FedEx Delivers

An inside look at leadership practices that enabled the world's leading shipping company to outthink and outperform its competition

Using firsthand accounts from top leaders at FedEx, FedEx Delivers explains how the company became an international powerhouse and one of the most trusted global brands by using leadership practices that tapped into the creativity and commitment of its employees.

Both a compelling business story and a prescription for business success, FedEx Delivers presents a model to show how these practices created and sustained an innovation culture. Readers will learn how to apply this model to their organizations for developing a culture of innovation that evolves with the times and offers fresh solutions to new challenges.

Innovative thinking and disciplined execution are what made FedEx a market leader, and they can help any business in any industry do the same. Each chapter covers a different aspect of innovation with real-life stories that highlight its effectiveness, and offers valuable ideas that lead managers through the process of implementing those practices.

By breaking innovation down to its three simplest steps-generation, acceptance, and implementation of ideas-and offering proven leadership practices that really work, FedEx Delivers offers unique insight and invaluable advice on building an organization that can adapt to any challenge and meet any goal in today's highly competitive global economy.

Preface ix

Acknowledgments xiii

About the Author xv

Introduction xix

Chapter 1 Innovating and Outperforming the Competition 1

Chapter 2 FedEx’s Innovation Journey 19

Chapter 3 Why Organizations Do Not Innovate 41

Chapter 4 The Five Dimensions of an Innovation and Performance Culture 61

Chapter 5 Engage Employees in the Enterprise 83

Chapter 6 Expect and Help Employees to Continually Grow 101

Chapter 7 Create a Secure Environment for Expression and Acceptance of Creative Ideas 127

Chapter 8 Encourage Collaborative Development of Creative Ideas 155

Chapter 9 Tap Employees’ Commitment 173

Conclusion: Continuing to Lead the Way 193

Bibliography 199

Index 203

“…well written and surprisingly readable…essential reading on business courses.” (EN Magazine, September 2005)

"The book provides a blueprint for building and sustaining an innovation culture that engages every employee." (Supply Management, 8th September 2005)

MADAN BIRLA advises executives on how to unleash employee creativity and commitment to build a culture of innovation and performance. A veteran of FedEx for twenty-two years, he was a member of FedEx’s Long Range Planning Committee, where he worked closely with CEO Fred Smith.

By now, every business leader should know that innovation is the key to business success in the twenty-first century. You can’t rest on your laurels, and you can’t rely on what you did well yesterday to get you through tomorrow. But innovating isn’t easy, and building a culture of constant innovation is even harder.

FedEx Delivers reveals the secrets of innovation from one of the world’s most dominant, successful, and innovative companies. After spending more than two decades at FedEx—decades during which the company vaulted ahead of its competitors at an astounding rate—Madan Birla knows what it takes to innovate. Using his own long experience and firsthand accounts from top leaders at FedEx, Birla explains the leadership practices and support systems that put the company ahead of the pack.

FedEx Delivers not only reveals why constant innovation is essential to success, but also shows every business leader, including you, how to apply FedEx’s renowned leadership practices to any organization. At its simplest, innovation depends on quality leadership. Without a leader who understands the importance of constant innovation and adaptation, an organization will lose momentum and drift along with the status quo. Here, Birla explains the leadership development strategies that FedEx uses to produce the kind of leaders who know how to nurture creativity and find new and better ways to serve customers.

In simple, step-by-step fashion, Birla offers an effective blueprint for building and sustaining an innovation culture that actively engages every employee—building creative thinking into the very heart of the business so that innovation becomes standard practice rather than lucky chance. Breaking innovation down to the three vital steps—the generation, acceptance, and implementation of new ideas—Birla offers unique insight and invaluable advice on building an organization that can adapt to any challenge and meet any goal.

Packed with true stories, real-world examples, cutting-edge practices, and expert advice on implementing new ideas and processes, FedEx Delivers is much more than a simple story of business success. A one-of-a-kind resource for any business leader in any business, FedEx Delivers shares effective, prescriptive practices that can lead any company to the forefront of its industry.