Collins and his research team studied companies that made the leap from good to great and compared them to good companies to identify differences. They found the most important factor was sustained success and growth that outpaced peers. Example companies that made the leap included Abbott, Fannie Mae, and Walgreens. Key factors included having disciplined people and thought and Level 5 leadership, which prioritized the long-term success of the company over personal gain. Great companies also approached problems and new technologies with careful deliberation and existed for a higher purpose than just profits.

1. G O O D T O
G R E AT
W h y S o m e C o m p a n i e s M a k e
t h e L e a p … a n d O t h e r s D o n ’t
B o o k B y J i m C o l l i n s
S l i d e s b y R y a n B a t t l e s
C O L L I N S , J A M E S C . G O O D T O G R E AT: W H Y S O M E
C O M PA N I E S M A K E T H E L E A P - - A N D O T H E R S D O N ' T.
N E W Y O R K , N Y: H A R P E R B U S I N E S S , 2 0 0 1 .

2. Collins and his research team selected
“great” companies.

3. The most important factor in the selection
process was a period of growth and
sustained success that far outpaced the
market or industry average.

4. The companies that were selected for
inclusion were Abbott, Fannie Mae, Circuit
City, Gillette, Kimberly-Clark, Kroger, Nucor,
Philip Morris, Pitney Bowes,Walgreens, and
Wells Fargo.

5. CEO compensation, technology, mergers
and acquisitions, and change management
initiatives played relatively minor roles in
fostering the Good to Great process

6. Disciplined people, disciplined thought, and
disciplined action, were likely the most
significant factors in determining a
company’s ability to achieve greatness.

7. One of the unique factors and variables that
differentiate good and great companies is
the quality and nature of leadership in the
firm.

8. Many of these leaders of great companies
displayed an unusual mix of intense
determination and profound humility.

9. These leaders often have a long-term
personal sense of investment in the
company and its success, often cultivated
through a career-spanning climb up the
company’s ranks.

10. The personal ego and individual financial
gain are not as important as the long-term
benefit of the team and the company to true
Level 5 leaders.

11. The much-touted trend of bringing in a
celebrity CEO to turn around a flailing firm is
usually not conducive to fostering the
transition from Good to Great.

12. Securing high-quality, high-talent individuals
with Level 5 leadership abilities must be
undertaken before an overarching strategy
can be developed.

13. Move potentially failing employees and
managers to new positions, but don’t
hesitate to remove personnel who are not
actively contributing.

14. Great companies are able to identify and
assess defining facts in the company and in
the larger business environment.

15. To find emerging trends and potential
problems:

16. 1) Lead with questions, not answers

17. 2) Engage in dialogue and debate, not
coercion

18. 3) Conduct autopsies without blame

19. 4) Build red flag mechanisms that turn
information into information that cannot be
ignored.

20. Simplicity can sometimes lead to greatness.

21. When confronted by predators, the
hedgehog’s simple but surprisingly effective
response is to roll up into a ball. While other
predators, such as the fox, may be
impressively clever, few can devise a strategy
that is effective enough to overcome the
hedgehog’s simple, repetitive response.

22. In great companies, each individual
functions as an entrepreneur, with a deeply
rooted personal investment in both their
own work and the company’s success.

23. Great companies approach the prospect of
new and emerging technologies with the
same prudence and careful deliberation that
characterizes all of their other business
decisions

24. By making decisions and taking actions that
reinforce and affirm the company’s
"hedgehog" competencies, executives
initiate positive momentum.

25. Companies need to exist for a higher
purpose than mere profit generation in
order to transcend the category of merely
good.

26. T H I S H A S B E E N A B R I E F O V E R V I E W O F T H E
M A I N I D E A S O F G O O D T O G R E AT.
!
B U Y T H E B O O K F O R T H E F U L L E X P E R I E N C E
!
C O L L I N S , J A M E S C . G O O D T O G R E AT: W H Y
S O M E C O M PA N I E S M A K E T H E L E A P - - A N D
O T H E R S D O N ' T. N E W Y O R K , N Y:
H A R P E R B U S I N E S S , 2 0 0 1 .
!
A L L P R O D U C T A N D C O M PA N Y N A M E S A R E
T R A D E M A R K S O R R E G I S T E R E D T R A D E M A R K S O F
T H E I R R E S P E C T I V E H O L D E R S . U S E O F T H E M
D O E S N O T I M P LY A N Y A F F I L I AT I O N W I T H O R
E N D O R S E M E N T B Y T H E M .

27. D O W N L O A D
T H E B U S I N E S S B O O K C O L L E C T I O N
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