Patrick Lencioni uses a very effective technique that has become a bit of a stable in business books these days; he tells you what you need to know using a story.
This "business fable" model has been used in such huge successes as Who Moved My Cheese? and Our Iceberg Is Melting.
While Lencioni does not make this a kids story, with cartoon type characters, he uses the technique very effectively just the same.
The story follows two fictional CEO's, of two fictional consulting firms in the Bay Area in the third person.
The protagonist being Rich O'Connor, and the antagonist taking the form of Vince Green.
Interestingly enough, these men are strikingly similar, as are the companies for which they are responsible.
They are both likable guys who are good at what they do, but Green just cannot seem to beat O'Connor, and this eats at him day and night.
Eventually, through the attrition of a less than likable HR executive, Green is able to find the secret to O'Connor's success.
Green was waiting for some juicy high-tech information.
What he finds instead is an exceedingly simple formula for success that boils down to four and only four points.
O'Connor runs his business religiously by these four principles, and his success speaks for their efficacy.
Now I am not going to share the four points, you have to read the book for that! But I will tell you that the huge lesson here is simplicity.
While Green is awaiting some super secret formula, he is almost disappointed to find out just how basic the secret to O'Connor's success really is.
This is the fantastic lesson to be learned here.
This book is well written, and is a welcomed add to any business library.
You need this one on your shelf, but more than that, you need this one applied to your business!