Practice What You Preach : What Managers Must Do to Create a High Achievement Culture by David Maister

Practice What You Preach : What Managers Must Do to Create a High Achievement Culture
David Maister

Format: Paperback, 270pp.
ISBN: 9780743223201
Publisher: Free Press
Pub. Date: July 2003

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Description and Reviews
From The Publisher:

Firms that are perceived by their employees to actually practice what they preach are more financially successful than their competitors, says consultant David H. Maister, based on a worldwide survey of 139 offices in 29 professional service firms in 15 countries in 15 different lines of business.

Maister asked the simple question: Are employee attitudes correlated with financial success? The answer, he found, was "an unequivocal 'Yes!'" Further, the author shows that high levels of employee commitment and dedication "cause(yes, cause) a demonstrable, measurable improvement in financial performance." Maister proves that if your firm doesn't promote enthusiasm and high morale in your employees, your firm will make less money.

So, how can you create a culture in your firm that promotes growth and superior financial returns? Maister discovered that the most successful firms surveyed excelled by doing well on things to which most, if not all, firms pay only lip service: commitment to clients, teamwork, high standards, employee development, and other familiar topics. However, what distinguishes the best from the rest is that the best live up to their own standards.

Digging deeper by conducting in-depth interviews with managers and employees of the firms he surveyed, Maister has found that the key to success is not the systems of the firm, but the character and skills of the individual manager. He explores in detail the central role of the manager (what he or she must be, must do, and must require of others). The reader will find specific action recommendations from the managers and employees of these "superstar" businesses on how to build an energized workplace, enforce standards of excellence, develop people, and have fun � all as powerful profit improvement tactics.

Practice What You Preach can help any manager increase firm growth and profitability, and will provide proof to firm executives that great financial rewards come from living up to the high standards that most businesses advocate, but few achieve.

Reviews

Maister, a professional service consultant, surveyed 6,500 employees at 50 worldwide companies to evaluate the relationship between company financial performance and employee satisfaction and loyalty. He found a direct and dramatic correlation. Here, he offers detailed commentary from CEOs, managers and staffers, and analysis of the survey results. Bosses in all kinds of companies will benefit from his solid advice, which should be required reading for executives and upper level managers.

Table of Contents

	Introduction	1
	How to Use This Book	7
1	The Survey: Financial performance and employee attitude questions	9
2	Tramster: A Case Study: Trust, respect and integrity	16
3	How Successful Offices Did It: Enthusiastic, committed and dedicated people	28
4	Northport: A Case Study: The right combination of fun and discipline	36
5	Correlations with Financial Performance: An uncompromising determination to achieve excellence	48
6	Mustang Communications: A Case Study: Build your people and the rest will come	53
7	The Predictive Package: Nine attitudes that predict profits	63
8	Archipelago: A Case Study: The best management is one-on-one	70
9	The Path to Performance: The factors that cause financial performance	77
10	Tigrette: A Case Study: Talent doesn't outweigh personality	85
11	Firm or Office? What's Driving Things?: The individual manager is disproportionately influential	94
12	Mortimer Ransford: A Case Study: The Culture Cop: non-negotiable cultural minimums	99
13	The Effects of Office Size: Size makes things harder	110
14	Bellerephon: A Case Study: You've met Alice, haven't you? Essential human qualities	113
15	Age Levels: Your younger staff's views predict profits best!	121
16	Arkwright, Sutton: A Case Study: It's about relationships, stupid! Walk the halls!	128
17	Additional comparisons: Geography, lines of business and leverage	136
18	McLeary Advertising: A Case Study: Don't go home if someone else needs help	142
19	Julie's Perspective: Don't be afraid to live your values	156
20	Lessons: The Manager: What managers must be, believe and do	160
21	Lessons: Creating the Success Culture: Intolerance, requirements and community	168
22	Lessons: Developing People: Creating an energizing workplace	176
23	Lessons: Other Topics: Hiring, Training, Rewards and Clients	184
24	It's Not One or the Other, It's Both!: People development IS business development	190
25	The Courage to Manage: Strategy versus expediency. Do what you say you'll do	193
	App. 1: The Financial Performance Index	203
	App. 2: The 74 Questions	205
	App. 3: The Factors	213
	App. 4: Impact of Improving on Each Question	217
	App. 5: How the Top 20 Percent Offices Did It	222
	App. 6: Correlations	230
	App. 7: A Note on Structural Equation Modeling	238
	References	241
	Acknowledgments	243
	Index	245
	About the Author

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