Based on their work across companies in the automobile, agriculture, and technology industries, the authors outline 11 lessons learned in the process of working in and with organizations in the process of transformation. These lessons are: The customer is always right except when they are not: deals with customer-facing issues What got you here may kill you there: Letting go of what made you good is hard. Execute on unconventional wisdom: debunk best practices and use of unconventional wisdom as an antidote for me to thinking. Who melted my cheese?: examines how the heat and pressure of mergers and acquisitions impacts transformation. HR stands for Human Resources not Hiring Requisitions: brings to light the central role of HR in transformation and why this is the biggest missing piece There is no strategy if nobody knows what to do: provides insight into how smart sounding, unintelligible presentations don’t add up to effective action and what to do about it Consultants are not an excuse for not knowing what you want: provides information on the use of consultants and how to get a sound return on consulting Yesterdays leadership skills may prevent tomorrows success: delves into the sticky situation of what happens when we find the enemy and it is us. Don’t let analysts run your business: how do you get the street satisfied, the organization transformed, and keep your job? Spin is over-rated for creating value: examines the effect of complete and utter candor in the face of merger where the spin is replaced with unvarnished truth. Merger is not a four letter word: how to address mergers in order to prevent the typical loss of value experienced in most company marriages.
