Distant Force: A Memoir of the Teledyne Corporation and the Man Who Created It

by George A. Roberts

Dr. Roberts searched his archive of corporate documents - shareholder financieal reports, records of management and board meetings, letters, drafts of speeches, the copious notes that he personally kept during his tenure as president and later CEO, as well as his own memory - to construct this memoir. He describes the first decade of aggressive acquisitions and diversification; Henry's reasons for adding financial institutions to his highly technical mix; his controversial program of aggressive stock buy-backs; the spin-off to shareholders of certain entities which greatly broadened their flexibility in handling their investments (many of which still provide income today); and finally the difficult days of whistle blower suits, hostile takeover atttempts, and the finally friendly merger with Allegheny Steel Company.

Bob McVicker, who assisted Dr. Roberts in the production of this volume, worked in Teledyne's corporate public relations office from 1969 to 1979 where he wrote and procduced the quarterly shareholders' magazine Teledyne Report, after which he continued to write the tutorial articles for this publication on a freelance basis into the early 1990's. These stories, which were intended to give the non-technical shareholder an understanding of the company's sometimes arcane technologies, are available on the CD enclosed with this volume.

Genres: Business, Biography, Finance, Nonfiction, History

316 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Lama · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book isn’t the most well-written, but its content is valuable. Other than The Outsiders by William Thorndike, virtually no other author spends a significant chunk of their book talking about Henry Singleton.

While I’m appreciative that Roberts wrote this book, it mostly read like a straight copy of the Teledyne annual shareholder letters and other reports, sprinkled in with a few anecdotes. It touches a bit on Singleton, but do not confuse this book for a biography of the man himself.

All in all, I’d still recommend this book for anyone interested in learning about Singleton’s approach to managemen, Teledyne’s history as a corporation, and/or businesses.

[Ngee Poo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not an easy read given the businesses they engage in are pretty technical in nature. Gives a decent insight into the workings of Singleton's mind nonetheless, about how his acquisitions were built on the existing competencies of his businesses, and how he allocated his capital efficiently.

[F · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely fascinating look into a company that even Warren Buffett greatly admired.

[Daniel Deptula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very dry once it gets into the year by year summary - you’re going to have to be a nerd to like this one. First 1/3 particularly valuable + rational for divestitures and business sectors focused on (TDG vibes). Would have liked more about HS’ views on capital allocation, but he had passed away (RIP) prior to the book being written

[Erik Hessing · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of this book consists of a chronology of the Teledyne business, which was not of particular interest to me. There are some very big gems hidden in these pages, about how to create and operate a business in general.

[Robert Walden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book about the growth and success of Teledyne as it grew from a startup to giant corporation through thoughtful acquisitions and careful visionary management. Hard to get hold of a copy but can be borrowed an hour at a time from the Internet Archive.

[Sanford Chee]

Recommended by Mohnish Pabrai
https://youtu.be/nRE3sPHfUMY

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing. Clear where Buffett for some of his ideas for Berkshire.