The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive

The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive

After reading The Four Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive, I think that the author brings up an excellent, although rather idealistic, plan for organizing and maintaining an upper-level management team. The four "obsessions" or disciplines as they are referred to in the text, cover the entire spectrum of the ideal team. The early stages of teambuilding are covered and he explains the high level of trust and accountability that are required, even comparing it to the closeness of an actual family. He than discusses the clarity of the team, touching on aspects such as values, goals, and my favorite, competition. He stresses the immense importance of over communicating this clarity until you feel that you have "beaten a dead horse". Finally, he discusses the reinforcement of this clarity throughout every part of the human resource system. This includes the interview process when hiring workers, the periodic evaluations, and even in the dismissal stage. In this paper, I would like to focus on the discipline that I feel is most commonly overlooked, reinforcement through human relations.

Almost every successful corporation can and does the first two disciplines listed in the book. It is a necessity for a company to build a close team and figure out what the team's goals and missions will be. Some teams, although often unintentionally, over-communicate these goals and objectives through posters and periodic team meetings. Only the best and most successful corporations make it to the fourth and most vital, final stage. I feel that it is essential because no matter how well you know and are communicating your mission, if you aren't putting it into action, then its just talk. For example, if I had the cure for cancer, but only talked about the cure and how amazing it is, and failed to actually use it to save people, then I might as well have never told anyone about it in the first place. The same is true in the business setting, if you know the business plan and don't put it into action, then it is absolutely useless.

As I earlier mentioned, outside of a family business or partnership of long-time friends, the concepts in the book are a bit idealistic, however, I feel that it is a positive aspect of the book because it allows readers to have something to always be striving toward and attempting to reach.