This work offers a summary of the book “BUILT TO LAST: Successful Habits Of Visionary Companies” by James Collins & Jerry Porras.

In Built To Last, Collins and Porras argue that the creation of a viable and successful organization which grows and prospers is the most impressive achievement in the business world. The best companies in history are the visionary companies.

Visionary companies are the premier companies operating in any business field. These companies have a worldwide reputation for excellence in their chosen field. Visionary companies prosper over a long time period, through multiple product life cycles and multiple generations of active leaders.

Visionary companies are world-class corporations such as 3M, American Express, Boeing, Citicorp, Ford, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Marriott, Merck, Motorola, Nordstrom, Phillip Morris, Procter & Gamble, Sony, Wal-Mart and Walt Disney.

According to the authors, the same guiding intangibles and real-world mechanisms which these companies used to become visionary companies can be adapted and used by almost any company seeking growth and progress.

Built To Last, a fascinating book that shows how you can bring your own company to a world-class level by simply fulfilling some requirements and implementing specific mechanisms.