The Wright Stuff: From NBC to Autism Speaks Hardcover – 29 Mar 2016

Bob Wright is clearly worried about his legacy. That he would spend 400+ pages propping himself up, tearing down GE and others (who he once defended to the detriment of many), congratulating himself on his own “bold” ideas and actions while getting his old cronies to deliver painfully effusive eulogies on his behalf, is, in the end, rather telling. Instead of being the definitive story of how one man presided over a television entity’s revolutionary change, this book smacks of someone intent on gilding the story of his own professional reputation that has, to date, largely been ignored by media and business historians.

It’s all so unnecessary. As someone who was actually THERE...on the front lines of Bob's early transformation of NBC for more than a decade, I knew Wright to be a smart and decent guy, but hardly the leadership icon he attempts to portray himself as in this memoir. I got a real laugh at the revisionist history he and his “trusted colleagues” have put forth in this book about the media initiatives and deals they claim to have simply made happen at NBC during this period. As one would expect from a man in his position, Bob was largely a helicopter CEO and not as intimately involved in all these venture dealings and negotiations as he would lead you to believe, and most of his associates who are now singing his praises were among the most obstructionist of these efforts to change NBC. Read carefully and you will see there is little actual meat on the bones of these recollections, which were no doubt cobbled together from interviews and clips gathered by ghost writer Mermigas, and I could point to more than a handful of facts and recollections proffered here that are just plain WRONG or lacking in factual detail, as my own files would indicate. Wright would prefer you to believe NBC’s evolution was all due to his personal magic and insight, but as anyone who was there knows, that’s hardly the real story of NBC’s metamorphosis.

It all comes down to the question of where transformative change really occurs. Does it happen in the million dollar apartments of one’s tight circle of friends and privileged acquaintances, as Wright offers as the sexy answer, or is such change realized by those who fought the daily battles to make these deals happen and work? Who exhausted their political capital on the difficult sales calls? Who created the planning models and conducted the research that confirmed the validity of these ideas in the face of company skepticism, ridicule and resistance? Who conducted the tedious negotiations or created the sophisticated analyses that actually defined and sold the deals? The powers behind the throne? This is where Wright’s leadership lessons ring hollow, as he does not seem to even be aware of where much of the innovation and risk taking he claims to celebrate took place in his own organization. He strangely ignores those nameless few, outside of his henchmen who did not work alone, where the real creative hard work and skill made these abstract ideas become realized. That’s where the transformative nature of NBC's story lies. No, Bob and his boys club were decidedly not the sole architects of NBC’s repositioning, but failing to acknowledge that only serves to showcase Wright's insularity from his own organization. And no women?? Umm, not the case Bob...

A true leadership guru, one whose management secrets might actually ring true, might have acknowledged the real team that supported him, who risked career and reputation to fight the good fight on his behalf. But why remember facts as they actually happened when this book, all the way around, is about nothing more than selling others on the tributes to your own professional importance? Lesson: today's fight against autism won't be won from this kind of lofty perch.

Bob Wright was at the center of the action as OTA (on-the-air) television morphed into the mix of media conglomerates that now dominate. He was ahead of his time (mostly) in helping to define and guide that change. His story (on the multi-media side) provides a lot of insight into how that transformation took place and he's not afraid to add some dimension into some of the characters that have played pivotal roles in that process. Some of that story is also told by colleagues and competitors who provide additional insight. The appendix also explains what's become of the people who played a role in that transition, a valuable footnote. That said, be aware that a substantial part of the book is about the battle Bob and his late wife fought to raise awareness of and treatment for autism, a project inspired by their grandson's autism. This part was of less interest to me so I'm sorry to say that it got the skim treatment. My rating does not reflect the autism section of the book, perhaps the latter third.

What a great inside look at the transition of NBC through the GE buy...wow! Candid! The format of including the words and reactions of the insiders really gave a well-rounded view. Wright's passion for Autism Speaks is inspiring and, again, very candid. As honest a book as you'll read about either topic.

A great book to help everyone become more aware of autism and how it affects people. Grateful for people like the Wrights. Praying for results from the research by Google. Will share the book with others. Yes we have 2 grandsons on the spectrum. Both have some similar issues but also different issues.

I ordered a NEW Book copy of The Wright Stuff and I received a USED copy!
I am upset because I purchased it as a gift for someone who has an Autistic child and I felt she would like info on Autism.