Customer Reviews

Business is a Contact Sport

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1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is not theory. The authors, both successful businessmen, illustrate how great results can be achieved through genuine care for all stakeholders, be they customers, employees, suppliers, community causes and even competitors.

Many of the examples come from the authors' own practice applied in diverse businesses ranging from computer services to the banking, manufacturing to the hospitality industry.

Not only is this book well written and useful. Its timing is perfect at a time when Corporate America begins to realize that doing business in an ethical and caring way is not only right, but that it pays off handsomely.

Stefan Inzelstein President ISM Consulting, Inc.

I guess I'm one of the fortunate ones. I had the opportunity to work with Tom and Gus for a few years back when they first birthed Systems Consulting Group. I spent quite a bit of time with Gus and noticed from day one that he had an uncanny way with people. So I paid close attention and began to soak up all I could. I'm not wired like Gus is motivationally, nor am I gifted with his charismatic personality. I'm a software consultant, I'm still thrilled with the technical side of IT, and that's where I want to remain...but the competition is getting more and more fierce.

I recently discovered that Gus and Tom had written, "Business is a Contact Sport" so I rushed to Amazon[.com] and purchased it...more from curiosity than anything else. What I never would have realized had I not read the book was just how much I had gleaned from my time with them. I've actually been using many of their principles for more than a dozen years and greatly benefiting from them. I've had numerous long-termed engagements as I watched people with more expertise and more years of experience than myself being laid off. I've been able to cultivated relationships with key individuals at many of the clients I've worked at and have frequently been able to leverage these relationships into longer term or repeat engagements. Along the way I've always tried to help people in every way I could, even when I knew there would be no chance for reciprocation.

Maybe you're like me, you're not CEO material (or CRO for that matter) and you don't have the desire to IPO new companies, you're happy with your career but want a edge at being able to land the longer term or more lucrative job assignments. This new book is not just for the top executives, it's for the average person like myself who just wants a leg up in this new economy.

By the way, my wife and I attended the first Christmas party that SCG gave back in 1988, the one that cost 10% of that year's profits. They didn't have to invite me, they knew I'd never be a large source of income for the business, but they cultivated the relationship anyway. Relationships truly are circular aren't they...here I am fourteen years later giving a rave review on their book!

Of course you don't have to buy the book to benefit from their knowledge, you could begin your career under their tutelage like I did!

Kurt Sligh
Software Consultant

I just got a copy of Business Is a Contact Sport and couldn't put it down. I own a small business in the midwest, and the advice about building win win relationships was excellent. The idea of creating the position of Chief Relationship Officer to manage these "assets" was eye opening, i'm putting the plans in place to create it now. The person from PW must not be in business.

Tom Richardson and Augusto Vidaurreta, the founders of the Systems Consulting Group, have had tremendous success since the late 1980's using some of the obvious techniques necessary in business that we all know are important, but sometimes forget to practice. For the seasoned business professional BUSINESS IS A CONTACT SPORT easily defines and labels terms for the principals we know are important for us to succeed, but didn't know how to organize them to teach them to new entrants into the business world. Business leaders should read and develop a cheat sheet of the 12 principals and post it as a reminder of what we need to be doing each day. BUSINESS AS A CONTACT SPORT has been tested and passed with high grades from some of our best business schools. RAM, Relationship Asset Management and CRO, Chief Relationship Officer will become a standard in the evolving business world. Managers need to arms their sales staff with this book as well as department heads and HR personnel.

This book is really a must read for anyone interested in developing a "breakout strategy" for their business, especially if you want a strong ethics/values orientation. When it comes to most business books today, the suggestions that they make are often add-ons to existing ways of doing business, so implementing the suggested strategy or system will still rely on access to significant capital or technology to achieve a successful result. In reading "Business is a Contact Sport", I found a fundamentally different perspective that guided me to create a completely unique competitive approach based on developing relationships with other businesses that should be willing to promote expansion of my business because it will also help them expand their business. The more I let my imagination wander, the more different types of businesses I came up with that could have an interest in this approach because they could benefit in a unique way too. It was exciting. On a practical level, the authors provide very good methods for organizing the "relationship management" process in order to keep a company focused on getting good business results from using this approach.

In addition to the "breakout" value for businesses, I would suggest that this book is worthwhile for anyone who is looking for a way to make their personal work more meaningful and challenging. The book is full of good advice on how to build good business relationships. Even if the company you work for is not into this approach, you can use it for your own benefit. There is a lot of uncertainty in the job market these days and good relationships will always be the most valuable way to find another job, so the advice is good on a personal level as well as corporate level.

During my 14 years as a business attorney I have seen clients rise and fall, succeed and fail - and one thing always stands out. The most successful clients are not threatened by the competition, have loyal employees and love what they do. I have read this book 3 times and it has helped me in reshaping my practice. Now, I give it to clients, especially those who have backed themselves into a corner and need the rest of the world to get out and succeed. Contact Sport lays it out clearly and the value system it presents works. As a business woman, I'm not crazy about the macho sports paradigm though. Not everyone does sports ball guys!

At first blush, Tom Richardson and Gus Viduarreta's book seems only to tell you things you already knew. I built a large computer-consulting firm (600+ employees) using many of the same principles described in the first chapters of the book. My first reaction was "Why do I need this book?" After reading it through to the end my feelings changed drastically: "Why didn't I have this book ten years ago?"
What Vidaurreta and Richardson do so well is provide an effective framework for organizing and harvesting a company's relationship management techniques - techniques that we all tend to use, but only in a haphazard and slipshod fashion. The book, in a practical "what to do on Monday morning" fashion, outlines how, with a little thinking and organization, you can vastly increase return on the relationship management techniques that you may already have in place. It then goes on to point out techniques you probably never thought of...
In my opinion a lotta bang for very little buck!!

I am a medical doctor, and my direct relationship web consists of hospital administrators, nurses, other doctors, pharmaceutical reps, insurance companies and employees.
Business Is a Contact Sport has given me what I believe to be the secret to tuning into each of these stakeholders, identifing how I can help them win, and determining how they can help me meet my goals. Additionally it is my belief that by implementing the principles in the book will lead to a much less stessful work environment. Any medical practioner would benefit greatly from reading the book.
D.Baralt, M.D.

This book is a must-read for any manager or business owner. The authors explain the importance of relationships in business and the necessity of actively managing these relationships as the valuable assets they are. They identify many of the important relationships that should be developed and cultivated. They explain how to approach potential "stakeholders" and the steps needed to build trusting relationships. They also examine the critical features required for lasting, profitable relationships.

What makes the book more than just a theoretical how-to book, is that these two men have used the techniques described in the book to build several successful businesses. Throughout the book, they give real-life examples of each of their "crucial RAM principles," and how they can be applied in the business world.

As soon as I finished reading the book, I called a lost contact from some years ago and apologized for letting such a petty bussines issue interfere with our relationship. He was thankful for my call and promised to put the issue behind so we could continue to work together on a win-win situation ! I am now using all RAM principles in all aspects of my life; business, family and friends.The gratifications are inmediate and the results come quikly. Congratulations to the writers!