Book SummaryThe Great Game of Business, by Jack Stack and Bo Burlingham

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Great Game of Business

In The Great Game of Business, businessman Jack Stack and writer Bo Burlingham propose that the best and most efficient way to create a successful business is by encouraging employees to take ownership—by encouraging them to see the company as theirs rather than just somewhere they work. If employees see the company as theirs, its success becomes their success as well—and people will work harder to ensure their own success than that of others, the authors imply. Thus, employees will have greater motivation to help the company succeed.

(Shortform note: Here, the authors argue that employees work harder to ensure their own success over that of others—in other words, that they’re fundamentally selfish—and that employers can capitalize on this selfishness to ensure the company succeeds. However, research suggests that this assumption of inherent human selfishness isn’t necessarily true: Studies on toddlers show that humans exhibit selfless traits from a young age. Whether or not these toddlers grow up into selfish adults (and employees) arguably depends on whether parents nurture this selflessness or discourage it in favor of selfishness.)

Stack is an author and the CEO of SRC Holdings Corporation. He’s been...

The Great Game of Business Summary Defining the Two Keys to Employee Ownership

As discussed above, encouraging ownership is crucial to fostering a successful business. According to Stack and Burlingham, the keys to ownership are accessibility and engagement.

We’re defining accessibility—which the authors call education—as employees having enough information to fully understand how their company operates. In fact, Stack and Burlingham maintain that every employee should have as much information about the company and its operations as upper management, since employees can only be effective team members when they fully understand the company.

(Shortform note: Modern technology makes encouraging accessibility easier, as computers can track, analyze, and share data and other information quickly. However, [many companies...

The Great Game of Business Summary Barriers to Encouraging Ownership

Many companies don’t encourage ownership, despite its importance to maintaining a successful business. Stack and Burlingham explain that there are a number of reasons for this hesitance:

Barrier #1: Misplaced Focus

Some companies don’t encourage ownership because they focus too much on having fun, the authors explain. While encouraging employee morale is important, overemphasizing it can distract employees from the real goal of creating a successful business.

(Shortform note: In his book Delivering Happiness, Tony Hsieh disagrees with this viewpoint, arguing that you can’t overemphasize employee morale and happiness. Focusing on making employees happy helps companies because happy employees are more focused, productive, and innovative. They want to be a part of the company that’s making them happy and are willing to work hard to help that company succeed.)

Barrier #2: Lack of Trust

According to Stack and Burlingham, many companies don’t encourage ownership because they don’t trust their employees. Specifically, many managers...

The Great Game of Business Summary The Benefits of Accessibility

As we’ve mentioned, Stack and Burlingham say the best way to encourage ownership is by making business accessible and engaging for employees. For the rest of the guide, we’ll explore how accessibility and engagement help businesses succeed and examine the authors’ suggestions for encouraging them.

First, let’s discuss the merits of accessibility. As discussed above, accessibility is sharing enough information that employees can fully understand how the company operates. The authors claim it has three main benefits:

Benefit #1: Enforced Accountability

Accessibility makes employees take responsibility for their choices and the way they affect the rest of the company. This is because it’s easier to trace problems back to their root causes when the details of the company’s operations are openly available, the authors explain. Employees can’t shift blame or hide mistakes when the proof of their responsibility is public.

(Shortform note: People often shift blame when they believe taking responsibility is dangerous. Employees may believe this if their company punishes mistakes harshly—for example, by demoting or firing employees for relatively minor mistakes. This fear...

The Great Game of Business Summary Creating Accessibility

According to Stack and Burlingham, there are three main steps to creating an accessible business: explaining the business, explaining the numbers, and keeping employees updated.

Step #1: Explain the Business

The first step in creating an accessible company is ensuring employees understand what the company does (the specific products or services it offers), what its goals are, and what its purpose is. This may seem like information employees would already have, but Stack and Burlingham say many employees only really understand the part of the company they’re directly involved in. They may not understand the company’s purpose—its reason for existing beyond making money—or what its goals are. This narrow view can stop employees from taking ownership or supporting the company’s larger goals.

In contrast, Stack and Burlingham imply that knowledgeable employees are more likely to take ownership and work hard to support the company’s goals. When employees understand the company’s operations, goals, and purpose, they can better understand how their actions are significant to its success or failure. This encourages them to feel proud of their contributions and work hard to...

The Great Game of Business Summary The Benefit of Engagement

Now that we’ve covered the importance of accessibility, we’ll look at the second key to fostering employee ownership: engagement. As discussed, we’ve defined engagement as employees being active and interested at work.

Stack and Burlingham explain that engagement helps companies succeed by unlocking employees’ true intelligence, creativity, and dedication. Engaged employees care about their jobs and the company they work for, so they’re more likely to use all their available faculties at work. This helps the company succeed because employees who use their full intelligence make better business decisions, while those who use their full creativity find innovative solutions to problems. Those with a strong sense of dedication work harder for the good of the company.

(Shortform note: It’s possible that engaged employees work harder and fully use all of their skills because of a...

The Great Game of Business Summary Creating Engagement

So, how can you cultivate employee engagement? According to the authors, one important factor is promoting accessibility: Businesses that are accessible are usually also more engaging because employees are constantly learning new, interesting information that helps them take an active role in the company. (Shortform note: Accessibility is engaging because learning something new or mastering a skill releases a burst of [restricted term], according to Raph Koster in A Theory of Fun For Game Design. This burst of [restricted term] generates pleasure and motivation, making employees more likely to learn more about the company and become more active in its operations in the hopes of earning another burst of [restricted term].)

However, Stack and Burlingham maintain that accessibility is just the first step in generating engagement. We’ve synthesized his further suggestions for creating engagement into two main...

Shortform Exercise: Create Employee Engagement

According to Stack and Burlingham, providing an engaging work environment is one of the keys to encouraging employee ownership and creating a successful company. An engaging environment helps employees to be active and interested in their jobs, which encourages them to work harder for the good of the company.

Describe your employees’ current level of engagement with their work. To determine this, consider the following: How efficiently are they completing their tasks? What—if anything—are they doing to improve the company? (Be realistic: Most employees aren’t engaged at work.)