Men & Women are … VERY, VERY … Different.
105. Women buy most things. Consumer. Increasingly,
professional goods and services.
106. Women’s Market is Opportunity #1.
107. Boomers. Many, many. Lots & lots & lots of … $$$.
108. Boomers-Geezers are very different purchasers than those
in other categories.
Women Rock … as Salespersons (From Item #97.)
And the answers are?
“TAKE THIS QUICK QUIZ: Who manages more things at
once? Who puts more effort into their appearance?
Who usually takes care of the details? Who finds it
easier to meet new people? Who asks more questions
in a conversation? Who is a better listener? Who has
more interest in communication skills? Who is more
inclined to get involved? Who encourages harmony and
agreement? Who has better intuition? Who works
with a longer ‘to do’ list? Who enjoys a recap to the
day’s events? Who is better at keeping in touch with
others?”
Source: Selling Is a Woman’s Game: 15 Powerful Reasons Why
Women Can Outsell Men, Nicki Joy & Susan Kane-Benson
109. It takes time to get to know people. (DUH.)
110. The very idea of “efficiency” in relationship
development is ... STUPID.
111. MBWA (still) rules.
112. “Preparing the soil” is the “first 98 percent.” (Or
more.)
113. WORK THE PHONES!
114. Rule 5K-5M: 5K miles for a 5-Minute meeting often
makes sense. (Yes, often.) (Even with constrained travel
budgets.) (Thanks, super-agent Mark McCormack.)
115. Become a student! Study great salespeople!
(Including Presidents.) (“Natural” is a little bit true—but
then Naturals are always the ones who study hardest—
e.g., Jerry Rice.)
116. Become a student! Yes, you can study Relationship
Building. So, study …
117. Beware complexifiers and complicators. (Truly
“smart people” ... Simplify things.)
118. The smartest guy in the room rarely wins—alas,
he usually is aware he’s the smartest guy. (And
needn’t waste his time on that “soft relationship
crap.”)
119. Be kind. It works.
120. Be especially kind when there are screw-ups.
(There’s plenty of time later to Play the Great
Accountability Game.)
121. Presidents never tire of being treated like
Presidents.
122.
Luck matters.
Good luck!
Tom’s
60TIBs*
*TIB = This I Believe
Sixty for Sixty: Tom’s 60TIBs
The architect Bill Caudill was a contrarian. He pioneered the
idea of working intimately with clients to create spaces that
met their needs; this flew in the face of conventional wisdom,
which held that the architect was pure artist, barely
deigning to make client contact. Caudill’s approach was
wildly successful—so much so that today it’s become
conventional wisdom.
Over the years Bill jotted notes on this and that, and began to
organize them for his children. The title of his musings: This I
Believe. After Caudill’s death, his colleagues collected the
notes and published them. That is, The TIBs of Bill Caudill.
A sixtieth birthday is a monumental occasion, and I chose,
among other things, to give myself a present to mark the/my
date in November 2002. I sat on a hill overlooking my farm
in Vermont, and scribbled down 60 thoughts, one for each
year, that seemed to capture my professional and, to
some extent, my personal journey. Those thoughts—Tom’s
60TIBs—herewith.
1. TECHNICOLOR RULES!
(Passion Moves Mountains!)
2. Audacity Matters!
3. Revolution Now!
4. Question Authority! (& Hire
Disrespectful People.)
5. Disorganization Wins! (LOVE
THE MESS!)
6. Think 3M: Markets Matter Most. ONLY EXTREME
COMPETITION STAVES OFF STALENESS. (You can
take the boy out of Silicon Valley, but you can’t take
Silicon Valley out of the boy!)
7. Three Hearty Cheers for Weirdos. (Bill Gates, Steve
Jobs, Larry Ellison, Scott McNealy, Craig Venter
et al.)
8. Message 2003: Technology Change (Info-sciences,
Biosciences) Is in Its Infancy! (WE AIN’T SEEN
NOTHIN’ YET!)
9. Everything Is Up For Grabs! Volatility Is Thy Name!
(Forever & Ever. Amen.) RE-INVENT … OR DIE!
10. Big Sucks. (Mostly.) (VERY Mostly.)
11. “Permanence” Is a Snare & a Delusion.
(Forget “Built to Last.” It’s Yesterday’s
Idea.)
12. Kaizen” (Continuous Improvement) Is …
Dangerous.
13. DESTRUCTION RULES!
14. Forget It! (“Learning” = Easy. “Forgetting” =
Nigh on Impossible.)
15. Innovation Is Easy: Hang Out with Freaks.
(Employees, Board Members, Customers,
Suppliers, Alliance Partners, Consultants.)
16. Boring Begets Boring. (Cool Begets Cool.)
17. Think “Portfolio.” (We’re All V.C.s.)
18. Perception Is All There Is. (“Insiders” …
ALWAYS … overestimate the Radicalism of
What They’re Up To.)
19. Action … ALWAYS … Takes Precedence.
Think: R.F!A./Ready. Fire! Aim. (REWARD
SUCCESS. REWARD FAILURE. PUNISH …
INACTION.)
20. He Who Makes & Tests the Quickest &
Coolest Prototypes Reigns!
21. Haste Makes Waste. (SO GO WASTE!)
22. Screw-ups are … the … Mark of Excellence.
(“Do It Right the First Time” Is a Very Stupid
Idea.)
23. Play Hard! Play Now! (Cherish Play!)
24. TALENT TIME! (He/She Who Has the Best
“Roster” Rules!)
25. Re-do Education. Totally. (FOSTER
CREATIVITY … NOT UNIFORMITY.) (THE
NOISIEST CLASSROOM WINS.)
26. Diversity’s Hour Is Now!
27. SHE … Is the Best Leader!
28. MARKETING MANTRA: Embrace the “BIG THREE”
Demographics. (1) SHE … is the Customer. (For
everything.) (2) Rapidly Aging Boomers Have …
ALL THE MONEY. (3) Green … Matters.
(TRILLIONS OF $$$$$ Are at Stake.) (NOBODY …
Gets It.) (Mere “Programs” Will Not Suffice.)
29. Re-boot Healthcare. (UNDERSTATEMENT.)
30. WHAT ARE WE SELLING? “Experiences” &
“Solutions” > “Quality” & “Satisfaction.” (The
Traditional Value-added Equation Is Being Set on
Its Ear.)
31. DESIGN = New Seat of the Soul.
32. Branding Is for … EVERYONE. He Who Has
the … BEST STORY … Takes Home the
Marbles.
33. DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE = Only Difference.
34. WORDS/Language Matters … a Lot. (E.g.:
Three Hearty Cheers for “Wow”!)
35. WHAT MATTERS IS STUFF THAT MATTERS.
(Query #1: “Are You Proud of It?”)
36. eALL. (IS/IT: Half-way = No Way.)
37. DREAM … Big! DREAM … Enormous.
DREAM … Gargantuan. (These Are XXXL
Times.)
38. THINK MIKE! (Michelangelo: “The greatest
danger for most of us is not that our aim is
too high and we miss it, but that it is too low
and we reach it.”)
39. There Is Only … ONE BIG ISSUE. Crossfunctional Communication.
40. Stop Doing Dumb Shit. (SYSTEMATIZE THE
PROCESS OF “UN-DUMBING.”)
41. Beautiful Systems Are … BEAUTIFUL.
42. The … WHITE-COLLAR REVOLUTION … Will
Devour Everything in Its Path.
43. Take Charge of Your Destiny! BrandYou
Moment! DISTINCT … OR EXTINCT!
44. “Powerlessness” Is a State of Mind! Think:
King. Gandhi. De Gaulle.
45. Pursue Adventure … in Every Task.
46. EXCELLENCE … Is a State of Mind.
(Excellence Takes a Minute.) (No Bull.)
47. SHOW UP! (If You Care, You’re There.)
48. YOUR CALENDAR KNOWS ALL. (You =
Calendar.) (Mind Your “TO DON’T” List.)
49. LIFE IS SALES. (The Rest Is Details.)
50. Boss Mantra #1: “I DON’T KNOW.” (“I Don’t
Know” = Permission to Explore.)
51. Management Role 1: GET OUT OF THE WAY.
(Clear the Way.) (“Manager” = Hurdle
Removal Professional.)
52. Epitaph from Hell: “He Woulda Done Some
Truly Cool Stuff … But His Boss Wouldn’t
Let Him.”
53. Change Takes However Long You Think It
Takes. (Eschew … “Incrementalism.”)
54. Respect! (Rule 1: Don’t Belittle!)
55. “Thank You” Trumps All!
56. Integrity Matters! Integrity = Credibility.
(Dennis K. Is a Jerk.)
57. SOFT IS HARD. HARD IS SOFT. (Numbers
Are Soft. People Are Not.)
58. Try Sunny! (Sunny Begets Sunny.
Gloomy Begets Gloomy.)
59. DISPENSE ENTHUSIASM!
60. FUN …Is Not a 4-Letter Word. So, too …
JOY. (And … GRACE.)
Tom Peters’
to-mA-to
to-mah-to
New Delhi. Thirteen September 2004. I awoke,
jetlagged and sweaty, at 3A.M. I’d had a
nightmare. Stark realism. I was, as usual,
accused of overstatement and a few (or more)
too many exclamation marks (!!!!!). Only this
time I’d acceded to “They.” The “They” who
believe in “The Plan” and “Built to Last” and
“Continuous Improvement” and “Quiet,
Humble Leaders.” No! No! I had failed, in my
dream, to live up to my Fervent Beliefs! This
must not pass! In a sweat, fearful that the time
would not come ‘round again, I turned on the
light, picked up a pad of paper, and began to
scribble frantically. Herewith the result.
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say … my (Tom) language is extreme.
I say … the times are extreme.
They say I’m extreme.
I say I’m a realist.
They say I demand too much.
I say they accept mediocrity & continuous improvement
too readily.
They say “We can’t handle this much change.”
I say “Your job and career are in jeopardy; what other
options do you have?”
They say Brand You is not for everyone.
I say the alternative is unemployment.
They say “What’s wrong with a ‘good product’?”
I say Wal*Mart or China or both are about to eat your
lunch. Why can’t you provide instead a Fabulous
Experience?
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Take a deep breath. Be calm.”
I say “Tell it to Wal*Mart. Tell it to China. Tell it
to India. Tell it to Dell. Tell it to Microsoft.”
They say the Web is a “useful tool.”
I say the Web changes everything. Now.
They say “We need an Initiative.”
I say “We need a Dream. And Dreamers.”
They say Great Design is “nice.”
I say Great Design is “necessary.”
They say I “overplay” the “women’s thing.”
I say the share of Women in Senior Leadership
Positions is a Waste and a Disgrace and a
Strategic Marketing Error.
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say the Women’s Market Opportunity I harp on is “doubtless
important.”
I say 9 out of 10, make that 99 out of 100, companies aren’t
within striking distance of accurately estimating the potential
of the Women’s Market … let alone exploiting it.
They say the boomer-geezer market is also “doubtless important.”
I say the boomer-geezer market amounts to a Redefining
Moment.
They say we need a “project” to exploit the women-boomer-geezer market.
I say we need Total Strategic Realignment to exploit the
Women-Boomer-Geezer Opportunity.
They say “Wow” is “typical Tom.”
I say “WOW” is a Minimum Survival Requirement.
They say “effective governance” is important.
I say bold-brash Boards that are representative of the market
served—more than a token woman or two and an empty seat
for the “forthcoming Hispanic”—are an Imperative. Now.
They say
“Better.”
I say
“Different!”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Plan it.”
I say “DO IT.”
They say “We need more steady, loyal employees.”
I say “WE NEED MORE FREAKS WHO ROUTINELY TELL
THOSE ‘IN CHARGE’ TO TAKE A FLYING LEAP …
BEFORE IT’S TOO LATE.”
They say “We need Good People.”
I say “We need Quirky Talent.”
They say “We like people who, with steely determination, say,
“I can make it better.’”
I say “I love people who, with a certain maniacal gleam
in their eye, perhaps even a giggle, say, ‘I can turn
the world upside down. Watch me!’”
They say “We must speed things up.”
I say “We must Radically change the Corporate
Metabolism until Insane Urgency becomes
a Sacrament.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say, “Sure, we need ‘Change.’”
I say we need “REVOLUTION NOW.”
They say (acknowledge), “Okay, we need revolution.”
I say,
“REVOLUTION.”
They say “fast follower.”
I say “battered and bruised leader.”
They say “Conglomerate & Imitate!”
I say “Create & Innovate!”
They say “Market share.”
I say “Market CREATION.”
They say “Improve & Maintain.”
I say “DESTROY & RE-IMAGINE.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “We like words such as ‘calm’ … ‘certainty’ … ‘is.’”
I say “I like words/phrases such as ‘turbulent’
‘opportunity’ … ‘might be’.”
They vote for Republicans and Democrats.
I vote for Independents and Libertarians.
They say “Normal.”
I say “Weird.”
They say “Happy balance.”
I say “Creative Tension.”
They say they favor a “team” that works & lives in “harmony.”
I say “give me a raucous brawl among the most
creative people imaginable.”
They say “Peace, brother.”
I say “Bruise my feelings. Flatten my ego.
SAVE MY JOB.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Vanilla.”
I say “Cherry Garcia.”
They say “Basic Black.”
I say “TECHNICOLOR RULES!”
They say “Branding is for the likes of Nike.”
I say “Branding is for Everyone & Anyone with the
Passion & Tenacity to foist their Wonderful & Weird
Point of View on the world … and the New World’s
(read: Web’s) power allows-encourages such “silly”
(until recently) visions-of-ubiquity to become reality,
perhaps overnight.”
They say we need “happy customers.”
I say “Give me pushy, needy, nasty, provocative
customers who will drag me down Innovation
Boulevard.”
They say they want to partner with “best of breed.”
I say “Give me Coolest of Breed.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say we need “supply chain harmony.”
I say we need “supply chain Innovation.”
They say “We seek Harvard MBAs.”
I say I seek Certificate-free “PhDs” from the School
of Hard Knocks.
They say they want recruits with a “spotless records.”
I say “the Spots are what matter most.”
They say “Integrity is important.”
I say “Tell the Unvarnished Truth, All the Time …
or take a Long Hike.”
They read Jim Collins and grok on “quiet, humble leaders.”
I say “Give me the Bold, the Brash, the Brassy, the
Egocentric Dreamers who, like Steve Jobs,
‘Dent the Universe.’”
They say
“Improve.”
I say
“Re-imagine!”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say they need a “vision” born of McKinsey.
I say we need a “Grandiose Dream” born of a Passionate
& Intemperate Belief that the world can be a different,
better place.
They say healthcare, our biggest industry, is “a mess.”
I say our hospitals, which kill over 100,000 patients a
year, are part of a system that is “a disgrace.”
They say “obesity is a problem” … “lose some weight.”
I say Re-imagine the entire healthcare system …
NOW … to focus on Prevention & Wellness.
They say “no child left behind.”
I say “education” is leaving ALL our children behind,
as it is totally mis-aligned to deal with tomorrow’s
(this afternoon’s) uncertain, ambiguous, creativitydriven economy.
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say, “Of course we believe in marketing.”
I say “Is the CMO [Chief Marketing Officer] on the Board
of Directors?”
They say “Of course we believe in marketing.”
I say “Has your customer data base won numerous major industry awards?”
They say “Of course we believe in marketing.”
I say “Is your Web site Sooooo Cool, Sooooo Fresh, Sooooo
Friendly to Use that it gives you goose pimples just to e-visit,
even though you’ve seen it 1000 times?”
They say “Of course we believe in marketing.”
I say “How many in-depth customer visits did the CEO make
last month?”
They say “Yes, the ‘Women’s thing’ is important.”
I say “Do women hold at least 1/3rd of your Board seats?”
They say “We’re coming around on the design bit.”
I say “Is, as at Braun, your Chief Design Officer on the Board
of Directors?”
Tom’ Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Of course we think the ‘experiences thing’ is
important.”
I say “Is there an ‘EVP Experiences’?”
They say “Of course innovation is important.”
I say “Is your percentage of revenue devoted to R&D
at least 1.5 (2.0? 2.5?) times the industry average?”
They say “Of course we believe in IS/IT.”
I say “Is the CIO on the Board of Directors?” (Only 5% of
Fortune500 CIOs are on the Board. One example:
Wal*Mart.)
They say “Of course we believe in IS/IT.”
I say “How many members of your Board are under 35
years old?”
They say “We believe in having a ‘flat organization.’”
I say “Is your headquarters in a Tower?”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say we need to “bring effectiveness to the supply chain.”
I say we need an IS/IT/Best Sourcing revolution based
on nothing less than an Entirely Original Vision of what
organizations are and how they interact.
They say “Globalization is a bumpy road.”
I say India and China and Asia in general are within two
decades of running the show: Get ready or get
trounced.
They say “defense” and “consolidation” are musts for a global
game.
I say encourage Offense, nurture a Generation (or 10) of
Entrepreneurs, cherish Creativity & Risk-taking from
primary school onwards … and don’t expect to be
saved by a bunch of bulky, retro behemoth commanded
by a phalanx of Old White Guys who think 30 minutes a
day on the corporate treadmill and 27 holes on the
links are a fit defense against Revolution.
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Get an MBA.”
I say “Get an MFA.”
They say “If it can’t be precisely measured then it isn’t real.” (And I
suppose if it can be measured it is real? Think Enron? Adelphia?
WorldCom?)
I say “If it can be precisely measured it isn’t real.” (Think
Age of Intangibles & Relationships.) (Think: “He knew
the price of everything and the value of nothing.”)
They say “Rationality is the Bedrock of Modern Society.”
I say “Irrationality [irrational exuberance?] is the Mother
of all True Entrepreneurial Pilgrimages.”
They say “Order is the necessary precursor to measured,
sustainable success.”
I say “Dis-order is the precursor to Opportunistic Sorties,
Market Creation, Quantum Leaps, and Entrepreneurial
Adventure.
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “To get anywhere, you have to know exactly where the
hell you’re headed.”
I say “If you know precisely where you’re headed and
exactly how you’re gonna get there, then you clearly
suffer from Advanced Shrivelus Imaginationus.”
(This disease is fatal.)
They say “Employees need Well-defined Structure.”
I say “Talent should be encouraged to embark on Quests
to the Unknown.”
They say “I’m here to maximize shareholder value.”
I say “I’m here to inflame each & every member of my
Awesome Staff to embark with Vigor & Determination
& Passion & Enthusiasm on a Quest of Monumental
Consequence.” (And if I come even close to succeeding,
it will, in fact, dramatically up the odds of Thriving
Amidst Today’s Chaos—and creating untold shareholder
value in the process.)
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “men.”
I say “WOMEN.”
They say Diversity is a “good thing.”
I say Diversity is a Fresh Breath of Creative Air … Absolutely
Necessary for Economic Salvation in perilous times.
They say “Wait your turn, honor those who have marched these corridors
before you.”
I say Get Off Your Butt & Go for the Gold … TODAY … or sign
the transfer papers willing your job in perpetuity to a
Chinese or Indian who Gives a Shit and Gets Up
(VERY) Early and works Saturdays & Sundays.
They say “offshoring” is a “blight.”
I say the Earth proved not to be the center of the Solar
System … and the USA is not the epicenter-in-perpetuity
of the Earth … and that we had best learn … NOW … to
prosper and take pleasure in a dynamic, exciting, creative,
multi-polar economic environment. (Damn it.)
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “It’s a fright.”
I say “It’s a Helluva Ride.”
They say it’s “daunting.”
I say it’s “a bronco-bustin’ day at the rodeo.”
They say “Life is a marathon; husband your strength.”
I say “Life is a sprint. Begin planning your World-beating
Me Inc. start-up … TODAY.”
They say lifetime employment was a boon.
I say lifetime employment was Indentured Servitude,
modern-day Slavery.
They say “safety net.”
I say “I am my safety net; give me some version of the
‘Ownership Society.’”
They say “zero defects.”
I say “A day without a screwup or two is a day pissed
away.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Think about it.”
I say “Try it.”
They say “Plan it.”
I say “Test it.”
They say “continuous improvement.”
I say “Bold Leaps.”
They say “Keep on Improvin’.”
I say “Keep on Leapin’.”
They say “Built to last.”
I say “Built to Soar. We’re all dead in the long run …
live your Insane Fantasy. Devil take the hindmost.”
They (Jim Collins) say “Walgreens is Cool.”
I say “I love Larry Ellison.” (Oracle rules … at least
for the next ten minutes.)
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “Play the odds.”
I say “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre
successes.” (Thanks, Phil Daniels.)
They say “Eighty-hour weeks will kill you.”
I say “Work 35-hour weeks, and the Chinese will
kill you.”
They say “Install cost controls with teeth.”
I say “Ha. Ha. Ha. Blow Up the existing enterprise and
start with a Clean Sheet of Paper.”
They say “Install cost controls with teeth.”
I say “Grow the Top Line.”
They say “Radical change takes a decade.”
I say “Radical change takes a Minute.” (See AA.)
They say “Times are changing.”
I say “Everything has already changed. Tomorrow is the
First Day of Your Revolution … or you’re Toast.”
Tom’s Re-imagine Manifesto!
They say “We can’t all be Anita Roddick or Maxine Clark or Stan
Shih or Les Wexner or Jerry Yang.”
I say “Why not?”
They say “We can’t all be Revolutionaries.”
I say “Why not?”
They say “We can’t all be a Brand.”
I say “Why not?”
They say “Beware the Hype.”
I say “Been to China lately? Visited Infosys in
Bangalore lately?”
They say this is just a Rant.
I say this is just Reality.
They say “The man is not nice.”
I say “The times are not forgiving.”
EXCELLE
ALWAYS