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- The Builder's Blueprint
Incorruptible: Why Good Companies Go Bad…
and How Great Companies Stay Great
Available for pre-order at incorruptible.co
This weekend’s newsletter is packed with all things Incorruptible: a preview of one of my favorite diagrams in the book, a few great pre-order bonuses, and a list of upcoming events that includes some talks and some really great conversation partners. I hope you’ll take the time to check out each section.
Eric
BOOK PREVIEW
Every builder needs a blueprint. That’s as true for founders as it is for architects. Incorruptible companies – the kind that flourish over the long term by making their mission their engine of success and ensuring it can never be abandoned – have a very specific set of plans. They center on what I call the two principles of the incorruptible blueprint:
First, create something worth protecting: An incorruptible organization begins with an aspirational mission aligned with human flourishing, and a principled ethos that instills in everyone it touches the determination to see the mission through. These mission-driven organizations generate a high level of trust and loyalty among customers, employees, and investors. They resist the temptation to take shortcuts, exploit customers, or trade long-term endurance for the temporary dopamine hit of short-term rewards.
Second, build with structural integrity: The more successful an organization is at that first step, the more valuable it becomes as a target. Profits attract predators. This is where the gravity of our financial system buckles most standard structures. To resist requires powerful and carefully defined defenses, and a whole new theory of corporate governance to match. We must rethink corporate purpose, board composition, voting rights, and – eventually – embrace entirely new corporate forms.
The entire middle section of Incorruptible – the longest section in the book – is devoted to looking at the choices, systems, and structures that ensure a company is built according to these principles. It starts at the center of the organization with the internal choices leaders make about purpose and mission, then moves outwards to the organizational systems that embed those values in business models and culture and outwards once again to the governance structures that preserve them even if leadership changes. Ultimately, it arrives at the legal vehicles that can lock a mission in place permanently.
This diagram, which appears in the first chapter of that middle section, illustrates the relationship between all of these elements, based on a solid foundation of compliance. As you can see, each one, including the blueprint itself, is covered in detail in a series of chapters.
I think of it as a kind of pocket guide to the incorruptible company – and a reminder of how thoughtful design is the key to structures of all kinds that make the world a better place for everyone who comes into contact with them.
BONUS OFFERS
Preorder a Limited Time Only Bundle and get immediate book access
If you’re too excited about Incorruptible to wait until the on-sale date to read it, I’ve gotten permission from my publisher to share the e-book version with a select group of readers right now.
Both of the book bundles below also include a PDF of Incorruptible you’ll be able to download immediately.
1. Buy two copies of Incorruptible plus a bonus e-book for $50. → Get the $50 bundle here
OR
2. Get four copies of Incorruptible, plus a collector’s edition printed copy of The Leader's Guide, plus a bonus e-book for $99. → Get the $99 bundle here
The Leader's Guide is my practical handbook for adopting Lean Startup at scale, and it’s not available in print anywhere other than this special offer.
Note: These bundles are only for US delivery.
Preorder Bonuses
After you purchase, you’ll be able to claim these 5 bonuses (and whatever else I dream up between now and May 26!)
UPCOMING EVENTS
I gave my first in-person talk about Incorruptible last week at the Long Now Foundation. You can see the recorded livestream here, along with a really thought-provoking set of questions they asked me to answer. Here’s a sample:
What’s an overlooked piece of wisdom from the past that we should carry into the future?
Aristotle made a distinction between the two different ways of making money: oikonomia, the making of productive things, and chrēmatistikē, the making of money from money itself. We would now say value creation and value extraction. In 01944 a Hungarian political economist named Karl Polanyi called this distinction “probably the most prophetic pointer ever made in the realm of the social sciences.” In ancient writing and medieval writing, it’s an old and very powerful idea that shows up again and again but it has been erased in the modern world. It’s time to recover it.
The Latin root word of the word “profit,” facere (“to make or do”) is also the root of the words “manufacture,” and “efficiency.” Meanwhile, the Latin root of finance is finis, which means “an end or a boundary.” It’s about how things are defined or finished. It’s a very simple idea. Finance is supposed to be accounting for another, profitable, activity. When finance and making money becomes an end unto itself, it’s like treating car exhaust as an indicator of its speed. You’ve made a category error.
The list of opportunities to participate in both in-person and virtual events is growing by the day. I hope you’ll find something that fits your schedule here. If not, stay tuned for additional events as we add more.
Interintellect Super Salon
Tuesday, April 21 at 5:00-6:30pm PT, Virtual
I’ll be joining Anna Gát, the founder and CEO of Interintellect, for a facilitated conversation about Incorruptible. The virtual salon format allows event attendees to be active participants in the discussion.
Marin Sonoma Impact Ventures
Wednesday, May 6 from 9am-5pm PT, Marin County, CA
There’s incredible talent and dedication to building high growth, sustainable businesses in the counties north of San Francisco. I’m looking forward to speaking at this event for startup founders, builders, and investors working in the area. If you’re local (or visiting!), hope to see you there.
Seattle Startup Day
Friday, May 15 from 9am-5pm PT, Seattle, WA
I’ll be giving the opening day keynote address at Seattle Startup Day, an event I first attended back in 2011 when The Lean Startup was making its way in the world. This time, I’ll be talking about Incorruptible and how companies can fend off the internal and external forces that threaten to destroy the very things that make them so valuable.
ProductCon NYC
Wednesday, May 20 from 9am-5pm ET in New York City or Virtual
Product leaders are crucial in the AI era. Building companies that are not only valuable but protected against threats to their mission is more critical than ever in order to safeguard transformative technologies. I’ll be speaking about The Lean Startup and Incorruptible at this gathering for leaders and innovators.
Kepler’s Books
Tuesday, June 2 at 6pm in Menlo Park, CA
I’ll be talking with Kim Scott, author of Radical Respect and Radical Candor, at this in-person independent bookstore event. Kim was a CEO coach at Dropbox, Qualtrics, Twitter, among others. She also led AdSense, YouTube, and DoubleClick teams at Google.
Book Passage
Wednesday, June 3 6pm PT in Corte Madera, CA
Alex Komoroske, CEO and co-founder of Common Tools, will be joining me for this conversation. Formerly Head of Corporate Strategy at Stripe, Alex is a co-author of the Resonant Computing Manifesto, which lays out a vision for technology that puts human agency first.
Commonwealth Club
Monday, June 22nd at 6pm in San Francisco, CA or Virtual
I’m thrilled that Scott Cook, Intuit’s Co-Founder and Chairman of the Executive Committee, will be taking the stage with me at the Commonwealth Club. This event will be both in-person and virtual, and you can add the purchase of a copy of Incorruptible to your registration for either option.
