Canada

Strategic Concepts & Mechanics

Risk DoctrineNo Cross-Pledging of Crown Jewels Signature MoveDeals Hated, Strategy Loved Signature MoveNever Run Out of Cheque-Writing Time Relationship LeverageShare the Pie to Keep the Table Strategic PatternEcho Bay Model Then Surpass It Signature MoveKlosters Mountain as Strategic War Room Identity & CultureRefugee Hunger as Permanent Engine Cornerstone MoveWritten Memo Then Unanimous Sign-Off Identity & CultureReturn to Canada Only With Success Cornerstone MoveBuy Producing Assets at Cycle Bottom, Never Explore Signature MoveTrust Mining Operators Then Stay Away Operating PrincipleFocus as Compensation for Ordinary Talent Cornerstone MoveBorrow Against the Asset to Buy the Asset Decision FrameworkGeopolitical Disruption as Buy Signal Strategic PatternScarcity Premium as Entry Signal Signature MoveControl Without Majority Ownership Strategic PatternFlanking Around Entrenched Giants Identity & CultureLoyalty Bought with Friday Paychecks Relationship LeverageBoard Seats as Reconnaissance Posts Cornerstone MoveSell the Company to Itself — Internal Reverse Takeovers Competitive AdvantageClassified Stock as Control Multiplier Cornerstone MoveFind the Key Man and Close Before Combat Operating PrincipleCash Business Preference from Bus Roots Strategic PatternConcentrated Diversity Over Grab-Bag Portfolios Signature MoveWin Small, Consolidate, Then Leap Geometrically Signature MoveWallpaper-Roll Planning Then Relentless Pressure Cornerstone MoveBuy Cheap Shells, Strip and Reload the Portfolio Operating PrinciplePool-of-Light Negotiation Theater Relationship LeveragePolitical Access Without Political Office Signature MoveDebt as Temporary Tool, Never Permanent Foundation Capital StrategyDividends as Upward Cash Escalator Signature MoveChief of Staff Handles Architecture, Boss Handles Vision Decision FrameworkAcquire Capacity, Never Build in Inflation Signature MovePocket the Stake, Play with Winnings Only Capital StrategyFamily Reputation as Credit Line Signature MoveManagement by Suggestion Not Order Signature MoveNegatives Fuel Forward Momentum Competitive AdvantageCultivated Image as Negotiation Armor Cornerstone MoveImprovise the Entire Machine Then Scale It Relationship LeverageEccentric Genius on Retainer Cornerstone MoveRide Two Tailwinds Nobody Else Sees Yet Risk DoctrineQuit First Then Figure It Out Identity & CultureMistakes Tolerated Speed Rewarded Signature MoveDecision Speed as Competitive Weapon Capital StrategyGovernment Money Before Private Scale Signature MoveSecond-Hand Equipment Until Forced Otherwise Signature MoveBudget Every Item Until Truth Surfaces Competitive AdvantageHard Selling Against British Snobbery Capital StrategyNever Idle Capital Never Unused Credit Identity & CultureSimplicity as Anti-Phoniness Doctrine Relationship LeverageGregariousness as Deal Pipeline Signature MoveFigures on the Back of an Envelope Cornerstone MoveOffer to Buy Every Newspaper in the Room Signature MoveRestlessness as Anti-Stagnation Engine Signature MoveTrust Executives Then Watch the Numbers Operating PrincipleExperience Compounds Like Interest Decision FrameworkSubconscious as Decision Computer Cornerstone MoveCross-Fertilize Cash Flows Across Seasons Competitive AdvantageMedia Mastery as Operational Tool Strategic PatternGovernment as Business Partner Cornerstone MoveWashington Before the Workplace Strategy Cornerstone MoveMake Big Jobs Small Through Equipment Vision Relationship LeverageContinuous Negotiation Over Battle Signature MovePersonal Access Over Institutional Channels Strategic PatternCrisis as Expansion Opportunity Signature MoveRecord-Breaking as Relationship Building Signature MoveSuccess Through Strategic Innocence Signature MovePublic Pressure as Government Leverage Operating PrinciplePermeable Organization Boundaries Signature MoveBorrow More Than Needed, Repay Early Cornerstone MovePartnership-Based International Expansion Strategic PatternWomen as Superior Credit Risks Signature MoveSpeed and Timing as Competitive Weapons Cornerstone MoveAcquire Heritage Brands Then Revitalize Signature MoveQuality Obsession as Non-Negotiable Standard Identity & CultureWealth as Divine Asset Philosophy Decision FrameworkPro and Con Decision Framework Signature MovePartnership Philosophy Across All Ventures Competitive AdvantageMarketing Over Production Focus Strategic PatternSmall Business as Economic Development Operating PrinciplePackaging as Product Personality Strategic PatternDepression-Proof Product Selection Signature MoveIndividuals Over Committees for Decision-Making Operating PrincipleTriple Responsibility Business Philosophy Cornerstone MoveTrademark-First Global Brand Building Operating PrincipleTime Value of Invested Cash Obsession Signature MoveOwner Mindset Over Employee Thinking Capital StrategyCash Parking During Opportunity Drought Signature MoveGlobal Ground-Truth Investigation Cornerstone MoveArbitrage and Workout Situations Signature MoveContrarian Loneliness as Edge Risk DoctrineMargin of Safety as Liquidation Floor Signature MoveBalance Sheet Forensics Over Earnings Signature MoveDouble-and-Sell-Half Discipline Cornerstone MoveNet-Net Working Capital Acquisition Strategic PatternTroubled Economies as Value Hunting Grounds Decision FrameworkBusiness Understanding Before Investment Risk DoctrineConcentration Over Diversification Logic Decision FrameworkDiscounted Cash Flow Skepticism Strategic PatternQuantitative Screening Before Qualitative Cornerstone MoveSlip In While Giants Fight Competitive AdvantageBoom-Sensing Before the Crowd Signature MoveRelated-Party Deals as Control Ratchet Decision FrameworkUnsentimental Exit Discipline Signature MoveHire the Best Then Stay Out of the Way Capital StrategyCorporate Structure as Weapon Signature MovePrivate Until Capital Forces Public Signature MoveArt Buying While Empires Burn Strategic PatternCrash as Shopping Spree Identity & CultureLoyalty Through Generosity Not Hierarchy Cornerstone MoveDebt Down, Equity Up, Control Tighter

Primary Evidence

"Gutterson was one of the first Americans to attend the London School of Economics. He and his father and brother made fortunes in the late 1920s stock market boom. He remembers flying over to London, and throwing parties in the Waldorf Astoria in New York. Later he lost much of his fortune in the crash of ’29 but he still walked away with a million dollars. He bought Webber Pharmaceuticals in Canada, who specialized in vitamin E. His was a different mentality from the Munks’. The Guttersons were in love with the idea that the Munks were an old family, even though we had no money. At the wedding the rabbi made a speech about the"

Source:The Golden Phoenix : A Biography of Peter Munk

"Through a cousin of mine, we hired a bunch of guys from Hungary who had worked in some electronic factory and who were all part of the 56 exodus. Once we went to a trade show at a hotel in Houston with six or eight Hungarian guys in three Clairtone trucks. The unions from Chicago wanted to stop us unloading and setting up our displays on the weekend. These American union guys came out and said, “You're not supposed to move products. That job belongs to one of our state unions.” And the lead guy, Bertie Hahn, said, “You just try and stop us.” The Hungarian guys were water polo players, all at least six feet tall. No one was going to get in their way, either Saturday or Sunday. We were the only stereo and hi-fi display in the whole weekend trade show. Those guys would die for Canada. They hated Hungary. They hated Russia. In Canada they had a job, they had profit sharing, they had stock options. And we all made money. It was a fantastic time!"

Source:The Golden Phoenix : A Biography of Peter Munk

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Appears In Volumes

The Golden Phoenix : A Biography of Peter Munk Rising to Power - Paul Desmarais & Power Corporation Harrison McCain - Single-Minded Purpose After I Was Sixty - A Chapter of Autobiography Mr. Kaiser Goes to Washington - The Rise of a Government Entrepreneur Anton Rupert Routines and Orgies - The Life of Peter Cundill, Financial Genius, Philosopher, and Philanthropist Kerry Stokes