Built to Last

Successful Habits of Visionary Companies

Jim Collins, Jerry I. Porras | 4.30 | 59,549 ratings and reviews

Recommended by Jeff Bezos, Tim O'Reilly, Ev Williams, and 16 others. See all reviews

Ranked #29 in Linkedin, Ranked #34 in Small Business — see more rankings.

"This is not a book about charismatic visionary leaders. It is not about visionary product concepts or visionary products or visionary market insights. Nor is it about just having a corporate vision. This is a book about something far more important, enduring, and substantial. This is a book about visionary companies." So write Jim Collins and Jerry Porras in this groundbreaking book that shatters myths, provides new insights, and gives practical guidance to those who would like to build landmark companies that stand the test of time.

Drawing upon a six-year research project at the Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Collins and Porras took eighteen truly exceptional and long-lasting companies -- they have an average age of nearly one hundred years and have outperformed the general stock market by a factor of fifteen since 1926 -- and studied each company 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. Throughout, the authors asked: "What makes the truly exceptional companies different from other companies?"

What separates General Electric, 3M, Merck, Wal-Mart, Hewlett-Packard, Walt Disney, and Philip Morris from their rivals? How, for example, did Procter & Gamble, which began life substantially behind rival Colgate, eventually prevail as the premier institution in its industry? How was Motorola able to move from a humble battery repair business into integrated circuits and cellular communications, while Zenith never became dominant in anything other than TVs? How did Boeing unseat McDonnell Douglas as the world's best commercial aircraft company -- what did Boeing have that McDonnell Douglas lacked?

By answering such questions, Collins and Porras go beyond the incessant barrage of management buzzwords and fads of the day to discover timeless qualities that have consistently distinguished out-standing companies. They also provide inspiration to all executives and entrepreneurs by destroying the false but widely accepted idea that only charismatic visionary leaders can build visionary companies.

Filled with hundreds of specific examples and organized into a coherent framework of practical concepts that can be applied by managers and entrepreneurs at all levels, Built to Last provides a master blueprint for building organizations that will prosper long into the twenty-first century and beyond. less

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Reviews and Recommendations

We've comprehensively compiled reviews of Built to Last from the world's leading experts.

Jeff Bezos Founder/Amazonrecommends this book because it shows how to create a long lasting company. (Source)

Tim O'Reilly Founder/O'Reilly MediaBuilt to Last, by James Collins and Jerry Porras. The idea here is that great companies aren't afraid to have strong values. In fact, their cult-like values are what make them stand out from the norm. (Source)

Steve Blank Recommends this book

Drew Huston Recommends this book

Jack Ma Founder/AlibabaRecommends this book

Ev Williams Co-Founder/Twitter, CEO/MediumRecommends this book

Skip Prichard Recommends this book

Yaniv Feldman Recommends this book

Brian Tracy Recommends this book

Alden Mills Built to Last focused my daydreaming mind into what it takes to build truly great companies. (Source)

Rand Fishkin What do companies that survive for generations do differently than those who burn out fast? Another great analysis. (Source)

Zhang Ruimin Ruimin mentions this book in response to a question about long-term success. From Ruimin's point of view, the chief challenge is for leaders to maintain their entrepreneurial spirit, year after year. He admits it isn't easy: (Source)

Kevin Strasser @MiaD @purpultat The interesting thing is that orgs with a higher calling are often the ones that become everlasting, great companies —not those that just care about $$$. That point is beautifully made by @level5leaders in the book Built to Last (https://t.co/kDBLF5nSzX). (Source)

Sean Si Recommends this book

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