The CEO and the Monk is the inside story of Keyspan's dramatic growth over the past decade, of its hands-on CEO, of the difficulties encountered as the "family" of a 100-year old, conservative utility absorbs the shocks of mergers and acquisitions and grows from $1 billion to $6 billion in revenues, tripling its workforce. All the while maintaining a clear focus on doing the right thing...and blowing the numbers out of the water while not losing its soul, as one financial analyst observed.
Bob Catell, Chairman of Keyspan, one of the nation's leading energy providers, is the CEO in the title. He's a career employee whose soft-spoken style and ready smile hide the tough inner man who created a whole new company amidst the chaos of de-regulation. Tough, smart, caring and candid about what it took to achieve his vision, he points out this was the opposite of the "asset-lite" and high-flying Enron of the 1990s. Same industry, similar starting point, different leaders...much different results.
Kenny Moore was a real monk who after 15 years left cloistered life in the monastery to rediscover himself and pursue a career in the corporate world. Despite the odds of succeeding in Corporate America - no MBA, no useful business experience, and a serious bout with life-threatening cancer and then a heart attack - Kenny signed on in HR and rose to be Corporate Ombudsman at Keyspan. He became the conscience of the company, but not without struggle and self-doubt. He took risks along the way - even brashly staging a mock funeral for key employees as the old Brooklyn Union "died" and the new Keyspan was a-borning.
About the book: This a fast, enjoyable read, with three authors' voices leading you through the pages, with informative and lively stories about corporate and personal success behind the scenes. These are told in the first person by the CEO, Bob Catell, and the Monk, Kenny Moore. There's an interesting narrative thread to guide the reader as well, presented by the third story-teller, the skilled business writer Glenn Rifkin, a former New York Times reporter. This is a warts-and-all tale and belongs on the reading list for senior managers - and those who plan to be CEO one day.
Hank Boerner
Management Consultant
Corporate Governance Advisor
Rowan & Blewitt
Mineola, NY
March 10, 2004
Okay, so I knew Kenny back in the seminary and should be biased. But my real bias went the other way. Who wants to read another corporate self-help book? Right now my TV is flooded with the trials and tribulations of Martha Stewart and Michael Eisner and how much the Donald spends to fire people for sport.
But I bought it and really liked it. How refreshing after all the corporate slime we have to endure. I've been through a big merger, and the culture clash and downsizing that followed. I once made the kind of remarks that described Kenny as "one opportunity to reduce headcount that won't negatively impact the business." What I never experienced was a CEO who really believed that people were his company's gretest asset. And backed it up by supporting visionaries like Kenny Moore.
The writer-CEO-monk dialog format works surprisingly well and overall it's a readable book. It doesn't try to be the final word on the events of 9-11, but shares how one segment of the NY scene handled it.
Congrats, Kenny, but you're still the only one I've ever heard describe that religious order in terms of "monks" and "monasteries".