Comments on: Book Review: Good to Great

By: MKL

MKL — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 12:55:15 +0000

I think he meant “take a look today” 6 months after the post, not just on the one day. I think he was accurately pointing out that even a buoyant assessment of a company’s goodness or greatness is not a science, but an art, and that only time and events can put the proof in the pudding. As has been said elsewhere on this site valuing a company is as much an art form, a gut feeling (an emotion) as a science, a mathematical exercise. Even which calculations and valuations go into the mathematical exercise is a matter of personal preference.

But it is valuable to explore and examine as many different thoughts as one might in order to find and evolve one’s own “gut feeling”. That’s why these different books and opinions and events are fodder. It’s interesting to keep in mind what happened to these and other companies from October ‘08 to April ‘09. It’s interesting what happened to each of our own ways and means of valuing and feeling certainty.

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 01:16:46 +0000

Phil, the key to what you said was “take a look at the stock performance today of each of the 11 good to great companies. Horrible.”. Value Investors know this simple truth; that a company’s performance cannot be measured rationally in one day.

By: Jae Jun

Jae Jun — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 23:40:27 +0000

@ Phil,
Thanks for taking the time to leave your comment. I must admit chicken hay did make me laugh

Good to Great is about aspects of companies that went from mediocre to great, but the book Built to Last, also by Jim Collins, is what great companies should do to sustain their position.

I assume most of the companies didn’t do what was required in Built to Last. Walgreen and Nucor on the other hand are still doing exceptionally well. But as MKL mentioned, I’ve never recommended the stocks. I recommend you to read the book.

@ MKL,
Thanks for putting it so eloquently.

By: MKL

MKL — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 22:22:22 +0000

Phil, even though alot of us might not know, please do not tell us what is chicken hay. JJ was never recommending those stocks. JJ was reading Good to Great and recommending it as an interesting, insightful way of looking at companies. Though, we have all in many ways examined and re-examined our ways of looking at companies and economies since late October of 2008, I’m sure it is still an interesting and insightful read.

By: Phil

Phil — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:05:40 +0000

Your arguments in the end are a bunch of chicken hay. Dude, take a look at the stock performance today of each of the 11 good to great companies. Horrible.