Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies

Drawing upon a six-year research project at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, James C. Collins and Jerry I. Porras took eighteen truly exceptional and long-lasting companies and studied each in direct comparison to one of its top competitors. They examined the companies from their very beginnings to the present day as start-ups, as midsize companies, and as large corporations. Their findings destroyed some of the most sacred cows of conventional business wisdom. The primary engine of visionary companies is not a great idea, a charismatic leader, or both. In most cases, they were not even the industry leader when they began.