Blasts American CEOs for their spendthrift ways.
It used to exasperate Sam Walton to watch the way American CEOs spent money. The lack of discipline by many of them was almost beyond his comprehension.
Now I know that there's another side to this in that if all one does is look for ways to cut costs, they could miss out on the important and crucial aspect of growth that concentrates on moving merchandise. But in Walton's case this wasn't a problem. He had a good handle on both.
What he was talking about though wasn't spending money on necessary improvement that added value to a company, its workers and its customers. What he was talking about was excessive spending on frills and perks that the company had no business putting money into.
I think it would shock many if they understood how disciplined spending could really add to the profitability of a company. There is so much that goes into that which is really a black hole of irrelevancy.
It seems to me that management at minimum needs to have a strong handle on expenditures that don't relate to growth in the company. There is far too much good money being thrown at things to impress others and show the victory than really needs to be spent.
Fiscal disipline has become a lost art to many business leaders that sometimes use company money as if its their own personal piggy bank to spend on what they want. We need to do better than that.
Sam Walton: 10 Rules for Building a Successful Business
Sam Walton - Retail Success Story
Sam Walton: King Of The Discounters
Sam Walton: Great From the Start
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