Eastbook.com Book Review

Hal F. Rosenbluth, Diane McFerrin Peters

Good Company: Caring As Fiercely As You Compete

Business Nugget by Robert Morris

In Good Company (published by Addison-Wesley), co-authors Hal F. Rosenbluth and Diane McFerrin Peters assert that the “best” companies are “good” companies: they care as fiercely about people as they do about competition. Which people? Those who work for them, course, as well as those who buy what they sell but also those from whom they buy and with whom they compete. In fact, everyone with whom they come in contact.

It is no mere coincidence that the same companies which the editors of Fortune annually rate as the “most admired” also have the greatest cap value. For the co-authors of Good Company, the term “good” refers to character as well as to competence, to decency as well as to dedication. In their book, they examine their “peers from the top 100”, explaining why the best companies to work for are the best companies to work with.

Good Company is divided into nine chapters. Their titles are:

Burning Issues
Design for Speed
Human Resources: In the Boardroom, Not on the Sidelines
Maximizing Brainpower
Addicted to Learning
We’re Not Born into Leadership: We Convert
Activists for the Internal Environment
One World, One Company
Mind Meld

How simplistic! Hire and train only SWANs (those who are Smart, Work hard, are Ambitious and Nice); insist that they treat each other and everyone else with respect; provide them with whatever resources they need to achieve superior performance; reward them handsomely for such performance; and have them actively and constantly involved in identifying other SWANs who may be needed now or later. Hal F. Rosenbluth and Diane McFerrin Peters agree that “a company’s most valuable assets walk out the door at the end of each day.” In their brilliant analyses of various companies (including their own), they identify both the positive and (yes) negative implications of this by-now familiar statement.

Good Company is a terrific book. Beginning with Chapter 2 through Chapter 8, the co-authors provide a detailed summary of key points at the end of each chapter. These summaries offer excellent checklists that could, perhaps, be discussed individually during a staff or department meeting called to focus on a specific topic such as “speed.” All by themselves, the summaries are well worth the price of the book.

In 1992, Rosenbluth “became obsessed with designing our corporate structure into one that was a step ahead of the change curve.” Although Rosenbluth International had been prospering beyond his wildest dreams, he experienced precisely the same “paranoia” which Andrew Grove describes in Only the Paranoid Survive. All manner of changes were occurring in each of Rosenbluth International’s various competitive marketplaces. Hence the need, indeed the compelling need for a re-designed corporate structure. After extensive research, Rosenbluth still was not satisfied. Then, as he explains in Chapter 2, while riding on his ranch in North Dakota, he recognized “the perfect model for our corporate structure: the family farm, the best, most efficient, friendly, honest, team-oriented business structure in the world.” How simplistic!

But consider these correlations: “Farming -- like travel services and plenty of other businesses -- is all about merging cutting-edge technology and down-to-earth people. The demands are the same: to survive on razor-thin profit margins, react instantly to unpredictable changes, control resources meticulously, and come up with new ways to sell a commodity that, at first glance, seems indistinguishable from the other guy’s product.” In other words, a multi-billion dollar international corporation would be totally restructured to function like a family farm.

Corporate headquarters is the “town”
Corporate departments are “stores” whose only function is to support the “farms”
“Farms” are individual business units
Whenever possible and appropriate, “farms” share resources and thereby become “cooperatives”
The “leaders in learning” program enables “farms” to function effectively
Clients are be “the crop” to be nourished and harvested

Rosenbluth then explains that “If a business unit doesn’t retain its clients, there will be no business unit. If the business unit does not grow its base, there will be no growth for those in the unit. It’s self-motivating, self-perpetuating, self-pruning.”

One of the most valuable points in Good Company is that almost any company (regardless of size or nature) can learn a great deal from the family farm model. Obviously, there will be significant differences between and among companies in terms of how they define terms such as “farm land”, “seeds”, “crops”, “harvest, “going to market”, etc. Fair enough.

Actually, Good Company examines two models: the Rosenbluth “farm” as well as the generic “family farm.” Better yet, Rosenbluth and Peters take a close look at fifteen other companies that vary widely in terms of size and nature. “What do all of these companies share in common?” Good Company answers that question. “Why are these same companies rated the most highly respected?” Same answer. “What must our own company do to fully achieve our greatest potential.” Same answer.

First read Good Company. Then re-read it. Then decide what would be the most appropriate ways to implement what it shares. Thereafter, if you are so inclined and wish to share your own experiences, Hal F. Rosenbluth and Diane McFerrin Peters would welcome your feedback:

Good Company
c/o Rosenbluth International
2401 Walnut Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103
(215) 977-4000
E-mail: goodcompany@rosenbluth.com

Find the full list of Robert Morris's Business Nuggets featured by Eastbook.com here.

Order Information:

Good Company 1998 Perseus Hardcover Edition Amazon.com

Good Company 1998 Addison Wesley Hardcover Edition Amazon.co.uk

Associated Titles:

Andrew Grove Only the Paranoid Survive Amazon.com

Andrew Grove Only the Paranoid Survive Amazon.co.uk

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