True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution [Hardcover]

Paul Dolan (Author), Thom Elkjer (Author)

Book Description

Series: Bloomberg | Publication Date: November 5, 2003

TRUE TO OUR ROOTS sets forth the simple but powerful management principles that enabled Fetzer Vineyards under Paul Dolan to become one of America's biggest and best-know wineries even as it was becoming a model for sustainable business practices everywhere. Dolan and Fetzer led the California wine industry toward profound change in how wineries and grape growers preserve their environment, strengthen their communities, and enrich the lives of their employees, without sacrificing the bottom line.

Filled with personal anecdotes and practical wisdom, this book offers inspiration and guidance to business managers who see the compelling need to build and grow healthy, sustainable organizations.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Businesses have anew bottom line to work towards: sustainability. Read this to understand its importance and how to achieve it." -- Harry Paul, Co-author, FISH! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results

"Paul Dolan has demonstrated that one person in one company can transform an entire industry." -- Paul Hawken, Author, The Ecology of Commerce

A credibly told, powerful, and very readable story of personal and corporate transformation....I am giving it to all our managers. -- Ray C. Anderson, Founder and Chairman, Interface, Inc.

A strategic vision that allows for sustainable growth without mortgaging our future; has profound implications for both business and government. -- The Honorable Mike Thompson, United States House of Representatives

Dolan is my hero....His book is an inspiration. -- Marjorie Kelly, author of The Divine Right of Capital

Ever wondered what sustainability tastes like? Paul Dolan knows. Uncork. Savour. Understand. Adopt. And adapt. -- John Elkington, author of Cannibals With Forks: The Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business

Honest, thoughtful, and inspiring....If his writings were wine bottles, you'd carry them to friends you care about. -- Robert Dunn, CEO, Business For Social Responsibility

I commend Fetzer for forging this path and Paul Dolan for documenting the defining principles in this book. -- Yvon Chouinard, owner, Patagonia Inc.

Illuminating to read, and re-read, containing gems of wisdom that go beyond our vineyards and wine cellars. -- John A. De Luca, Executive Vice Chairman, Wine Institute

Review

"Paul Dolan has not only led the way to sustainability in California viticulture but has demonstrated that one person in one company can transform an entire industry. If only there were a roomful of Paul Dolans in America, we would be a profoundly different and better country in twenty years. May it be so."
—Paul Hawken
Author, The Ecology of Commerce

"There are but few companies worldwide that are actually taking positive and active steps toward sustainable commerce. Paul Dolan has led Fetzer Vineyards with a strong commitment to define new business principles for the future. I commend Fetzer for forging this path and Paul Dolan for documenting the defining principles in this book."
—Yvon Chouinard
Owner, Patagonia, Inc.

"Paul Dolan is my hero. He's the best example out there of how to create genuine sustainability in a business while being part of a publicly traded company. This is no small feat. Dolan pulls it off because he manages truly from his heart. His book is an inspiration."
—Marjorie Kelly
Cofounder and Publisher, Business Ethics magazine
Author, The Divine Right of Capital

"Businesses have a new bottom line to work towards: sustainability. Read True to Our Roots to understand its importance and how to achieve it.  It may make the difference between success and failure."
—Harry Paul
Coauthor, FISH! A Remarkable Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results

"Paul Dolan writes compellingly of new possibilities for business and the potential to change the way we work and live and sustain our planet for future generations. Going beyond the conventional wisdom, he demonstrates how we can, with enough courage and imagination, reshape the world in a more equitable way when business invests in the well-being of its employees, the community, and the environment."
—Arnold S. Hiatt
Former CEO, Stride Rite Corporation
Chairman, Stride Rite Foundation

"Paul Dolan is a provocative and creative leader who has provided an insightful pathway of excellence not just for the current generation but for generations to come. True to Our Roots was illuminating to read—and reread—containing gems of wisdom that go beyond our vineyards and wine cellars to rules of conduct for everyday life.  His axioms and guidelines can be applied to all competitive enterprise."
—John A. De Luca
Executive Vice Chairman, Wine Institute

"If you know Paul Dolan, it will come as no surprise that True to Our Roots is honest, thoughtful, and inspiring. This is Paul's story. It’s about his respect for nature and for humankind and how he has found a path to serve both in creating a successful and sustainable business. Paul’s ideas are of great importance. If his writings were wine bottles, you’d carry them to friends you care about."
—Robert H. Dunn
CEO, Business for Social Responsibility

"Higher-quality products. Lower costs. Fifteen percent earnings growth for a decade. The largest-selling brand in the industry. Sound good?  In True to Our Roots, CEO Paul Dolan shows how he used the challenges of sustainability to catalyze a business revolution at Fetzer--to the benefit not only of wine connoisseurs and shareholders but also workers, communities, and the planet. A very important read for anyone interested in learning how to create truly sustainable value."
—Stuart L. Hart
S.C. Johnson Professor of Sustainable Global Enterprise,
Johnson School of Management, Cornell University

"Ever wondered what sustainability tastes like? Paul Dolan knows. Uncork. Savour. Understand. Adopt. And adapt."
—John Elkington
Cofounder and Chair, SustainAbility

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 212 pages
• Publisher: Bloomberg Press; 1 edition (November 5, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576601501
• ISBN-13: 978-1576601501
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 0.8 x 9.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #85,864 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sustainability and growth at Fetzer Vineyards, April 4, 2004

By 

Dennis Littrell (SoCal) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution (Hardcover)

You don't have to be in the wine business to have noticed the rise of Fetzer Vineyards over the last decade or so. As a Californian and a long time devotee of the vintner's art (as well as a consumer!) I can tell you that Fetzer makes six and seven dollar bottles of wine with the best of them, and their more expensive labels are outstanding. And maybe this has always been the case, but before Paul Dolan was picked to head up the company in 1992 most of us didn't know much about Fetzer Vineyards.

In this candid memoir (and frankly, part manifesto) about corporate culture and responsibility, Dolan gives us some insight into how he was able to grow the company by more than fifteen percent a year as he shares with us his ideas about how businesses should be run in a time of dwindling and strained natural resources. Fundamentally he believes that "it's time for business, one of the most powerful forces on Earth, to become a positive force for change. We already know that we can create tremendous wealth and technological progress. The new possibility...is to preserve that progress and wealth for the generations to come." (p. 8) This is the mantra of "sustainability" which rewards employees as well as shareholders, customers as well as executives. For someone involved in viticulture this means sustaining the land as well, and for Dolan this means organic agriculture.

But Dolan also wants to make a difference in a larger sense. He wants to win awards for environmental excellence (and he has) by filtering the winery's wastewater and using renewable energy for the winery. He especially wants to show the world how Fetzer is both an economic success and a leader in environment-friendly practices and community and worker relationships. His "green" credentials might be judged from this statement: "The true cost of a gallon of gas is not the price you pay at the pump. The true cost" includes "what it costs the earth when oil is extracted and the cost when some of its byproducts return to the atmosphere..." (p. 17)

He also recognizes that "Nonrenewable resources are running out," and that "Nothing takes place in isolation." (p. 18) Would that more business leaders recognized these facts and acted appropriately.

This is also a book about how to become an effective manager. Dolan describes how he learned to listen, to his employees, to his son, and how he learned to put aside preconceived ideas and realized that sometimes the problem was himself. He tells a story about an annoying person (to him) named Tracey and the clay model they were trying to make (pp. 81-83) and how his change in attitude (inspired by his competitive nature!) allowed them to be successful in their project, and how that led him to stop regarding his son as "My Son The Jerk" (p. 84). This impressed me because it is not easy being that honest in public and in print. Later he even tells of a boldfaced lie he told and of an environmental mistake he made.

But Dolan can afford to reveal his shortcomings because when you read the chapter devoted to his third principle: "The soul of a business is found in the hearts of its people" it easy to see that he not only respects and appreciates the efforts of others, but that he knows that such respect and appreciation allows them to do their best work. He sees this as part of our "inner psychology engine...that gets us to put our heart and soul into something." (p. 101)

Another part of the book is actually about the wine making business, about how he grew the business by acquisition and branding, and how Fetzer committed, for example, to making a lot of Merlot and why (see especially pages 143-146). And there is an Afterword on how wine is made. The book ends with a Fetzer history time line and Resources for future study including books on sustainability.

This is an inspirational book by a man who is proud of his achievements and wants to share that pride with the world. And it is a story about growth, not just the growth of Fetzer, but the growth of Paul Dolan. I should add that this is a beautifully produced book, clearly written (wine writer Thom Elkjer had something to do with that) and meticulously edited.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dolan's Book captures context for leadership, November 11, 2003

By 

Tom Meyer (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution (Hardcover)

Paul Dolan's book is different from many of the other leadership books on the market in that he develops the "context" for leadership. His description of his own experiences allowed me to understand more about how great leadership is developed individually. This is not a recipe or formulaic book, but a well written, heart-felt attempt to appeal to our humanity while those of us charged with leadership lead.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Taking a stand..., June 10, 2004

By 

Shel Horowitz "Shel Horowitz, author, Guerril... (Hadley, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution (Hardcover)

What could be more fitting than a recommendation for Paul Dolan's book, "True to Our Roots: Fermenting a Business Revolution"? Through this book, I became aware of Fetzer's attempt to reengineer the entire American wine industry along sustainable principles.

A few quotes:

"Fetzer Vineyards increased earnings an average of 15 percent a year through the 1990s, while keeping its environmental and social responsibilities as top priorities. Our experience proves that operating on a more sustainable basis is not an economic liability. If anything, we see sustainability as an economic asset and a competitive advantage."

"A successful sustainable business... reaches out beyond the next four quarters, beyond the next five years, to consider what's ahead for the next generation. I is prosperous without being wasteful. It grows without mortgaging its future. It shares its discoveries without giving up its leadership. A successful business lives by its principles, and each new challenge is an opportunity to express those principles more fully, not abandon them conveniently."

Taking a stand is different from taking a position. Gandhi did not take a position that the British salt laws were bad, or unfair, or illegal. They may have been all that, but he was not interested in taking a position about them. He wanted to end them. So he took a stand. There is a huge difference."

(I wish I had space to reprint Dolan's vision of a sustainable society based on sustainable business. If you get the book, it's on pages 150-151.)