An insightful interview that reinforces the fundamentals of success: openness and honesty in communication, a plan and sustained focus on long-term goals, putting the organisation first, a genuine caring for employees as exhibited in improving safety at work, and most importantly, Walk the Talk. Easy to understand, but it is quite surprising that only a small percentage of companies seem to be embracing these ideas wholeheartedly and are turning world-class. Also shows how much actually rides on the leader if a company has to be truly world-class. Brings the focus back onto systems that reward teamwork, integrity, and honesty. Also, it is important that local leaders across geographies in large, global companies share the same traits as those of the CEO.

The one aspect that the interview does not seem to have focussed upon is the community/local resources as a stakeholder. For companies such as Caterpillar that are expanding their manufacturing and market footprints into developing countries such as BRICs, it is important to also understand the gap that exists in technology and understanding. This is already a large stumbling block in my country (India) where there are thousands who gain an engineering degree every year but are patently unemployable because of the gap between academic knowledge and work readiness. The pace of change in education syllabi, knowledge base, etcetera, has not kept up with the pace of technological change in products and processes across industries (with probably the exception of Information Technology). This necessitates companies having to spend a lot of time and effort in on-the-job training (important though this may be).

Companies that want to be true leaders must also evolve, as a part of their business strategy, a system by which they can share knowledge, technology, processes, etcetera, by establishing centres of excellence at educational institutions in the local community. This, in my opinion, may quite simply end up as a veritable competitive edge for companies that adopt this strategy—easier access to students for recruitment, a large community that understands the company’s postion and contributions to the education sector, a higher degree of mindshare in the market, etcetera. This is a strategy that would lead to multi-fold returns on investment of time, money and effort to any company that embraces this idea.

Excellent perspective on the past, where Caterpillar came from, where they are and, importantly, some key reasons why. A very human attitude and very humble at it. All the best to Jim Owens for the future.

I wish I could learn from this conversation whether strategic (road) maps are still popular and superior among other formal tools to present a corporate strategy, especially in the downturn.

I really enjoyed Jim’s views on keeping the long-term strategy clear, and scenario planning and its benefits when you really need it. He is proof of good strategy, communication, and engagement of your staff. We have survived a 7.1 earthquake and ongoing aftershocks and a number of our business owners seem to have choked and are treading water; it is frustrating that they don’t seem to be able to lift their heads and take back control of their future. I will recommend a number of people to watch to this video clip! Thank you.

Mr. Owens has a perfect vision of how a company needs to structure itself for overall success. First and foremost, you have to have a strategy for your company that gets you through tough economic times as well as past your competition. Caterpillar’s standing in the world market proves their resiliency. Next, the implementation of this strategy comes down to the communication factor. You need to clearly state your goals to all those below you and ensure that your team is reliable to implement it.

I also love the statement Mr. Owens made about team work and how to treat others. A great company is not developed from a single person at the top (CEO), it is formed through a business culture. Everyone needs to work for the betterment of the company at large as well as the betterment of society. Unfortunately, a lot of companies have lost vision of their duty to society. As for treating others, it is my belief that a cohesive group (team) is one that is built out of mutual respect for one another. Just treat everyone the way you would like to be treated. This concept is so basic in a business culture that many companies overlook it. By overlooking mutual respect, a company can lose focus and purpose. The company can end up a second rate company due to this dis-functionality. Congratulations to Mr. Owens’ success and thanks for sharing it.