Books — Bob Herbold

Seduced by Success How the Best Companies Survive the 9 Traps of Winning by Robert J. Herbold "The key take-away for me is this: Get a small group of people who are clearly held accountable, make it clear what you want them to do, and they will perform." Success can be a serious business vulnerability! General Motors, IBM, Kodak, Rubbermaid—these are just a few examples of top companies that became complacent and bloated. To sustain their success, they should have been uncovering fresh approaches, improving their products and services, and staying lean and agile. In Seduced by Success, Robert Herbold shows you and your company how to become successful and stay that way by avoiding the nine biggest success traps. The book features multiple examples of successful companies that succumbed to problems as well as examples of companies that overcame them. This provocative, thought-leading guide explains why "defending yesterday" is a prescription for failure. You'll learn how and why both you and your organization must constantly experiment with new ideas, processes, and business models to remain relevant. The Nine Traps Every Successful Organization Must Avoid: Neglect: Sticking with yesterday's business model Pride: Letting products and services become second rate Boredom: Clinging to your once successful branding Complexity: Letting processes run the business Bloat: Losing agility Mediocrity: Allowing subpar performance to persist Lethargy: Nurturing a retirement home culture Timidity: Permitting turf battles and infighting Vagueness: Schizophrenic communication McGraw-Hill, April 2007

Fiefdom Syndrome The Turf Battle that Undermine Careers and Companies - And How to Overcome Them by Robert J. Herbold "The problem begins when individuals, groups, or divisions - out of fear - seek to make themselves vital to their organizations and, unconsciously or sometimes deliberately, try to protect their turf and gain as much control as possible over what goes on. It is a natural human tendency, dating back to the origins of our species, but if it isn't managed properly, the damage caused by these "fiefdoms" can spell the death knell of what should have been a strong and vital organization." In The Fiefdom Syndrome, Bob Herbold exposes why fiefdoms occur and the myriad ways they can compromise a company's effectiveness - as well as shows what managers, companies, and individuals need to do to break up fiefdoms and eliminate turf wars. Illustrated with countless "war stories" from Microsoft, Procter & Gamble, and other corporations, this book is an essential tool in every manager's toolkit. Currency, 2004