Seduced by Success: How the Best Companies Survive the 9 Traps of Winning

May 23, 2007
Robert J. Herbold | Director, Herbold Group, LLC/Executive in Residence, INSEAD, Singapore

Success can be a serious business vulnerability, and often a company’s fall from grace can be traced to decisions made in its time of greatest achievement. General Motors, IBM, Kodak, Rubbermaid-these are just a few examples of top companies that became complacent and bloated. To sustain success they should have been uncovering fresh approaches, improving their products and services, and staying lean and agile. The nine traps to avoid are:

Neglect (sticking with yesterday’s business model)
Pride (letting products and services become second-rate)
Boredom (clinging to once successful branding)
Complexity (letting processes run the business)
Bloat (losing agility)
Mediocrity (allowing sub par performance to persist)
Lethargy (nurturing a “retirement home culture”)
Timidity (permitting turf battles and infighting
Vagueness (schizophrenic communication)

How? A combination of strong leadership, new approaches to practices, empowered employees, and a drive for continuous revitalization—difficult but not impossible in any company.

Speaker Details

Robert J. Herbold served as Chief Operating Officer of Microsoft Corporation from 1994-2001, when Microsoft experienced a fourfold increase in revenue and a tenfold increase in profits. Prior to Microsoft, Herbold spent 26 years at the Proctor and Gamble Company, the last five years as Senior Vice President of Marketing. He is now the Director of Herbold Group, LLC and is a Senior Executive in Residence at INSEAD, Singapore; an advisor to the President’s Council on Science and Technology, and a director serving on several international corporate boards.