The article from Forbes that I have linked to below is so good it is worth reading twice - maybe even three times. I am thinking of subscribing just to read the leadership column.
Peggy Noonan On Steve Jobs And Why Big Companies Die
The salesmen who led the companies were smart and eloquent, but “they didn’t know anything about the product.” In the end this can doom a great company, because what consumers want is good products.
via www.forbes.com
I don't know how many places I have been over the years where the sales people do not know anything about the product they are selling, or at best very little. Sales training today does not include product knowledge.
Everyday we pick up the paper or read the stock market report and we see companies being killed, or being put to sleep, by leadership interested only in cutting costs, increasing sales, and their investors. There is an overall lack of drive to produce the best product or service as well as know their customers. They talk a good game but the results are always the same - a lack of excitement for their products by the consumer. Advertising tries to create excitement but all I get is that their advertising is very trying. Some don't even advertise or promote.
Business today is all about the money, its how the players measure their success. We suffer with less than good (definitely not great) products and services.
Then a Steve Jobs and an company like Apple appears. It succeeds because someone cares about the product and about excellence and demands that of everyone involved. In Walter Isaacson's book Steve often says "It's not about the money". It was about excellence and the consumer experience.
While you are at Forbes you might also want to read the following. Steve Jobs and the One Trait All Innovative Leaders Share. It is also very good and interesting. I also strongly recommend the book Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson - great reading (even on the Kindle).


