Results That Last: Hardwiring Behaviors That Will Take Your Company to the Top

by Quint Studer

Praise For Results That Last "Quint Studer is a superb communicator with a deep belief in the power of relationships. His informal tone, sense of humor, and real-world stories bring his business principles to life. Results That Last has a vital, optimistic quality that will keep readers re-reading long after other leadership books have been relegated to a dark corner of the shelf."--Nido Qubein, author of How to Get Anything You Want; President, High Point University; Chairman, Great Harvest Bread Company; and founder, National Speakers Association Foundation "Results That Last is long overdue and fills a big gap in effective business management. There are legions of books that show us the way to achieve successful results in business, but very few that teach us how to institutionalize success. In reality, achieving success is the easy part. The real challenge is to achieve results that last. Quint Studer not only proves it is possible to hardwire a culture for lasting results, but lays out a simple, logical, and effective way to do so. Anyone who wants to make success a habit needs to read this book."--Bob MacDonald, former CEO, Allianz Life of North America and author of Beat the 11 Secrets to Building an Entrepreneurial Culture in a Bureaucratic World "I have always been fascinated by how the various parts of an organization work together to achieve strategic objectives. In Results That Last, Quint Studer explores the complex subject of performance improvement in a fresh, readable, and easy-to-grasp way. By standardizing certain business practices and leader behaviors, any company in any field can create an environment that allows it to achieve and sustain long-term results."--David F. Giannetto, coauthor of The Performance Power The Proven Method to Create and Sustain Superior Organizational Performance

Genres: Business, Leadership, Nonfiction

320 pages, ebook

First published October 19, 2006

Reviews

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quint Studer takes what he has learned from the medical world's reliance on 'outcomes' -- i.e. what actually works -- to create a very thorough, sensible method for improving the consistency and effectiveness of leadership, or rather management, in organizations. If all companies merely followed through on the first three ideas in the book (dealing with low performers, 'rounding' for outcomes -- i.e., making managerial rounds like patient rounds every day -- and 'managing up' rather than down -- i.e., not blaming someone else 'upstairs' for bad news, but rather taking responsibility yourself and spreading good news -- businesses would be vastly better run. The great virtue of this book is that Studer makes management out to be something clear and straightforward, not psychodynamic voodoo. The only fault is that he doesn't make it simple. There are the 3 basics I mentioned, then the 5 critical elements employees want, the 9 steps for starting rounding, the flywheel with the 5 pillars, 5 ways to reduce leadership variance, 3 building blocks of employee satisfaction, and so on. I guess it's too much to expect that anyone from the medical world can make things simple. But high marks to him for not excessively dumbing down the problems of management or reducing it to one ghastly acronym.

[Stacy · Rating 3 out of 5]

good book, but honestly I feel as a manager that most of this should be common sense...

[Barbara Slagel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has not aged well. When I read examples from Trump’s Art of the Deal, I lost all respect for the author.

There are some useful ideas, but not a go-to book for me.

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe if I read this book 15 years ago I would be more engaged. A required read for work, “back to the basics” here we go!

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Results That Last: Hardwiring Behaviors That Will Take Your Company to the Top
Quint Studer
John S. Wiley & Sons

In the Introduction to this book, Studer makes the following assertion: "Standardize the right leadership practices and you will find that organizational performance improves across the board...and stays improved." More specifically, results-driven leadership at all levels and in all areas will achieve and then sustain outstanding performance throughout the given enterprise. That's obvious. Here's the challenge: To get the right goals, the right behavior, and the right processes in proper alignment. For example:

1. Have stretch goals that everyone understands and supports, then measure performance in terms of progress toward achievement of those goals. At all times, know what is most important and focus on doing it.

2. View behavior from two separate but related perspectives: values and productivity. At companies such as GE and Southwest Airlines, for example, there is zero tolerance of inappropriate behavior no matter how productive the given offender may be. At the same time, people are expected to produce results (Jack Welch calls it "hitting the numbers") or seek career opportunities elsewhere.

3. Make all processes as simple as possible...but no simpler. Many processes resemble streets that remain essentially unchanged (except for occasional repairs) even as residents of homes, merchants and their customers, and students enrolled in schools come and go. This is especially true of the process by which an organization such as the U.S. Marines develops leadership. "Many are called, a few are chosen" and then all receive rigorous formal training with hands-on daily supervision as they are absorbed by the culture and identify with its values, meanwhile strengthening individual skills, enriching personal knowledge, and - over time - adding increasing value to the organization.

"Evidence-based leadership (EBL) enables us to create results that last. What is EBL? It's a strategy centered on using the current ‘best practices' in leadership - practices that are proven to result in the best possible outcomes. The ‘evidence,' in this context, is the reams of data collected from study after study that aim to determine what people really want and need from their leaders. When leaders apply these tried-and-true tactics to every corner of our organizations, we achieve consistent excellence. Our organization's success is no longer dependent on individuals. It's hardwired. No matter who leaves, the excellence remains." EBL enables those who practice it to identify and deal with "High, Middle, and Low Performers," recognize the five critical elements employees want from managers, "manage up" to improve the performance of those they supervise, measure performance fairly and consistently, improve employee selection and retention, "harvest" intellectual capital, take a customer-centric approach, and build a culture around service, and serve as a role model for effective communication, cooperation, and collaboration.

[Lowell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I need to take a year sabbatical from professional / managerial books.

This was the final book on my company's reading list. I feel as though they all mix and mingle enough that I risk becoming cynical from thinking "Is it worth publishing yet another book from yet another business executive to add their unique recipe for organizational success?"

Similar to many other management books, the content is worthwhile. I agree that many organizations and executives are quick to put policies in place for standardizing employee behavior, but stop right before requiring such standardization at the upper-level of leadership. I'm fine with his own spin on the "what gets measured and discussed gets improved upon" concept. I respect him for emphasizing "If after reading this book you do only one thing aimed at taking your department or entire organization to the top, make it this: Establish an objective evaluation system to hold leaders accountable" (although including this randomly in the middle of a 300-page book may cause this to get lost in the shuffle, and its placement doesn't reflect that emphasis). And I love Quint Studer emphasizing that "consistency equals sustainable results."

It's odd to share items that I like, and overall support the book and its writing, yet still give it a mediocre score. Perhaps I'm comparing my experience with this book to recent experiences with Traction by Gino Wickman, or my two-decade personal experience with Covey's Seven Habits..., and recognizing that unless somebody takes the time to carefully implement the results of a book in their personal life, or with their professional team, for long enough to see the benefits of such a system, we're simply tourists in the slight differentiation of the same concepts as shared by different people.

Suppose it took me long enough to synthesize that not only are business books a dime a dozen (which I already knew), but that if you're going to read one, it should be given ample time to incorporate before you can give it anything more than 3 stars, or before you move onto the next one.

One small personal note: Quint Studer needs to respectfully be called out for patterning his dustcover after Good to Great which came out approximately a decade earlier. Even his title mirrors Built to Last which was also written by Jim Collins. I confess that when discussing this book with peers, I incorrectly called it Built to Last multiple times. I wager there were tens of thousands of readers who picked this up thinking it was a continuation of Good to Great, or the next step in Jim Collins research. And I believe that was an intentional marketing decision by Quint Studer's book designer. And it's such a clever manipulation, I can't help but smile and give a thumbs up.

[Paul Berg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in 10 minute increments while waiting for my computer to boot up in the mornings. It's got some good ideas on things to do to improve your organization. I think I will hold on to it - could be useful.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading for work...improved results and outcomes. Extremely practical...touching both on measurement and leadership practice. Really applicable. I'll be introducing some of the recommendations this year at work.

[Clara Dearmore Strom · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best leadership books I've read. It deals with how to get the tough stuff done and why we should. I highly recommend this one.

[Tina Ottley]

Reading this for work