quick read
get the right ppl on the bus (be selective) in the right seats before leave. stick to the destination (mission/value) but change the route (strategies)

Really great, accessible gateway into the nonprofit world. I think this is best for beginners like myself who know little about the business of nonprofits, but I wish it were just a little longer to go into more depth.

“We must reject the idea—well-intentioned, but dead wrong—that the primary path to greatness in the social sectors is to become “more like a business.”

Excellent read for anyone leading a non-profit, serving on its board, volunteering or donating to its cause.

Excellent companion to the book. Working in the social sector, I find it invaluable when trying to gain clarity on what we should be doing to create a great organization or a "pocket of greatness" as JIm Collins would call it. Read the book first, but if you're in the social sector add this ASAP.

Great insight

Good to Great wasn't just a great read, but continues to be a reference resource. However, as a military officer I found some of the concepts a bit difficult to use (particularly putt people on and off the bus). Jim's insights here are really helpful.

I a big fan of Collin's work. He is logical, clear, and creates memorable principles that can easy be incorporated into nearly every work situation. I think he was a bit overly optimistic about getting the right people on the bus, but overall this was a worthwhile read.

Extensive quotes from the book:

Five questions which form the framework of this piece:
1. Defining "Great"--Getting Thing Done without Business Metrics
2. Level 5 Leadership--Getting Things Done within a Diffuse Power Structure
3. First Who--Getting the Right People on the Bus within Social Sector Constraints
4. The Hedgehog Concept--Rethinking the Economic Engine without a Profit Motive
5. Turning the Flywheel--Building Momentum by Building the Brand
pg. 3

A great organization is one that delivers superior performance and makes a distinctive impact over a long period of time. For a business, financial returns are a perfectly legitimate measure of performance. For a social sector organization, however, performance must be assessed relative to mission, not financial returns. In the social sectors, the critical question in not "How much money do we make per dollar of invested capital?" but "How effectively do we deliver on our mission and make a distinctive impact, relative to our resources?" pg. 5

It doesn't really matter whether you can quantify your results. What matters is that you rigorously assemble evidence--quantitative or qualitative to track your progress. If the evidence is primarily qualitative, think like a trial lawyer assembling the combined body of evidence. If the evidence is primarily quantitative, then think of yourself as a laboratory scientist assembling and assessing the data. pg. 7

In relation to getting things done within a diffuse power structure:
"There is always power...you just have to know where to find it. There is the power of inclusion, and the power of language, and the power of shared interests, and the power of coalition. Power is all around you to draw upon, but it is rarely raw, rarely visible". pg. 10

Legislative leadership relies more upon persuasion, political currency, and shared interests to create the conditions for the right decisions to happen. pg. 11

Level 5 leadership requires being clever for the greater good. In the end, it is my responsibility to ensure that the right decisions happen--even if I don't have the sole power to make those decisions, and even if those decisions could not win a popular vote. The only way I can achieve that is if the people know that I'm motivated first and always for the greatness of our work, not myself." pg. 11


Level 5 leadership is not about being "soft" or "nice" or purely "inclusive" or "consensus-building." The whole point of Level 5 is to make sure the right decisions happen--no matter how difficult or painful--for the long-term greatness of the institution and the achievement of its mission, independent of consensus or popularity. pg. 11


True leadership only exists if people follow when they have the freedom not to. If people follow you because they have no choice, then you are not leading. pg. 13.

In the social sectors, where getting the wrong people off the bus can be more difficult than in a business, early assessment mechanisms turn out to be more important than hiring mechanisms. There is no perfect interviewing technique, no ideal hiring method; even the best executives make hiring mistakes. You can only know for certain about a person by working with that person. pg. 15

Wendy Kopp's three fundamental points in getting the right people on the bus:
-The more selective the process, the more attractive a position becomes--even if volunteer of low pay. Second the social sectors have one compelling advantage: desperate craving for meaning in our lives. Purity of mission...has the power to ignite passion and commitment. Third, the number one resource for a great social sector organization is having enough of the right people willing to commit themselves to mission. The right people can often attract money, but money by itself can never attract the right people. Money is a commodity; talent is not. Time and talent can often compensate for lack of money, but money can never compensate for lack of the right people. pg. 17

"You've got to keep in mind the deep discomfort of talking explicitly about money in some church settings. And second, we rely upon much more than money to keep this place going. How do we get enough resources of all types--not just money to pay the bills, but also time, emotional commitment, hands, hearts, and minds?" pg. 18

The wide variation in economic structures in the social sectors increases the importance of the hedgehog principle--the inherent complexity requires deeper, more penetrating insight and rigorous clarity than in your average business entity. You begin with passion then you refine passion with a rigorous assessment of what you can best contribute to the communities you touch. pg. 20

The critical step in the Hedgehog Concept is to determine how best to connect all three circles, so that they reinforce each other. You must be able to answer the question, "How does focusing on what we can do best tie directly to our resource engine, and how does our resource engine directly reinforce what we do best?" And you must be right. pg. 22

This is the power of the flywheel. Success breeds support and commitment, which breeds even greater success, which breeds more support and commitment--round and around the flywheel goes. People like to support winners! pg. 24

If an institution has a focused Hedgehog Concept and a disciplined organization that delivers exceptional results, the best thing supporters can do is to give resources that enable the institution's leaders to do their work the best way they know how. Get out of their way, and let then build a clock! pg. 25

I'd like to suggest that a key link in the social sectors is brand reputation--built upon tangible results and emotional share of heart--so that potential supporters believe not only in your mission, but in your capacity to deliver on that mission. pg. 25

Social sector leaders pride themselves on "doing good" for the world, but to be of maximum service requires a ferocious focus on doing good only if it fits with your Hedgehog Concept. To do the most good requires saying "no" to pressures to stray, and the discipline to stop doing what does not fit. pg. 27



My thoughts on the book:
While these are inspiring leadership principles, I feel that often they lack a supernatural element of Spirit-led leadership. Does not the Holy Spirit have the power to make good out of our bad decisions, poor leadership examples and failures? Isn't He made strong in our weakness?

The value of this book for leaders in the social sector is a step in the right direction and I understand that it was written from a secular perspective, but for a pastor I would like to take the principles even a step farther into the organization that is spiritual.

In researching the many factors involved in healthcare reform, Jim Collins artfully reviews the segment of Social Sector. Not just that, he even does his homework and details how to apply original good to great concepts. He also brings us back to competitive advantage principles to maximize scarce resources and fulfill purpose of the organization. Kudos and thank you. Easy read, very thought provoking.

It's good, nice and simple. It just lacked a bit of actionability.

Nice book

A very short book — more like a really long blog post — aimed at people who loved "Good to Great" but are in the social sector and thus do not have profits by which to measure success. Again, he's got a few amazing real-life stories to illustrate the merits of his program for going from good to great, such as with the Cleveland symphony. He admits the topic deserves a full book but says it'll take 10 years to do and so this is a stopgap meant to answer the most common questions he's received from those in nonprofits, government or other parts of the social sector. Worthwhile but not essential. Grade: B+

An incredible sequel to Jim Collins' "Good to Great." Although many in the social sector may seek to mimic private sector thinking, this brief companion-piece highlights the unique transformations that thinking must undergo to truly be an asset.