I am surprised and flattered that my close friend and distinguished colleague chose to dedicate his new book to me. I am especially pleased that my question to Dr. Jagdish Sheth all those years ago proved to be the impetus for The Self-Destructive Habits of Good Companies—one of the most insightful business books to appear in some time.

My friendship with Jag (as he is known to all) goes back many years, as does my debt to his wise counsel. Jag was a trusted confidant of mine, and of BellSouth’s, during years of considerable turmoil in the telecommunications industry, and he helped us challenge the status quo business beliefs that followed our company as we exited our monopoly ancestry. Jag helped us challenge the thinking of senior leaders as well as middle managers and that work influenced the culture that emerged in a competitive BellSouth.

Of course, BellSouth is but one of many companies for whom Jag has provided his invaluable expertise. The list of distinguished companies that have called upon his help is a long one and spans three continents—North America, Europe, and Asia. I’m constantly amazed at his frenetic consulting and speaking schedule, yet he still finds time to teach some of the most popular courses at Emory University’s Goizueta Business School, where he holds the Charles H. Kellstadt chair. The university and the community were fortunate when Jag decided to make Atlanta his home.

This new book (the latest of several, by the way) quickly reveals the breadth of Jag’s expertise and the depth of his insights. For obvious reasons, I was particularly interested in the chapter entitled “Complacency: Success Breeds Failure,” especially about the complacency that results “when your past success came via a regulated monopoly.” Reading again about the forced break-up of AT&T in 1984 reminded me of the painful lessons that companies in many industries were forced to learn thanks to deregulation—lessons which Jag spells out in no uncertain terms. I must say I had to laugh when Jag’s account reminded me that after the break-up AT&T at first wanted to rename itself American Bell International, until Judge Harold Greene intervened. Jag writes that he still has the tie that Randall Tobias gave him with the new ABI logo on it. “Hold onto it,” Tobias told Jag. “It’ll be a keepsake one day.”

I also particularly enjoyed the chapter “The Territorial Impulse: Culture Conflicts and Turf Wars.” It’s no secret that teamwork has always been a mantra of mine, and Jag’s metaphor of the company structured as “a complex of 50-story office towers, connected only by common areas at the bottom and the top” speaks volumes about the way many businesses are run today.
So it is in chapter after chapter, that Jag analyzes companies like Digital Equipment, GM, Firestone and Zenith. Jag’s dozens of illustrations are always incisive, but the book wouldn’t be complete without, at the end of each chapter, his “warning signs” of each bad habit and, most helpful, step-by-step approach to breaking each habit before it does its damage.

The Self-Destructive Habits of Good Companies is entertaining, instructive, and tremendously valuable. I could not recommend it more strongly.

F. Duane Ackerman
Chairman Emeritus - BellSouth Corporation

In today’s fast paced society and global economy it is easy for many senior executives to miss or misinterpret, intentionally or unintentionally, the signs of self-destruction. We are too close to and too engaged in the day to day operation of our enterprises. We are too worried about delivering short term results. We are more concerned about our sound bites than what might bite. Our attention is diverted from our long term goals: the prosperity and growth of our enterprises and our commitment to delivering value to our stakeholders.

The tumultuous life of a company gets more complicated when its leaders fall from grace due to missing the signs and signals of troubles ahead. By ignoring these signs companies fall into a downward spiral that in many instances gets out of the control of their leaders. They no longer can influence the process and impact the outcome of their recovery. Hence, the stakeholders and the environment call for the change of leadership sooner than later. The new leaders have to pick up the pieces of the wreckage and by putting them together they may discover and realize what went wrong and how to fix it.

My father used to say that it is admirable to learn from others experiences and utilize their lessons learned because life is too short and none of us will have the luxury of personally experiencing every thing that we desire. Albeit thanks to the proliferation of online information anytime and anywhere our corporate leaders are at the mercy of information overload. Thus it takes a special time and effort to find a concise dose of useful and practical information that we can put to work in leading our enterprises. With that in mind, I found the Self-destructive Habits of Good Companies a fascinating book with rich content, concise format and sound advice.

I have been a senior executive of a very influential global high tech company and an executive coach to many senior executives worldwide. In both of these circumstances, I have experienced first hand the effects and consequences of the self-destructive habits. Tom Peters paid a special tribute to this high tech company through several pages of his books Thriving on Chaos and The Pursuit of WOW! I have been there and done that. My former company had to take drastic measures in dealing with its self-destructive habits. It was a long process. It was hard to admit it because the leaders were in denial. It was hard work and involved many sacrifices, loss of our talented resources and ultimately the change of leadership. The recovery came at a very high price.

The Self-destructive Habits of Good Companies makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of today’s corporate dilemma. It is a profound wake up call for all of us regardless of our geographies, cultural differences and industrial sectors - - public or private.

I am delighted that Jag finally decided to write this book and to tell us like it is. I have known Jag for many years. I admire his genuine passion for this straight forward message. He shares his personal experiences along with empirical and qualitative data from the field. Now, he is taking us along this journey through these masterfully constructed cases of real life. He wants us to see it and to relate to it. He points emphatically to what is crucial to observe and absorb. And, he ends every part of this journey with a tangible take away that will benefit each and every one of us for a long time to come.

Jag brilliantly demonstrates the true value of detection, prevention and solution to organizational crisis by their leaders. The manifestation of sound leadership is in utilizing this framework and navigating the enterprise through the spiral of rough times and ending it with positive results. Our stakeholders will not accept anything short of that. Jag convincingly articulates that Unintended Consequence of the leaders’ action or the lack thereof can be enormous and deadly for the enterprise.

The question for us as leaders is whether we should take Jag’s guidance and anticipate the crisis through the recognition of these signals or, let the crisis happen inevitably. Common sense tells us we may not be able to afford the cost and consequences of ignoring it personally and professionally. We may not be able to bring back and regain the trust and confidence of our stakeholders.

Jag argues persuasively about the most fundamental concerns of our stakeholders that make our companies make it or break it. These are among the hidden risks of running our enterprises. Jag helps us to recognize these risks before it becomes too late. At such time, he warns us that too little effort will not cut it and will not solve the crisis.

Jag articulates the importance of distinguishing between causes and symptoms. It is convenient for us to be completely consumed by the symptoms while the causes are hidden and not quite apparent. Albeit, knowing the problems and true causes are half of the solution. And, Peter Drucker said it is better to devise a wrong solution for the right problem than the right solution for a wrong problem.

Jag connects with his readers on so many levels. He puts himself in the middle of the arena and faces the forces of destruction as both an observer and a practitioner. He shares his first hand experiences with us, he tells us about the good, the bad and the ugly, he gets to the core and source of our fear and makes us face it unguarded, then he guides us through the sweet taste of success. The principles of Jag’s argument are so clear and close to home that make his message all more powerful and compelling.

The signs and signals of self-destruction are not hierarchical. As Jag demonstrates them, these signals are in a circle of interdependent elements that can get started at any point with material impact on each others. If undetected and untreated, these elements of self-destruction can create a downward spiral to the detriment of the enterprise. This is where none of us desires to be in our wildest imagination and dreadful nightmares.

If you are in the middle of a crisis and are facing these signs and signals then this is your prescription for diagnosis and treatment to the health and prosperity of your organization. This is the book of transformation for Intended Consequences.

If you have not experienced these conditions personally, I strongly urge you to avoid it at all cost. This is your guide book for detecting these pitfalls. Thus, I recommend to all that you read on and keep in touch!

A. Reza Jafari
Chairman,
NeuStar International

Chairman of the Board
ITU TELECOM
International Telecommunication Union

Chairman of the Board
India, China and America Institute