What truly great businesses (and business people) do.

Just finished re-reading Good to Great of Jim Collins and co. I won’t go into too much details what’s it all about, you should read it yourself.
The book (research-project) constantly made me stop and think.

In one of the last chapters Jim Collins makes the following conclusion to the question of what makes truly great companies stand out:

“Don’t exist merely to deliver returns to shareholders. Profit and cash-flow become like blood and water to a healthy body. They are absolutely essential for life, but they are not the point of life.”

Then what is the point of life of a business? Core values and core purpose (together = core ideology) created by constantly following that one concept that a (any) company can become the best in, is passionate about.

Consistent little step by consistent little step to become a great sustainable business. Consistent in turning the flywheel from build-up to breakthrough.

Jim Collins goes on to quote Robert Burgelman (Stanford Business School):
“The single biggest danger in business and life, other than outright failure, is to be successful without being resolutely clear about why you are successful in the first place.

Good to Great is filled with core values that any business could - should follow.

And it’s not just Jim Collins and co that ‘preach’ passion, Peter Carruthers article this week preaches the same.