TouchPoints: Creating Powerful Leadership Connections in the Smallest of Moments

Preface

When Doug took over as CEO of Campbell in 2001, the company's stock was trailing the S&P 500 and falling precipitously, the core businesses were in disrepair, the organization was in shambles, and Campbell was the poorest performer of all the major food companies in the world. Doug's job as the new CEO was to stop the bleeding, stabilize the situation, and get the company back on its feet.

It wouldn't be easy. Employees were shell-shocked by the battering they were experiencing on all fronts. For almost everyone, including Doug, this meant difficult daily encounters—with a disillusioned consumer, an irate customer, a frustrated coworker, an indifferent supplier—that were always challenging and often unpleasant. To make matters worse, the ...