Discipline & Technology

In the book “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap . . . and Others Don’t,” Jim Collins describes the traits of successful companies. We’ve covered several of them (humble yet driven leaders, the right people, and confronting reality, a hedgehog mindset) in past articles. Now, we continue our series with two more of Collins’ principles.

The Culture of Discipline

Good-to-great companies recognize that employees’ discipline to make intelligent decisions and actions begins with understanding the hedgehog
mindset of the business (i.e., what it does best) and its goals.

The leaders at good-to-great companies know that discipline is not the same as bureaucracy. They don’t micromanage their team. Instead, they empower employees with a clear understanding of what the company is trying to achieve and let them make decisions.

If you have the right people in the right positions, and you have clearly communicated your purpose, goals, and vision, you can trust that your team has the discipline to make informed decisions that affect your business in a positive way.

Strategic Application of Technology 

Using technology as an accelerator to success (not as a way to compensate for a lack of skilled workers or strategic decision-making, etc.) stands as a mark of a good-to-great company, too. Great businesses avoid fads and choose only the technological tools that align with their “hedgehog” concept and propel them efficiently toward their objectives.

From marketing tools (e.g., website, email marketing platform) to customer relationship management software to sales training programs to project planning software, the strategic application of technology will help your company operate more productively and get closer to its goals. Without a solid strategy, it could be a waste of time and money. 

Stay tuned for our next article when we’ll talk about the “flywheel” effect.