Practically Radical

Practically Radical Plot Summary

Introduction

In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, the most successful organizations aren't necessarily those with the biggest budgets or the most established market positions. They're the ones that see opportunities where others see obstacles, that find inspiration in unexpected places, and that transform challenges into catalysts for growth. The ability to perceive familiar situations with fresh eyes has become the defining characteristic of transformational leadership. Throughout these pages, you'll discover how leaders across industries have revolutionized their organizations by challenging conventional wisdom and embracing radical thinking. From police departments to healthcare systems, from retail stores to technology companies, these stories demonstrate that meaningful innovation often begins not with new technologies or increased resources, but with a fundamental shift in perspective. By developing distinctive viewpoints, rediscovering historical strengths, and creating cultures of emotional engagement, you too can transform your organization and achieve breakthrough results in even the most challenging circumstances.

Chapter 1: See the Familiar with Fresh Eyes

The concept of vuja dé represents a powerful mindset shift for leaders seeking transformation. Unlike déjà vu (seeing something new but feeling you've seen it before), vuja dé involves looking at something familiar as if you've never seen it before. This fresh perspective allows leaders to identify opportunities that others miss and develop distinctive viewpoints that drive innovation. Dean Esserman, Chief of Police in Providence, Rhode Island, exemplifies this approach. When he took command in 2003, the department was widely regarded as corrupt and ineffective. Rather than accepting the status quo, Esserman looked at policing with fresh eyes. He divided the city into nine districts, each with its own "mini-chief," making these commanders entrepreneurs responsible for their own headquarters and funding. Most radically, he opened his weekly command meetings to anyone who wanted to attend - government officials, community leaders, even members of the press - bringing unprecedented transparency to a department previously known for secrecy. Esserman also formed unlikely partnerships with former lawbreakers. He worked closely with Teny Gross, who runs the Institute for the Study and Practice of Nonviolence, which employs former gang members as "street workers" to intervene in conflicts before they escalate to violence. These street workers, many with criminal records, became crucial allies in fighting crime. As Esserman explains, "The relationship between Teny and the police chief should be a national model." The results were remarkable. In Esserman's first five years, total crime dropped by 30 percent. Murders decreased by 39 percent, rapes by 64 percent, and robberies by 30 percent. This progress came during a period when many urban centers were experiencing increases in crime rates, making Providence's transformation even more impressive. Esserman's approach wasn't just about implementing new techniques - it was about rediscovering the department's fundamental purpose. "To see police as mere enforcers of the law is to miss the point," he says. "Police work goes back to our nineteenth-century ancestry in London with Sir Robert Peel and the bobbies, where police were there to keep the peace, but also to serve the community in ways the community needed. We're going back to what we were." To apply this vuja dé mindset in your own context, start by questioning your basic assumptions about your industry or organization. What "truths" do people take for granted? What practices continue simply because "that's how it's always been done"? Look for inspiration in your organization's history - sometimes the most innovative path forward involves rediscovering and reinterpreting founding principles that may have been forgotten over time.

Chapter 2: Look Beyond Your Field for Breakthrough Ideas

The most innovative organizations consistently find inspiration outside their industry boundaries. This cross-pollination of ideas often leads to breakthrough innovations that competitors miss entirely, creating significant competitive advantages and transforming entire fields. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), led by Donald Berwick, revolutionized healthcare by borrowing ideas from seemingly unrelated disciplines. As a Harvard-trained pediatrician, Berwick recognized medicine's shortcomings but initially lacked a framework for improvement. His journey began with studying quality management pioneers W. Edwards Deming and Joseph Juran, whose principles had transformed manufacturing but were virtually unknown in healthcare. Maureen Bisognano, IHI's COO, recalls her first exposure to these cross-industry ideas: "I flew to Miami. I had no idea how to approach a quality problem... When I sat down at the end of the day I said, 'How would I have approached this without the electrical people?' I would have approached the problem in a very different way. I would never have been able to accomplish the results we achieved." Years later, IHI found inspiration from an even more unexpected source: Gloria Steinem and the women's movement. Steinem advised healthcare leaders to "name the problems" they were trying to solve (similar to how the term "date rape" reframed an issue that was previously hard to describe), build coalitions around these well-named problems, and use media to raise visibility for their agenda. These strategies from social activism led to IHI's groundbreaking "100,000 Lives Campaign," which aimed to eliminate preventable deaths in hospitals. The campaign, launched in December 2004, convinced 3,100 hospitals (representing 75% of beds nationwide) to adopt six proven interventions to reduce mortality. Joe McCannon, the campaign manager, even led a bus tour across the country to spread the message. "I went on the bus for some of the segments," Berwick recalled. "You drive into these cities and at the campaign hospitals it would be like a political campaign. You had rallies and this outpouring of interest. We tapped this energy that no one knew was there." To harness the power of cross-pollination in your organization, deliberately seek inspiration from fields that seem unrelated to your own. Attend conferences outside your industry, read publications from different disciplines, and invite speakers from diverse backgrounds to share their perspectives. When facing a challenge, ask yourself: "How would this problem be solved in healthcare? In manufacturing? In education?" The most powerful insights often come from making connections between seemingly unrelated domains. Remember what John Dewey wrote: "Every great advance in science has issued from a new audacity of imagination." The same is true for organizational innovation - the boldest breakthroughs often begin by looking beyond the boundaries of what's familiar.

Chapter 3: Rediscover Your Historical Strengths

For established organizations seeking renewal, history and tradition can be powerful sources of innovation when properly understood and reinterpreted. The past often contains untapped wisdom and forgotten strengths that can inspire fresh thinking about the future. Nicolas Hayek, the legendary Swiss entrepreneur who saved the Swiss watch industry, exemplifies this approach. In the early 1980s, Switzerland's watchmaking industry was on the brink of collapse, devastated by competition from Asia and new quartz technology (which, ironically, the Swiss had invented but ignored). When Hayek took control of the Swiss Corporation for Microelectronics and Watchmaking (SMH), it had losses of $124 million and a nervous workforce of 15,000 people. Rather than abandoning Swiss traditions, Hayek built his turnaround strategy around them. He recognized that Switzerland's 450-year watchmaking heritage represented a unique competitive advantage. "We have hundreds of years of experience in the technologies and techniques of watchmaking," he explained. "Families have spent generations in our factories. They have a feel for this business, a special touch." This appreciation for tradition gave Hayek confidence to buck conventional wisdom. While experts advised moving production to low-cost countries, he kept manufacturing clustered around Switzerland's Jura Mountains. While competitors specialized, he maintained vertical integration, building components and assembling watches. His strategy imposed enormous pressure for innovation - he demanded that direct labor account for less than 10% of total costs, forcing engineers to develop breakthrough manufacturing techniques. The revival of the Omega brand illustrates Hayek's approach. When he took over, Omega was "near oblivion," diluted by too many models at too many price points. Some advisers urged selling the brand to Japanese competitors; others suggested moving downmarket. Hayek refused: "That was absurd! Omega is one of the Swiss watch industry's great brands. Its history goes back to 1848." Instead, he slashed the number of models from 2,000 to 130, eliminated licensing agreements, and refocused on the brand's heritage of achievement. By 2008, Omega generated sales of more than $1 billion. To apply this principle in your organization, begin by researching your founding story. What inspired your organization's creation? What problems were the founders trying to solve? What values guided their decisions? Look for elements of your heritage that remain relevant today but may have been forgotten or diluted over time. Consider how these historical strengths might be reinterpreted and applied to current challenges. Remember that rediscovering your roots isn't about nostalgia or resisting change - it's about finding the confidence to make bold moves by reconnecting with your organization's core purpose and distinctive capabilities. As Kathy Cloninger of the Girl Scouts discovered, asking "What would our founder do?" can inspire revolutionary thinking rather than conservative preservation.

Chapter 4: Create Urgency Without Crisis

Creating meaningful change in organizations requires more than just good ideas - it demands a sense of urgency that compels people to action. The challenge for leaders is how to generate this urgency when there's no immediate crisis threatening survival. Harvard Business School professor John Kotter, a leading expert on organizational change, identifies lack of urgency as the primary reason transformation efforts fail. "It occurred to me how often I was being asked, 'What is the single biggest error people make when they try to change?'" he wrote. "After reflection, I decided the answer was that they did not create a high enough sense of urgency among enough people to set the stage for making a challenging leap in some new direction." Ron Noble, Secretary General of Interpol, demonstrates how to create urgency around potential threats rather than waiting for disaster. When Noble took command in 1999, Interpol was woefully outdated - red notices (international wanted-person alerts) took months to process, headquarters operated only during business hours on weekdays, and there was no secure global communication system connecting police agencies. Noble recognized a critical vulnerability: there was no worldwide database of stolen passports, allowing terrorists and criminals to travel freely across borders. Rather than waiting for a catastrophic incident, Noble used storytelling to create urgency. He would ask government officials to imagine scenarios: "Can you imagine this disaster? How could you justify it to your people?" Then he would share cases where Interpol had prevented such disasters. "I am in the persuasion business," he explains, "persuading governments to act on future threats. Stories are a powerful way to persuade." This approach led to the creation of the world's first database of lost or stolen travel documents. Launched in 2002 with just 3,000 documents from 10 countries, by 2009 it included 15 million documents from 140 countries and was searched nearly 100 million times annually. To create urgency in your organization without manufacturing crises, focus on making abstract problems concrete and personal. The health-care system of Jönköping County, Sweden, uses "Esther" - a hypothetical patient - to focus improvement efforts. When making decisions, staff ask "What's best for Esther?" This simple question creates emotional connection to otherwise technical issues and maintains urgency around continuous improvement. Another effective approach is to bring external perspectives into your organization. Invite customers to share their experiences directly with your team. Arrange visits to organizations that are addressing similar challenges more effectively. These external voices can break through complacency in ways that internal advocates often cannot. Remember that creating urgency isn't about using fear tactics - it's about helping people see problems and opportunities more vividly, connecting abstract challenges to human consequences, and establishing a compelling reason to act now rather than later.

Chapter 5: Build a Culture of Emotional Engagement

In today's business environment, the organizations that thrive aren't just operationally excellent - they're emotionally connected. They create cultures where employees feel deeply engaged with their work, their colleagues, and their customers. This emotional commitment becomes a powerful competitive advantage that's nearly impossible to replicate. DaVita, a company that operates kidney dialysis centers across the United States, exemplifies this approach. When CEO Kent Thiry took over in 1999, the company (then called Total Renal Care) was nearly bankrupt. Today, DaVita treats nearly one-third of all dialysis patients in America, with revenues of $5.7 billion and net income of $374 million. What makes this transformation remarkable is that dialysis is one of the most challenging healthcare environments imaginable. Patients require four-hour treatments three times weekly for the rest of their lives. The work is physically and emotionally draining for staff, with approximately 17% of patients dying each year despite treatment. Meanwhile, with 80% of patients covered by Medicare (which doesn't fully reimburse costs), the economics are punishing. Thiry's approach was radical: "We are a community first and a company second," he declares. DaVita (Italian for "gives life") functions as a village with its own culture, rituals, and traditions. There's a company song, an unofficial movie (The Three Musketeers), and a wooden footbridge at headquarters that employees cross to symbolize their passage into a new way of working. At company gatherings, when Thiry shouts "One for all!" employees respond "All for one!" DaVita's Reality 101 program requires all vice presidents and above to spend a week working in dialysis centers - setting up equipment, monitoring patients, experiencing firsthand the challenges frontline staff face daily. "This experience creates a reservoir of empathy that would not otherwise exist," Thiry says. "A lot of executives allow their empathy muscles to atrophy. Reality 101 reawakens the empathy muscle." To build emotional engagement in your organization, start by clarifying your purpose beyond profit. What meaningful difference does your organization make in the world? How does your work improve lives or solve important problems? This sense of purpose creates the foundation for emotional connection. Next, develop rituals and traditions that reinforce your values and create shared experiences. These might include recognition ceremonies, community service days, or unique onboarding processes. The key is that these rituals feel authentic rather than forced or corporate. Finally, create opportunities for leaders to experience frontline realities. Whether through formal programs like DaVita's Reality 101 or regular time spent working alongside customer-facing employees, these experiences build empathy and ensure decisions are grounded in operational realities. Remember that emotional engagement isn't just about creating a pleasant workplace - it's about connecting people to purpose and to each other in ways that inspire extraordinary commitment and performance.

Chapter 6: Become Distinctively Valuable

In a world of overwhelming choice and relentless competition, being "pretty good" at everything is no longer enough. The most successful organizations are those that become "the most of something" - the most elegant, the most responsive, the most focused, the most human. They stand out by developing strong opinions about what matters and building their entire business model around these distinctive viewpoints. Zappos.com, the billion-dollar online retailer, exemplifies this approach. While other Internet retailers minimize customer phone contact to reduce costs, Zappos encourages customers to call its 800 number, which appears prominently on every page of its website. The company staffs its call center with highly trained employees, imposes no time limits on calls, and injects personality into every interaction. According to CEO Tony Hsieh, Zappos handles more than 5,000 phone calls daily. The company even set a record with a customer service call that lasted five hours and twenty-five minutes. "We want to talk to our customers," Hsieh explains. "Most companies look at the telephone as an expense. We look at it as one of the best branding devices out there." This approach might seem inefficient, but it creates passionate customers. More than 75% of Zappos orders come from repeat customers, who spend substantially more than first-time buyers. The company has grown from less than $200 million in sales in 2004 to over $1 billion today. Umpqua Bank in Oregon has similarly distinctive opinions about banking. CEO Ray Davis rejected the industry's bland, transactional approach and reimagined branches as community gathering spaces. Umpqua's locations feature local art, play signature music, brew their own coffee blend, and host events from book clubs to bowling leagues using Nintendo Wii. Employees answer phones with "Welcome to the World's Greatest Bank." To become distinctively valuable in your market, start by identifying what matters most to your target customers. What frustrates them about your industry? What unmet needs do they have? What would delight them but currently doesn't exist? Then develop strong opinions about how these priorities should be addressed, even if these opinions challenge industry conventions. Next, align your entire operating model around delivering on these distinctive priorities. This often means making deliberate trade-offs - choosing not to compete on certain dimensions so you can excel on others. Zappos doesn't offer the lowest prices, but it delivers an unmatched customer experience. Umpqua doesn't have the most ATMs, but it creates branches people actually want to visit. Remember that becoming "the most of something" isn't about being everything to everyone. The most distinctive organizations are often polarizing - they appeal deeply to some customers while deliberately turning away others. As Seth Godin notes, "Tastes like chicken is not a compliment." The goal is to be irreplaceable to the customers who matter most to your success.

Chapter 7: Develop Opinions That Matter

The most innovative organizations don't just have strategies - they have opinions. They take strong stands on what matters in their industry and build their entire business model around these distinctive viewpoints. This approach creates meaningful separation from competitors and deep connections with customers who share their values. Magazine Luiza, one of Brazil's most successful retailers, demonstrates the power of distinctive opinions. While competitors focused on affluent urban customers, CEO Luiza Helena Trajano Rodrigues built her business around serving Brazil's poorest shoppers in small cities and rural areas. The company devised creative approaches to make durable goods accessible to low-income families, including innovative credit programs and "virtual stores" in locations where traditional outlets would be unprofitable. This approach might have seemed risky, but it produced remarkable results. In just six years, Magazine Luiza grew from 180 locations with $490 million in sales to 450 locations with $1.8 billion in sales. By seeing opportunity where competitors saw limitation, the company transformed Brazilian retail. Life Time Fitness revolutionized the health club industry by rejecting standard practices that customers hated. Instead of charging huge up-front fees and locking members into long-term contracts, founder Bahram Akradi created month-to-month memberships with no penalties for cancellation. "A contract makes you fat and lazy," he explains. "We have to win over every one of our customers every month. It forces us to keep getting better." To compensate for this risk, Life Time builds massive (100,000+ square foot) facilities with endless options - pools, basketball courts, rock climbing walls, cafés, spas - creating destinations that make exercise enjoyable rather than obligatory. This approach has built a company with 17,000 employees, a million members, and a market value of $1.5 billion. To develop opinions that matter in your organization, start by identifying the unspoken assumptions that dominate your industry. What "rules" do most competitors follow without questioning? What customer frustrations are considered "just the way things are"? These industry blind spots often represent opportunities for distinctive positioning. Next, clarify your organization's core purpose and values. As Roy Spence argues, behind every great brand is "a definitive statement about the difference you are trying to make in the world." This clarity of purpose gives you the courage to reject conventional wisdom and pursue your unique path. Finally, test your opinions with customers who matter most to your success. Do they resonate with your distinctive viewpoint? Are they willing to pay a premium for your approach? The strongest opinions create emotional connections that transcend rational decision-making. Remember that developing distinctive opinions isn't about being different for difference's sake. It's about having a clear point of view on what matters most to your customers and your industry, then building every aspect of your business around delivering on that vision. As Clare Booth Luce once advised President Kennedy, "A great man is one sentence." The same applies to great organizations - they can articulate in one sentence the distinctive difference they make in the world.

Summary

Throughout these chapters, we've explored how transformational leaders create breakthrough results by seeing familiar situations with fresh eyes, finding inspiration in unexpected places, and building cultures of emotional engagement. These leaders understand that meaningful innovation rarely comes from simply working harder within conventional boundaries. Instead, it emerges from developing distinctive viewpoints, rediscovering historical strengths, and creating urgency around opportunities rather than threats. As you apply these principles in your own context, remember Kent Thiry's powerful insight: "If we didn't create an environment where people feel free to sing songs, to laugh, to come to work in funny outfits, all the business strategies and HR practices in the world wouldn't make a difference." Start today by identifying one area where your organization has followed industry conventions without questioning. Challenge yourself and your team to look at this familiar situation with completely fresh eyes, asking not "How can we do this better?" but "Should we be doing this at all?" This shift in perspective might just be the catalyst for your next breakthrough innovation.

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William C. Taylor

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