Bo Burlingham

It felt like listening to a business expert mentor you with his experiences. To be polite you listen to the mentor tell you things you already know waiting for the new stuff. The stories were interesting and even the things you already knew he sheds some new light there. While I liked many of his examples an abbreviated version would be best.

Mr. Stack is the President and CEO of SRC, a company that remanufactures engines. It was spun off of International Harvester when that company just about went bankrupt. Mr. Stack discusses his management style of the company that is quite unique in the business world today. He believes that employees should be given all the information of what is going on in the company so they can participate. That means everyone in the company has the access to and the ability to understand all the show more financials. Everyone in the company knows the plan, what the goals are, what they need to do to accomplish the goal and what the reward is going to be for making that goal. There are no hidden agendas, no unterior motives, no secret plans. Everyone is involved and accountable for the results.

It is a novel approach to doing business and I can't help but think it has to work. Giving people ownership in the company and sharing in the rewards must be the greatest motivator of all. Having lived through many rumor mills, political struggles, and other secret maneuverings, I have to wonder what all the secrecy is for. Keeping people in the dark demonstrates a lack of trust and therefore breeds mistrust. Employees are adults. If they can't handle the cold, hard facts of their company, they should look for some other place to work. I can't see where anything but good can come of sharing the information.

I recommend this book to everyone. He shares what has worked and what hasn't. The stories are very interesting. He doesn't pull any punches. He admist freely where he has made mistakes and where the employees have banded together to make the impossible happen. In the end, it is only the line workers that can really make anything happen, so why not give them what they really want - information and control over their destiny. It can only be successful. show less

Good story telling by Norm. But each story has a practical lesson.

Chapter 1 - About helping the 1st couple he ever wrote about learn how to run a business
- Personal and emotional goals.
- Focus on Gross Margin (most important number in business he says)
- Don't chase sales at the expense of margin
- He explains how low margin sales eat into capital
- The concept of a Critical Mass of customers who you can count on to bring in enough revenue to keep the business viable.

Chapter 2 - Focus
- Have to show more pick one idea and focus on it. Don't get distracted till that business has reached critical mass. Good explanation of Critical Mass. show less

I have always wondered isnt faster sales, higher growth, and many other KPIs on which businesses and individuals are rated ... are inherently like accelerating your car when you know the road is about to end... this book addresses this dilemma!