Business Culture Quotes

“When you work on something that only has the capacity to make you 5 dollars, it does not matter how much harder you work – the most you will make is 5 dollars.”
― idowu koyenikan, Wealth for All: Living a Life of Success at the Edge of Your Ability

“One of Job's great strengths was knowing how to focus. " Deciding what not to do is as important as deciding what to do, " he said. " That's true for companies, and it's true for products.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“Jobs's intensity was also evident in his ability to focus. He would set priorities, aim his laser attention on them, and filter out distractions. If something engaged him- the user interface for the original Macintosh, the design of the iPod and iPhone, getting music companies into the iTunes Store-he was relentless. But if he did not want to deal with something - a legal annoyance, a business issue, his cancer diagnosis, a family tug- he would resolutely ignore it. That focus allowed him to say no. He got Apple back on track by cutting all except a few core products. He made devices simpler by eliminating buttons, software simpler by eliminating features, and interfaces simpler by eliminating options.
He attributed his ability to focus and his love of simplicity to his Zen training. It honed his appreciation for intuition, showed him how to filter out anything that was distracting or unnecessary, and nurtured in him an aesthetic based on minimalism.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“People will typically be more enthusiastic where they feel a sense of belonging and see themselves as part of a community than they will in a workplace in which each person is left to his own devices”
― Alfie Kohn, Punished by Rewards: The Trouble with Gold Stars, Incentive Plans, A's, Praise and Other Bribes

“There would be times when we'd rack our brains on a user interface problem, and think we'd considered every option, and he would go, " Did you think of this? " said Fadell. " And then we'd all go, " Holy Shit." He'd redefine the problem or approach, and our little problem would go away.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“Jobs and Clow agreed that Apple was one of the great brands of the world, probably in the top five based on emotional appeal, but they needed to remind folks what was distinctive about it. So they wanted a brand image campaign, not a set of advertisements featuring products. It was designed to celebrate not what the computers could do, but what creative people could do with the computers. " This wasn't about processor speed or memory," Jobs recalled. " It was about creativity." It was directed not only at potential customers, but also at Apple's own employees: " We at Apple had forgotten who we were. One way to remember who you are is to remember who your heroes are. That was the genesis of that campaign.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“Bob Iger, Disney's chief operating officer, had to step in and do damage control. He was as sensible and solid as those around him were volatile. His background was in television; he had been president of the ABC network, which was acquired in 1996 by Disney. His reputation was as an corporate suit, and he excelled at deft management, but he also had a sharp eye for talent, a good-humored ability to understand people, and a quiet flair that he was secure enough to keep muted. Unlike Eisner and Jobs, he had a disciplined calm, which helped him deal with large egos. " Steve did some grandstanding by announcing that he was ending talks with us," Iger later recalled. " We went into crisis mode and I developed some talking points to settle things down.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“Jobs also used the meetings to enforce focus. At Robert Friedland's farm, his job had been to prune the apple trees so that they would stay strong, and that became a metaphor for his pruning at Apple. Instead of encouraging each group to let product lines proliferate based on marketing considerations, or permitting a thousand ideas to bloom, Jobs insisted that Apple focus on just two or three priorities at a time. " There is no one better at turning off the noise that is going on around him," Cook said. " That allows him to focus on a few things and say no to many things. Few people are really good at that.”
― Walter Isaacson, Steve Jobs

“The first step out of the gate has to be knowing where you want to end up. What do you really want from your company?”
― Stan Slap

“Great leaders exhibit optimism that becomes infectious to others and they feed off that optimism.”
― Mark Villareal, A Script for Aspiring Women Leaders: 5 Keys to Success

“The truth no matter how hard it is to bear, must be accepted and confronted head on because it is real. Businesses and people who accept truth soar.”
― Germany Kent

“You may not have connections, or an education, or wealth, but with enough passion and sweat, you can make anything happen.”
― Gary Vaynerchuk, Crush It!: Why Now Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion

“The worst sin you can ever commit to yourself is to sit and wait for someone to give you money”
― Mac Duke The Strategist

“Top-down, one-way communication is one of the fastest routes to disengagement.”
― Jim Knight

“Employees that feel respected, supported and valued will walk through walls for you.”
― Jim Knight

“To create an army of promotable giants, develop employees beyond their job description.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“World class cultures provide developmental set lists for employees with diverse opportunities for growth.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“When you communicate like crazy, you create an engaged, motivated and aligned workforce.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“To tap into today's workforce, communicate to employees in the language in which they dream.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“To enhance engagement, let every employee showcase their unique talent while contributing to the overall sound.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“To keep talent in your band, you've got to roll out the red carpet and treat them like rock royalty.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“The best recognition comes from within the band; peer-to-peer acknowledgment is powerful.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“Philanthropy amplifies a company's purpose, creating a rallying cry for employees.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“To amp up engagement, implement and support a voluntary, employee-led philanthropic group.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“In my exhausted state, it seemed to me that this aesthetic permeates all aspects of the world I have entered: narrative-free résumés dominated by bullets; motel-like, side-of-the-highway churches; calculated smiles; sensuality-suppressing wardrobes; precise instruction sheets; numerous slides.

It works, more or less, this realm of perfect instrumentality; it makes things happen: deadlines are met; reservations are made; orders delivered on time; carpets kept reliably speck-free. But something has also been lost. Weber described the modern condition as one of “disenchantment,” meaning “robbed of the gods,” or lacking any dimension of strangeness and mystery. As Jackson Lears once put it, premodern people looked up and saw heaven; modern, rational people see only the sky. To which we might add that the minions of today’s grimly focused business culture tend not to look up at all.”
― Barbara Ehrenreich, Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream

“Companies that give back as a core part of their identity don't just stand out---they thrive.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“If you want rock star performance, build a stage where people want to show up.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“Fun is emotional glue for organizations; it turns "work friends" into family.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“Employees who fall madly in love with the experience of working for you become fans for life.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent

“Stellar pay and benefits are just the price of admission; authentic engagement is the headliner.”
― Jim Knight, Engagement That Rocks: Enhance Employee Experiences and Retain Chart-Topping Talent