Chapter 1

Superior Leadership: The Relentless Pursuit of Vision and Results

Superior leaders develop the vision and have the courage to make decisions. They must be entrepreneurial, know what’s essential, take risks, and encourage others to do the same. They must know how to access the truth and build a culture based on ownership and accountability while living with ambiguity. They must have fearless determination and perseverance and be passionate about results. And they must always put the company first and understand that people are their most important asset.

To accelerate profitability and results, which should be every company’s ultimate goal, you must understand the attributes that are consistently found in the most successful, highly profitable enterprises. Whether they’re service oriented or product based, privately owned, publicly traded, or not-for-profit, thriving companies have certain common characteristics that enable them to achieve operational and financial success. I’ve synthesized five ways that set leading companies and organizations apart from followers. I call them:

The Five Attributes of Highly Profitable Companies:

1. Superior leadership
2. Sales effectiveness
3. Operational excellence
4. Financial management
5. Customer loyalty

This chapter discusses superior leadership and how it is the fundamental driver of profitability and success. While there is abundant information on the market about leadership, this chapter provides you with the most important aspects of superior leadership as they apply to achieving extraordinary operational and financial results.

How do you recognize a superior leader? The answer is simple: a true business leader has the ability to continually meet or exceed a company’s operating and profitability objectives. Follow this model and it will lead you to the results and profits you desire.