"Corporate Canaries by GaryEdwinSutton was published October 2005 by Nelson Business and is under consideration by
Soundview Executive Book Summaries as one of the 30 best business books of the year."
"Corporate Canaries" by GaryEdwinSutton is a book about corporate turnarounds that engages its readers in two
effective ways: it's built around stories and it has a killer metaphor.
The canary in the coal mine may be familiar to some of you, but what better metaphor can you find for "danger
signal"? Because seeping toxic gas that could signal an impeding explosion would kill little birds before it
affected men, coal mining companies would put cages of chirping canaries in the tunnels. When the canaries stopped
singing and keeled over, you knew you better get out of the tunnel as fast as you could.
The stories in Corporate Canaries are told by GaryEdwinSutton's grandfather, an Irish immigrant who worked in
the coal mines of Kentucky. Each of the five principle chapters of the book is dedicated to a different story about
“Grandpa.” Each of Grandpa's stories then leads to a parallel business lesson about avoiding the mistake
that could knock your company off its perch.
GaryEdwinSutton knows about saving ailing businesses. As a serial turnaround CEO, Sutton built a successful career
based on the simple notion that if you're going to fix a wobbly company, you have to find out what killed the bird
— in other words, what did the previous owners and managers do that got the company into trouble.
One chapter begins with Grandpa's story of a mine owner who believed that blasting his way through the earth
indiscriminately, rather than paying attention to tell-tale signs of coal veins in the walls, was the way to mine
more coal. He furiously used more dynamite and dug more earth and rock out of the ground than his competitors. His
competitors, however, continued to mine more coal.
The business lesson is that companies often make the attempt to “outgrow losses.” These companies, write
Sutton, don't realize that more revenues does not necessarily mean more profits — a mistake that even a giant
such as Time-Life/Warner has made. Sutton urges companies to fix profits first, and then add business. Acquiring
more unprofitable customers and more unprofitable products is like blasting more unprofitable holes in the ground:
much more work, but the bottom line is still hurting.
Other lessons in Sutton's book include: debt's a killer; fools fly blind; any decision beats no decision;
and markets grow and markets die.
At the end of the book, Sutton reveals that Grandpa is actually a composite figure based on both of his grandfathers
and a coal-mining family he knew. Corporate Canaries thus gets uncomfortably close to parable territory, but
at least the lessons in the book are insightful, the author has a long and successful track record of turning around
companies (he is not, in his own words, “an overpaid consultant who's never met a payroll or some tenured
professor with untested theories”), and there are no talking animals!
The AHS Alumni Association recieved very sad news that Gary E. Sutton passed away on
July 12, 2015, one day shy of his 73rd birthday. I never formally met Gary, but
we walked the same hallways at Ames High School. I walked those same halls at
Central Junior High from 1969 to 1972 and Gary walked those
same halls from 1957 to 1960 because Ames High School became Central Junior High
in 1962.
Gary was very kind and patient in his coorespondence with the AHSAA
and with me. Gary wrote to me about becoming an Author and what it takes
to be a successful author. The AHSAA does not normally post obituaries, because we have 28,000
Alumni, but since Gary had previously been so kind to keep in contact with us,
and I had posted the letter to the editor above, clear back in 2006, I included
Gary's' obituary below as he made an impact on me, and still does,
as I'm sure he did with so many others
-- Ed Hendrickson 1974 AHS and AHSAA Website manager volunteer.
Gary Edwin Sutton was a troublemaker and a man full of integrity, class clown and a brilliant
businessman, ruthless when crossed and a generous advisor to everyone who leaned on him, a risk-taking adventurer
and a mushy family man, a C student and a lifelong learner, a healthy fitness buff and a wine lover, a small town
farm boy and a big city sophisticate. In short, Gary was truly one of a kind and this world will never
know another like him.
Gary was born to Kay and Gene Sutton in Montezuma, Iowa, on July 13,
1942. His childhood was bucolic and involved enough shenanigans that he could entertain a crowd for hours with old
stories. He held several interesting jobs during high school and college, including male model, working at a nuclear
cyclotron, and driving cross country as the advance public relations man for race cars and a hot air balloon.
A Journalism major at Iowa State University, Gary spent more time with his fraternity brothers at Sigma Phi Epsilon
than he did in class (in fact, he barely graduated). Sophomore year, he had a blind date with
Nancy Ruth Winberg where they played drinking games. The two were married on September 19, 1964.
Gary’s career started with writing ad copy for Lennox furnaces and air conditioners. He worked his way up the career
ladder with stops at Learjet, Honeywell (where he helped invent autofocus), Fisher Price
Toys, and a variety of printing, burglar alarm and technology companies where he was CEO. The last 20 years of
Gary’s career were spent as a turnaround artist, where he would make unprofitable companies successful. He never
failed to turn a company around.
Along the way, Gary exaggerated his graduate studies, saying he “slipped
through Harvard Business thanks to their OPM program, allowing some ivy to rub off on lesser intellects,” and that
he took graduate studies at Oxford “without the tiniest shred of distinction.”
Always a writer at heart, Gary authored numerous business and fiction books, some of which were
actually published by legitimate publishing houses (all are available on Amazon, but buyer beware!). He also ran
many columns and Op-Ed pieces in publications ranging from the local fish wrapper to the Wall Street Journal and New
York Times. One column helped a judge decide to overturn a jury verdict. Another caused a CIA operative to show up
on his doorstop. Death threats and nasty letters to the editor followed several pieces. At least that’s what he
claimed – Gary was never one to let the truth get in the way of a good story.
Gary was the busiest “retired” person ever known. In addition to his writing, he served on several boards, was an
inventor holding multiple patents, spoke publicly, and generously gave of his time to small
business owners.
In addition to his wife of 50 years, Nancy, Gary’s true pride and joy were his children and grandchildren. Daughter
Stacy of Atlanta is the mother of granddaughters Cody (20) and Katy (17). Daughter Lindsay of Moraga, California is
the mother of grandsons Ryan (16) and Sam (15). Gary regaled his descendants with stupid magic tricks, told the same
jokes over and over, acted in an embarrassing fashion whenever possible, and consistently served as an inspiring and
adored role model.
Beloved by everyone, Gary left us too soon, due to an aortic aneurysm that the doctors thought was small enough to
not be a danger. He died one day shy of his 73rd birthday, on July 12, 2015. He will be missed
terribly, and never, ever forgotten.
Despite loving being the center of attention, Gary did not want to have a funeral or memorial service. We are
debating about looking skyward, saying “You are not the boss of us!” and going against his wishes, but plans are
still to be determined. Gary was suspicious of most charities, so there’s no need to make a donation in his name. If
you wish to honor him, please spend time with your precious families and realize that you may not have as many
tomorrows as you’d like.
P.S. A casual, tropical themed open house to celebrate Gary's life will be held on Saturday, September 19, 2015, 4 -
7 pm at the La Jolla Alta Clubhouse, 1570 Alta La Jolla Dr. La Jolla, CA 92037.