October 22, 2026 Wall Street Journal article shared the secret to their success – it’s no secret!
The article highlighted the Gund Company (Manufacturer & Fabricator of Engineered Material Solutions | The Gund Company) and the success they continue to have generation to generation. The author shared the secret formula to Gund’s success. We suggest it’s not a secret. It’s the basics.
It’s not about the secret formula, it’s about the execution that will help you build a company positioned for ongoing generational success or for sale to a third party one day.
Let’s look at Gund’s “secret” to their success:
- - Create a sense of Mission for all employees
- - Staff sparingly at all times, drive culture of efficiency and productivity
- - Team GEMBA walks (cross functional employee teams walk departments suggesting ideas for safety, quality and efficiency improvements)
- - Employees encouraged and rewarded for sharing ideas for improvement and growth
- - Under performers are shown the door quickly
- - Each employee gets a career plan
Folks, there is nothing secret about their approach. They should be applauded for the execution of all the things every other company on this planet can do. If you and your leadership team adopt the formula, I would venture to guess you have a strong company. But if you’re lacking in any of these, then there is room for improvement.
Use time as a friend in building your company worth with a strong team enabling your results. This starts with leadership embracing the responsibility of building such a team. Gund isn’t special in what they are doing, they are special in the fact they are actually doing it!
