How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins Part 5 of 6: Grasping for Salvation (Stage 4)
September 4, 2009 by dr. lam
Collins argues that when companies enter stage 4 that they are not on their death knell but what they do in stage 4 can portend their demise. He uses two examples to understand how one company emerged from stage 4 and how another propelled themselves toward stage 5.
HP hired the bold visionary woman Carly Fiorina from Lucent Technologies in 1999. Shortly thereafter, Carly made it in Forbes, Fortune, and Business Week with a gaggle of stories on her womandom and her sales and business savvy. The media simply could not get enough of Carly and Carly played the media well. She brought sizzle, launched HP’s famed campaign “Invent” and galvanized the troops with moving things at Net Speed. She admitted in her memoir later, Tough Choices that “I was in a hurry…” By 2005, she was out.
Louis Gerstner was brought into a dying IBM in 1993. Unlike Fiorina, he quietly assumed the helm of the company, refusing media exposure and working on getting the company straight. He said, “I have a sense of urgency that never changes, whether we’re doing well or we’re doing poorly…But by no means do I think this company is in crisis.” Gerstner focused first on getting the right people to helm the ship and delayed any notion of a vision. Fiorina, on the other hand, launched sweeping vision statements and campaigns. IBM succeeded via Gerstner’s strategies. HP did not under Fiorina.
Collins states that as companies enter Stage 4 they begin to grasp for what he calls a silver bullet. Anything that is big and bold to radically change the company without proven research or forethought. Gerstner proved the way to get a company back to functioning is not reacting to panic but methodically reworking the engine through hiring the right team and figuring out something as elusive as vision later.
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7 Responses to “How the Mighty Fall by Jim Collins Part 5 of 6: Grasping for Salvation (Stage 4)”
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Challenging contradictions , excellent food for thought.
yes, interesting to me too. always good to rethink strategies in business and in life.
Interesting stuff there, Dr. Lam!
Have a great weekend, blog buddies!!!
you too heather!
“Gerstner proved the way to get a company back to functioning is not reacting to panic but methodically reworking the engine through hiring the right team and figuring out something as elusive as vision later.”
Hi there!
Happy weekend indeed!
When a person works independently as a professional (like a cybrarian does, say) what would the equivalente of “hiring the right team”? searching for new sources on the net or about the net on how to do their job? establishing new allies and contacts while performing a task? any example of what would apply to “team” in the case of a company of one?
Hugssssssssss
i think we all can lead in subtle and profound ways. oftentimes it is not the titular leader who leads but the one who commands the most respect.
a company of one may be a bit different but we can influence anyone around us in a favorable way.