The Three Laws of Performance: Rewriting the Future of Your Organization and Your Life

This book is not directly related to understanding the relationship centric culture towards the customer, but it is able to establish a better workplace, which we believe will directly translate into employees who provide a stronger customer experience. One aspect of the methodology that we noted was the emphasis on communication. Each of the three laws represents communication in some shape or form. For the first, for leaders to understand how situations apply to their employees, they must create that discussion. While it is a stretch, we believe that this conversation creates a bond that improves morale. The second and third are far more straightforward in identifying conversation influencing situations and the future; the second implies that the nature of the language defines how a situation is interpreted, while the third shows that how language is worded defines how action will be taken. This establishes a sense of intent and action – something that we support. The seven commitments were also a point where we were interested because it is presented in actionable text that prevents ignorance. Blending communication through sharing insights and finding proper coaching, it proposes accepting challenges, adjusting to them, and taking action decisively without being bogged down by past occurrences.

Despite being divided into three sections, the book can be viewed as two parts of a whole: the first section outlining the core concepts while the second section defines application. Separating the book into two sections makes organizational sense, but we were distracted by the drop off in terms of quality of information. The content took a turn from being very business oriented and insightful to being akin to a self-help book. This style of writing was off-putting as the language can be distracting and emotionally condescending. The implication of this writing style is that it implies that current processes are wrong or flawed, whereas it may just be that new improvements can be made. There is also a lack of contextual evidence as to why the methodology is successful. Situational examples present a positive view of the concepts, but there is no guarantee that this will remain true in any circumstance, and the book certainly does not present us with proof of its effectiveness.

A proven system for rallying all of an organizations’ employees around a new vision and ideas for making the vision stick.
When something at work isn’t going smoothly, managers struggle with what part of the problem to tackle first. Do they start with cost reduction? Or should they go for process improvements first? The authors—who have helped hundreds of companies and individuals change and improve—say spend time and money adjusting the systems in which people operate, rather than targeting people and their performance directly. The authors show that it’s in fact possible to change everything at once—with a focus on making such transformations permanent and repeatable.

• Brand-new Introduction written for the paperback edition
• Filled with illustrative examples from Northrup Grumman, BHP-Billiton, Reebok, Harvard Business School, and many others
• Two experts in the field show how to make major transformations happen

The book outlines a process for engaging all employees to buy-in to an improved vision of an organization’s new and improved future.

Given dedication and faithful application of the methodology, this book can yield positive results in the form of increased productivity and performance. This book calls for full commitment to internalizing the concepts, and if this is done then it acts as a solid form of guidance towards creating a performance-driven culture. Due to the nature of the book, it would be best utilized by those who have a due amount of influence over other employees, namely a manager and his charges. This ensures that the changes are followed and implemented across the board. Keep in mind, however, that integrating this process takes time and will create a change in how issues are approached and performance is evaluated. While this may or may not be a noticeable difference, it is important to keep in mind.