Jim Collins: If You Want to Move from Good to Great, Who Must Trump What

Getting the right people in your organization should be your top priority as an organizational leader-it's even more important than crafting a clear definition of the organization's mission, said management scholar and best-selling author Jim Collins, at a gathering of Zuckerman and Reynolds Foundation Fellows last month. Companies that manage to ratchet up their performance from good to great tend to nail down the "who" part first, he explained; from there, it's easier to decide upon the "what" part.  In addition to placing great emphasis on hiring and retaining the best people, great organizations tend to be guided by "Level 5 leaders," Collins's term for people whose ambitions extend well beyond self-interest to embrace the interests of a wider group of stakeholders. "Do not put off what you are made to do," urged Collins, author of the 2001 book Good to Great. Instead, "determine your calling and pursue it with excellence-sooner rather than later, for time accelerates." Collins received a Distinguished Teaching Award during his time as a member of the faculty at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. He now heads up his own management research laboratory in Boulder, Colorado. By Emily Bolon, HBS 2006.