Beans: Four Principles for Running a Business in Good Times or Bad [Hardcover]

Leslie Yerkes (Author), Charles Decker (Author), Bob Nelson (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0787967645 | ISBN-13: 978-0787967642 | Publication Date: June 5, 2003 | Edition: 1

Beans is the story of The El Espresso, a legend in its own time in Seattle and a coffee company that has prospered by intentionally staying small, inspiring fanatical customer loyalty in the process. Told over the span of a single day, it follows The El's founder, Jack Hartman, through a business crisis that will challenge him and make him clear on why he does what he does. Unsure of whether he has lost the passion needed to sustain his business, Jack hires a consultant who flies to Seattle to "help" him but in reality bears witness to the secrets of good business, whether it's a company of 20 employees or 20,000. In the process, Jack learns about "the Four Ps" and how applying these universal principles can reenergize his employees, his customers, and even himself.

Though fictionalized, this is a true story in the best sense of the word. It arrives at a time when people are yearning to return to honest ways of doing business—before corporate dominance, inflated executive salaries, accounting trickery, and outright greed became so much a part of our everyday business headlines. It is the story of how a pushcart David up against the corporate Goliaths succeeded by focusing on what is core to good business and a good life: honoring customers, trusting employees, building passion around a product, and turning an honest profit.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Seattle, the corporate coffeehouse capitol of the world, is the setting for Beans, a smart fable about a real ten foot coffee counter with long lines in rain or shine. Using the plot device of a business crisis at the "El Espresso," Authors Yerkes and Decker spend time with owner Jack Hartman. They help him define success in terms of "the eye of intention."

Being successful in bad times means remembering how you got the business the first time. As the very insightful Jack reflects, the authors organize his approach with four P’s: Passion (experience and sustain passion about work), People (create enduring staff relationships), Personal (building a community of regulars), and Product (sustaining product excellence). These "Ps" are prosaic in name only. They are used to illustrate nuanced connections. For example, the link between employee loyalty and customer loyalty and the synergy between an employee’s pride in their product and their devotion to it.

While some readers may find the storyline contrived, the success and the charm of the El and its owner--both renamed to protect the regulars--provide engaging and stimulating ideas about how to nourish a business. --Barbara Mackoff

From Publishers Weekly

Yerkes, a consultant and author (Fun Work) and Decker, a former Amazon.com executive, call this little book a "business fable." Drawing on the true story of a tiny Seattle coffee bar (think Cheers without the beer and the endless banter) that managed to flourish in the shadow of the giant chains, the authors attempt to distill universal truths that "cover all the essential ingredients for success": be passionate about what you do; surround yourself with good people and treat them well; view both customers and employees as friends; and maintain a consistent, quality product. Labeled the "Four P's" (passion, people, personal and product), these simple rules apply to everyone, owners and employees alike. The authors also stress the importance of intention in striving for and achieving success: whatever your goal, you have succeeded "when your results match your intentions." Reminiscent of a convention skit (each chapter is divided into "scenes" and is largely dialogue), this is a quick, easy read with solid business-and life-messages. The book also contains discussion questions and exercises, as well as factoids about coffee.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 154 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; 1 edition (June 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787967645
• ISBN-13: 978-0787967642
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #688,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Robert B. Mintz, Ph.D., May 25, 2004

By 

Robert B. Mintz, Ph.D. (Metro NYC) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beans: Four Principles for Running a Business in Good Times or Bad (Hardcover)

Elegantly simple! I usually loathe fables, preferring gritty text in business writing. It was recommended by a friend and I found it to be entertaining, engaging, and beautifully written. Its unique way of conveying the reassuring message that "the basics mean as much as ever in this chaotic world" is one we all need to be reminded of. This is a cautionary tale for consulting types (like yours truly) who tend to turn business problems into nuclear physics.

Even your most reading avoidant client or friend will love this. Buy a supply, I keep handing them out to people. Apparently there is another book in the works . . . I've pre-ordered it.

You will never look at another cup of coffee again in quite the same way . . . likewise, you will never approach a business challenge again in quite the same way.

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Recommend You Buy "Beans!" Today, June 11, 2003

By 

John Henderson "I-Net Marketing" (Louisville, KY Area) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Beans: Four Principles for Running a Business in Good Times or Bad (Hardcover)

I like books that tell a story, use examples and create benefits that is I can use. "Beans: Four Principles for Running a Business in Good Times or Bad" is that kind of book!

The authors choose the "Ps" of Passion, People, Personnel and Product. They lead us through the success of Jack and Diane's coffee shop. It is an easy read. It will urge you to understand your workplace journey. It doesn't matter if you are an employer or the employee.

"Beans" is a journey from employment for a major airline (working for money), the unfulfilled entrepreneur step of self-employment selling martinis, and arriving at a passion for selling a cup of coffee. The realization that the "Ps" of Passion, People or Personnel will not make up for a quality Product leads Jack to develop the "best" cup of coffee! It takes all 4!

If you liked "Fish!" - you will like "Beans."

You might like to buy extra copies and give them to your personnel!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended, September 17, 2003

By 

JANE SIMONDS-LEE (White Plains, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beans: Four Principles for Running a Business in Good Times or Bad (Hardcover)

I have never written a review on Amazon before, but I was so surprised and, frankly, taken aback by this book that I felt I had to share my feelings. First of all, I didn't buy it but saw it among the books my husband received thanks to his status as a book reviewer. He doesn't review books like this, so he was ready to take it to our son's school library. I picked it up because the cover looked appealing, and I was hooked the moment I started.

First of all, it's a refreshing story about a business that is succeeding almost in spite of itself, and certainly in the face of heavy competition from the chains. This little coffee shop can be seen as a David amid the Goliaths in Seattle. The story itself is pretty simple, but the way it's told is just very special. You really start to pull for the owner of this place, and, before you know it, you've started internalizing some of the principles the author (who I'm assuming is really the consultant in the story) talks about.

My own little company, an interior design/upholstery business in Westchester County New York, has had it's share of problems, primarily with employees who don't really want to pay the dues they say they will. I am going to give this to everyone I interview, ask them to read it and be prepared to discuss it at the final interview. If they can tell me how they will use the principles on the job, then I will probably hire them. They're so simple yet so often forgotten by employees who think they know it all when it comes to customers.

While it may be easy to dismiss this as a book just for small businesses, I think it has excellent, real-world advice even for the smug CEOs who have removed themselves so far from the customer that they don't even know what their own products cost. Get this book, read it, and see if it doesn't make a difference in the policies you make for your business. It may be a humbling experience, but I suspect you will be a better executive because of it.