‘Good To Great’ in Spain

1–12 September 2008
I brought four of the books from my Masters programme reading list on holidays to Spain. Which was wildly optimistic behaviour: what with two young kids to manage. In week two of holidays I managed to work out a system of bringing Laoise, my six-month daughter, for a walk mid-morning, stopping at a coffee shop once she fell asleep, and reading 'Good To Great' until she woke up. It is a fascinating read, I can see why it is a perennial best-seller in so many of the business book charts. I have always read more of the Seth Godin, Tom Peters, Marty Neumeier et al, style of business books (strong on the Big Picture, less so on details and the follow-through) so Jim Collin’s über-methodical approach, and the exhaustive research-based apparatus that supports it, is fascinating. Again as my own preference in business reading inevitably gravitates towards advice aimed at the small, nimble rule-breaking start-up or the sole trader, consultant, digital nomad class, it is interesting to be reading outside of that, seeing how the large publicly-traded organisations operate (The Spanish cappuccinos were not bad either.)

POSTSCRIPT
Guess I can skip the chapter on the US Federal Mortgage association ‘Fannie Mae’, as they have totally lost their ‘Good To Great’ mojo and are now being bailed-out by the US Federal Government.