World Innovation Forum* (Modesty is everything) EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG (*Except, of course, what the other presenters.

World Innovation Forum*(*Modesty is everything)

EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW

ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG*

(*Except, of course, what the other presenters have said/will say)

Tom Peters/New York/0524.2006

“In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they

had warfare, terror, murder, bloodshed—and produced Michelangelo,

da Vinci and the Renaissance. In

Switzerland they had brotherly love,

500 years of democracy and peace, and what did they

produce—Source: Orson Welles, as Harry Lime, in The Third Man

—the cuckoo clock.”

PREVIEW.

“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

“The most successful

people are those who

are good at plan B.”

—James Yorke, mathematician, on chaos theory in The New Scientist

“We are in a brawl with

no rules.” —Paul Allaire

S.A.V.

Sam’s Secret

#1!

“Reward excellent failures.

Punish mediocre

successes.”Phil Daniels, Sydney exec

“In Tom’s world, it’s always better to try

a swan dive and deliver a colossal belly flop than to

step timidly off the board while holding

your nose.” —Fast Company

/October2003

Nelson’s secret:

“[Other] admirals more frightened of losing than

anxious to win”

Inno.0524.06

What “We” Know “For Sure” About Innovation

Big mergers [by & large] don’t workScale is over-rated

Strategic planning is the last refuge of scoundrelsFocus 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’tAll 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 “cause & effect” memoirs of CEOs you should be institutionalized

“Herd behavior” (XYZ is “hot”) is ubiquitous … and amusing“Top teams” are “Dittoheads”

Statistically, CEOs have little effect on performance“Expert” prediction is rarely better than rolling the dice

Blitzkrieg?

Smashing Conventional Wisdom

“Blitzkrieg in fact emerged in a rather haphazard way from the experience of the French campaign,

whose success surprised the Germans as much as the French. Why otherwise did the High Command try on various occasions, with Hitler’s backing, to slow the panzers down? The victory in France* came about

partly because the German High Command temporarily lost control of the battle. The decisive moment in this process was Guderian’s decision to move immediately westward on 14 May, the day

after the Meuse crossing, wrenching the whole of the rest of the army along behind him.”

*messed up traffic, little close air support, random heroics by some small bits of Guderian’s forces, Guderian not a disciple of

the WWI-derived “strategy of indirect approach”

Source: Julian Jackson, The Fall of France

False Attributions

German citizenry low morale, no appetite for war

3rd Republic government rather well regarded

French Army in good shape, surprisingly well armed, decent strategy (in dozens of simulations, French usually win)

Blitzkrieg not used

Germans very vulnerable

Lousy French intelligence* and luck perhaps determinant (*“intelligence information tends to be sifted to reinforce

received ideas rather than to overturn them”)

Many plausible competing hypotheses

Source: Julian Jackson, The Fall of France (cf Nassim Nicholas Taleb, Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets.)

First-level Scientific Success

The smartest guy in the room wins”

Or …

First-level Scientific Success

FanaticismPersistence-Dogged Tenacity

Patience (long haul/decades)-Impatience (in a hurry/”do it yesterday”)

PassionEnergy

Relentlessness (Grant-ian)

EnthusiasmDriven (nuts!)

(Brutal?) CompetitivenessEntrepreneurialPragmatic (R.F!A.)

Scrounge (“gets” the logistics-infrastructure bit)

Master of Politics (internal-external)Tactical Genius

Pursuit of (Oceanic) Excellence!High EQ/Skillful in Attracting + Keeping Talent/Magnetic

Prolific (“ground up more pig brains”)

Egocentric

Sense of History-DestinyFuturistic-In the Moment

Mono-dimensional (“Work-life balance”? Ha!)

Exceptionally IntelligentExceptionally Clever (methodological shortcuts/methodological genius)

Luck

Containerization*

*Malcom McLean

Lessons

Need-drivenA thousand “parents”

MessyEvolutionary

“Trivial”Experimentation

trial & ERRORLoooong time for systemic adaptation/s

(many innovations) (bill of lading, standard time)

Not …

“Plan-driven”The product of “Strategic Thinking/Planning”

The product of “focus groups”

Innovation’s “Secrets”

Revealed: Get mad. Do

something about it. Now.

EXCELLENCE.

PREVIEW.

Synonyms

PurityTranscendence

VirtueEleganceMajesty

Synonyms

PurityTranscendence


Antonym/s

Mediocrity

Antonym/s

Mediocrity

Whoops!

Franchise Lost!

TP: “How many of you [600] really

crave a new Chevy?”

NYC/IIR/061205

“Deutsche Bank Moves Half of Its Back-office Jobs to India”/

headline/FT/0327; 500 of 900 Research;

JPMorgan Chase—30% back-office by 12.31.07

New Economy?!

Genentech09, Amgen09

> Merck09 (70K-3/394B-5)

New Economy?!

Sergey + Larry >

Harvard/370

Pathetic!

“Forbes100” from 1917 to 1987: 39 members of the Class of ’17 were

alive in ’87; 18 in ’87 F100; 18 F100 “survivors” underperformed the

market by 20%; just 2 (2%), GE &

Kodak, outperformed the market 1917 to 1987.

S&P 500 from 1957 to 1997: 74 members of the Class of ’57 were alive in ’97; 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

“I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs seeking escape from life within huge corporate structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for myself?’ The

answer seems obvious: Buy a very large one and just wait.”

—Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail: Evolution, Extinction and Economics

“A pattern emphasized in the case studies in this book is the degree to which powerful competitors not only resist innovative threats, but actually resist all efforts to understand them, preferring to further their positions in older products. This results in a

surge of productivity and performance that may take the old technology to unheard of heights. But in most cases this is a sign of

impending death.” —Jim Utterback, Mastering the Art of Innovation

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

“The difficulties arise from the inherent conflict between the need to control existing operations and the need to

create the kind of environment that will permit new

ideas to flourish—and old ones to die a timely death. …

We believe that most corporations will find it impossible to match or

outperform the market without abandoning the assumption of continuity. … The current apocalypse—the

transition from a state of continuity to state of discontinuity—has the same suddenness as the trauma

that beset civilization in 1000 A.D.”

Richard Foster & Sarah Kaplan, “Creative Destruction” (The McKinsey Quarterly)

“But what if [former head of strategic planning at Royal Dutch Shell] Arie De Geus is wrong in suggesting, in The Living Company, that firms

should aspire to live forever? Greatness is fleeting and, for corporations, it will become

ever more fleeting. The ultimate aim of a business organization, an

artist, an athlete or a stockbroker may be to explode in a dramatic frenzy of value creation during a short space

of time, rather than to live forever.” —Kjell Nordström and Jonas Ridderstråle, Funky Business

F500 Exodus

1970-1990: 4XSource: The Company, John Micklethwait & Adrian Wooldridge

(1974-2000: One-half biggest 100 disappear)

Exit, Stage Right …

CEO “departure” rate, 1995-2004:

+300%

Source: Booz Allen Hamilton

“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

“When asked to name just one big merger that had lived up to

expectations, Leon Cooperman, former cochairman of Goldman

Sachs’ Investment Policy

Committee, answered: I’m sure there are

success stories out there, but at this moment I draw a

blank.” —Mark Sirower, The Synergy Trap

“Not a single company that qualified as having made a sustained transformation ignited its leap with a big

acquisition or merger. Moreover, comparison companies—those that failed to

make a leap or, if they did, failed to sustain it—often tried to make themselves great with a

big acquisition or merger. They failed to grasp the simple truth that while you can buy

your way to growth, you cannot buy your way

to greatness.” —Jim Collins/Time/2004

Spinoffs perform better than IPOs … track

record, profits … “freed from the confines of the parent … more entrepreneurial, more

nimble” —Jerry Knight/Washington Post/08.05

Market Share, Anyone?

240 industries: Market-share leader is ROA leader

29% of the time

Source: Donald V. Potter, Wall Street Journal

Market Share, Anyone?

— 240 industries: Market- share leader is ROA leader 29% of the time

— Profit /ROA leaders: “aggressively weed out customers who generate low returns”

Source: Donald V. Potter, Wall Street Journal

“I don’t believe in

economies of scale. You don’t get better by being bigger. You get worse.” —

Dick Kovacevich/Wells Fargo/Forbes/08.04 (ROA: Wells, 1.7%; Citi, 1.5%; BofA, 1.3%;

J.P. Morgan Chase, 0.9%)

Scale?

“Microsoft’s Struggle With

Scale” —Headline, FT, 09.2005

“Troubling Exits at Microsoft” —Cover Story, BW, 09.2005

“Too Big to Move Fast?” —Headline, BW, 09.2005

“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

“Almost every personal friend I have in the world works on Wall Street. You can buy and sell the same company six times and everybody makes

money, but I’m not sure we’re actually

innovating. … Our challenge is

to take nanotechnology into the future, to do

personalized medicine …” —Jeff Immelt/2005

More than $$$$

#1 R&D spending,

last 25 years?

GM

10,000,000,000,000*

*2,000,000,000

Bacteria. (“Left tail” limits.)

Productivity of small.Failure rate of Big Mergers.

Failure rate of Big Companies.Terrorists.

Galbraith vs Hayek.

There’s “A” and then

there’s “A.”

Inno.0524.06












Characteristics of the “Also rans”*

“Minimize risk”“Respect the chain of

command”“Support the boss”

“Make budget”*Fortune, on “Most Admired Global Corporations”

“Under his former boss, Jack Welch, the skills GE prized above all others were cost-cutting, efficiency and deal-making. What mattered was the continual improvement of operations, and that mindset helped the $152 billion industrial and finance behemoth become a marvel of

earnings consistency. Immelt hasn’t turned his back on

the old ways. But in his GE, the new imperatives are

risk-taking, sophisticated

marketing and, above all, innovation.” —BW/2005

“[Immelt] is now identifying technologies with which GE

will … systematically set out to build

entirely new industries” —Strategy+Business, Fall

2005

“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 so many got

caught, and earnings went to hell. They said, ‘Oh my gosh,

you need revenues to grow earnings over time.’ Well, Duh!”

—Dick Kovacevich, Wells Fargo

CRO*

*Chief Revenue Officer

EXCELLENCE.

4/40.

4/40

De-cent-ral-iz-a-tion!

“‘Decentralization’ is not a piece of paper. It’s not me. It’s either in

your heart, or not.”

—Brian Joffe/BIDvest

Ex-e-cu-

tion!

“Ninety percent of what we call

‘management’ consists of making

it difficult for people to get

things done.” – Peter Drucker

TP/BW on BigCo Sin #1:

“too much talk, too little do”

“Execution is the job of

the business leader.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram

Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done

“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

“We have a ‘strategic plan.’ It’s

called doing things.” — Herb Kelleher

“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

“Never forget implementation

boys. In our work it’s what I call the ‘missing 98

percent’ of the client puzzle.” —Al McDonald

Ac-count-a-bil-ity!

“Realism is the heart of execution.”

—Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done

“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.

????????

Work Hard > Work Smart

“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 peculiarity of his character:

Grant had an extreme, almost phobic dislike of

turning back and retracing his steps. 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

He who has the quickest

O.O.D.A. Loops* wins!

*Observe. Orient. Decide. Act. / Col. John Boyd

EXCELLENCE.

4/40.

DECENTRALIZATION.EXECUTION.

ACCOUTABILITY.6:15A.M.

Summary/The SE22:

“Origins of Sustainable

Entrepreneurship”

SE22/Origins of Sustainable Entrepreneurship1. Genetically disposed to Innovations that upset apple carts (3M, Apple,

FedEx, Virgin, BMW, Sony, Nike, Schwab, Starbucks, Oracle, Sun, Fox, Stanford University, MIT)

2. Perpetually determined to outdo oneself, even to the detriment of today’s $$$ winners (Apple, Cirque du Soleil, Nokia, FedEx)

3. Treat History as the Enemy (GE)

4. Love the Great Leap/Enjoy the Hunt (Apple, Oracle, Intel, Nokia, Sony)

5. Use “Strategic Thrust Overlays” to Attack Monster Problems (Sysco, GSK, GE, Microsoft)

6. Establish a “Be on the COOL Team” Ethos. (Most PSFs, Microsoft)

7. Encourage Vigorous Dissent/Genetically “Noisy” (Intel, Apple, Microsoft, CitiGroup, PepsiCo)

8. “Culturally” as well as organizationally Decentralized

(GE, J&J, Omnicom)

9. Multi-entrepreneurship/Many Independent-minded Stars (GE, PepsiCo)

SE22/Origins of Sustainable Entrepreneurship

10. Keep decentralizing—tireless in pursuit of wiping out Centralizing Tendencies (J&J, Virgin)

11. Scour the world for Ingenious Alliance Partners— especially exciting start-ups (Pfizer)

12. Acquire for Innovation, not Market Share (Cisco, GE)

13. Don’t overdo “pursuit of synergy” (GE, J&J, Time Warner)

14. Execution/Action Bias: Just do it … don’t obsess on how it “fits the business model.” (3M, J & J)

15. Find and Encourage and Promote Strong-willed/ Hyper-smart/Independent people (GE, PepsiCo, Microsoft)

16. Support Internal Entrepreneurs (3M, Microsoft)

17. Ferret out Talent anywhere/“No limits” approach to retaining top talent (Virgin, GE, PepsiCo)

SE22/Origins of Sustainable Entrepreneurship

18. Unmistakable Results & Accountability focus from the get-go to the grave (GE, New York Yankees, PepsiCo)

19. Up or Out (GE, McKinsey, consultancies and law firms

and ad agencies and movie studios in general)

20. Competitive to a fault! (GE, New York Yankees, News Corp/Fox, PepsiCo)

21. “Bi-polar” Top Team, with “Unglued” Innovator #1, powerful Control Freak #2 (Oracle, Virgin) (Watch out when #2 is missing: Enron)

22. Masters of Loose-Tight/Hard-nosed about a very few Core Values, Open-minded about everything else (Virgin)

FLASH!

Innovation

is easy!

“The ‘surplus society’ has a surplus

of similar companies,

employing similar people,

with similar educational backgrounds, coming up with

similar ideas, producing

similar things, with

similar prices and

similar quality.” —Kjell Nordström and

Jonas Ridderstråle, Funky Business

“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

“American political life [has

been] overwhelmed by marketing professionals, consultants and pollsters

who, with the flaccid acquiescence of the

politicians, have robbed public life of much of its

romance and vigor.” —Joe Klein, Politics Lost

“Consultants have drained a good deal of

the life from our democracy. Specialists in caution,

they fear anything they haven’t tested.” —Joe

Klein, Politics Lost

Innovation’s Saviors-in-Waiting

Disgruntled CustomersOff-the-Scope Competitors

Rogue EmployeesFringe Suppliers

Wayne Burkan, Wide Angle Vision: Beat the Competition by Focusing on Fringe Competitors, Lost Customers, and Rogue Employees

CUSTOMERS: “Future-defining customers

may account for only 2% to 3% of your total, but they represent a

crucial window on the future.”Adrian Slywotzky, Mercer Consultants

“If you worship at the throne of the

voice of the customer, you’ll get only incremental advances.” —Joseph Morone,

President, Bentley College

Suppliers: “There is an ominous downside to strategic supplier relationships. An SSR supplier is

not likely to function as any more than a mirror to your organization. Fringe

suppliers that offer innovative business practices need not apply.”

Wayne Burkan, Wide Angle Vision: Beat the Competition by Focusing on Fringe Competitors, Lost Customers, and Rogue Employees

Axiom: Never use a vendor who is not in the

top quartile (decile?) in their industry

on R&D spending!*

*Inspired by Hummingbird

COMPETITORS: “The best swordsman in the world doesn’t need to fear the

second best swordsman in the world; no, the person for him to be afraid of is some ignorant antagonist who has never had a sword in his hand

before; he doesn’t do the thing he ought to do, and so the expert isn’t prepared for him; he does the thing he ought not to do and often it catches the expert out

and ends him on the spot.” —Mark Twain

“How do dominant companies lose their

position? Two-thirds of the time, they pick

the wrong competitor to worry about.” —Don Listwin, CEO, Openwave

Systems/WSJ/06.01.2004 (commenting on Nokia)

“Don’t benchmark, futuremark!

” Impetus: “The future is already here; it’s just

not evenly distributed” —William Gibson

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.)

“Well-behaved women

rarely make history.”

—Anita Borg, Institute for Women and Technology

A Few Lessons from the Arts

Each hired and developed and evaluated in unique ways (23 contributors; 23 unique contributions; 23 pathways; 23 personalities; 23 sets of

motivators)

Attitude/Enthusiasm/Energy paramountRe-lent-less!

“Practice is cool” (G Leonard/Mastery)

Team and individual Aspire to EXCELLENCE = Obvious

Ex-e-cu-tionTalent = Brand = Duh“The Project” rulesEmotional language

Bit players. No.B.I.W. (everything)

Delta events = Delta rosters (incl leader/s)

We become who we hang

out with!

Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality

StaffConsultants

VendorsOut-sourcing Partners (#, Quality)

Innovation Alliance PartnersCustomers

Competitors (who we “benchmark” against)

Strategic Initiatives Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap)

IS/IT ProjectsHQ LocationLunch Mates

LanguageBoard

“This is an essay about what it takes to create and sell something remarkable. It is a plea for originality, passion, guts and daring. You can’t be remarkable by following someone else who’s remarkable. One way to

figure out a theory is to look at what’s working in the real world and determine what the successes have in common. But what could the Four Seasons and Motel 6 possibly have in common? Or Neiman-Marcus and Wal*Mart? Or Nokia (bringing out new hardware every 30 days or so) and

Nintendo (marketing the same Game Boy 14 years in a row)? It’s like trying

to drive looking in the rearview mirror. The thing that all these companies

have in common is that they have nothing in common. They

are outliers. They’re on the fringes. Superfast or superslow. Very exclusive or very cheap. Extremely big or extremely small. The reason it’s so hard to follow the leader is this: The leader is the leader precisely because he did something remarkable. And that remarkable thing is now taken—so it’s no

longer remarkable when you decide to do it.” —Seth Godin, Fast Company/02.2003

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?

“Beware of the tyranny of making

Small Changes to Small

Things. Rather,

make Big Changes

to Big Things.”

—Roger Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo

Line Extensions:

86 percent of new

products. 62 percent of revenues.

39 percent of profit.

Source: Blue Ocean Strategy, Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne

Five MYTHS About Changing Behavior

*Crisis is a powerful impetus for change*Change is motivated by fear*The facts will set us free

*Small, gradual changes are always easier to make and sustain*We can’t change because our brains become “hardwired” early in life

Source: Fast Company/05.2005

Radically Thrilling Language!

“Radically Thrilling.”

—BMW Z4 (ad)

“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

“My only goal is to have no goals. The goal, every time, is that film, that very moment.” —Bernardo Bertolucci

Inno.0524.06












Parallel universe/Exec Ed v res MBAEnd run regnant powers/JKCFind done deals-practicing mavericks/Stone-ReGoBell curves/2016 in 2006Non-industry benchmarkingEverything = PortfolioV.C.s all!Hot language/Wow-Astonish me-Insanely great-immortal-Make something greatLead customers/PW-EmbraerLead suppliers /Top decile R&DWeird alliancesMottos/Paul Arden (“Whatever You Think Think the Opposite”)Hire freaks/Enough weird people?Weird Boards!!!

CEO track record of Innovation (nobody starts at 45!)System/GE-Immelt“Strategic thrust overlay”CalendarBig Delta easier than SmallMBWA with freaks-weirdos/JKCMBWA/Boonies’ labsV.C.-formal/IntelAcquire weirdChildren’s crusadeOld farts crusadeGo Global at any sizeStop listening to customers Talent!/Unusual sources-Hire innovators-V.C.sEschew giant mergers

Remember: scale economies max out earlyAssisted suicide! (“Built to last” = Chimera-snare-delusion)Burn your press clippings“Forgetting” “strategy”Fire all strategic plannersTempo!Final product bears little relation to starting notionDesign! Design! Design! (“culture,” not program)All innovation: Pissed-off peopleGut feel rules!Focus groups suckWeird focus groups okayBe-Do philosophy

CelebrationsCulture-little as well as big Inno (“everyone-an-innovator”)Life = Wow ProjectsAcknowledge messiness-pursue serendipity (Blitzkrieg-Containers-Science-Jim Utterback)R.F.A.Culture of execution4/40: decentralization, execution, accountability, 615AMEVP (S.O.U.B.)/Systems-process “un-design”Diversity for diversity’s sakeWomen-Women-Women/customers (they “are the market,” not a “segment”)-leadersBoomers-Geezers (“all the money”)

CRO (Chief Revenue Officer) “culture”/top-line obsessedCIO (Chief INNOVATION Officer)LaughterFacility-space configurationExperiments-prototypes“Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”Bizarrely high incentives (& penalties)We are what we eat/We are who we hang out with (E.g.: 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)

Paul Arden, Whatever You Think Think the Opposite

“ARE YOU BEING REASONABLE? Most

people are reasonable; that’s why they only do

reasonably well.”

Source: Paul Arden, Whatever You Think Think the Opposite

“TRAPPED. It’s not because you are making the wrong

decisions. It’s because you are making the right ones. We try

to make sensible decisions based on the facts in front of us. The problem with making

sensible decisions is that so is everybody else.”


“Making the safe decision is dull, predictable and leads nowhere

new. The unsafe decision causes you to think and respond in a way you hadn’t thought of. And that

thought will lead to other thoughts which will help you achieve what

you want. Start taking bad decisions and it will take you to a place where others only dream of

being.”


“The best piece of advice ever given was by the art director of

Harper’s Bazaar, Alexey Brodovitch, to the young

Richard Avedon, destined to become one of the world’s great photographers. The

advice was simple: ‘ASTONISH ME.’ Bear these words in mind, and whatever

you do will be creative.”


“Which slogan would you choose for the V&A?

THE MUSEUM OF THE ARTS

THE ART OF THE MUSEUM

THE NEW V&A

IT’S NOT FOR BORING OLD ARTS

AN ACE CAFF WITH QUITE A NICE MUSEUM ATTACHED

“In a museum, the first question is ‘Where’s the loo?’ the second is ‘Where is the café?’ A visit to a museum is an outing; it should be entertaining as well as elevating. Curators have

to conserve art, and directors are there to serve the public, the curators and themselves. So put yourself in their position. Which line are you going to choose? One which will be effective with the

public, or one that preserves the dignity of the V&A? To her everlasting credit, Elizabeth Esteve-Coll, then Director

of the V&A, chose the last line.”


“Life is not a journey to the grave with the

intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body—but

rather a skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and

loudly proclaiming, ‘Wow, what

a ride!’ ” —anon.

“From secret hideouts in South Asia, the Spanish-Syrian al-Qaeda strategist published thousands of

pages of tracts on how small teams of Islamic extremists could wage a

decentralized global war against the United States and its allies.”

—Washington Post/0523.06

Immelt on “Innovation

breakthroughs”: Pull out and fund ideas in each business that will generate >$100M in revenue; find best people to

lead (80 throughout GE)

Source: Fast Company/07.05

“Strategic Thrust Overlay”*

SyscoMicrosoft (I’net, Search)

GE (6-Sigma, Workout, etc.)GSK (7 CEDDs)

Apple (Mac)Hyundai (et al.) (Electronics, etc.)

*Different from Skunkworks

EXCELLENCE. THE WORD.

Synonyms

PurityTranscendence


Antonyms

Mediocrity

EXCELLENCE.

GAMECHANGER.

Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”

1. A Bias for Action2. Close to the Customer3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship4. Productivity Through People5. Hands On, Value-Driven6. Stick to the Knitting7. Simple Form, Lean Staff8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”

What is In Search of Excellence all about:

People. Emotion. Engagement. Exuberance. Action-Execution. Empowerment. Independence. Initiative. Imagination. Great

Stories. Incredible Adventures. Trust. Caring. Fun. Joy.

Customer-centrism. Profit. Growth. “Brand You.” “Dramatic Differences.” Experiences that Make You “Gasp.” Excellence.

Always.

ExIn*: 1982-2002/Forbes.com

DJIA: $10,000 yields $85,000 EI: $10,000 yields $140,050

*Excellence Index /Basket of 32 publicly traded stocks

EXCELLENCE.

ALWAYS.

“Why in the world did you go to Siberia?”

The Peters Principles: Enthusiasm.

Emotion. Excellence. Energy. Excitement. Service. Growth.

Creativity. Imagination. Vitality. Joy. Surprise. Independence. Spirit. Community. Limitless human potential. Diversity. Profit. Innovation. Design.

Quality. Entrepreneurialism. Wow.

Business* ** (*at its best): An emotional, vital, innovative, joyful,

creative, entrepreneurial endeavor that elicits

maximum concerted human potential in the

wholehearted service of others.***

**Excellence. Always.***Employees, Customers, Suppliers, Communities, Owners, Temporary partners

Business: The Ultimate Creative

Endeavor.

Business: The Ultimate Personal

Development-Growth

Experience.

Business: The Ultimate

Transcendent Service

Opportunity.

EXCELLENCE.

ALWAYS.

“Tell me, what is it you plan to do

with your one wild and

precious life?” —Mary Oliver

“This is the true joy of Life, the being used for a purpose recognized by yourself as a mighty one … the being a

force of Nature instead of a feverish, selfish little clod of

ailments and grievances complaining

that the world will not devote itself

to making you happy.” —GB Shaw/Man and Superman

EXCELLENCE!

ALWAYS!

$798

$415/SqFt/Wal*Mart$798/SqFt/Whole

Foods

7X. 730A-800P.

F12A.**’93-’03/10 yr annual return: CB: 29%; WM: 17%;

HD: 16%. Mkt Cap: 48% p.a.

“It’s simple, really, Tom. Hire for s,

and, above all, promote for s.”

—Starbucks middle manager/field

#1/100

“Best Companies to

Work for”/2005

Wegmans

EXCELLENCE.

#1T.

Cirque du Soleil!

EXCELLENCE.

#1T.

Donnelly’s Weatherstrip

Service

Weymouth MA

EXCELLENCE.

AARGH.

????????

Weenie of the year,

2006 …

????????

6/44

P&G

EXCELLENCE.

FOUND.

“To be a leader in consumer

products, it’s critical to have

leaders who represent the population we

serve.” —Steve Reinemund/PepsiCo

EXCELLENCE.

AARGH.

2005

Good Thinking, Guys!

“Kodak Sharpens Digital Focus

On Its Best Customers:

Women”

—Page 1 Headline/WSJ/0705

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

“Women are the

majority market”

—Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse

USA/F.Stats: Short ’n (Very) Sweet

>50% of stock ownership, $13T total wealth (2X in 15 years)

>$7T consumer & biz spending (>50% GDP; > Japan GDP); >80% consumer spdg (Consumer = 70% all spdg)

57% BA degrees (2002); = ed & social strata, no wage gap

60% Internet users; >50% primary users of electronic equipment

>50% biz trips

WimBiz: Employees > F500; 10M+: 33% all US Biz

Pay from 62% in 1980 to 80% today; equal if education, social status, etc are equal

60% work; 46M (divorced, widowed, never married)

Source: Fara Warner, The Power of the Purse

Cases!McDonald’s (“mom-centered” to “majority consumer”;

not via kids)

Home Depot (“Do it [everything!] Herself”)

P&G (more than “house cleaner”)

DeBeers (“right-hand rings”/$4B)

AXA FinancialKodak (women = “emotional centers of the household”)

Nike (> jock endorsements; new def sports; majority consumer)

AvonBratz (young girls want “friends,” not a blond stereotype)

Source: Fara Warner/The Power of the Purse

“To help revive the company’s sales and profits, McDonald’s

shifted its strategy toward women from one of ‘minority’ consumers who served as a

conduit to the important children’s market to one in

which women are the majority consumers and the main drivers

behind menu and promotion innovation.” —Fara Warner, The Power of the Purse

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.

The Perfect Answer

Jill and Jack buy slacks in black…

“Women don’t buy

brands. They join them.”

EVEolution

2.6 vs. 21

10. Women’s Market =

Opportunity No. 1.

Continuing on page 73: “A Guide to Womenomics: The Future of the World Economy Lies

Increasingly in Female Hands.” (Headline.) More stats: Around the globe since 1980, women have filled “two

new jobs for everyone taken by a man.” “Women are becoming more important in the global marketplace not just as workers, but also as consumers, entrepreneurs, managers and investors.” Re consumption, Goldman Sachs in Tokyo

has developed an index of 115 companies poised to benefit from women’s increased purchasing power;

over the past decade the value of shares in “Goldman’s basket has risen by 96%, against the Tokyo

stockmarket’s rise of 13%.” A couple of final assertions: (1) It is now agreed that “the single best investment that can be made in the developing world” is educating girls. (2) Also,

surprisingly, nations with the highest female laborforce participation rates, such as Sweden and the U.S., have the

highest fertility rates; and those with the lowest participation rates, such as Italy and Germany, have the lowest fertility

rates.

Source: Economist, April 15, page 73

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

10.6

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

Add It Up!

Doing it right (“Men buy things that other men will buy for women. I buy things that women want.”—successful jeweler/F)

Greater workforce/global participation rate (“bigger contributor to GDP growth than technology, China, India”)

Higher wages (more seniority, promotions—even if not to CEO)

Women-owned businesses (answer to the Glass Ceiling)

“Forget China, India and the

Internet: Economic Growth Is Driven

by Women.” —Headline, Economist,

April 15, Leader, page 14

“Forget China, India and the Internet: Economic Growth Is Driven

by Women.” [Headline.] “Even today in the modern, developed world, surveys show that parents still prefer to have

a boy rather than a girl. One longstanding reason boys have been seen as a greater blessing has been that they are expected to become better economic providers for their

parents’ old age. Yet it is time for parents to think again. Girls may now be a better investment.” “Girls get better grades in

school than boys, and in most developed countries more women than men go to university. Women will thus be better

equipped for the new jobs of the 21st century, in which brains count a lot more than brawn. … And women are more likely to provide sound advice on investing their parents’ nest—

eg: surveys show that women consistently achieve higher financial returns than men do. Furthermore, the increase in

female employment in the rich world has been the main driving force of growth in the last couple of decades. Those women have contributed more to global GDP growth than have

either new technology or the new giants, India and China.” —Economist, April 15

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

2000-2010 Stats

18-44: -1%

55+: +21%(55-64: +47% )

44-65: “New Customer Majority” *

*45% larger than 18-43; 60% larger by 2010Source: 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

“Baby-boomer Women: The Sweetest of

Sweet Spots for Marketers” —David Wolfe and

Robert Snyder, Ageless Marketing

“WOMAN of the Year: She’s the most powerful

consumer in America. And as she starts to turn sixty

this month, the affluent baby boomer is doing what she’s always done—redefining

herself.” —Joan Hamilton, Town & Country, JAN06

“Sixty Is the New Thirty”

—Cover/AARP/11.03

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

Women.Women business owners.

Boomers-Geezers.Single-adults (Urban)

Fastest growing demographic:

Single-person Households (>50% in

London, Stockholm, etc)

Source: Richard Scase

% of homes purchased by single women: 1981, 10%;

2005, 20%

% of homes purchased by single men: 1981, 10%;

2005, 9%

Source: USA Today/02.15.06

EXCELLENCE.

OPPORTUNITY.

Women.Women business owners.

Boomers-Geezers.Single-adults (Urban)

EXCELLENCE.

VALUE ADDED.

$55B

MasterCard Advisors

EXCELLENCE.NECESSITY.

OPPORTUNITY.

“ ‘Disintermediation’ is overrated. Those who fear disintermediation should in fact be afraid of

irrelevance—disintermediation is just another way

of saying that … you’ve become

irrelevant to your

customers.”

—John Battelle/Point/Advertising Age/07.05

Chicago:

HRMAC

“support function” / “cost

center”/ “overhead”

or …

Are you … “Rock Stars of the

Age of Talent”

Are you the …

“Principal Engine of

Value Added”*Eg: Your R&D budget as robust as the New Products team?

Department Head

to …

Managing

Partner, IS [HR, R&D, etc.] Inc.

The “PSF35”: Thirty-Five

Professional Service Firm Marks of Excellence

The PSF35: The Work & The Legacy

1. CRYSTAL CLEAR POINT OF VIEW (E very Practice Group: “If you can’t explain your position in eight words or less, you don’t have a position”—Seth Godin)2. DRAMATIC DIFFERENCE (“We are the only ones who do what we do”—Jerry Garcia)3. Stretch Is Routine (“Never bite off less than you can chew”—anon.)4. Eye-Appetite for Game-changer Projects (Excellence at Assembling “Best Team”—Fast) 5. “Playful” Clients (Adventurous folks who unfailingly Aim to Change the World)6. Small “Uneconomic” Clients with Big Aims7. Life Is Too Short to Work with Jerks (Fire lousy clients)8. OBSESSED WITH LEGACY (Practice Group and Individual: “Dent the Universe”—Steve Jobs)9. Fire-on-the-spot Anyone Who Says, “Law/Architecture/Consulting/ I-banking/ Accounting/PR/Etc. has become a ‘commodity’ ”10. Consistent with #9 above … DO NOT SHY AWAY FROM THE WORD (IDEA) “RADICAL”

Point of

View!

EXCELLENCE.

ATTITUDE.TRANSFORMATION.

Fleet Manager

Rolling Stock Cost Minimization Officer

vs/or

Chief of Fleet Lifetime Value Maximization

Strategic Supply-chain Executive

Customer Experience Director (via drivers)

“Big Brown’s New Bag: UPS

Aims to Be the Traffic Manager for Corporate

America” —Headline/BW/2004

“Purchasing Officer” Thrust #1: Cost (at All Costs*) Minimization

Professional? Or/to: Full Partner-Leader in Lifetime

Value-added Maximization?

(*Lopez: “Arguably ‘Villain #1’ in GM tragedy”/Anon VSE-Spain)

HCare CIO: “Technology Executive” (workin’ in a hospital)

Or/to: Full-scale, Accountable (life or death)

Member-Partner of XYZ Hospital’s Senior Healing-Services Team (who happens to be a techie)

EXCELLENCE.

LEADING.

CXO**Chief eXperience Officer

CDM*

*Chief Dream Merchant

CFO*

*Chief Festivals Officer

CCO*

*Chief Conversations Officer

CSO*

*Chief Seduction Officer

CL O*

*Chief Lovemark Officer

CPI**Chief Portal Impresario

CWO**Chief WOW Officer

CSTO*

*Chief Storytelling Officer

CRO*

*Chief Revenue Officer

. “Everyone lives by selling

something.”

– Robert Louis Stevenson

SellSellSell

EXCELLENCE.

BEDROCK.

Brand =

Talent.

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.”

“We are a ‘Life

Success’ Company’

Dave Liniger, founder, RE/MAX

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

“Leaders

‘do’ people.

Period.” —Anon.

“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

PARC’s Bob Taylor:

“Connoisseur

of Talent”

EXCELLENCE.

LEADING.

Leadership23

Leadership23

1. Enthusiasm. Energy. Exuberance.2. Action. Execution.3. Tempo. Metabolism.4. Relentless.5. Master of Plan B.6. Accountability.7. Meritocracy.8. Leaders “do” people. Mentor. (“Success creation business.”)9. Women. Diversity.10. Integrity. Credibility. Humanity. Grace.11. Realism.12. Cause. Adventures. Quests.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.”)

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

Stay Hungry.

Stay Foolish.

Steve Jobs

EXCELLENCE.

TRANSCENDENCE.THRILLS.

Insanely Great Language!

“Insanely Great.”

—Steve Jobs

Radically Thrilling Language!

“Radically Thrilling.”

—BMW Z4 (ad)

Gaspworthy!

CTO**Chief Thrills Officer

CTO**Chief Transcendence Officer

Synonyms

PurityTranscendence


Antonyms

Mediocrity

EXCELLENCE. WOW. NOW.

“It’s always

showtime.”

—David D’Alessandro, Career Warfare

CWO**Chief WOW Officer

!

C!O*Chief ! Officer

EXCELLE ALWAYS.

The Irreducible209/

Sales122Tom Peters/04.10.2006

The Irreducible20

9

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, he’d had

enough. “What, if anything,” he asked, “do you believe ‘for

sure’?” 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. Hare 1, Tortoise 0. (Hare-y times.)2. Tempo. (O.O.D.A.)3. MBWA.4. 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. Men. Women. Different. Contend. Connect.16. Women. Buy. All. (RU listening?)17. Quality. (“Mind-blowing.” Beyond 6-Sigma.)18. Re-invent. Re-pot. (Required.)19. Jaywalk.20. Big change. Small # of people. (Always.)21. Experiment. Now.22. Failure. Normal. 23. 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. You must care.30. Mentor. (Highest ROI.)31. Best “roster” wins.32. Wow. (Okay in biz.)33. We all have customers. (Biz. Personal.)34. All contacts = Experiences.35. Cirque du Soleil. (Peerless.)36. Leaders create space for growth.37. Quests. (Only.)38. 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. Wegman’s.” (No excuses. “Mere” groceries.)43. Less than your best. Cheating.

44. Brand You. (No alt.)45. Self-sufficiency. (Biggest LT turn-on.)46. In the moment.47. The moment wins.48. Tomorrow = Never. 49. Action 1, Plan 0.1.50. “Execution” can be a “system.”51. Realism.52. Own up. Move on.53. Accountability.54. Work hard > Work smart. (Mostly.)55. Feedback. Necessary. Fast. (R.F.A. in “RFA times.”)56. Customers. Listen. Lead. (Paradox.)57. “On stage.” Always. (GW, FDR, RG = Supreme actors.)

58. Master statistical analysis.59. Excellence = Set the table.60. Legacy. (Will it have mattered?)61. “Great.” (Why not?)62. Radicals rule. (Think … Olympics.)63. !!! = Good.64. Red 1, Brown 0. (Red times.)65. Talk. Listen. (“Big 2.” Master.)66. 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. Exercise.74. Paint. (Leader. Portraits of Excellence.)75. Best story wins.76. “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. You = Calendar. (Calendar. Never. Lies.)87. Laugh.88. Handshake. (Quantity. Quality.)89. 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. Bloody- mindedness. 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.”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.

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.” (2016. Happening. Somewhere.)139. “PMA.” It works.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. (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. Own up. Quick. ( Denial. Cancer.)164. Celebrate. Often.165. 78 people = 78 approaches. (Each. Unique.)166. 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. NO LESS THAN EXCELLENCE. EVER.209. 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.

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 2006. It started with a half-dozen items, and grew like Topsy.

Possibly, given its origins, it’s a little tilted toward complex, engineering-based 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.

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!

“Everyone lives by

selling something.”

—Robert Louis Stevenson

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 industries-countries “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.

“If you don’t listen,

you don’t sellanything.”

—Carolyn Marland/Managing Director/

Guardian Group

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.)

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!

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 14-year-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 long-term 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 deeper-wider networks win. 62. If the deal is wired from below, truly wired, than the so-called “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 asenthusiasm.”

—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 behavein a calm, rationalmanner. 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.

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. So: Good luck!

ADDENDUM: Women Rock … as Salespersons (From Item #98.)

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

EXCELLENCE.

ALWAYS.

World Innovation Forum* (Modesty is everything) EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG (*Except, of course, what the other presenters.

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World Innovation Forum* (*Modesty is everything) EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG* (*Except, of course, what the other presenters.

World Innovation Forum* (Modesty is everything) EVERYTHING YOU THOUGHT YOU KNEW ABOUT INNOVATION IS WRONG (*Except, of course, what the other presenters.