multipliers

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Andreas & Thomas Struengmann are twin brothers who co-founded Hexal, a generic drug company based in Germany, in 1986. They grew Hexal to be one of Europe's most respected companies and sold it to Novartis in 2005 for $7.6 billion.

Multiplier Profile:

The Struengmann brothers are Talent Magnets with a keen eye for the right talent. They created a flexible organization (they called the amoeba model) where talent could flow to the right opportunities. They eschewed org charts and instead encouraged people to work where there was energy to make things happen. Employees took initiative to spot problems and opportunities and gather the people and resources they needed to address them. These twin Talent Magnets knew how to unleash people's genius into their organization.

Multiplier Profile:

Ela is an Investor who has sought to create independence and self sufficiency around her. As a college student, she traveled to villages to gain first-hand understanding of poverty. As a textile lawyer, she saw the struggle of self-employeed seamstresses and founded SEWA which became a significant union. Instead of clinging to her role as general secretary of this growing union, she turned the reigns over to other leaders. Her motto is simple: “A leader is someone who helps others lead.”

Multiplier Profile

KR is an all-around Multiplier we featured several times in the book. He is a Talent Magnet who practices "gene pool engineering" by recruiting A+ talent and then building a team where no prima donnas emerge or dominate. He is a Liberator who creates an environment with a lot of pressure but very little stress. He allows his people to experiment and take risks until the right technology and solutions emerge. He says, "I hold them accountable to run the experiment, but not for the outcome of the experiment." KR plays the role of Challenger by "helicoptering down" to ground level to create proofpoints that demonstrate to the company that the vision can become a reality. The revolutionary Bloom Box is a result of these countless experiments and proofpoints.

Multiplier Profile

Larry is an all-around Multiplier. He operates as a Liberator by demanding the best effort and performance from his team rather than focusing solely on wins. He is an Investor by building players who lead the team and run practices themselves. Check out the DVD Forever Strong to get a glimpse into Coach Gelwix and the Highland Rugby team in action.

Multiplier Profile

Lutz is a multi-faceted Multiplier and operates as a Liberator, Challenger, and is a world-class Debate Maker. His team says of him, "Lutz creates an environment where good things happen." He never shies away from challenging goals and the realities and dilemmas of business. But he makes it safe for people to experiment and make mistakes. If you want to see Lutz light up, ask him about some of the major mistakes he's made. Or, ask him to tell you about the latest debate his management team held before making a critical decision.

Multiplier Profile

Marguerite is a Talent Magnet who spots genius and capability in others and then shines a light on it. To run girls camp each year, Marguerite assembles a "dream team" of volunteers each hand-picked and recruited for their unique strengths. She carefully places them in roles where their genius will be utilized and benefit the girls. She is effusive with sincere praise, constantly reminding her staff why their work matters in the lives of the girls. Many of these volunteer leaders serve year-after-year to work under Marguerite's leadership. They say, "She asks us to do really hard things, but I end up doing something I never thought I could do." When camp is over, they say, "I"m absolutely exhausted, but I'm ready to do it again."

Multiplier Profile

Matt is a Challenger who challenged the prevailing logic inside Gymboree on the levels of financial performance possible. Despite initial skepticism from the board, he led the organization to achieve an almost fivefold increase in Earnings Per Share (EPS) in four years. He did this by establishing a Mission Impossible goal to increase EPS from $.069 to 1.00. When the organization achieved this "impossible" goal, they celebrated and then raised the bar hoping to clear $2.00 per share the next year. Another celebration ensued when a year later they achieved $2.15 per share. After another 2 years, they hit $3.21 per share. Matt knew how to stretch, but not break his organization.

Multiplier Profile

Bill may be a real Multiplier today, but he'll tell you it wasn't always the case. He began his career as a Diminisher, telling everyone what to do and calling the plays. It started on the football field and continued when he began his career in technology. Fortunately for Bill, his team at Claris respected him enough as a leader to tell him straight. Donna Dubinsky was elected to deliver the message: "Bill you're pushing everyone around not letting us do our jobs." This wake-up call put Bill on the path to becoming a Multiplier. He learned to not only surround himself with brilliant people, but to really listen to them and give them space to think and work. Now, as an advisor to Silicon Valley's rock stars (and rising stars), he is building Multiplier leadership in others.

Multiplier Profile

Mr. Murthy is an Investor who built one of India’s most respected companies by hiring people he says to be smarter than himself and building a management team that could succeed him. Not only did he hand the reigns of the company to his co-founder Nandan Nilekani, years later, Nandan did the same.

Mr. Murthy still works in Infosys in a role he calls The Chief Mentor where he invests in the next generation of leaders -- both for Infosys and for India.

Multiplier Profile

Ray is known for being a thought leader in the technology business, but he is a master of what I call executive restraint. As a Liberator he knows when to hold back and leave room for the others on his team to think big and be big. He plays the role of Challenger by asking huge questions and laying down stretch challenges that engage an entire organization. He's also an Investor who spots smarts in others and them asks them to do jobs far bigger than their current capability. I suppose Ray gives people space because they'll need it for the stretch he's about to give them.

Multiplier Profile

Shai Agassi is a Challenger who defines opportunities that dare people to stretch and go beyond what they know how to do. He asks the hard questions that challenge the status quo and what people believe is possible. His people say of him: "He'll outstretch all your capabilities" and "He is highly demanding, but it feels great," and "working with Shai is exhilarating, exhausting, challenging, gratifying."

Multiplier Profile

Sue is an all-around Multiplier, but it was her Debate Maker leadership that really stood out. She led Affymetrix through one of its toughest decisions: whether or not to recall one of their genechip mircroarrays. Instead of turning inward, she reached out and utilized the full intelligence of the organization. The team made a decision that was grounded in fact and that the whole organization could rally around. Recently, one of her partners said, "there is a Sue effect. Everything around her gets better and companies grow under her guidance." We knew Sue was a true Multiplier when we met with her and noticed how smart we felt around her. We left her office brimming with ideas and feeling that "Sue effect" first hand.

Multiplier Profile

Wangari is a Challenger who saw both a need to care for the earth and also an opportunity to create entrepreneurial employment for disempowered women. Her massive impact began with a simple question in response to complaints from Nairobi women about lack of firewood. She asked, “why not plant trees?” She then led the effort to plant the initial seven trees. This early win fueled another and another until the cycle of success was self perpetuating. Wangari knew that planting trees was just the entry point to empower others and generate energy and belief.

Multiplier Profile

Zvi is a Talent Magnet who ignores boundaries to find genius everywhere. He was not satisfied with staffing his company solely with the technical talent in Israel. He spotted a rich supply of talent in Palestine and decided to reach across the deep political divide that separates Israel and Palestine to bring together the best talent from each land. Check out this great picture of Zvi meeting with his team of Israelis and Palestinians, gathered at a common meeting spot on a desert road frequented by camels and Bedouin shepherds.