Lotus

"And this is a corporation that, since its inception as a four-person software outfit selling one program, has acquired and integrated unto itself no fewer than forty-two companies at a cost of some $2 billion, a corporate entity so revolutionary in its management and so successful in nearly every aspect of its being that one would think it would be at least as well-known and admired as IBM or Digital Equipment Corp. (DEC) or Microsoft or Lotus or Campbell’s soup."

"Jenkins suggested that Gibbs turn his attention to the two places in the world with excellent low-volume, specialist cultures for car making: northern Italy and the British Midlands. Since Gibbs spoke no Italian, it made sense to look first at the Midlands. In the UK half a dozen companies, including Morgan, Aston Martin, TVR and Lotus, manufactured cars in low volumes. They were supported by engineers with the sorts of skills and mind-set that Gibbs needed. The decision was made; Jenkins merged his business with Gibbs’, and Gibbs and Jenkins became partners. The project moved across the Atlantic. In Neil Jenkins, Gibbs had found a Trevor Farmer-like figure to help him with the car project. Since the engineering challenges fascinated him, Gibbs would have a more hands-on role than he had had with his former businesses, such as Freightways and Ceramco, but he’d long since learnt that he needed a trusted and capable partner on the spot."