The Founder's Mentality Quotes

“Only after that final question do you finally get to the fundamental capabilities”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth

“Since 1990, we’ve found that the returns to shareholders in public companies where the founder is still involved are three times higher than in other companies”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth

“Nokia sat on top of one of the biggest growth markets the world had ever seen, and on top of one of the biggest piles of cash in history. But instead of thinking like an insurgent and investing in the future, it gave out 40 percent dividends and used its cash to buy back large quantities of its own stock. Within just a few years, Apple, Samsung, and soon Google had seized the smartphone market, and Nokia, once a model of innovation and insurgent-style thinking, was in steep decline. A board member, when interviewed about what happened, pointed to internal factors, not competitive moves, and concluded simply, “We were too slow to act.”6”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth

“He had a reputation for clearing his desk of every file before leaving every day. Without a haystack, he felt, you can’t lose any needles.”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth

“That is why 85 percent of executives perceive that the key barriers to sustained and profitable growth that they face are on the inside.”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth

“Consider this: on average, new companies that reach Fortune 500 scale today are doing so more than two times faster than just two decades ago, and the fastest—the world record holders for scaling—are exceeding prior records by a wide margin.”
― Chris Zook, The Founder's Mentality: How to Overcome the Predictable Crises of Growth