Why Great Leaders Don’t Take Yes for an Answer: Managing for Conflict and Consensus, Second Edition

Preface

On April 4, 2011, Eric Schmidt stepped down as Google’s CEO, a position that he had held for a decade. Google co-founder Larry Page took over as chief executive. Page made a number of changes at the firm that made huge headlines. He reorganized the management team, shut down or combined approximately 30 products, launched Google+, and acquired Motorola Mobility. Page made another key move that was less recognized and understood by outsiders. He set out to reform decision-making processes at Google. Page worried about creeping bureaucracy, and he wanted to enhance the speed of decision making. He explained, “There are, basically, no companies that make good slow decisions. There are only companies that make good fast decisions....As companies ...