It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business is Driven by Purpose by Roy M. Spence, Jr. with Haley Rushing, Portfolio, 318 Pages, $25.95, Hardcover, February 2009, ISBN 9781591842415
As Todd and I were writing our book, The 100 Best Business Books of All Time, we discovered some themes that, to our surprise, appeared continually throughout the books we reviewed. One big one was the idea that successful people and organizations define a common purpose for their existence, and that once it’s defined, all decisions going forward are based on that declared purpose.
Roy Spence, one of the founders of the famous Austin-based ad agency GSD&M Idea City, believes that passion drives purpose in organizations. In his new book, he details the specific steps that Southwest Airlines–an early client of his firm–and other highly recognizable businesses have taken to create and nurture this purpose.
For example, when Southwest began operations, the airline industry was highly regulated and flying point to point in Texas was very expensive. Because of that cost, only 15% of the people who could fly did. Southwest began flying to three cities within Texas–Dallas, Houston and San Antonio–and offered airfares that would make it cheaper to fly than drive. Every decision that Southwest made from that point on was based on the belief that keeping the costs down would allow more people to afford flying. That was their purpose. Not very complicated, but very effective.
As in all very good books, this book uses stories to teach. And, at the end of the book, the author has the “Key Principles from the Book.” As an example, here are the three fundamentals for a high-purpose organization: They are built to make a difference; They are led by leaders of great purpose who act as stewards of their purpose and; They bring that purpose to life in meaningful and relevant ways in the marketplace. This summary section allows you to read the book as a linear narrative, without having to worry about taking notes. In effect, the author does that for you at the end of the book, leaving you free to enjoy the stories he tells.

Rubies in the Orchard: How to Uncover the Hidden Gems in Your Business by Lynda Resnick with Francis Wilkinson, Doubleday, 204 pages, $24.95, Hardcover, February 2009, ISBN 9780385525787
When Lynda Resnick and her husband, Stewart, invested in some land that just happened to yield pomegranates, they didn’t think it would propel them into one of the most interesting tales in recent product marketing. But, Stewart suggested they try farming the fruit, and the result was a juice in a little bottle called POM. Resnick’s Rubies in the Orchard chronicles the ups and downs they had to go through to not only brand their product, but to find ways of getting the public to want to buy a more expensive bottle of juice–one that’s not mixed with other juices or corn syrup to make it more affordable.
POM aside, Resnick’s remarkable life and incredible adventures in marketing are the main focus of this book. From her brushes with the good ol’ boys of advertising, to the more recent Internet debacles and naysayers of her tactics, Resnick has survived with her heart (and wit) in place. Resnick started in flowers (Teleflora), and went on to a little place called the Franklin Mint. She saw something there that the Mint hadn’t done before, and through her determination, figures like Scarlett O’Hara and Marilyn Monroe came to life again and not only sold well, but engendered a new respect of the Mint with collectors.
Resnick urges us all to reconsider the old adage to “think outside the box,” especially to marketers searching for ways to promote their product. She counsels “If you want to locate and nurture the value of your brand, please don’t think outside the box.” By doing the opposite and thinking “inside the box,” or “inside the pomegranite” with POM, she found that the bottle should look like the pomegranate fruit itself. As a result, POM stands out like no other fruit juice on the shelves. By “thinking inside the volcano,” she found the Unique Selling Proposition that would make Fiji Water such a desirable brand–the fact that it’s been naturally filtered by volcanic rock for two hundred years, has been sitting in an underground aquifer and is “utterly untouched by man until you unscrew the cap.”
Rubies in the Orchard is a great tool for anyone in marketing, but the lessons she teaches are applicable to anyone in business–and to life in general. When in doubt, Resnick’s consistent message rings out: “Think inside the box.” Try it yourself.

Hit the Ground Running: A Manual for New Leaders by Jason Jennings, Portfolio, 256 Pages, $25.95 Hardcover, March 2009, ISBN 9781591842477
Jason Jennings has been a favorite of mine for a long time. He writes the kind of books I like. They are research based, with interesting examples to support that research. I found his first book, It’s Not the Big That Eats the Small… It’s the Fast That Eats the Slow, especially fun to read because, like he does with this book, the people and companies represented are new and interesting–not the usual business-book fodder of Warren Buffett or Steve Jobs or FedEx.
What Jennings and his researchers did for this book was study the Fortune 1000 companies, looking for new CEOs who created the most shareholder value in the first years of their time on the job. Jennings then interviewed the ten best performing CEOs. What Jennings’ team found was that these CEOs, on average, doubled revenue, doubled profit margins and more than tripled earning per share during the past decade. Some of the companies represented are Smuckers, Staples, Humana and Goodrich.
During the interviews, Jennings discovered that what these leaders have in common is their ability to quickly size up the situation when they arrived, stop the bleeding, assemble the right people and achieve remarkable results. Jennings also identified ten rules that new leaders need to apply in a new position. Rules like: Ask for Help; Gain Belief; Be Accountable and; Find, Keep and Grow the Right People. Each one of the ten rules is the basis of a chapter, and he has a corresponding company history to support every rule. Now, I understand that, chances are, you’re not going to be a CEO. But, most likely, you are going to start a new job, or get transferred to a different position, sometime in your life. Just as Michael Watkins does in his classic, The First 90 Days, Jennings shows you how to best make that transition.
Jason Jennings’ books are always very narrative-driven. Jennings is, in the truest sense of the word, a storyteller. All his books start with solid research base to support a premise and Jennings uses stories and connective tissue to support the team’s findings. It is a great way to learn.