General Interest
Companies can live forever
By Colin Bates

The oldest companies are hundreds of years old, and are still going strong. What makes them so special, and what are the keys to survival? A study of some of the oldest companies in the world, including a Swedish company that is over 700 years old, provides some of the answers. The study, conducted by Arie de Geus when he worked for Shell (itself over 100 years old) aimed to discover the common characteristics of companies that had lived longer than Shell. Arie de Geus and his team researched over 30 companies, from America, Europe and Japan that ranged in age from 100 to 700 years.


He identified four shared 'personality traits' that could explain their longevity. Conservatism in financing


Sensitivity to the world around them


Awareness of their identity


Tolerance of new ideas



And the priorities that managers set for themselves and their employees:

Valuing people, not assets


Loosening steering and control


Organizing for learning


Shaping the human community



Tremendous food for thought in these few bullet points. How do you perform against the characteristics of the 'living companies' that Arie de Geus investigated?