Quotes in business

Real benefits come when managers begin to understand the profound difference between "cost cutting" and "eliminating the causes of costs."

A good question for anybody in business to ask is What business are we in? To do well what we are doing-i.e., to turn out a good product, or good service, whatever it be? Yes, of course, but this is not enough. We must keep asking - What product or service would help our customers more? We must think about the future. What will we be making 5 years from now? 10 years from now?

It's always easier to apologize for something you've already done than to get approval for it in advance.

Does a security guard empower the CEO to enter the building?

Nothing can do you so much harm as a lousy competitor. Be thankful for a good competitor.

Profit in business comes from repeat customers, customers that boast about your product and service, and that bring friends with them.

Quality is more important than quantity. One home run is much better than two doubles.

It will not suffice to have customers that are merely satisfied. An unhappy customer will switch. Unfortunately, a satisfied customer may also switch, on the theory that he could not lose much, and might gain.

The important thing in my view is not to pin the blame for a mistake on somebody, but rather to find out what caused the mistake.

If you invent frequently and are willing to fail, then you never get to that point where you really need to bet the whole company.