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Fortune briefly highlights 25 people who answer the all too common question: "What's the best advice you ever got?" From General David Petraeus, who was told to move out of his "intellectual comfort zone", to Tina Fey, who wants to be the only person to sign her paychecks, people share the advice that helped them succeed. Much of the advice is customary -- use humor, don't panic, be yourself, pay attention -- and the people featured could be more diverse. Still, this may appeal to those in need of some entrepreneurial inspiration.
Posted 4:17, 13 May 2008
This abstract was written by
Sarah Davis
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
David Whitford, 12 May 2008
Aubrey McClendon, the maverick CEO of Chesapeake Energy, and his partner Tom Ward, worked through many years and millions in debt, pioneering new technologies in order to make their product more viable, and Chesapeake is now raking in enormous profit as natural gas prices soar. McClendon's tactics are larger than life -- sometimes shady, sometimes downright unpleasant, but he bulls ahead and gets what he wants anyway. Case in point: He bought the Seattle SuperSonics and in spite of community outrage, plans to ship them down to Oklahoma. Whitford is humorous and informative, profiling a rough and tough CEO who'd rather have America talking about Big Gas than Big Oil.
Posted 3:46, 13 May 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Sorensen
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Barney Gimbel, 12 May 2008
Gerard Arpey, CEO of American Airlines, believes the carrier is still competitive even though at the moment it is not very profitable, thanks largely to the unprecedented rise in the price of jet fuel. Raising passenger fares isn't easy or even effective as market-share losses can be even more devastating. Merger possibilities exist but any strategy that doesn't entail bringing together airlines already traveling the same routes is unlikely to ease difficult financial issues. Gimbel's incisive article covers both the unanticipated effects of expensive fuel and provides a glimpse of an executive under pressure to find viable solutions.
Posted 3:06, 13 May 2008
This abstract was written by
Cath Stockbridge
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Geoff Colvin, 12 May 2008
Aetna CEO Ron Williams compares the uninsured to bank robbers, who take from the health care system and force everyone else to pay. Insuring the 47 million Americans who presently have no health coverage would lower the cost for all participants, he says. So would connecting the entire system, from physicians to lab tests to prescriptions, into a personal health file for each individual. He talks about industry policies and standards, but is unsurprisingly reticent about privacy issues. It's an interesting interview from the industry perspective, but an exercise in hagiography.
Posted 3:00, 13 May 2008
This abstract was written by
HL Carpenter
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Andy Serwer, 12 May 2008
Though he commands quite a broad body of workers as president of Google, Larry Page recognizes the power of the individual, noting that "small groups of people can have a really huge impact" on making the world a better place. In this wide-ranging interview, he discusses how to motivate people to become less risk-averse so that they can embrace bigger opportunities, as well as the alternative energy options of the future. In this interesting interview, Page says he favors geothermal and solar thermal energy, arguing that "either one could generate all the energy we need," but it will take a bold, risk-taking spirit to set the movement in motion.
Posted 2:55, 13 May 2008
This abstract was written by
Brian Willett
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Josh Quittner, 24 April 2008
Quittner likens Amazon.com's surviving the late 1990s dot-com bust to founder Jeff Bezos' survival of a helicopter crash. Amazon is currently thriving; Quittner attributes the success to the company's "iteration," or less eloquently, its "taking a million tiny steps" to gradual success. In reality, Bezos has a simple plan fueling the website's unparalleled status as an online retailer -- "the best selection, the lowest prices, and the cheapest and most-convenient delivery." Quittner's solid article indicates music downloads and web services are next for Bezos and Amazon.
Posted 10:59, 25 April 2008
This abstract was written by
Jonathan Pinoli
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Alex Taylor III, 24 April 2008
In an attempt to stop Ford's decade-long slide, the manufacturer is attempting to redefine itself, paying "obsessive attention to detail" in order to "figure out the critical ingredients that make a Ford a Ford, and ... create great products on a global scale." According to this detailed report, the effort appears to be paying off, with Ford identifying 300 characteristics that define its personality and putting them into practice with the new Ford Fiesta. Though Ford's sales are in dire straits -- March marked a 15-year low -- CEO Alan Mulally is confident the company can turn things around, thanks in part to European design chief Martin Smith.
Posted 10:43, 25 April 2008
This abstract was written by
Brian Willett
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Jim Collins, 5 May 2008
With former giants such as Bear Stearns and Citigroup faltering, it may seem as though "we live in an era when nothing can be built to last." Collins explains that the Fortune 500 is full of these stories though, as only 71 of the original 500 from 1955 still hold a place on the list today. The author also provides some interesting historical perspective on companies such as Procter & Gamble, Xerox, Ames, and Wal-Mart -- exploring how each has built its brand over time and concluding that "whether you prevail or fail, endure or die ... depends more on what you do to yourself than on what the world does to you."
Posted 10:22, 25 April 2008
This abstract was written by
Brian Willett
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Carol J. Loomis, 5 May 2008
Vikram Pandit, the newest Citigroup CEO, is a dark horse, and as crises continue to slam the financial markets, everyone is waiting to see if he can handle the pressure. Citi is plagued with low morale, shaky debts, and an unwieldy budget; Pandit's goal is to reverse the trend and help the company return to stability. He is pushing Citi's global credit card and wealth management businesses, as well as investment and corporate banking systems, in hopes of restoring Citi's local and global reputations. The article has great in-depth coverage of the obstacles Pandit faces and his plans to overcome them.
Posted 10:17, 25 April 2008
This abstract was written by
Laura Sorensen
and edited by Brijit.
in Fortune
by
Roger Parloff, 24 April 2008
After Dickie Scruggs' home was destroyed in Katrina, he began an assault on State Farm Insurance, the largest insurer in the country. With a combination of lawsuits, political pressure, and a public relations assault, Scruggs -- who cut his teeth attacking the tobacco industry in the 1990s -- bullied State Farm into paying $150 million to policy holders. Scruggs went too far, however, when he tried to bribe judges to give him favorable rulings in his quest. Though interesting, Parloff's slow-paced article gets bogged down by too much detail.
Posted 10:13, 25 April 2008
This abstract was written by
P. Tek
and edited by Brijit.