I recently read Good to Great by Jim Collins. It’s an easy read and it contains some identifiable and possibly repeatable business strategies. The overarching them was the hedgehog strategy wherein the author suggest that businesses identify these three things and where they intersect; 1) What are you passionate about? 2) What can you be the best in the world at? and 3) Where are your revenues coming from?

I think most companies are working toward that goal and I think that the strategies that the book suggests are being implemented by most companies. There is still an element of luck that can’t be ignored.

So, good: Overall strategies that are mentioned. There was something in each chapter that I circled or underlined or highlighted as a good take-away.
Bad: The book ignores those companies that have implemented the exact same strategies and tactics, but came up snake-eyes. I’m quite sure there are many.

I’m not convinced that the companies that he picked are good examples of success stories, either. Many of them are average – at best – today. Two of them aren’t even around as they were when the book was written (Circuit City & Fanny Mae.)