How The Mighty Fall: And Why Some Companies Never Give In
- Downloads：2299
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-02-26 06:55:10
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：James C. Collins
- ISBN：0977326411
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Decline can be avoided。
Decline can be detected。
Decline can be reversed。
Amidst the desolate landscape of fallen great companies， Jim Collins began to wonder: How do the mighty fall？ Can decline be detected early and avoided？ How far can a company fall before the path toward doom becomes inevitable and unshakable？ How can companies reverse course？
In How the Mighty Fall， Collins confronts these questions， offering leaders the well-founded hope that they can learn how to stave off decline and， if they find themselves falling， reverse their course。 Collins' research project—more than four years in duration—uncovered five step-wise stages of decline:
Stage 1: Hubris Born of Success
Stage 2: Undisciplined Pursuit of More
Stage 3: Denial of Risk and Peril
Stage 4: Grasping for Salvation
Stage 5: Capitulation to Irrelevance or Death
By understanding these stages of decline， leaders can substantially reduce their chances of falling all the way to the bottom。
Great companies can stumble， badly， and recover。
Every institution， no matter how great， is vulnerable to decline。 There is no law of nature that the most powerful will inevitably remain at the top。 Anyone can fall and most eventually do。 But， as Collins' research emphasizes， some companies do indeed recover—in some cases， coming back even stronger—even after having crashed into the depths of Stage 4。
Decline， it turns out， is largely self-inflicted， and the path to recovery lies largely within our own hands。 We are not imprisoned by our circumstances， our history， or even our staggering defeats along the way。 As long as we never get entirely knocked out of the game， hope always remains。 The mighty can fall， but they can often rise again。
Decline can be detected。
Decline can be reversed。
Amidst the desolate landscape of fallen great companies， Jim Collins began to wonder: How do the mighty fall？ Can decline be detected early and avoided？ How far can a company fall before the path toward doom becomes inevitable and unshakable？ How can companies reverse course？
In How the Mighty Fall， Collins confronts these questions， offering leaders the well-founded hope that they can learn how to stave off decline and， if they find themselves falling， reverse their course。 Collins' research project—more than four years in duration—uncovered five step-wise stages of decline:
Stage 1: Hubris Born of Success
Stage 2: Undisciplined Pursuit of More
Stage 3: Denial of Risk and Peril
Stage 4: Grasping for Salvation
Stage 5: Capitulation to Irrelevance or Death
By understanding these stages of decline， leaders can substantially reduce their chances of falling all the way to the bottom。
Great companies can stumble， badly， and recover。
Every institution， no matter how great， is vulnerable to decline。 There is no law of nature that the most powerful will inevitably remain at the top。 Anyone can fall and most eventually do。 But， as Collins' research emphasizes， some companies do indeed recover—in some cases， coming back even stronger—even after having crashed into the depths of Stage 4。
Decline， it turns out， is largely self-inflicted， and the path to recovery lies largely within our own hands。 We are not imprisoned by our circumstances， our history， or even our staggering defeats along the way。 As long as we never get entirely knocked out of the game， hope always remains。 The mighty can fall， but they can often rise again。
Reviews
Vinicius Montgomery
，
A good book， but sometimes boring specially with the multiple references all over the book。
Mumbi Musonda
，
A good solid read， interesting how the data he gives provides insight into an organization
Laurence
，
Big companies refuse to get with the times and fall apart。 Unfortunately not much common usable takeaway other than that。 Get with the times of fail。
Juan
，
Absolutely loved this book。 Collins crushed it again。
Wael Itani
，
We might learn more from the failures of others than from their successes。 Collins presents and supports his framework clearly。 Beyond being a book on management， How the Mighty Fall could be considered as a psychology read on identifying your own decline and picking up yourself again properly， without silver bullets。
John Tijerina III
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I enjoyed listening to this book and look forward to the more detailed book to follow。 I think it is a good perspective on companies to not get complacent and fall into denial。
Kabelo Mapoka
，
Incredible！ Will definitely be reading this again 🙏🏽
Peter Gal
，
Another excellent book from Jim Collins。Much shorter than the other 3 of the "big 4" from the author， it contains valuable insights nevertheless on how to avoid the downfall of your company。Highly recommended （as all 4 main books of the author）。 Another excellent book from Jim Collins。Much shorter than the other 3 of the "big 4" from the author， it contains valuable insights nevertheless on how to avoid the downfall of your company。Highly recommended （as all 4 main books of the author）。 。。。more
Adam Ashton
，
Preferred the positive outlooks of Good To Great and Built To Last about how companies thrive rather than how they die
Diana
，
Interesting work on the patterns of failure for large， previously successful companies。 Had some good leadership tips。
Geo Paul
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Quotes I liked:1。America？ I wondered， What could I possibly teach this esteemed group about America？ Then I remembered what one of my mentors， Bill Lazier， told me about effective teaching: don’t try to come up with the right answers; focus on coming up with good questions。2。Every institution is vulnerable， no matter how great。 No matter how much you’ve achieved， no matter how far you’ve gone， no matter how much power you’ve garnered， you are vulnerable to decline。 There is no law of nature that Quotes I liked:1。America？ I wondered， What could I possibly teach this esteemed group about America？ Then I remembered what one of my mentors， Bill Lazier， told me about effective teaching: don’t try to come up with the right answers; focus on coming up with good questions。2。Every institution is vulnerable， no matter how great。 No matter how much you’ve achieved， no matter how far you’ve gone， no matter how much power you’ve garnered， you are vulnerable to decline。 There is no law of nature that the most powerful will inevitably remain at the top。 Anyone can fall and most eventually do。3。Bill Gore， founder of W。 L。 Gore & Associates， articulated a helpful concept for decision making and risk taking， what he called the “waterline” principle。 Think of being on a ship， and imagine that any decision gone bad will blow a hole in the side of the ship。 If you blow a hole above the waterline （where the ship won’t take on water and possibly sink）， you can patch the hole， learn from the experience， and sail on。 But if you blow a hole below the waterline， you can find yourself facing gushers of water pouring in， pulling you toward the ocean floor。86 And if it’s a big enough hole， you might go down really fast， just like some of the financial-company catastrophes in 2008。To be clear， great enterprises do make big bets， but they avoid big bets that could blow holes below the waterline。 When making risky bets and decisions in the face of ambiguous or conflicting data， ask three questions:1。 What’s the upside， if events turn out well？2。 What’s the downside， if events go very badly？3。 Can you live with the downside？ Truly？4。The point of the struggle is not just to survive， but to build an enterprise that makes such a distinctive impact on the world it touches， and does so with such superior performance， that it would leave a gaping hole—a hole that could not be easily filled by any other institution—if it ceased to exist。 To accomplish this requires leaders who retain faith that they can find a way to prevail in pursuit of a cause larger than mere survival （and larger than themselves）， while also maintaining the stoic will needed to take whatever actions must be taken， however excruciating， for the sake of that cause。 This is the very type of leader who finds a path out of the darkness and gives us well-founded hope。 And it is to that type of leadership that we now turn。 。。。more
Dmitry
，
i have very much beef with this bookthe bottom line - innovate but not to muchrevolutionize but not too muchstay the same but move forward and etc。It's so （cliche？ common sense？） banal！ yes banal。 AND for each of his examples I can easily find a counter example i have very much beef with this bookthe bottom line - innovate but not to muchrevolutionize but not too muchstay the same but move forward and etc。It's so （cliche？ common sense？） banal！ yes banal。 AND for each of his examples I can easily find a counter example 。。。more
Benjamin
，
Not as moving as Good to Great， but I still enjoyed the read。 （Didn't read all of the appendix） Not as moving as Good to Great， but I still enjoyed the read。 （Didn't read all of the appendix） 。。。more
JimV
，
Great analysis of how “heroic leaders” and big bets on a risky ideas seals a company’s doom。
Kianoosh
，
برخلاف کتابِ جذابِ از "خوب به عالی"، این کتاب خیلی بد بود。 شاید هم از ترجمهش بود。 نمیدونم。 برخلاف کتابِ جذابِ از "خوب به عالی"، این کتاب خیلی بد بود。 شاید هم از ترجمهش بود。 نمیدونم。 。。。more
Anh Nguyễn
，
I just give this book 4 stars because the data and details does not seem to be as meticulous as his previous projects。 If you have carefully read through Built to Last & Good to Great， you might see that some of the ideas in this book could be found in those two （ In fact it's the opposition of those two books ）。For example : - For a company to leap from Good to Great， first they need to get the Right people on the bus and after that considering where they're going。So why a mighty company fall ？ I just give this book 4 stars because the data and details does not seem to be as meticulous as his previous projects。 If you have carefully read through Built to Last & Good to Great， you might see that some of the ideas in this book could be found in those two （ In fact it's the opposition of those two books ）。For example : - For a company to leap from Good to Great， first they need to get the Right people on the bus and after that considering where they're going。So why a mighty company fall ？ Because the Right people get off the bus， and the Leader of that company picked the wrong one to derive the succession of power。 That's not to say that this's not a good book， it's just to easy to catch the whole idea of each stage in 5 stages， so it's not interesting and astonishing as you might expect。 。。。more
Makragić
，
Overall good read although it is missing conclusion of some sort。 It basically goes through examples of companies that vanished due to bad decisions and how they progressed into irrelevance。 The author talks about five stages which are pretty much self-explanatory: Stage 1: Hubris Born of SuccessStage 2: Undisciplined Pursuit of MoreStage 3: Denial of Risk and PerilStage 4: Grasping for SalvationStage 5: Capitulation to Irrelevance or Death
Serene
，
Notes: The Five Stages of DeclineStage 1: Hubris Born of Success-Success is regarded as an entitlement。 Leaders lose sight of the true underlying factors that created success in the first place-One of the most insidious forms of hubris is arrogrant neglect。 Distracted by extraneous threats， adventures and opportunities， leaders neglect a primary business， failing to renew it with the same creative intensity that made it great in the first placesStage 2: Underlying Pursuit of More-Companies stray Notes: The Five Stages of DeclineStage 1: Hubris Born of Success-Success is regarded as an entitlement。 Leaders lose sight of the true underlying factors that created success in the first place-One of the most insidious forms of hubris is arrogrant neglect。 Distracted by extraneous threats， adventures and opportunities， leaders neglect a primary business， failing to renew it with the same creative intensity that made it great in the first placesStage 2: Underlying Pursuit of More-Companies stray from the disciplined creativity that led them to greatness in the first place， making undisciplined leaps into areas where they cannot be great or growing faster than they can achieve with excellence， or both-Any enterprise that becomes complacent and refuses to change or innovate will eventually fall。 Colins' analysis， however， showed that overreaching （pursuing outsized growth） much better explains how the once-invincible self-destructStage 3: Denial of Risk and Peril-Internal warning signs begin to mount， yet external results remain strong enough for leaders to discount negative data。 Those in power start to blame external factors for setbacks rather than accept responsibility-Deterioration in gross margins， current ratio or debt-to-equity ratio indicates an impending storm-The enterprise chronically reorganizes， which can create a false sense of doing something productive。 Companies are always in the process of reorganizing themselves， but when an enterprise is in denial when it responds to data and warning signs with reorganization as a primary strategyStage 4: Grasping for Salvation-The enterprise is thrown into a sharp decline visible to all and the leadership responds by lurching for a quick salvation with a visionary leader， a bold but untested strategy， a radical transformation， a dramatic cultural revolution， a hoped-for blockbuster product， or any number of other silver-bullet solutions-This can produce a brief improvement， but the results do not lastStage 5: Capitualtion to Irrelevance or Death-Accumualted setbacks and expensive false starts erode financial strength and individual spirit to such an extent that leaders abandon all hope of building a great futureAll companies go through ups and downs， and many show signs of Stage 1 or 2， or even Stage 3 or 4， at some point in their histories。 Yet Stage 1 does not inevitably lead to Stage 5。 The path to recovery lies first and foremost in returning to sound management practices and rigorous strategic thinking。 。。。more
Ramón Calatayud
，
¿Qué factores determinan la caída y declive de una empresa？ #JimCollins trata de establecerlos en su #libro #EmpresasQueCaenYPorQueOtrasSobreviven。Aquí puedes #leer la sinopsis del libro y conseguirlo: https://amzn。to/3ih0oIy “Empresas que caen y por qué otras sobreviven” presenta un análisis interesante， con múltiples ejemplos reales， sobre la toma de decisiones para hacer frente a una crisis， es decir， cuando la situación general es mala y no se puede esconder al público。En las grandes empresa ¿Qué factores determinan la caída y declive de una empresa？ #JimCollins trata de establecerlos en su #libro #EmpresasQueCaenYPorQueOtrasSobreviven。Aquí puedes #leer la sinopsis del libro y conseguirlo: https://amzn。to/3ih0oIy “Empresas que caen y por qué otras sobreviven” presenta un análisis interesante， con múltiples ejemplos reales， sobre la toma de decisiones para hacer frente a una crisis， es decir， cuando la situación general es mala y no se puede esconder al público。En las grandes empresas， antes de que salten todas las alarmas， los números no cuadren， y los accionistas sean conscientes del problema; primero se produce una crisis interna insoportable provocada por factores acumulados en el tiempo y que Jim Collins analiza en su libro。La expulsión del talento， buscar un crecimiento mayor del que se puede gestionar， el ego y la arrogancia de los directivos o la burocracia son algunos de los factores que provocan， de manera silenciosa， igual que se expande un virus por el cuerpo humano， la caída del gigante。“No hay que centrarse en respuestas correctas， hay que centrarse en hacer buenas preguntas”。 “La historia ha demostrado que las grandes empresas pueden caer”。 “Incluso la empresa más poderosa puede autodestruirse”。 “Somos vulnerables al declive”。“Toda empresa es vulnerable， independientemente de lo grande que pueda ser”。 “Hay más maneras de caer que de convertirse en excelente”。 “La arrogancia puede ser un elemento del declive de la empresa”。 “Grande no es igual a excelente， excelente no es igual a grande”。“A veces， la suerte y el azar tienen un peso enorme en el éxito”。 “La persecución indisciplinada del crecimiento conlleva al declive de la empresa”。 “Cuando la empresa crece más rápido de lo que puede controlar， se puede encaminar a la caída”。“Podemos aprender más analizando el declive de una empresa”。 “No cometas los mismos errores por ignorancia”。 “Un logro pasado no garantiza un éxito futuro”。 “Quédate con lo que funciona”。 “Nunca desatender el engranaje principal”。“Las empresas que cambian constantemente， sin una base， acaban hundiéndose igual que las que no cambian”。 “O se compra o no se compra”。 “La medicina es para las personas， no para los beneficios”。 “La adicción al tamaño es algo indisciplinado”。 “Los mediocres se esconden en la burocracia”。Aunque “Empresas que caen y por qué otras sobreviven” es interesante， creo que se podría reducir el número de páginas。 Los análisis son muy buenos， pero hay demasiado relleno， demasiadas repeticiones del mismo concepto （especialmente al principio del libro）。 。。。more
Larry C Anderson
，
Seriously Practical with Suggestions A large sampling of well known companies， those that failed and those that corrected and went on to success。 Would have liked a little more information on obstacles faced in the correction phase for those companies that became successful once again。
Sara Kann
，
Interesting and insightful
Sai Shakthi
，
It's great and surprising to know how we ourselves can fall。 But this book cannot be used for startup entrepreneurs， but can be very useful for entrepreneurs whose businesses has set a firm foot and has a good revenue stream and those who are looking for stability and fail proof。 It's great and surprising to know how we ourselves can fall。 But this book cannot be used for startup entrepreneurs， but can be very useful for entrepreneurs whose businesses has set a firm foot and has a good revenue stream and those who are looking for stability and fail proof。 。。。more
Seb Swann
，
“。。。we are not imprisoned by our circumstances， our setbacks， our history， our mistakes， or even staggering defeats along the way。 We are freed by our choices。”If you like business books; Collins research reveals the commons stages of decline and provides guidance on what to watch out for and how to bounce back when you stumble。
Matt Bordenet
，
Entertaining read。 Great cautionary tales to help combat hubris creep。
Sebastian Mierau
，
I loved Jim Collins need to create frameworks that are in line with his research rather than a gut feeling of what he things the reason for falling giants is。It stuck to me that arrogance about the company's performance and looking for the next shiny object that will fix all issues are part of the framework。 It is very encouraging to see that it is possible at any stage of decline to recover the busienss when playing it right。 And in fact， I think we all do it many times per year if making big d I loved Jim Collins need to create frameworks that are in line with his research rather than a gut feeling of what he things the reason for falling giants is。It stuck to me that arrogance about the company's performance and looking for the next shiny object that will fix all issues are part of the framework。 It is very encouraging to see that it is possible at any stage of decline to recover the busienss when playing it right。 And in fact， I think we all do it many times per year if making big decisions and luckily get it right。。。and thrive。 Great book， read by the author。 。。。more
Paige S
，
This was my first dive into Collins' work。 This was an interesting read as too often we focus on how companies are successful versus what led to their decline。 There were times that this work was presented as an "apology" of sorts for reviewing now defunct companies in his previous works。 Alas， that is the cycle of business: some are great and some fall。 The work outlined what should be the obvious five states of decline but are qualities I think we so often overlook。 Success-induced hubris can This was my first dive into Collins' work。 This was an interesting read as too often we focus on how companies are successful versus what led to their decline。 There were times that this work was presented as an "apology" of sorts for reviewing now defunct companies in his previous works。 Alas， that is the cycle of business: some are great and some fall。 The work outlined what should be the obvious five states of decline but are qualities I think we so often overlook。 Success-induced hubris can lead to thirst for power and more success that cannot be sustained。 Left unchecked， this can lead to a downward spiral that leads to overreaching to try to overcompensate， denial and/or passing the blame， or grasping for salvation which may potentially lead to more catastrophic choices。 Through humility and willingness to see the whole picture， there is a possibility for salvation and bounce back。 As a small business owner， I found the work informative as I was able to reflect on my business and where it's at。 I also found the appendix notes and （copious） citations for further reading and context quite helpful。 。。。more
Des
，
I was first lent this book by a work colleague circa 2015 so it’s taken me a long time to get to it， but the wait was worth it （and I finished it in four days）。 An interesting study of 11 US-listed companies， pulling apart the factors that led to their decline - and in some cases， their eventual collapse。 A worthwhile read for anyone running their own company， or even a portfolio manager within a company。
Alimanzoor
，
The often confronted， Good to Great author comes up with another striking analysis of how big companies fail。 Readers who opt to love research-based analysis might find this book not fully convincing。 People who are into business would better comprehend what Jim Collins says and certainly get some insights。 Specially， his explanation about the five failing stages the big companies go through is something to draw more insights from， though not all companies necessarily fail this way。 Because risk The often confronted， Good to Great author comes up with another striking analysis of how big companies fail。 Readers who opt to love research-based analysis might find this book not fully convincing。 People who are into business would better comprehend what Jim Collins says and certainly get some insights。 Specially， his explanation about the five failing stages the big companies go through is something to draw more insights from， though not all companies necessarily fail this way。 Because risks are sometimes unique， and not all risks could be approached the same way by all organizations。Surely a good read。 。。。more
Edisom Rogerio A Hott
，
Livro clássico de Jim Collins， publicado em 2009。 A partir de uma pesquisa de campo sobre o desenvolvimento e desaparecimento de diversas empresas， ele descobriu 5 estágios de declínio。 Detalha vários casos de desaparecimento e casos de recuperação como os da Nucor， Nordstrom e IBM。
Venus
，