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Double Your Profits: In Six Months or Less

Double Your Profits: In Six Months or Less

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  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-06-10 09:54:32
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Bob Fifer
  • ISBN：088730740X
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Summary

"An excellent primer for anyone struggling to keep profits ahead of costs。 。 。 。 Double Your Profits' 'take no prisoners' approach is refreshing。" - William Byham， bestselling coauthor of Zapp！

One of the nation's foremost management consultants shares seventy-eight proven ways to cut costs dramatically， send sales through the roof， and double profits in just six months。

This timeless profit-boosting guide， considered a top management resource by business powerhouse Jack Welch， presents insights that are notable for their aggressive approach and contrarian perspective。 Bob Fifer， former chairman and CEO of Kaiser Associates， shows us how to turn the tables on hardball-playing suppliers and competitors。 He also challenges outmoded assumptions and explains why:


arbitrary budgets are sometimes the best budgets
bosses are frequently underpaid
customers can often be persuaded to pay more
suppliers can often be persuaded to charge less
Whether you're a mid-level manager， senior executive， or Fortune 500 CEO， you'll find this book is required reading for growing your company and improving your bottom line。

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Reviews

Michelle Folds ，

InformativeThis book makes you think outside the box。 It has actionable advice that can be applied to many industries。 Worth the read。

Guilherme Zeitounlian ，

Very short and straight to the point book。The main part of the book focuses on cutting costs。 It seems to work better in bigger companies - and not so much when your company is made of two people and their two computers。 :）After that initial "cutting costs" part， there are some points about negotiations and sales， and the importance of being persistent。Besides the patent advice， I think there is a mindset that the author imparts in the reader， one about continuous improvement， pruning the superf Very short and straight to the point book。The main part of the book focuses on cutting costs。 It seems to work better in bigger companies - and not so much when your company is made of two people and their two computers。 :）After that initial "cutting costs" part， there are some points about negotiations and sales， and the importance of being persistent。Besides the patent advice， I think there is a mindset that the author imparts in the reader， one about continuous improvement， pruning the superfluous and focusing on the essentials。Overall， it is a quick read， and an apt reminder that - wherever you are right now - you can probably increase your profits。 。。。more

Antonio ，

Author leads us in a concise and straight-to-the-point way through number of steps to realization that increasing your profit is relatively easy task。 What we need is healthy logic， discipline and consistency - like in every aspect of the life and business。 So this is my assessment of this book Double Your Profits by Bob Fifer according to my 7 criteria:1。 Related to practice - 5 stars2。 It prevails important - 4 stars3。 I agree with the read - 4 stars4。 not difficult to read （as for non English Author leads us in a concise and straight-to-the-point way through number of steps to realization that increasing your profit is relatively easy task。 What we need is healthy logic， discipline and consistency - like in every aspect of the life and business。 So this is my assessment of this book Double Your Profits by Bob Fifer according to my 7 criteria:1。 Related to practice - 5 stars2。 It prevails important - 4 stars3。 I agree with the read - 4 stars4。 not difficult to read （as for non English native） - 5 stars 5。 too long and boring story or every sentence is interesting - 5 stars6。 Learning opportunity - 4 stars7。 Dry and uninspired style of writing - Smooth style with humouristic and fun parts - 4 stars Total 4。42 stars─────────────Here are some excerpts from the book that I find inspiring: ◆ Step 5: Never Apologize for Focusing on Profits▪ Never apologize for maximizing profits: There’s nothing to apologize for。 If you’re unapologetically excited about profits， your employees will be too。◆ Step 6: Results， Not Processes▪ Never write a memo if telling someone will do， never call a meeting if a memo will do， never call a four-hour meeting if a one-hour meeting will do， never have two meetings if one will do， and never set up a process if two meetings will do。 First of all， you’ll directly save lots of time and money by eliminating wasted motion。 Second of all， you’ll convince people by the way you act that you’re serious about focusing on results， not processes， and the savings will be multiplied many times over as they act in a similar fashion。◆ Step 8: Don’t Over-Quantify Things▪ Never spend a minute quantifying something you know the answer to already， and never spend more than a few minutes quantifying something when there’s a reasonably high probability you know the right answer。▪ No business ever made a penny on a forecast。 Optimizing profits is what the business is here for， not predicting them。◆ Step 12: A Sense of Urgency▪ That is the real benefit of tight deadlines。 My philosophy is always to keep resources very scarce， because that is the only way to force people to soul-search to decide which tasks are truly value-producing and which are not▪ Never call a meeting to discuss; call a meeting only to decid◆ Step 23: You Need a “Bad Guy”▪ Someone has to be the heavy。 It can be “corporate，” or the head of the business。 It can be a specially-appointed cut-purchasing-costs “czar” as one company I work closely with has done very effectively。◆ Step 25: Go to Bid， Frequently▪ Try announcing to your suppliers that every price increase triggers an automatic， serious competitive bid。 You will instantly start receiving only half as many price increases。）◆ Step 38: Deplete Inventory▪ If you extend your payables thirty days and reduce your inventory fifteen days， then you’ve just reduced this year’s costs for goods and services by 12%: （30 +15） ÷ r 365 = 12%。 If your accounting system doesn’t report cost and profit that way， then ignore it， because your accounting system is wrong。 You’re effectively not buying anything for forty-five days， and that’s forty-five days of costs which you’ve saved， permanently; that savings truly goes right to the bottom line。◆ Step 41: Setting Salaries▪ We believe in profits and efficiency， and not waste。 We believe in hard work， but not long hours。 We believe in a meritocracy—you’ll be rewarded if you deserve it， but not if you don’t。◆ Step 55: There Are No Such Things as Companies， Only People▪ People’s true agendas come in many shapes and sizes。 Sometimes they are angling for a promotion。 Sometimes they are trying to avoid being fired。 Sometimes they want something bigger to run， so they are trying to justify an acquisition or investment in a new business area。 Often they’re trying simply to educate others in the organization as well as themselves so that political infighting can be replaced by teamwork， and they can go home and sleep better at night。 All the shapes and sizes， however， inevitably come down to something personal， not rational or corporate。◆ Step 57: Bob Fifer’s Five Ingredients for Completing a Sale▪ Scarcity creates its own demand。 Availability creates its own ambivalence （“Why is she so available？ Doesn’t anyone else want to hire her？ Am I a fool for doing so？”）▪ FIVE INGREDIENTS TO COMPLETINO A SALE ─── 1。 Show your fundamental competence。 2。 Show that you empathize with the customer personally。 3。 Stand in front of a truck for the customer。 4。 Make yourself scarce。 5。 Use guilt to transform your personal interest in him or her into his or her personal obligation to you。◆ Step 67: Determine Price， Then Product or Service， Not the Other Way Around▪ The first and most important thing I do is figure out the maximum the customer is willing to pay。 Then I scope a product or service appropriate for that level of expenditure。 That way， I get the most possible price and revenue from each customer and maximize my businesses overall revenue and profitability。◆ Step 68: Ask Them What Price They Want to Pay▪ One approach is to state ranges and let the customer respond。 “I’ve seen a project like this done for $50，000， $100，000， and $200，000， depending on level of detail。 So as not to waste my time or yours， give me some sense of what level fits your budget。” Usually the response is in the following form: “We can spend a lot more than fifty， but not quite a hundred。” You’ve now gone a long way to knowing what the customer wants to pay: Maybe $80，000， maybe $95，000。 You can refine this further by coming back with a narrower range （eighty to ninety-five）， and letting them react， or by first selling an $80，000 product and then trying to get them to trade up by offering additional options totalling $15，000。▪ A second approach is consistent with the “teaming” mentality which has taken over many supplier-customer relationships among large corporations▪ Never underestimate the power of a direct question。 。。。more

Pedro Rabelo ，

Muito bom， mas deve ser lido com sabedoria pois tem alguns pontos um pouco radicais que talvez não funcionem atualmente。

المهند السبيعي ，

The most straight forward book I've ever read。 Short and to the point。 it contains very practical and easy to implement ideas。Some of the ideas sound very radical but I think it is reasonable。 It is recommended for any business owner The most straight forward book I've ever read。 Short and to the point。 it contains very practical and easy to implement ideas。Some of the ideas sound very radical but I think it is reasonable。 It is recommended for any business owner 。。。more

Adnan ，

InspirationalAn absolute must-read for anyone running a business。 Conveys plenty of actionable advice。 Some of the recommendations might seem a bit over the top， but the underlying philosophy is always true。

Gabriel Lobato Teixeira ，

Fast reading ， very didactic and focused 。 You can not take all advices literally。 Must read book ！ If you want to be a focused CEO you have to start acting like one， even in low positions。 This will help with good insights 。

Marjorie Ramos ，

A primer on private equity style capitalism。

Marcelo F Tavares ，

Straight to the pointDicas excelentes para gerar resultados。 Tomar cuidado pois o autor impõe seu estilo de liderança。 Em alguns casos eu não seguiria tudo a risca。 Mas o overall é uma aula de exemplos práticos que geram resultado sem burocracia。

Pedro Zagury ，

Quick and impactful read on management strategies to cut costs and be more profitbale。 Valuable lessons for a short book。

Colin McLafferty ，

Best business book I've readYou can read it in an afternoon。 Invaluable advice。 I took about 100 notes in it。 Looking forward to applying this in my work Best business book I've readYou can read it in an afternoon。 Invaluable advice。 I took about 100 notes in it。 Looking forward to applying this in my work 。。。more

Antonio Bruno Alves ，

Here in Brazil this book is famous due to some declarations of Marcel Telles， a brewery tycoon， recommending it as one of his lifetime best reads。Reading it was a pleasure。 The book is incredible as a guidebook for entrepreneurs， managers， and salesmen - who isn't the last one？！I could suggest some ways to improve your experience reading it:1。 If you were a truly good person， start from the last chapters about how to balance your work and personal responsibilities。 Although the common sense， wor Here in Brazil this book is famous due to some declarations of Marcel Telles， a brewery tycoon， recommending it as one of his lifetime best reads。Reading it was a pleasure。 The book is incredible as a guidebook for entrepreneurs， managers， and salesmen - who isn't the last one？！I could suggest some ways to improve your experience reading it:1。 If you were a truly good person， start from the last chapters about how to balance your work and personal responsibilities。 Although the common sense， work hard or more does not make you more profitable or rich whether you don't look at you job as a game and as a third or fourth priority in your life;2。 If you were a businessman， start from the beginning， learning how to manage your costs - that's a tough job， but is the most important -， and enjoy your reading up to the last page。3。 If you were a mid-term person， begin your reading with chapter about how to improve your incomes， go back to chapters about how to handle with your costs， and then finish with peace last chapters。Good read！ 。。。more

Mark Manderson ，

Must set clear and high standards！ Run a meritocracy company！ Reward those doing well adding to your profits！ Tell new hires if they do well they'll love the rewards！ If they don't do well they won't be happy and will leave。 Then COMMUNICATE WEEKLY AND DEFINE THE TERMS AND HOW PERFORMANCE IS MEASURED AND DELIVER THE RESULTS！ Focus on RESULTS， not processes！ However processes should lead to results！ Understanding STRATEGIC COSTS （increase revenue。）Out spend competitors on strategic costs and cut Must set clear and high standards！ Run a meritocracy company！ Reward those doing well adding to your profits！ Tell new hires if they do well they'll love the rewards！ If they don't do well they won't be happy and will leave。 Then COMMUNICATE WEEKLY AND DEFINE THE TERMS AND HOW PERFORMANCE IS MEASURED AND DELIVER THE RESULTS！ Focus on RESULTS， not processes！ However processes should lead to results！ Understanding STRATEGIC COSTS （increase revenue。）Out spend competitors on strategic costs and cut nonstrategic costs ruthlessly！ Must manage in detail！ Be strategic with your time！ WORK W/ URGENCY！ Divide day in 3 lists。 Anything that brings in new business！ Anything to maintain current business and operations running。 Everything else！ Set deadlines and don't do #3 until finish #2 and don't do #2 until finish #1！ Cut costs first and ask questions later。 If they're truly needed you will be let known。Set arbitrary budgets and stick to them。 Go to bid frequently。 Bid everything often for better prices！ No just means I'd rather not。 Keep asking。 Stop the paper flow。 Stop cc emails。 Stop sending memos unless have to。 When walk into an office always ask about the people in the pictures or other tips of memorabilia on the wall， then compliment the object of their affection！ Five Ingredients to Sell:Be competent。 Empathize personally。 Convince will stand in front of a truck。 Make it clear you don't need them。 Use guilt to transform personal interest in him into his personal obligation to you。 Think about how you sell。 When blow a sale or nail it， break down what， why， and how did it。 Your selling process highlights how you'll work。 This means instead of waiting days or weeks to get proposal out， get it out that night or next day by overnight express。 RESPOND QUICKLY。 RESPOND PROFESSIONALLY。 RESPOND WITH HIGH QUALITY。 THOSE WHO ASK FOR MORE GET MORE！ The goal is not a perfectly happy client， but a profit maximized one。 Ask what price they want to pay。 Ex: I've seen a project like this done for $50k， $100k， and $200k， depending on the level of detail。 Use price discrimination to ensure each client pays the most they can。 Marketing is a strategic cost！ Outspend your competition in good times AND bad！  。。。more

Aries Tao ，

Succinct， practical， ruthless， written in a way that is perfectly consistent with what it preaches

Vivek Vikram Singh ，

Pros:It reads as if Donald Trump wrote it:1。 No difficult words2。 Straight to the point3。 Some good ideas mixed with some terribly myopic onesCons:It reads as if Donald Trump wrote it

Gaurav Singh Kopite ，

Absolutely Practical。。Some methods are a little outdated given today's dynamic environment。 But overall a really good book Absolutely Practical。。Some methods are a little outdated given today's dynamic environment。 But overall a really good book 。。。more

Steven Erickson ，

Interesting book。 I enjoyed it。 There are some good ideas and some seemingly unusable or extreme ideas。 I wrote down those that spoke to me and left the rest behind。

Jorge Vildoso ，

very clear and direct to the vein， too much in some passages 。。。 I really like the part of how to reward workers and the concepts of how to avoid unnecesary costs。 Good reading to form a management philosophy。 I do not think that everything should be implemented literally， such as sharing computers 。。。 today， not betting on technology as a means to achieve productivity， I think it would be silly。

André Gomes ，

3g In Bev RecommendationI have been reading everything I can about the 3G group， so I read this book because mr。 Teles recommended。 It’s interesting to see some of the concepts like Strategic Costs that are used in many of their companies。 Other advice it’s hard to digest like the supplier squeezing techniques。 It’s worth reading if you want to understand AB InBev， Burger King， Heinz。。。

Andrei ，

Stupid book title， but most of the insights and suggestions are very good。 Very easy to read and every business person can get something useful out of it。

Ativ ，

good book。 Gets right to the point！

Jim Peplinski ，

Basic insights and actions hold water。Approach is another question that must be thought about in the context of organizational vision， culture and brand

Gaurav Mathur ，

One of the few delightful/provocative books which I read in one go。I see how a lot of people dislike it， and in fact， that was one of the reasons I took it up。 I believe that the only argument against a book is that it is boring。 Well， this book is not boring。The writes sounds like an extreme salesman， which he probably is。 He talks straight and talks sense， and he is not "nice"。 But he talks like someone who gets the job done。 And he focuses on the details。Some ideas are out of date in today's One of the few delightful/provocative books which I read in one go。I see how a lot of people dislike it， and in fact， that was one of the reasons I took it up。 I believe that the only argument against a book is that it is boring。 Well， this book is not boring。The writes sounds like an extreme salesman， which he probably is。 He talks straight and talks sense， and he is not "nice"。 But he talks like someone who gets the job done。 And he focuses on the details。Some ideas are out of date in today's digital world， but many can be adapted。I'd recommend this for every entrepreneur。 。。。more

Tim Krete ，

Great book on the mindset necessary to be excellent at business。 I would recommend this book to anybody looking to make a career in business。

Sy。 C ，

Critics of the book don't get the point - this book is not to be taken literally and applied to real life without any judgment。 Obviously if you're a mom and pop retailer buying from an industrial behemoth it may not be the greatest idea to unilaterally change payment terms。 Nonetheless the spirit behind the book is great and should be required reading for company managers。 Critics of the book don't get the point - this book is not to be taken literally and applied to real life without any judgment。 Obviously if you're a mom and pop retailer buying from an industrial behemoth it may not be the greatest idea to unilaterally change payment terms。 Nonetheless the spirit behind the book is great and should be required reading for company managers。 。。。more

Jamie ，

Super easy read that I plan to revisit in the future。 It's full of suggestions for cutting costs， boosting revenue and creating the culture for those activities to thrive in。 Super easy read that I plan to revisit in the future。 It's full of suggestions for cutting costs， boosting revenue and creating the culture for those activities to thrive in。 。。。more

Jonathan Isaac ，

I cannot find my copy of this book。。。 someone probably swiped it from my shelf。 Unreal！！

Stuart Woolf ，

So， I read this book not because I was interested in doubling my profits， but because I currently work for a Heinz supplier and wanted greater insight into the management style of 3G - and， by extension， some understanding of what is happening in the tomato industry / the food industry at large。This book sucks。 I can't remember the last time I wanted to spit in an author's face。I concede that Double Your Profits challenges sacred cows and espouses unpopular views。 It is not the first to argue th So， I read this book not because I was interested in doubling my profits， but because I currently work for a Heinz supplier and wanted greater insight into the management style of 3G - and， by extension， some understanding of what is happening in the tomato industry / the food industry at large。This book sucks。 I can't remember the last time I wanted to spit in an author's face。I concede that Double Your Profits challenges sacred cows and espouses unpopular views。 It is not the first to argue that might-makes-right or lean-makes-green。 And I respect some elements of its cost-cutting philosophy， especially where egregious examples of conspicuous waste are concerned （lavish retreats， business-class international flights， superfluous meetings， etc。）But the book makes these arguments in profoundly upsetting ways。 This book is not intended for the small business owner or budding entrepreneur， but for established businesses in mature industries - teaching， as it does， how to leverage power in every conceivable scenario。 There is also the theme of playing fast-and-loose with clients， customers， and suppliers， which raises questions about the very integrity of the author and his thesis。I almost feel as if the ideas espoused in this book are worse than the manifestos or fatwas that have become commonplace in recent years， because these are designed to appeal to the educated and rich。 Everything is legal and OK。 But make no mistake: these poisonous views destroy whole communities。 。。。more

Ilya Solovyev ，

There are some useful thoughts that apply to all businesses and all people but definitely not "78 ways" to cut the costs and double the profits。 "78 advises" would be more appropriate but it sounds less convincing。I really didn't like the author's attitude towards his suppliers。 Yeah， we see it often: treat the seller like shit when you are a buyer， squeeze him for each cent you pay and always do all you can to pay less， tell him you'll find a cheaper one but。。。 sell your services to your buyers There are some useful thoughts that apply to all businesses and all people but definitely not "78 ways" to cut the costs and double the profits。 "78 advises" would be more appropriate but it sounds less convincing。I really didn't like the author's attitude towards his suppliers。 Yeah， we see it often: treat the seller like shit when you are a buyer， squeeze him for each cent you pay and always do all you can to pay less， tell him you'll find a cheaper one but。。。 sell your services to your buyers at the highest possible price and somehow probably don't be treated in the same way — that is quite a contradiction to me。There are also many quite obvious advises on cutting the expenses like thinking if you really need to print something （and hence using less paper in the office） and thinking before investing 10 million dollars into something （and not loosing your money， haha）。By the way you don't need an office， you can just use the desk of an absent employee and better observe the others （and fire the absent one tomorrow， probably）。As a final touch the author invites us to become his client。All right， there are useful thoughts， about 10-15% of the book， which is not a bad conversion rate nowadays。 But I expected more。 。。。more

Ana Paula ，

Comecei a ler esse livro por indicação de uma professora do meu MBA。 Confessor que um exemplar com esse título jamais chamaria a minha atenção na livraria， portanto esse é o tipo de leitura que eu jamais faria se não fosse por uma dote indicação。Pois bem， bastou 5 páginas para que eu desse a mão à palmatória e concordasse com o autor em vários aspectos， e visse a necessidade de implementar pelo menos 90% dos conselhos que ele dá em minha empresa。 Recomendo a leitura e o exercício。

Reference

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The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Double Your Profits: In Six Months or Less&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0