The Cure: Enterprise Medicine for Business: A Novel for Managers

Praise For The Cure

"The Cure is valuable. . . a great read and an insightful depiction of the journey involved in executing the management principles of successful companies in this decade."
Bob Bond, President, Automation Group, Parker–Hannifin

"Using Enterprise Medicine, Coleman went from dead stop to warp speed in eight months. Reading The Cure provides great insight into the journey required to accomplish this kind of turnaround. It’s a must–read for any president who needs to rapidly change the business he’s leading."
Bill Phillips, CEO & President, The Coleman Company, Inc.

"The Cure works. I’ve used the process to dramatically change the culture of two companies. By breaking down silos and building company–wide strategy ownership, you will be surprised by the amount of creativity and commitment that can be rapidly produced."
Randy Larrimore, President & CEO, United Stationers

"Having lived through the ‘common cold’ of organizational dysfunction, The Cure artfully describes the prescription that helped heal and create a team that focused on results, leadership, and winning."
James Raskin, Vice President Business Development
Black & Decker Inc.

"The Cure unwinds the complexities of the dysfunctional patterns within our organizations and proves that change is possible. The sensitive issues needn’t remain unspoken. Success, both corporate and personal, is truly possible."
Debbra Johnson, Market Development Manager
DuPont Safety & Protection

Introduction.

Management Organization Roster.

The Cure, a Novel for Managers.

Symptoms.

Diagnosis.

Treatment.

Cure.

DAN PAUL is CEO of General Management Technologies, a consulting practice that focuses on the alignment of clients top–level strategies, work processes, and culture across all functions and activities of the business. Prior to founding GMT, he worked under Jack Welch at General Electric.

JEFF COX is a creative writer known for weaving progressive business concepts into works of fiction. He is the author or coauthor of seven fictional business books, including such bestsellers as Zapp! and The Goal, which have sold millions of copies.

This collaborative effort bv Paul, a former strategic planner for CEO Jack Welch at General Electric, and business writer Cox (Zapp!) is described in the promotional copy as "a novel for managers," a fictional story that illustrates the business principle of the "boundaryless" company pioneered by Welch. It′s a stodgy but effective effort in which an inefficient, disorganized widget–producing outfit called Essential resolves a dire companywide communication problem just in time to avoid corporate disaster. Paul and Cox′s approach is to create a series of high–level managerial characters with stereotypical business personalities. The huge cast includes Rick Riggins, the authoritarian "get it done now" company president; Frank Harlan, the egotistical, turf–protecting genius engineer; and Jake Foster, a slow–but–steady operations manager new to the company. Essential is about to lose its biggest client because the company can′t deliver its widgets on time. The desperate Riggins hires a wise consultant named George Tracey, who guides the company through the revitalization process, starting with candid employee interviews followed by a weekend brainstorming session and a retreat. Paul and Cox do a solid job of creating believable business problems and interpersonal conflicts, though the story is broken up by having too many employees take a turn narrating in short, choppy sections. General readers will steer clear, but the novel does offer a pleasant spoonful of literary sugar for business types who want to absorb the latest management trends. (Feb.) ( Publishers Weekly, February 10, 2003)

contains much sound advice and, apart from being a good story, is very informative and instructive (Professional Manager, July 2003)