Engineering Business Success: Essential Lessons In Building A Thriving Company

When I went to Wharton for my MBA, I took a course about entrepreneurship. I remember the professor talking about “the big invention” that is often behind new businesses nowadays, such as an innovative software program, a piece of revolutionary medical equipment, or maybe just a new way to provide service that no one else is using. In the class, we learned how the big invention would be turned into a financial proposal that was made to a venture capitalist. The venture capitalist would in turn let the business grow for five or ten years, and then, if all went well, cash out. The entrepreneur could presumably cash out then, too, and go on to another idea or just relax on his or her yacht. In fact, the entrepreneur was depicted in that class as someone who typically wouldn't be able to take a business from the entrepreneurial early stages to the larger and more mature executive and administrative stages. Why? Because, according to that class, learning how to make that transition might be too much of a character change for the founder of a company. He or she is not an executive, but a maverick, with few people skills, aiming to do new things, not shepherd old things. This kind of person is expected to cash out.Not necessarily, according to Herbert V. Johnson, the author of Engineering Business Success. Mr. Johnson emphasizes the need for an entrepreneur to mature with the company, if he has his soul in it, and wants more than a bottom line (as crucial as—the author reminds us—a bottom line is). Mr. Johnson teaches us by highlighting lessons learned in his own career and life, lessons such as caring about people's needs, remembering to give so as to get, and preparing for success with more than just technical knowledge, but with business and people skills. In other words, the entrepreneur must prepare to be more than an entrepreneur, but a leader. You can see that in the author's life, as he tells you about his journey from being a young farm boy to becoming the owner of one of the largest engineering companies in Texas. The entire book is like having someone with a hand on your shoulder, guiding and motivating you with life's lessons learned and successfully mastered, like a father or kind uncle.What comes through so clearly in Engineering Business Success is the idea of service as the path to success: service to a customer, to employees, and to a community. Under this motto, we realize that business must have a spirit, one that promotes intangible as well as tangible good. Mr. Johnson reminds us that, while profit (the tangible) is an important motivator, it should also be a measure of how pleased the customer is, and how well the expectations of all stakeholders have been met (the intangibles). It should reflect how well service has been delivered. I had to read that section of Engineering Business Success again. It made me wonder how differently some famous business scandals might have turned out if the leaders involved had had service to others on their minds, instead of just “me, me, me.” The book, naturally, tied service to others in with the need for utmost integrity. These are ideas that need to be well thought out by anyone wanting to engineer business success. These were ideas not highlighted in that entrepreneurship class I took, but which perhaps should have been. Mr. Johnson's book should be part of any entrepreneurship class!A wonderful thing about Engineering Business Success is its style. Though it is serious, it nevertheless has a pleasant, friendly manner, as if you were being treated to the benefit of the author's advice in a comfortable living room. You feel as if you had been invited over for a personal talk after tentatively calling such a self-made giant, asking for advice on whether your career should go toward either employment or self-employment. He says, “come on over,” and when you get there, you are treated to an amazing story, a philosophy of life, that stays with you forever.What may surprise you during the chat is the humility: the humility of admitting the need for life-long learning, and recommending it to you as a staple of your career. Life-long learning doesn't necessarily mean only technical developments, as you might expect, but leadership, handling people, and implementing new business systems. The author recommends seeking out coaches to allow you to go beyond the “big invention,” venture capitalist, cash-out plan. With the help of coaches, you yourself provide for the later stages of your company, because you learn to bring in and to handle the executive, administrative, as well as the additional technical talent you need. It can be you that manages growth, instead of a professional management team that takes your company over, perhaps along a road you never intended your company to travel along. Instead, it will be your culture, a culture that reflects your values of hard work, “learning, excellence, integrity, mutual respect, and caring.”Why would you want to hang on, and be part of a company's growth and not just another side-lined stock holder, who sold out during mezzanine financing and is now sitting somewhere, developing hypokinetic disease? Again, it's the issue of making your company an extension of yourself, and, as such, a force for good, not just to stakeholders, but for the entire community. Perhaps it will be for people you will never meet, such as recipients of scholarships you have endowed out of the growing profits of your company. The author did just that, by establishing the Sarah and Jessie Johnson Scholarship at Mississippi State University, which provides up to 15 scholarships per year. You may learn the paradox of how helping others helps yourself, and how humility can lead to greatness, of accomplishments to be proud of. This is achievement that is better than stock options alone. It is a life that proper engineering of business success can achieve for you.I recommend this book, and I recommend you read it more than once.

Herb Johnson’s book “Engineering Business Success: Essential Lessons in Building a Thriving Company” offers the inspiration for stepping past your hesitation in starting a business or provide new ideas and insights to grow your business. Herb speaks from experience. He has built a multimillion dollar business and is a leader in his industry and the business community. It is from his personal experience that he offers a template for others to build their own.One of the points that resonated with me is that “we need to get to know ourselves – that is, to identify our passions, define our significance, find our purpose, and build a legacy.” In my business, I work with individuals as a Coach and teach a leadership program that specifically focuses on helping others achieve this. Though I believe we evolve our purpose over the course of our lifetime, it is critical to find ways early in life to connect to our true self rather than be distracted by other people’s desires for us.I also concur with Herb’s belief that “to get, you have to give.” He describes many examples of how he has put this belief into action. He emphasizes that, to be successful as a leader, one must focus on people and culture. Understanding self and others is the key to building a business that will stand the test of time. To attract the people who will bring success to your company, he reminds us that “we tend to attract who we are.” If you are someone who holds a vision of success, you will draw people who want to be successful.Finally, Herb states “the only thing that is keeping you from where you want to be is knowing how to get there, and the way to make it happen is through learning.” He further states “I look at education as a gift to unwrap.” Herb emphasizes that education extends to learning from others and pursuing different views and insights to increase possibilities. He shares a variety of methods he has used to increase his knowledge about self and others and to develop his leadership skills that you will find useful.There are so many golden nuggets in this book for anyone seeking success in life and in business. It’s a quick read and of value to those who seek inspiration and ideas for being the leader that others wish to follow.