Scaling Up Excellence

Getting to More Without Settling for Less

By: Robert I. Sutton, Huggy Rao

Narrated by: Rob Shapiro

In Scaling Up Excellence, best-selling author Robert Sutton and Stanford colleague Huggy Rao tackle a challenge that determines every organization’s success: scaling up further, faster, and more effectively as a program or an organization creates a larger footprint. Sutton and Rao have devoted much of the last decade to uncovering what it takes to build and uncover pockets of exemplary performance, to help spread them, and to keep recharging organizations with ever-better work practices. Drawing on inside accounts and case studies and academic research from a wealth of industries - including start-ups, pharmaceuticals, airlines, retail, financial services, high-tech, education, non-profits, government, and healthcare - Sutton and Rao identify the key scaling challenges that confront every organization. They tackle the difficult trade-offs that organizations must make between "Buddhism" versus "Catholicism" - whether to encourage individualized approaches tailored to local needs or to replicate the same practices and customs as an organization or program expands. They reveal how the best leaders and teams develop, spread, and instill the right mindsets in their people - rather than ruining or watering down the very things that have fueled successful growth in the past. They unpack the principles that help to cascade excellence throughout an organization, as well as show how to eliminate destructive beliefs and behaviors that will hold them back.

Scaling Up Excellence is the first major business book devoted to this universal and vexing challenge. It is destined to become the standard bearer in the field.

©2014 Robert I. Sutton and Huggy Rao (P)2014 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"A great read that provides real, practical advice whether you're a team of 5 or 50,000. Sutton and Rao find just the right stories to show how almost any team can get bigger and better." (Laszlo Bock, senior vice president of People Operations, Google)

"Innovation at scale and speed is our goal. Robert Sutton and Huggy Rao show us how to do it more often and better, knowing that scale matters." (Beth Comstock, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Office, GE)

a MUST read, regardless age of your organization

Very informative and straight to the point on examples of what works and what does not, tips and recommendations on scaling a business.

Must read

If you own or manage a business, this book is a must read. I often cringe at business books written by an MBA with models dehumanizing the customer's experience of serving others. This book is the exact opposite. It helps us all remember the "must do's" required for any organization to thrive, and much more.

Enjoyed it had some great ideas and stories

Very practical and insightful and the ideas are backed up. I recommend it if you are working on scaling.

Definitely some good learnings for scaling up

I would suggest is for anybody who is involved in scaling up an organization or department. The only drug that are that the authors seem to rely only on stories and best practices that they have personally come into contact with as a result of their internal research at Stanford. It would have been nice for them to go out and find some other examples as well, but that leaves some room for a second book! Overall a worthwhile read.

Fun to read, but not very helpful

it's a lot of helpful experience-based advice, that is categorized in helpful chapters but if I was going into a season of needing to scale up an organization, I wouldn't think of this book first.

Excellent assessment of many companies

This book explains through a series of real scenarios what is required to experience true transformation. It is not just nearly learning of tools and techniques but conquering the THINKING! Many organizations forget about accomplishing success is only done through people. The culture of a business is where the true effort needs to be placed.

The single best business book I've ever read.

This is my third listening to this book in the past 5 years or so.

Since it's been so long since I last listened to it. I've realized this book is the basis almost everything I use in my Neuro- Cognitive Design Consultancy that focuses on leveling up leaders.
tim #bgreen🌏

The headline is optional, except it's not.

I listened to it at 1.5x speed which helped. The book is fascinating if you're interested in how to grow organizations effectively or have maybe wondered what goes wrong in places that don't.

For those with ambition

excellent thoght leadership witha bit of evidence on the side a book for any future business leader

A must read for all high growth organizations.

Invaluable insights, good mix of different industries, plenty of food for thought. Highly recommend for anyone trying to grow a business.