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Nuts! Southwest Airlines' Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success (平装)
by Kevin Freiberg, Jackie Freiberg
| Category:
Corporate history, Motivation, Corporate excellence, Business |
| Market price: ¥ 208.00
MSL price:
¥ 158.00
[ Shop incentives ]
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| Stock:
In Stock |
MSL rating:
 Good for Gifts |
| MSL Pointer Review:
NUTS! is a must read if you're interested in making your employees and customers raving fans of your business as much as those of Southwest Airlines. |
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AllReviews |
1 2   | Total 2 pages 15 items |
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David Rouse (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
When a comparatively small, new company is able to take on major players in a highly competitive industry and gain market share, satisfy customers and employees alike, and make money, it is time for others to take notice. Southwest Airlines has turned a profit every year since 1973, yet it maintains the lowest fares in the industry. It has never furloughed an employee, regularly ranks best in customer service, and has a consistently high safety record. The Freibergs are partners in a San Diego consulting firm and specialize in "executive coaching," conducting motivational and leadership seminars. Here they tell Southwest's story, which begins with its struggle in the late 1960s with Texas' larger, established airlines, which fought to prevent Southwest from taking off. The authors attribute much of the airline's success to the personality and leadership style of CEO Herb Kelleher and the unique corporate culture he has nourished. "Nuts!" is a reference to the 67 million bags of peanuts served last year on Southwest flights and to the company's rule-breaking philosophy. |
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Ken Blanchard (Coauthor of The One Minute Manager) (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
If you're interested in making your employees and customers raving fans of your business, Nuts! is a must read. |
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Stephen Covey (author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People) (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
Full of original insights, upbeat stories, and concrete suggestions, Nuts! shows how the power of principle-centered leadership inspires people to achieve incredible results. |
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Warren Bennis (author of On Becoming a Leader) (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
The story of Southwest Airlines is as much fun to read as it is reader friendly and useful. I promise you, it's a blueprint for all organizations that want to succeed - not just airlines. |
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Rosabeth Moss Kanter (author of World Class: Thriving Locally in the Global Economy) (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
An inspiring tale of the remarkable results possible when employees are liberated to take charge of the rules and have fun on the job. Herb Kelleher's bold innovations stand out from the pack. This down-to-earth book offers valuable lessons about leadership - and profitability - to all who care about the future of their companies. |
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Wally Amos (author of Watermelon Magic: Seeds of Wisdom, Slices of Life) (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
A wonderful book about spirit. The fighting spirit that kept Southwest going during the tough early years. The enthusiastic spirit that fuels the positively outrageous service by anyone who flies Southwest. The loving spirit that comes from the heart and enriches all they touch - employees, customers, and the communities they serve. Read and tap into the power of the Southwest spirit. |
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J. Straub (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
In Nuts! the Freibergs (husband and wife, co-authors) detail and explain the success of Southwest Airlines. They go far beyond simply analyzing the company and its key "LUV" ingredient for success.
Through consulting and their later work in preparation for this book, the Freibergs have intimate knowledge of Southwest's operations, and put it to good use in presenting the company to readers. Moreover, they overtly show their enthusiasm for Southwest: the book is packed with words of praise from the Freibergs, Southwest employees, customers, and outsiders including GE's Jack Welch. All of these testimonials help to make the case that employees really do love what they do.
The book is separated into four sections: the first details the history of Southwest. The second focuses on how Southwest does business; the third deals with the building blocks of the company's success. Finally, the book concludes - and culminates - with a section on how readers can incorporate Southwest techniques within their own business or work environment.
These "secrets" to success are simple: trust your people, treat them as people (not "resources" or "employees"), celebrate the good, and make information easily available to everyone. As simple as they may be, the authors argue that many companies overlook them in deference to policy and procedure. Nuts! advocates that the People come first, the customers second, and everything else starts at third.
Even the best books have their problems, and Nuts! is hurt by the excessive presentation of anecdotes and letters from customers in boxes, which you must stop to read. While they defiantly add something to the book, readability would have been improved by including them in-line with the text.
Overall, this book is clearly a must-read for managers and employees alike. It is an enjoyable fast read and most everyone will take something valuable away from it! |
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An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
I found this one of the most enjoyable business books I have ever read. To me it was a love story. A story on how business can be challenging and yet give something back to society, one person at a time. An example of true and authentic leadership. Leadership that is truthful and loving. I could only imagine how much more fulfilling all jobs would be if society could build on Southwest’s examples. To me, this book says more in the interpretation than the words. And that interpretation is "do unto others..." or in a corporate terms "respect for the individual", without losing site that we should also have fun and not take ourselves to seriously. I highly recommend this book for business owners like myself who are trying to make a difference. |
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Donald Mitchell (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
When I read profiles of companies, I usually find that I barely recognize the company I know. Nuts! is different. It actually captures a lot of the inside perspective of Southwest Airlines, in a way that is hard to do in a business book.
I have been flying on Southwest for over 25 years, and have been fascinated by the company's business model for the entire time. So I have made it a point to fly the airline and to learn as much as possible about the people over the years. I have also had the benefit of having had a professional relationship with the firm in the past.
I was immediately impressed when the first 50 pages contained a large number of stories that long-time Southwest employees had told me over the years.
My good impression grew as important new details were added to my knowledge. Perhaps most important was the description of how the authors got access to Herb Kelleher and the company in order to be able to write the book. I, too, have tried for that access and have not yet been as successful. Maybe after I complete my 10,000th roundtrip!
Seriously, I am currently working on a new book about an improved business model that all companies should follow. Southwest Airlines will be the central example in the first chapter in that book. I plan to use Nuts! as a source in that writing.
If authenticity is the book's main strength, then it's main weakness is repetition. The Freibergs have sliced and diced the lessons a bit too finely for my taste. Rather than portraying the key elements of the Southwest story and exemplifying these points with lots of examples, Nuts! takes the same examples and reuses them over... and... over... and... over to make different points.
A way to have improved this book would have been to have compared Southwest to other outstanding companies. The authors tended to limit their comparisons to other airlines (a group of usually not-very-well-run companies). That would have made the unique elements of Southwest clearer.
If you have ever flown Southwest, you know that the company's culture is pretty unusual. The cultural story comes across loud and clear. One of the strengths of the book is that the reasons for starting and maintaining the culture are well explained. Most cultures are pretty hard to understand from the outside. This one can be appreciated from that perspective.
Finally, I really liked the way the book explained how scenario thinking (around 'what if?' questions) has helped Southwest. This is a solid addition to the business literature.
The book is conveniently divided into several different parts that emphasize various perspectives. The beginning tells the history of how the culture was born (in adversity, as most strong cultures are). The second part describes some key principles of the company's vision and culture. The third part describes how the culture is maintained and encouraged (particularly as the company grows). The final section takes a more leadership oriented perspective. You can focus your attention on any of these points of view, and learn something valuable.
Unless you don't like people, you'll like Nuts! You'd be nuts not to. Have a great time learning more about the masters of overcoming stalled thinking in an industry where stalls are dangerous!
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An American reader (MSL quote), USA
<2006-12-27 00:00>
In the forward of this book Tom Peters says, "If you take time to read only one business book this year, I strongly encourage you to read NUTS!" We wholeheartedly agree! Between the covers of this entertaining book Kevin and Jackie Freiberg have captured the essence of the "Southwest Spirit" that has made Southwest Airlines one of the top companies in America. Although Southwest served over 90 million bags of peanuts in 1999, there is nothing "nuts" about the way they run their company. Southwest topped the list of Fortune magazine's Best Companies To Work For in 1998, and since then has been in one of the top four slots every year.
This book is a must read for anyone who wants to see how the concepts of servant leadership are actually put into practice in a real company of over 30,000 employees. You will learn about a company that practices the golden rule as corporate policy-and has paid quarterly dividends for 97 consecutive quarters doing it! The "Southwest culture" described at length in the book gives this company its strategic advantage. This culture genuinely cares about the welfare of the Southwest employees-which are approximately 82% unionized. Southwest Airlines has turned a profit every year since 1973, yet it maintains the lowest fares in a highly competitive industry. It is one of the most admired airlines in the world, regularly ranks best in customer service, and has a consistently high safety record. Southwest was the first airline to establish a home page on the Internet, and was named by BusinessWeek as a "Web Smart 50" company.
Some of the book's statistics about the airline are now out of date due to incredible growth. More recent statistics are readily available at Southwest's web site . However, the principles discussed in this book that are used to guide this most admired airline are timeless. |
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1 2 | Total 2 pages 15 items |
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