Jim Collins, known widely as one of the great leadership thinkers and writers in the world, was our keynote speaker this morning. He's sold over 10 million books - Good to Great, Built to Last, Great by Choice, How the Mighty Fall, best sellers all - and in 55 minutes gave us the highlights of each. And now I'm supposed to boil that down into a blog-sized chunk? Right.
Much that he said resonated with me and, it seemed, many others in the audience. (I'm using quotations below, but these quotes are paraphrased from my hastily scribbled notes)
"Building a great enterprise is first and foremost about the right people"
"A meaningful life for those of us in the social sector is about loving the people we work with (faculty) and loving the people we work for (students)"
"Culture of discipline - discipline of mission, purpose, vision - is present in all great enterprises"
"Trick is to marry creativity with discipline in a way that amplifies creativity instead of crushing it"
"Critical to preserve the core (values, purpose) and stimulate progress. Balance is 80% core and 20% process. Organizations become great by knowing which 20% to change."
This is just the tip of the iceberg. So much good stuff to take in.
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