1. Tom Peters’ X25. : EXCELLENCE. ALWAYS
Tom Peters’ X25*: EXCELLENCE. ALWAYS. Rompetrol/Annual Management Meeting Paris/02 December *In Search of Excellence

2. Slides* at … tompeters.com *also “LONG”

3. EXCELLENCE. ALL . YOU. NEED. TO. KNOW.

4. 25

5. EXCELLENCE. ALL. YOU. NEED. TO. KNOW. ANYWHERE. ANY MARKET. ANY TIME.

6. Jim’s Group

7. EX-CELL-ENCE. NOT .

8. “I am often asked by would-be entrepreneurs seeking escape from life within huge corporate structures, ‘How do I build a small firm for myself?’ The answer seems obvious: Buy a very large one and just wait.” —Paul Ormerod, Why Most Things Fail: Evolution, Extinction and Economics

9. “Forbes100” from 1917 to 1987: 39 members of the Class of ’17 were alive in ’87; 18 in ’87 F100; 18 F100 “survivors” significantly underperformed the market; just 2 (2%), GE & Kodak, outperformed the market from to S&P 500 from 1957 to 1997: 74 members of the Class of ’57 were alive in ’97; 12 (2.4%) of 500 outperformed the market from 1957 to Source: Dick Foster & Sarah Kaplan, Creative Destruction: Why Companies That Are Built to Last Underperform the Market

10. Welcome to the “Club of Shattered Dreams”: Of Korea’s Top 100 companies in 1955, only 7 were still on the list in The 1997 crisis “destroyed half of Korea’s 30 largest conglomerates.” Source: “KET Issue Report,” Kim Jong Nyun ( )

11. S&P Stability Ratings* Low Risk % % Average Risk % % High Risk 35% % *Likelihood of stable long-term earnings growth Source: Fortune (2 October 2006)

12. The last word: There is no last word.

13. Flat as a Pancake (Or Worse) Wal
Flat as a Pancake (Or Worse) Wal*Mart … Dell … Intel … Home Depot … Microsoft … GE

14. EXCELLENCE. STARTERS. BASICS. K.I.S.S.

15. “Why in the world did you go to Siberia?”

16. Raging Success = P-SQUARED. C. E-CUBED.

17. People. Product. Clients. Execution. Enthusiasm. Excellence.

18. Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action
2. Close to the Customer
3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship
4. Productivity Through People
5. Hands On, Value-Driven
6. Stick to the Knitting
7. Simple Form, Lean Staff
8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight
Properties”

19. The HayGroup Six 1. Accountability 2. X-functional coordination 3
The HayGroup Six 1. Accountability 2. X-functional coordination 3. Execution/K.I.S.S. 4. Talent management 5. Growth, Customers take priority 6. Self-management, Empathy, Teamwork

20. EXCELLENCE. ASPIRATION.

21. The Peters Principles: Enthusiasm. Emotion. Excellence. Energy
The Peters Principles: Enthusiasm. Emotion. Excellence. Energy. Excitement. Service. Growth. Creativity. Imagination. Vitality. Joy. Surprise. Independence. Spirit. Community. Limitless human potential. Diversity. Profit. Innovation. Design. Quality. Entrepreneurialism. Wow.

22. Business* (*at its “excellent” best) can be: An emotional, vital, audacious, innovative, joyful, frightening, risky, creative, entrepreneurial endeavor that breathes life & fire into our work & life & elicits maximum concerted human potential
in the wholehearted effort to help others ** [**employees, clients, suppliers, communities, owners, temporary partners] succeed & profit & imagine & reach places they’d never dreamed they could go.

23. “In-sane-ly-great”

24. EXCELLENCE. DEFINED. AGENDA. SETTER.

25. Great Companies … SET THE AGENDA.* (PERIOD.) * “disturb the sleep of …

26. TP#1*: Netscape! *Where would you rather have worked for those 5 years, Netscape or IBM-HP-Microsoft-Oracle? (Where, 25 years from now, would you rather to be able to tell someone—e.g., grandchild—that you worked?)

27. Built to Last vs Built to Change/Rock the World

28. EXCELLENCE. INNOVATE. OR. DIE.

29. “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change.” —Charles Darwin

30. EXCELLENCE. INNOVATE. ALL. WRONG.

31. “I don’t believe in economies of scale
“I don’t believe in economies of scale. You don’t get better by being bigger. You get worse.” —Dick Kovacevich/Wells Fargo

32. “When asked to name just 1 big merger that had lived up to expectations, Leon Cooperman, former cochairman of Goldman Sachs’ Investment Policy Committee, answered: ‘I’m sure there are success stories out there, but at this moment I draw a blank.’” —Mark Sirower, The Synergy Trap

33. “Not a single company that qualified as having made a sustained transformation ignited its leap with a big acquisition or merger. Moreover, comparison companies—those that failed to make a leap or, if they did, failed to sustain it—often tried to make themselves great with a big acquisition or merger. They failed to grasp the simple truth that while you can buy your way to growth, you cannot buy your way to greatness.” —Jim Collins/Time/2004

34. Spinoffs systematically perform better than IPOs … track record, profits … “freed from the confines of the parent … more entrepreneurial, more nimble” —Jerry Knight/ Washington Post/ 08.05

35. Private Equity-financed Firm, Best. Case. Focus. Focus. Focus
Private Equity-financed Firm, Best *Case *Focus! Focus! Focus! *In a [Big] hurry *CEO/Top team, “skin in the game” *CEO, 100% of time on the biz *Merit! Merit! *Motivated oversight *Worst case: Rape & Pillage

36. There’s “A” and then there’s “A.”

37. EXCELLENCE. INNOVATE. TACTICS.

38. try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it
try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. try it. Try it. Try it. try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it. Try it.

39. READY. FIRE! AIM. Ross Perot (vs “Aim! Aim! Aim!” /EDS vs GM/1985)

40. “Experiment fearlessly” Source: BW0821
“Experiment fearlessly” Source: BW , Type A Organization Strategies/ “How to Hit a Moving Target”—Tactic #1

41. ready with wires and screws, we are on version
“We made mistakes, of course. Most of them were omissions we didn’t think of when we initially wrote the software. We fixed them by doing it over and over, again and again. We do the same today. While our competitors are still sucking their thumbs trying to make the design perfect, we’re already on prototype version #5. By the time our rivals are
ready with wires and screws, we are on version
#10. It gets back to planning versus acting: We act from day one; others plan how to plan—for months.” —Bloomberg by Bloomberg

42. “You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take.” —Wayne Gretzky

43. Excellence1982: The Bedrock “Eight Basics”
1. A Bias for Action
2. Close to the Customer
3. Autonomy and Entrepreneurship
4. Productivity Through People
5. Hands On, Value-Driven
6. Stick to the Knitting
7. Simple Form, Lean Staff
8. Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties”

44. tolerate [encourage?] failure

45. Sam’s Secret #1!

46. “Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes
“Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.” Phil Daniels, Sydney exec

47. Speed/ Tempo

48. “We don’t sell insurance anymore. We sell speed
“We don’t sell insurance anymore. We sell speed.” Peter Lewis, Progressive

49. We become who we spend time with!

50. Measure “Strangeness”/Portfolio Quality Staff Consultants Vendors Out-sourcing Partners (#, Quality) Innovation Alliance Partners Customers Competitors (who we “benchmark” against) Strategic Initiatives Product Portfolio (LineEx v. Leap) IS/IT Projects HQ Location Lunch Mates Language Board

51. measure

52. Innovation Index: How many of your Top 5 Strategic Initiatives/Key Projects score 8 or higher [out of 10] on a “Profound”/ “Amazing”/“Game- changer” Scale?

53. EXCELLENCE

54. 4/40

55. De-cent-ral-iz- a-tion!

56. “If if feels painful and scary—that’s real delegation” —Caspian Woods, small biz owner

57. The True Logic* of Decentralization: 6 divisions = 6 “tries” 6 divisions = 6 DIFFERENT leaders = 6 INDEPENDENT “tries” = Max probability of “win” 6 divisions = 6 very DIFFERENT leaders = 6 very INDEPENDENT “tries” = Max probability of “far out”/”3-sigma” “win” *“Driver”: Law of Large #s

58. Ex-e- cu-tion!

59. “Execution is the job of the business leader
“Execution is the job of the business leader.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done

60. “Execution is a systematic process of rigorously discussing hows and whats, tenaciously following through, and ensuring accountability.” —Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done

61. Projects = Goal (“Vision”) Milestones = Project Rapid Review + Truth-telling = accountability

62. Ac-count-a-bil-ity!

63. “GE has set a standard of candor. … There is no puffery
“GE has set a standard of candor. … There is no puffery. … There isn’t an ounce of denial in the place.” —Kevin Sharer, CEO Amgen, on the “GE mystique” (Fortune)

64. 6:15A.M.

65. 4/40: De-centralization execution accountability 6:15a.m.

66. The HayGroup Six 1. Accountability 2. X-functional coordination 3
The HayGroup Six 1. Accountability 2. X-functional coordination 3. Execution/K.I.S.S. 4. Talent management 5. Growth, Customers take priority 6. Self-management, Empathy, Teamwork

67. EXCELLENCE. BEDROCK. TALENT.

68. Hire very good people!

69. “We believe companies can increase their market cap 50 percent in 3 years. Steve Macadam at Georgia-Pacific … changed 20 of his 40 box plant managers to put more talented, higher paid managers in charge. He increased profitability from $25 million to $80 million in 2 years.” —Ed Michaels, War for Talent

70. EMPHASIZE THE “SOFT SKILLS.”

71. “The person who is a little less conceptual but is absolutely determined to succeed will usually find the right people and get them together to achieve objectives. I’m not knocking education or looking for dumb people. But if you have to choose between someone with a staggering IQ and an elite education who’s gliding along, and someone with a lower IQ but who is absolutely determined to succeed, you’ll always do better with the second person.” —Larry Bossidy (Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan/ Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done)

72. PUT HR AT THE HEAD OF THE HEAD TABLE. BEST PEOPLE. NOBLEST MISSION.

73. Second: Putting HR on a par with finance and marketing.
A review of Jack and Suzy Welch’s Winning claims there are but two key differentiators that set GE “culture” apart from the herd:
First: Separating financial forecasting and performance measurement. Performance measurement based, as it usually is, on budgeting leads to an epidemic of gaming the system. GE’s performance measurement is divorced from budgeting—and instead reflects how you do relative to your past performance and relative to competitors’ performance; i.e., it’s about how you actually do in the context of what happened in the real world, not as compared to a gamed-abstract plan developed last year.
Second: Putting HR on a par with finance and marketing.

74. SO YOU’RE A “PEOPLE PERSON”? PROVE IT.

75. “The leaders of Great Groups love talent and know where to find it
“The leaders of Great Groups love talent and know where to find it. They revel in the talent of others.” —Warren Bennis & Patricia Ward Biederman, Organizing Genius

76. SO YOU’RE A “PEOPLE PERSON”? PROVE IT.

77. < CAPEX > People!

78. LIVE FOR TALENT!

79. Our Mission To develop and manage talent; to apply that talent, throughout the world, for the benefit of clients; to do so in partnership; to do so with profit. WPP

80. EXCELLENCE. BEDROCK. LEADERSHIP. 9Ps.

81. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

82. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

83. “People want to be part of something larger than themselves
“People want to be part of something larger than themselves. They want to be part of something they’re really proud of, that they’ll fight for, sacrifice for , trust.” —Howard Schultz, Starbucks (IBD/09.05)

84. Ah, kids: “What is your vision for the future
Ah, kids: “What is your vision for the future?” “What have you accomplished since your first book?” “Close your eyes and imagine me immediately doing something about what you’ve just said. What would it be?” “Do you feel you have an obligation to ‘Make the world a better place’?”

85. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

86. “Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm.” —Samuel Taylor Coleridge

87. “Whenever anything is being accomplished, I have learned, it is being done by a monomaniac with a mission.” —Peter Drucker

88. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

89. “In the end, management doesn’t change culture
“In the end, management doesn’t change culture. Management invites the workforce itself to change the culture.” —Lou Gerstner

90. “The role of the Director is to create a space where the actors and actresses can become more than they’ve ever been before, more than they’ve dreamed of being.” —Robert Altman, Oscar acceptance speech

91. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

92. 25

93. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

94. “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” Gandhi

95. “The First step in a ‘dramatic’ ‘organizational change program’ is obvious—dramatic personal change!” —RG

96. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

97. Relentless: “One of my superstitions had always been when I started to go anywhere or to do anything, not to turn back , or stop, until the thing intended was accomplished.” —Grant

98. “It is no use saying ‘We are doing our best
“It is no use saying ‘We are doing our best.’ You have got to succeed in doing what is necessary.” —WSC

99. Man and Superman: The Revolutionists' Handbook.
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends upon the unreasonable man.” —GB Shaw,
Man and Superman: The Revolutionists' Handbook.

100. “Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.” —William Feather, author

101. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

102. “Leaders ‘do’ people. Period.” —Anon.

103. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

104. “Beware of the tyranny of making Small Changes to Small Things
“Beware of the tyranny of making Small Changes to Small Things. Rather, make Big Changes to Big Things.” —Roger Enrico, former Chairman, PepsiCo

105. Kevin Roberts’ Credo 1. Ready. Fire. Aim. 2. If it ain’t broke
Kevin Roberts’ Credo 1. Ready. Fire! Aim. 2. If it ain’t broke ... Break it! 3. Hire crazies. 4. Ask dumb questions. 5. Pursue failure. 6. Lead, follow ... or get out of the way! 7. Spread confusion. 8. Ditch your office. 9. Read odd stuff Avoid moderation!

106. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

107. On NELSON: “[other] admirals more frightened of losing than anxious to win”

108. The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it. Michelangelo

109. PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE
PURPOSE. PASSION. Potential. Presence. Personal. PERSISTENCE. PEOPLE. Potent. Positive.

110. Source: Anon. (Posted @ tompeters.com by
“Excellence can be obtained if you: care more than others think is wise; risk more than others think is safe; dream more than others think
is practical; expect more than others think
is possible.”
Source: Anon. tompeters.com by
K.Sriram, November 27, :17 AM)

111. EXCELLE ALWAYS.

112. EXCELLENCE. THE LEADERSHIP23.

113. Leadership23/ML 1. Enthusiasm. Energy. Exuberance. 2. Action. Execution. 3. Tempo. Metabolism. 4. Relentless. 5. Master of Plan B. 6. Accountability. 7. Meritocracy. 8. Leaders “do” people. Mentor. (“Success
creation business.”) 9. Women. Diversity. 10. Integrity. Credibility. Humanity. Grace. 11. Realism. 12. Cause. Adventures. Quests.

114. 16. “Reward excellent failures. Punish
Leadership23/ML 13. Legacy. 14. Best story wins. 15. On the edge. (“Wildest chimera of a
moonstruck mind.”)
16. “Reward excellent failures. Punish
mediocre successes.” 17. Different > Better. (“Only ones who do
what we do.”) 18. MBWA. Customer MBWA. 19. Laughs. 20. Repot. Curiosity. Why? 21. You = Calendar. “To Don’t.” Two. 22. Excellence. Always.
23. Nelsonian! (“Other admirals more afraid
of losing than anxious to win.”)

115. Source: Anon. (Posted @ tompeters.com by
“Excellence can be obtained if you: care more than others think is wise; risk more than others think is safe; dream more than others think
is practical; expect more than others think
is possible.”
Source: Anon. tompeters.com by
K.Sriram, November 27, :17 AM)

116. EXCELLE ALWAYS.