Built To Last, the defining administration study of the nineties, showed how great companies triumph over period and exactly how long-term sustained performance can be engineered into the DNA of an enterprise from the very beginning.

But what about companies that are not given birth to with great DNA? How do good businesses, mediocre companies, even bad companies achieve enduring greatness? Is there the ones that convert long-term mediocrity or worse into long-term superiority? If so, what exactly are the distinguishing features that cause a company to go from great to great?

Over five years, Jim Collins and his analysis team have analyzed the histories of 28 companies, discovering why some companies help to make the leap and others don’t. The results include:

Level 5 Leadership: A astonishing style, required for greatness.The Hedgehog Concept: Locating your three circles, to transcend the curse of competence.A Culture of Discipline: The alchemy of great results.Technology Accelerators: How good-to-great businesses think differently about technology.The Flywheel and the Doom Loop: Why those who carry out frequent restructuring neglect to make the leap.