Beyond Entrepreneurship: Turning Your Business into an Enduring Great Company

I first heard of this book because it was recommended by Reed Hastings (CEO, Netflix) as a must-read for young entrepreneurs. I was not disappointed with the purchase, despite having to track down a used softcover copy.Originally published in 1992, this book is notable for its focus/devotion to a single concept: how business managers/leaders can build the foundation of an everlasting company into the bones/genes of their institution while the company is still small.Part of why the book is so good is that it does not pretend to be scientific in its recommendations: it is a kind of merger of philosophy, business strategy, and management in a single readable volume. Jim Collins' later books (Good to Great, Built to Last) would focus on trying to build a data-oriented foundation for understanding company greatness, whereas this book focused much more on vision formulation, strategic decision-making, and team dynamics. To me, it is therefore a much more important book than his later best-sellers, and, more actionable, to boot. Many of the illustrative company examples also ended up (mostly) withstanding the test of time: HP, IBM, Apple, Patagonia, Nike, Herman Miller, Johnson & Johnson, Merck, among others.I think if you are a young business leader looking for guidance of how to take your company from its first decade to its second/third and beyond, this is the book for you, despite it being over 25 years old. Highly recommended.

The book focuses on start up companies which have had some initial success and seek to establish themselves as enduring enterprises. I have used this book several times with early stage clients and found it clear and helpful, especially to those just starting to deal with business strategy. The middle chapters contain the basic terminology and frame work.Strategies only have value if the are used, and the book provides an example of a short, concise strategy document that is clear enough to assist in decision making and short enough to be actually used by the entire company.There's a lot more to strategic thinking that this book covers, but it is a good, practical place to start.

Very insightful book about the importance company values and vision -- both often overlooked by companies/leadership. A lot of parallels between this book and the Netflix culture deck.What I love about this book is that the authors will give a piece of advice at a high level and then they will back it up with lots of real-world examples, and explain why that advice is important.It's also a relatively quick read without much filler, which I appreciate. Even though it was written over 20 years ago, the lessons here are timeless, and many companies (including startups/unicorns) are struggling with these issues today.

I was leery because the book was written in the early 90s. Although all the online hoopla and social media was not in existence the materials presented in the book are relevant. All the building blocks for a solid business foundation were presented in a step by step manner that were easy to follow. The examples helped keep us on track.

Unless there are videos someplace, reading this book is the closest you can get to sitting in Jim Collins' class on entrepreneurship at Stanford (circa 1990). It's a distillation of what he taught in that class, minus the palpable energy he brought to every session and in particular the final class of each term. Twenty four years later, I still return to this book for inspiration and ideas for leadership, crafting strategy, creating genuine passion in a company, and gaining alignment. I'd also recommend Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive to build and sustain alignment. Both are useful.

The problem with this book, and many books of this type is that it is a clearly organized exposition on intuitive principles. I have read many books that resemble this one. They tend to be motivational and easily conceived, but the downside to the ease with which they are digested is that you don't really learn anything. This does not mean the book should not read, in fact the examples and organization clearly illustrate the basic structure of strategy. However, anyone familiar with the ideas should probably look for something a little more weighty.All of that being said, this is how the book is organized thematically:Chapter 1: Leadership StyleChapter 2: VisionChapter 3: StrategyChapter 4: InnovationChapter 5: Tactical ExcellenceThe key topics of chapter 1 are the multiplier effect of leadership, the different style of leadership, and the elements of leadership (Ever Forward, Communication, Hard/Soft People Skills, Personal Touch, Focus, Decisiveness, and Authenticity).Chapter 2 covers the benefits of vision, and the framework for vision (core values and beliefs, purpose, and mission).Chapter 3 discusses the Four Basic Principles of Setting Effective Strategy, Setting Strategy, Internal Assessment, External Assessment, and the Four Common Key Strategic Issues that Face SMEs.Chapter 4 is on the Six Elements that make an innovative company, and 8 managerial techniques to stimulate creativity.Chapter 5 discusses how to take vision to create strategy which can then be used to formulate tactics, how to create an environment where people consistently exhibit tactical excellence, and a six part process to ensure excellence.This book also periodically presents frameworks, models, and case examples to help illustrate key points.Overall, it is a quick and easy read, that will illustrate basic tips to run a business. I would recomend anything written by Michael Porter or Peter Drucker for more conceptual ideas. For more books like this, the Harvard Business Review series should be considered.

Excellent business book. I have read 100's of books on business and this one is at the top of the list. I pride myself on business leadership, strategy development and execution. Collin and Lazier did an excellent job of laying out the requirements of being a performing CEO and the fundamentals to use to build a successful business.I discovered this book after watching a video with Reed Hastings (Netflix) and he mentioned this book being influential in the development of his business skills.

Dice siempre Reed Hastings que este es uno de los pocos libros que él recomienda y que lo lee todos los años. No es de los más famosos del autor, tal vez porque no se centra tanto en empresas consolidadas (sus grandes estudios) sino en emprendedores, pero como todos los de Collins no puede faltar entre quien quiera aprender sobre estrategia empresarial

Great content and structure.

Great

Simply awesome

Excelente producto.