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G. A. Roberts
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Distant Force: A Memoir of the Teledyne Corporation and the Man Who Created It Hardcover – Print + CD, January 1, 2007

by George A. Roberts (Author), Robert J. McVicker (Collaborator)
4.1 out of 5 stars 9
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Dr. Roberts searched his archive of corporate documents - shareholder financieal reports, records of management and board meetings, letters, drafts of speeches, the copious notes that he personally kept during his tenure as president and later CEO, as well as his own memory - to construct this memoir. He describes the first decade of aggressive acquisitions and diversification; Henry's reasons for adding financial institutions to his highly technical mix; his controversial program of aggressive stock buy-backs; the spin-off to shareholders of certain entities which greatly broadened their flexibility in handling their investments (many of which still provide income today); and finally the difficult days of whistle blower suits, hostile takeover atttempts, and the finally friendly merger with Allegheny Steel Company.

Bob McVicker, who assisted Dr. Roberts in the production of this volume, worked in Teledyne's corporate public relations office from 1969 to 1979 where he wrote and procduced the quarterly shareholders' magazine Teledyne Report, after which he continued to write the tutorial articles for this publication on a freelance basis into the early 1990's. These stories, which were intended to give the non-technical shareholder an understanding of the company's sometimes arcane technologies, are available on the CD enclosed with this volume.

Previous page
  1. Print length
    316 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Teledyne Corporation
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2007
  5. ISBN-10
    097913630X
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0979136306
  7. See all details
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Teledyne Corporation; 1st edition (January 1, 2007)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 316 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 097913630X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0979136306
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1 pounds
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 out of 5 stars 9

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G. A. Roberts

G. A. Roberts

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Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
9 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

MLien
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2014
Verified Purchase
It is a well-researched book about a forgotten individual who had a tremendous impact upon technology and society in general.
4 people found this helpful
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PJ
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2015
Verified Purchase
I gave it as a gift and they liked it.
2 people found this helpful
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Jim
5.0 out of 5 stars A detailed account of the GOAT of capital allocators
Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2023
Warren Buffett says “Henry Singleton has the best operating and capital deployment record in American business.” Charlie Munger says “Hard work allowed Warren to get by despite his terrible deficit of IQ compared to Henry”. Warren is a better investor but Henry was better as a whole package, the GOAT of CEOs.

If you are fascinated by engineering, business history, or capital allocation (or better yet all 3) this book is unbeatable. Unfortunately it’s also inordinately expensive, but in many states if you check with your local library they can borrow rare titles like this via colleges in their state.
One person found this helpful
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Traston
1.0 out of 5 stars Check it in your local library...
Reviewed in the United States on July 26, 2014
Although the book contains a lot of details on history of the corporation, it does not give enough detail on the strategic choices that Singleton took. Overall, if you can, grab the book in your local library but dont pay big money for used copies, its just not worth it. You better read The outsiders ceos by Thorndike it gives you everything you need on Singleton.
10 people found this helpful
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Thomas Ince
5.0 out of 5 stars A rare gem
Reviewed in the United States on December 24, 2013
Singelton has created a path that any wise entrepreneur can follow. Haven't put it down since I got it. A+
7 people found this helpful
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JS
4.0 out of 5 stars Tele = Distant, Dyne = Force
Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2016
I bought and read this book in an attempt to better understand Henry Singleton, a now lesser known yet incredibly astute businessman in his time. It was not an easy read because the author explains in detail the myriad and complex interests that Teledyne pursued. Picking a page at random, I find the following in the first sentence: " Our thermoluminescent dosimetry devices monitored the radiation exposure of personnel, and we provided precise analyses of nuclear fuel materials at all stages of their use". The book is packed with lines like this. At times it was sort of a blow by blow account of all that Teledyne did.

With that caveat out of the way, I took a lot out of "Distant Force". I believe this book has more information on Henry Singleton than any other. I have read "The Outsiders" - also good - but this has more meat and insights not found elsewhere. For example, did you know Singleton was an early investor in Apple? Or that "Family, Teledyne and Property" were the three major loves of Singleton's life (He never sold a house in which he lived and always held on to company real estate.)

You learn a lot about decentralisation - how Teledyne thought about getting the right people, making "bets on the men who seem to be performers", and giving responsibility to local managers. There is a lot on the personal side - how he thought about strategy and why Teledyne was structured the way it was. He wasn't just a financial guy, as mathematically minded as he was.

The pace of growth was astonishing. In the tenth year of business (1969), shareholder equity had grown at a compound annual rate of 94%, total assets 100% and EPS 72%. There is detail on how he bought in stock, to the benefit of all continuing shareholders. From 72' - 84', 90% of Teledyne stock was retired.

This book also dispels the "genius with a thousand helpers" commentary in a book from the popular author Jim Collins. Teledyne was not the same without Singleton but including spin offs the stock market return after his death was impressive.

Finally, there are some fascinating Singleton eulogies, including one from Arthur Rock. He says of Singleton: "He has a singleness of purpose and tenacity that is just overpowering... yes he is rather aloof, operating more or less by himself and dreaming up ideas in his corner office."

So, if you can wade through the technical detail, you will find this book well worth it to learn about Henry Singleton. If you want something less taxing, I recommend "The Outsiders" or look for "Distant Force" at the local library.
12 people found this helpful
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