Turning Goals into Results (Harvard Business Review Classics): The Power of Catalytic Mechanisms

by Jim Collins

Most executives have a big, hairy, audacious goal. But they install layers of stultifying bureaucracy that prevent them from realizing it. In this article, Jim Collins introduces the catalytic mechanism , a simple yet powerful managerial tool that helps turn lofty aspirations into reality. The crucial link between objectives and results, this tool is a galvanizing, nonbureaucratic way to turn one into the other. But the same catalytic mechanism that works in one organization won’t necessarily work in another. So, to help readers get started, Collins offers some general principles that support the process of building one effectively. Since 1922, Harvard Business Review has been a leading source of breakthrough ideas in management practice. The Harvard Business Review Classics series now offers you the opportunity to make these seminal pieces a part of your permanent management library. Each highly readable volume contains a groundbreaking idea that continues to shape best practices and inspire countless managers around the world.

Genres: Business, Self Help, Productivity, Nonfiction, Leadership

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

James C. Collins is an American researcher, author, speaker and consultant focused on the subject of business management and company sustainability and growth.

Reviews

[Richard Mulholland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantastic little book. I love the idea of Catalytic Mechanisms.

I'm really enjoying this series by HBR Classics. Great format.

[Min Choi · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I love about this book is its sharp focus and conciseness. This tiny piece from Jim Collins is about understanding and implementing catalytic mechanisms, the processes and parameters in which companies and organizations, creatively and ferociously, keep themselves focused and accountable to their BHAG (Big-hairy-audacious-goals). It is the "crucial link between objectives and performance," meant to use unorthodox and contextualized policies, often culture-defining, to achieve their most important goals.

According to Collins, he estimates, at best, only 10% of companies utilize catalytic mechanisms. He encounters so many companies that are often producing mediocre results without a clue as to why. This organizational epidemic is essentially two-sided: (1) an objective that is poorly defined or vague and (2) non-existent or incorrectly implemented processes in measuring how successful the goal is being achieved. The more common problem is the latter.

Catalytic mechanisms are inherently powerful if understood and implemented correctly. Collins identifies 5 universal characteristics of a proper catalytic mechanism:

1. Produces desired results in unpredictable ways.
2. Distributes power for the benefit of the overall system, often to the great discomfort of those who traditionally hold power.
3. Has teeth.
4. Ejects viruses.
5. Produces an ongoing effect.

When you think about great organizations that desire and achieve great results, their foundations are built upon sturdy catalytic mechanisms. And this book is a great reminder because our natural tendency as leaders when we are not achieving is to go back and tweak the vision statement (BHAG). No, often what is more necessary is paying attention to the catalytic mechanisms that drive the organizational engine, define the organizational culture, and achieve the organizational purpose.

I absolutely recommend buying this book as well as Jim Collins' other works, including Good to Great and Built to Last.

[Saravanan Oumabady · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked up this book as soon as I saw the words catalytic mechanisms. The reason being that I have an inclination towards activities or events that serve me as a catalyst to perform better or learn more. In short, the word catalyst drove me to this book.
After reading the article, I have learnt a few important lessons. Some of them are well known but this book cemented my reasoning for having certain BHAGs.
1 . Goals can be audacious.
2. When goals are audacious it is important to balance bureaucracy and freedom of action.
3. And as the authors puts it: “Create, do not copy.” The system towards an audacious goal should be built (or re-built) organically.
I am sticking to all five stars because I liked the authors writing and I learnt something new as I flipped through every page.

[Noah Gift · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short read, but packs a lot. Great ideas on how to accomplish goals.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Jim Collins (If you have not read Good to Great..stop reading this and go find that book to read!) and love BHAGs! This was a great quick read.

[Nash · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is extremely direct and focused to the purpose of the title. Collins doesn't waste much time in helping someone grasp/understand tips to creating a foundation for success.

[Diego Cerezo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book in a sentence: a short book teaching a short simple lesson: BHAG's are like drawing castles in the sky, catalytic mechanisms are the foundations that make them reachable.

[Jill Werfel · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disappointing- too short to flesh out the concepts, lack of depth to the examples, and some are pretty unrealistic.

[Eugene Heo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Succinct, great examples to get the point across and does successfully open the mind to more unconventional methods of leadership

[Alissa Thorne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short book introducing the concept of "catalytic mechanisms" that institutionalizes the behaviors that will achieve your goals. Examples include intensives such as giving customers the ability to not pay if they are not satisfied, or hard rules such as not accepting customers that are not willing to fly in for an orientation. This structure provides the "teeth" to allow organizations to stick to their lofty ideas and reach their audacious goals.

A nifty idea, presented in what amounts to a blog post on audio.

[Jeff Yoak · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of those strange experiences where I obviously loved the thing when I read it the first time, but really don't remember why. This is good analysis on how to introduce catalytic mechanisms in an organization. Perhaps I just internalized it enough the first time that it no longer seems revolutionary. Anyway... it is an extremely brief piece and I would suggest it to anyone who is concerned with leadership.

[Barnabas Rosemary · Rating 5 out of 5]

nice book

[Fellow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Short read about an idea in organizing enterprises. Did not particularly liked it. Meh.

[Harley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A two day read but plenty of value around understanding BHAGs!