February 1, 2008
Back To The Cottage
Chapter 7
Searching for a Strategy
by John Sipple
In Chapter 7, John Sipple begins his new task of leading the run-down Foley pulp mill out of the backwaters, drawing on key lessons from his years in the Cottage. Here's an excerpt:
A few months later we arrived in Perry, Florida and got to work.
The business had deteriorated badly, and seemed near total collapse. The workers were very bitter toward the company and its leaders and, frankly, the place felt out of control. But I found people with a great deal of technical skill – testimony to better years.
I was overwhelmed by the magnitude of the problem. I had no experience with “smokestack” industry, either in terms of specific technologies or management approaches. I had no clear idea how to even approach the beast.
One thing was clear; whatever strategy we chose would require rapid implementation. This was no time for extensive research and analysis – though we had to do a little just to figure out where to begin.
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Back to the Cottage — More PDF Downloads
Back to the Cottage unpacks John's numerous leadership experiences and traces the development of the values that made him an effective leader. These are the lessons learned not in a high powered educational institution or a corporate leader development boot camp, but in the family's cottage business of his youth.
Preface
Chapter 1: Field Tested
Chapter 2: The Cottage
Chapter 3: Cottage Principles
Chapter 4: Shuttering the Cottage
Chapter 5: From the Cottage to the Corporation
Chapter 6: The Case Study
