Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose
by Tony Hsieh · 2010
In a nutshell
Tony Hsieh's transformative book sharing how Zappos built a billion-dollar business by making customer service and company culture the number one priority, proving that happiness leads to profits.
Overview
Delivering Happiness is Tony Hsieh's book where he shares business and life lessons from starting various ventures including a worm farm, pizza business, and ultimately Zappos. The book shows how using happiness as a framework can produce profits, passion, and purpose both in business and in life.
Tony Hsieh's Background
In 1999, Tony Hsieh sold LinkExchange, the company he co-founded, to Microsoft for $265 million. He became involved with Zappos as an advisor and investor in 1999, about two months after the company was founded, and eventually joined Zappos full time in 2000.
Company Growth & Success
Under his leadership, Zappos grew gross merchandise sales from $1.6M in 2000 to over $1 billion in 2008 by focusing relentlessly on customer service. In 2009, Zappos was listed as one of Fortune magazine's top 25 companies to work for, and was acquired by Amazon later that year in a deal valued at over $1.2 billion.
Core Philosophy
"We're trying to maximize the customer experience," and "Our whole belief is that if you get the company culture right, most of the other stuff — like delivering great service or building a long-term, enduring brand — will just happen naturally," Hsieh explained.
Even with Amazon as its owner, Zappos retains its unique culture, one that has led to 75% of its daily sales coming from repeat customers.
Key Business Principles
The book emphasizes several unconventional practices:
- The Offer: Pay new employees $2,000 to quit after training (ensuring only committed people stay)
- Culture as Priority #1: Focus on company culture as the foundation of everything
- Service as Strategy: Make customer service the entire company, not just a department
- Performance Reviews: Half of a worker's review is based on whether they are living and inspiring the Zappos culture
The 10 Core Values
Zappos built its entire organization around 10 core values that guide every decision, from hiring to customer interactions.
Impact
The book has become required reading for entrepreneurs building customer-centric, culture-driven organizations.
Available at major retailers for approximately $16-27.
Reference
Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose — publisher / official page. Summary adapted from the Awesome Startup Books collection.
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