W h y s o m e c o m p a n I e s m a k e t h e

OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH STEPS Once the twenty-eight companies had been selected (eleven good-to-great, eleven direct comparison, six unsustained comparison, the following steps and analyses were taken by the research team.
C OM PAN Y CODING DOCUMENTS
For each company, a member of the team would identify and collect articles and published materials on the company, including
1. All major articles published on the company over its entire history, from such as Forbes, Fortune, Business Week, the Wall Street four- Nations Business, the New York Times, US. News, the New Republic, Harvard Business Review, and the Economist and from selected articles from industry- or topic-specific sources.
2. Materials obtained directly from the companies, especially books, articles, speeches by executives, internally produced publications, annual reports, and other company documents.
3. Books written about the industry, the company, its leaders published either by the company or by outside observers.
4. Business school case studies and industry analyses.
5. Business and industry reference materials, such as the Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders, the International Directory of Company Histories, Hoover's Handbook of Companies, Development of American Industries, and similar sources.
6. Annual reports, proxy statements, analyst reports, and any other materials available on the company, especially during the transition era. Then for each company, the researcher would code all of the information into a "coding document" organized according to the following categories, proceeding chronologically from the founding of the company to the present day

Appendix l.D
237 Coding Category -Organizing Arrangements "Hard" items such as organization structure, policies and procedures, systems, rewards and incentives, ownership structure. Coding Category Social Factors "Soft" items such as the company's cultural practices, people policies and practices, norms, rituals, mythology and stories, group dynamics, management style, and related items. Coding Category
3
-Business Strategy, Strategic Process Primary elements of the company's strategy. Process of setting strategy. Includes significant mergers and acquisitions. Coding Category Markets, Competitors, and Environment Significant aspects of the company's competitive and external environment-primary competitors, significant competitor activities, major market shifts, dramatic national or international events, government regulations, industry structural issues, dramatic technology changes, and related items. Includes data about the company's relationship to Wall Street. Coding Category Leadership Leadership of the firm-key executives, presidents, board members. Interesting data on leadership succession, leadership style, and soon. I Coding Category Products and Services Significant products and services in the Coding Category Setting and Location Significant aspects of the way the company handled physical space-plant and office layout, new facilities, etc. Includes any significant decisions regarding the geographic location of parts of the company. Coding Category
8- Use of Technology How the company used technology information technology, state-of-the-art processes and equipment, advanced job configurations, and related items. Coding Category Vision Core Values, Purpose, and Were these variables present If yes, how did they come into being Did the organization have them at certain points in its history and not others What role did they play If it had strong values and purpose, did they remain intact or become diluted Coding Category Direct Comparisons Only) Activities during Transition Era of Corresponding Good-to-Great Company Major attempts to change the company, to stimulate a transition, during the ten years prior and ten years after the transition date in the corresponding good-to-great company.

238 Appendix Coding Category for Unsustained Comparisons Only) -Attempted Transition Era For the ten years leading up to and then during the "attempted transition era" major initiatives and supporting activities undertaken by the company. Coding Category for Unsustained Comparisons Only)-Posttransition Decline For the ten years following the attempted transition era, major factors that seem to have contributed to the company not sustaining its transition.

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