Guts!
The book Guts: Companies That Blow the Doors off Business-as-Usual, by Kevin and Jackie Freiberg, is essentially a “how to” book centered around making a company a success with creative thinking put forward by fearless leaders. The central thesis in this book is that by treating employees like gold instead of dirt, by empowering workers to build your brand and by making them far more than just “satisfied,” companies will make more money and save the money other companies spend training their new employees because of high turnover.
The reason the companies featured in this book have become successful is because the leaders in those firms put an end to “fear-based management.” The authors have written an entertaining book in which they pull no punches about their over-riding philosophy: Gutsy leaders have “bravery and vision” which enables them to “dismantle fear-based management” and replace it with “heart, soul, discipline, loyalty, humor – and long-term record profits.”
The concept of strategic leadership is alive and well throughout this book. This is a thoroughly relevant book vis-a-vis strategic leadership in business. Leading a company in today’s global and highly competitive market requires forward thinking and the ability to link the various components of an organization into a strong culture that absolutely believes in taking chances rather than settling for the old ways of doing things. The authors have examined a number of successful businesses – where management had the “guts” to step out of the box and design a strategy that makes employees feel important and loved – including Southwest Airlines (which they also featured in Nuts, their first book), Whole Foods, Starbucks, and many more.
Classic strategic leadership is practiced at Whole Foods; it’s “gutsy founder and chief executive” John Mackey has “largely given over the operation to his employees” (Freiberg, 69). What that means is Mackey has somehow trained his employees to “think and act like owners” (Freiberg, 72). The authors explain on page 78 that just offering profit sharing and stock options isn’t enough; “You must educate them,” Freiberg writes, by “demystifying the language of business.” And it goes beyond that too at Whole Foods; every employee’s salary is posted for all to see. There must be a sense of progressive thinking and openness that is part of strategic management’s mantra, where the boss teaches workers how to “bend, stretch, or even break rules that don’t serve the customer.”
The theme of this book should work well in almost any business. For instance, Chapter 4 describes how to hire people “…who don’t suck,” which is a common cliche but the authors go into great detail about strategic hiring. Before hiring people to fill responsible positions – and this portion applies to any business in any sector of the economy – a company should define “what it takes” to be a “great employee” in that company. The money saved by keeping employees instead of constantly hiring and training new employees can add up to enormous sums.
Mark Hendricks – writing in the journal Entrepreneur – points out that the Freiberg book offers good advice on how a company can succeed with “unusual, visionary, courageous and sometimes outrageous approaches” (Hendricks, 2004). But a company cannot succeed by just offering employees perks like “on-site fitness centers” and “free dry cleaning” to “retain and inspire employees.” Instead, the idea in hiring is to put forward something “truly heroic” in what the company does and then make certain that “every employee knows what it is.” By teaching employees to think of their company as their own, and by inspiring them to be heroes within the company, the company is likely to keep employees longer.
In the Library Journal writer Carol J. Elsen suggests that Guts offers a formula for making successful companies by creating leadership within the entire workforce. This is a radical switch from what many companies do with regard to their employees. Creative managers understand that employees should not be treated “as cogs in a wheel but as human beings with the potential to connect with their customers and transform their companies while having fun in the process” (Elsen, 2003). The writer was impressed by the portion of the book that described software maker SAS Institute’s approach to making employees proud and happy. The SAS Institute provides “subsidized Montessori child care, free snacks, and unlimited sick time for staff.” The result of that impressed Elsen; “An industry-high employee retention rate.”
And Elsen couldn’t help but be moved by the innovative way in which Southwest Airlines treats employees. The employees at Southwest Airlines are “taught” how the profit-sharing aspect of business works because management stuffs “comic-book style financial statements into Cracker Jack boxes.” By seeing the financial realities of day-to-day business dynamics, Southwest Airlines workers know how to “…unleash their creativity to shrink costs and beef up the bottom line,” Elsen explains.
She even promotes the book for libraries by suggesting “innovative management is always a winning theme” when it comes to “public and academic library business collections.”
Still another review of the book – by Leigh Rivenbark in HR Magazine – explains that what the Freibergs have offered readers is a strategy that puts employees before customers. The theme of Rivenbark’s critique is simple; employees are the “chief communicators of a company’s culture to the world, so if employees aren’t happy, customers won’t be either…”
Rivenbark was impressed by the innovative and strategic management style of the retail chain Bon Marche, featured in Guts. The CEO and HR chief worked collaboratively to create an “employee-first culture” at Bon Marche. How did they do this? They changed the culture completely in an attempt to slow down the rate of turnover. Management went to employees and asked them to put together “telecommuting options, bonus programs, a casual dress code” along with a flexible schedule to fit workers’ personal driving needs and family concerns. “Turnover plummeted,” Rivenbark went on, and the customer service department improved as well.
This book is loaded with examples that can be used by employees and management in many ways. The bias that the authors show over and over is against companies that run their businesses the old fashioned, top-down way. Authority for many companies still lurks at the top of the ladder, and employees are expected to toe the company line and meet the standards that were established – and are enforced by the Human Relations department – at the time the company was formed. The book doesn’t actually go into detail about these rigid companies nor does the book point them out. The book doesn’t have to identify sluggish-thinking companies because by pointing to those companies that do want their employees to be empowered, that do want their workers to have fun and feel like they are part owners, it leaves the lumbering firms in the dust.
Meanwhile, the “Gut Check” section of this book (pp 142-151) should be photocopied by every HR manager and every CEO along with everyone in a position of authority or in charge of hiring in every company. Why? This is the formula for strategic management in the New Millennium. Talent is key to a company’s success, and the strategies that go into hiring the best talent not only reflect the philosophy of the company, they are the drivers that determine whether the company will be profitable or not. Speaking of bias the authors show, the heading, “What people know is less important than who they are” (143), indirectly sheds light on those companies that hire based on someone’s experience in past work situations. “Screen for passion” is another example of how to build a successful culture within a company. Does the person have a “tone” in his or her voice that is enthusiastic? And “Hire the unconventional” is another example of the innovative nature of this book. “Look for open-minded people who are fun, spontaneous, and have the guts to take a risk,” the authors explain (144). And there is that word “guts” again, which of course is the point of the whole book.
Works Cited
Elsen, Carol J. (2003). Guts! Companies That Blow the Doors Off Business-as-Usual. Library Journal, 128(20), p. 134.
Freiberg, Kevin, & Freiberg, Jackie. (2004). Guts! Companies That Blow the Doors Off Business-as-Usual. New York: Doubleday.
Hendricks, Mark. (2004). Don’t be a hero? Not if this book has anything to say about it.
Entrepreneur, 32(3), p. 29.
Rivenbark, Leigh. (2004). Guts! HRMagazine, 49(7), 137-139.
Are you busy and do not have time to handle your assignment? Are you scared that your paper will not make the grade? Do you have responsibilities that may hinder you from turning in your assignment on time? Are you tired and can barely handle your assignment? Are your grades inconsistent?
Whichever your reason is, it is valid! You can get professional academic help from our service at affordable rates. We have a team of professional academic writers who can handle all your assignments.
Students barely have time to read. We got you! Have your literature essay or book review written without having the hassle of reading the book. You can get your literature paper custom-written for you by our literature specialists.
Do you struggle with finance? No need to torture yourself if finance is not your cup of tea. You can order your finance paper from our academic writing service and get 100% original work from competent finance experts.
Computer science is a tough subject. Fortunately, our computer science experts are up to the match. No need to stress and have sleepless nights. Our academic writers will tackle all your computer science assignments and deliver them on time. Let us handle all your python, java, ruby, JavaScript, php , C+ assignments!
While psychology may be an interesting subject, you may lack sufficient time to handle your assignments. Don’t despair; by using our academic writing service, you can be assured of perfect grades. Moreover, your grades will be consistent.
Engineering is quite a demanding subject. Students face a lot of pressure and barely have enough time to do what they love to do. Our academic writing service got you covered! Our engineering specialists follow the paper instructions and ensure timely delivery of the paper.
In the nursing course, you may have difficulties with literature reviews, annotated bibliographies, critical essays, and other assignments. Our nursing assignment writers will offer you professional nursing paper help at low prices.
Truth be told, sociology papers can be quite exhausting. Our academic writing service relieves you of fatigue, pressure, and stress. You can relax and have peace of mind as our academic writers handle your sociology assignment.
We take pride in having some of the best business writers in the industry. Our business writers have a lot of experience in the field. They are reliable, and you can be assured of a high-grade paper. They are able to handle business papers of any subject, length, deadline, and difficulty!
We boast of having some of the most experienced statistics experts in the industry. Our statistics experts have diverse skills, expertise, and knowledge to handle any kind of assignment. They have access to all kinds of software to get your assignment done.
Writing a law essay may prove to be an insurmountable obstacle, especially when you need to know the peculiarities of the legislative framework. Take advantage of our top-notch law specialists and get superb grades and 100% satisfaction.
We have highlighted some of the most popular subjects we handle above. Those are just a tip of the iceberg. We deal in all academic disciplines since our writers are as diverse. They have been drawn from across all disciplines, and orders are assigned to those writers believed to be the best in the field. In a nutshell, there is no task we cannot handle; all you need to do is place your order with us. As long as your instructions are clear, just trust we shall deliver irrespective of the discipline.
Our essay writers are graduates with bachelor's, masters, Ph.D., and doctorate degrees in various subjects. The minimum requirement to be an essay writer with our essay writing service is to have a college degree. All our academic writers have a minimum of two years of academic writing. We have a stringent recruitment process to ensure that we get only the most competent essay writers in the industry. We also ensure that the writers are handsomely compensated for their value. The majority of our writers are native English speakers. As such, the fluency of language and grammar is impeccable.
There is a very low likelihood that you won’t like the paper.
Not at all. All papers are written from scratch. There is no way your tutor or instructor will realize that you did not write the paper yourself. In fact, we recommend using our assignment help services for consistent results.
We check all papers for plagiarism before we submit them. We use powerful plagiarism checking software such as SafeAssign, LopesWrite, and Turnitin. We also upload the plagiarism report so that you can review it. We understand that plagiarism is academic suicide. We would not take the risk of submitting plagiarized work and jeopardize your academic journey. Furthermore, we do not sell or use prewritten papers, and each paper is written from scratch.
You determine when you get the paper by setting the deadline when placing the order. All papers are delivered within the deadline. We are well aware that we operate in a time-sensitive industry. As such, we have laid out strategies to ensure that the client receives the paper on time and they never miss the deadline. We understand that papers that are submitted late have some points deducted. We do not want you to miss any points due to late submission. We work on beating deadlines by huge margins in order to ensure that you have ample time to review the paper before you submit it.
We have a privacy and confidentiality policy that guides our work. We NEVER share any customer information with third parties. Noone will ever know that you used our assignment help services. It’s only between you and us. We are bound by our policies to protect the customer’s identity and information. All your information, such as your names, phone number, email, order information, and so on, are protected. We have robust security systems that ensure that your data is protected. Hacking our systems is close to impossible, and it has never happened.
You fill all the paper instructions in the order form. Make sure you include all the helpful materials so that our academic writers can deliver the perfect paper. It will also help to eliminate unnecessary revisions.
Proceed to pay for the paper so that it can be assigned to one of our expert academic writers. The paper subject is matched with the writer’s area of specialization.
You communicate with the writer and know about the progress of the paper. The client can ask the writer for drafts of the paper. The client can upload extra material and include additional instructions from the lecturer. Receive a paper.
The paper is sent to your email and uploaded to your personal account. You also get a plagiarism report attached to your paper.
GET A PERFECT SCORE!!! 
Delivering a high-quality product at a reasonable price is not enough anymore.
That’s why we have developed 5 beneficial guarantees that will make your experience with our service enjoyable, easy, and safe.
You have to be 100% sure of the quality of your product to give a money-back guarantee. This describes us perfectly. Make sure that this guarantee is totally transparent.
Read moreEach paper is composed from scratch, according to your instructions. It is then checked by our plagiarism-detection software. There is no gap where plagiarism could squeeze in.
Read moreThanks to our free revisions, there is no way for you to be unsatisfied. We will work on your paper until you are completely happy with the result.
Read moreYour email is safe, as we store it according to international data protection rules. Your bank details are secure, as we use only reliable payment systems.
Read moreBy sending us your money, you buy the service we provide. Check out our terms and conditions if you prefer business talks to be laid out in official language.
Read more