56 CREATE THE STORY
The groups of three just kept coming. Here are a few examples
from his keynote: ”I want to spend time with you talking about the economy, our
industry, and the work that we are doing at Microsoft.” ”When I think about opportunities, in my mind I frame it
in three key areas. The first is the convergence of the three
screens people use every day: the PC, the phone, and the TV... The second major area is how you will interact with your
computer and other devices in a more natural way... and the
last area of opportunity is what I call connected experiences.”
”Looking back, there were three things that made Windows
and the PC successful. First, the PC enabled the best applica-
tions and let them work together. Second, the PC enabled
more choice in hardware. And, third, the Windows experience
helped us all work together.”In his book Leadership in the Era of Economic Uncertainty,
management guru Ram Charan wrote about the global giant
DuPont and how it aggressively responded to the economic
meltdown in 2008. Chief executive Chad Holliday met with the
company’s top leaders and economists, formulating a crisis
plan that was implemented within ten days. DuPont had sixty
thousand employees at the time. Every employee met with a
manager who explained in plain English what the company
had to accomplish. Employees were then asked to identify
three things that they could do immediately to conserve cash
and reduce costs. The company had decided that if employees
felt overwhelmed, they wouldn’t take any action. Three, how-
ever, was a manageable and meaningful number that would
spark employees to take action.How the Rule of Three Helped DuPont Face an
Economic Meltdown