Greatness is a function of conscious choice, best-selling business author Jim Collins told Darden students and faculty March 27.
Collins is the author of GOOD TO GREAT: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … And Others Don’t, which made The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek best-seller lists.
His symposium at Darden, Developing Future Leaders, was divided into two sections – the first outlining his Good to Great principles on life and leadership, and the second on the effects of turbulence on a company’s decline or enduring success. Each section was punctuated by break-out sessions so students and faculty could discuss their ideas, then reconvene for a Q&A with the author and teacher.
Most businesses, like everything in life, are average, he said. A culture of discipline and consistency of purpose are common to all great companies. To go from good to great, leaders push in a consistent direction and keep going. Breakthroughs are usually long in coming. Collins called it the “20 year overnight success story.” He noted that it took Starbucks 13 years to open five stores; the company now opens five stores a day.
What a company does to achieve greatness is not as important as understanding why it was done, Collins said. Understanding the “why” helps ensure consistency of purpose. His organization does not so much study successful companies as it studies distinctions and contrasts between similar situations facing companies.
He likened the decline in a company’s greatness to the onset of disease. Outwardly, a company may appear healthy for some time before problems become manifest. External events beyond our control, what Collins calls turbulence, present other opportunities for learning and success. Collins said turbulence is not a factor in who becomes great and who doesn’t. Rather, turbulent times expose companies’ underlying strengths and weaknesses. In a turbulent world, companies that prevail tend to be slower to respond. But Collins emphasized that slower to respond does not mean slow to react when a course of action is chosen.
Above all, greatness is a cumulative process, the author said. A single event or action does not transform something into greatness.
Collins’ work with Darden includes the Good to Great Experience, an interactive multimedia product based on his book. Developed in collaboration with Darden Business Publishing, this transformative classroom experience features three hours of customizable video of Collins himself as he explains the concepts found in Good to Great.
Founded in 1955, the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business is a professional school that works to improve society by developing leaders in the world of practical affairs.
For more information contact communication@darden.virginia.edu.