The Rule of Three

Name: The Rule of Three
Author: https://www.simonandschuster.net/authors/Bill-Canady/255273233
ISBN: 9781637749067

How Visionaries, Prophets, and Operators Make Your Business Unstoppable

By Bill Canady

LIST PRICE $28.00

Rave and Reviews

About The Book

Discover how to supercharge your organization’s growth and success by reimagining your leadership team with 3 essential roles that accelerate the translation of strategy into execution.

There’s Stop, Look, and Listen; Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness; Stop, Drop, and Roll—all rules for living that embrace these timeless words of wisdom: “everything that comes in threes is perfect.”

It takes three roles—and the people to play them—to build, grow, and lead a great company.

In The Rule of 3, Bill Canady, a global business executive and the creator of the Profitable Growth Operating System (PGOS), outlines a triumvirate leadership system comprising Visionaries, Prophets, and Operators who work in concert to develop and execute data-driven visions for profitable growth.

Drawing on his three-plus decades of business success along with lessons from military strategy, organizational psychology, and the 80/20 Pareto Principle, Canady identifies each role’s essential purpose as part of a synergistic effort:

Visionaries, typically CEOs, shape and communicate the mission of the organization.
Prophets, often COOs, train, coach, and mentor key leaders to execute the mission.
Operators, who are high-level leaders, align their teams so their units seamlessly support a whole-of-business strategy.

The Rule of 3 is your playbook for replacing fear, uncertainty, and doubt with segment-by-segment insights into customers, products, and markets that will juice customer revenue, reduce costs, and accelerate profits.

About The Author

Bill Canady

The author of From Panic to Profit (Wiley, 2025) and The 80/20 CEO (Köehlerbooks, 2024), Bill Canady has worked for over 30 years as a global business executive across a variety of industries and markets focused on industrial and consumer products and services. He is CEO of two companies with a combined revenue of $2.5 billion. As CEO of OTC Industrial Technologies, a private equity-sponsored company, he directs an organization with 30 operating companies, $1 billion in annual sales, 2,000+ employees, and over 70 sites.

Bill has led numerous organizations through their most critical challenges and opportunities, often in complicated regulatory, investor, and media environments. Through his long career, he has honed a passion for the art and science of business, developing a set of tools and techniques to grow multibillion-dollar companies. From this experience, he created the Profitable Growth Operating System® (PGOS), helping owners and operators around the world profitably grow their companies.

He graduated summa cum laude from Elmhurst University with a bachelor of science in business administration and received his MBA from the University of Chicago’s Booth School of Business. He is a proud veteran of the United States Navy.

Product Details

Publisher: Matt Holt Books (May 5, 2026)
Length: 240 pages
ISBN13: 9781637749067

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Raves and Reviews

“This book will help identify and close gaps toward achieving the value potential of your business. Bill Canady is a seasoned CEO and has the battle scars to prove it.”
—Alan Fortier, President, Fortier & Associates

“For anyone who's ever inherited a turnaround mandate, assembled a transformation team, or wondered why brilliant strategies keep dying in the execution phase, The Rule of Three isn't just recommended reading—it's required scripture. Bill Canady has given us the missing manual for building teams that don't just survive transformation—they thrive in it.”
—Todd Hagopian, COO, Player One Energy

“The Rule of Three is a strong contribution to modern leadership thinking. It brings clarity where there’s usually noise and gives leaders practical language for driving results. If you’re responsible for growing or stabilizing an organization, this is absolutely worth your time.”
—Mitchell Aiello, President and CEO, Boyd Corporation

“This book captures what truly drives sustainable success: clear vision, disciplined execution, and aligned leadership. Bill Canady delivers a powerful blueprint for any CEO focused on growth, accountability, and results.”
—Adam Gibbs, CEO, Ohio Transmission Corporation

“The Rule of Three builds on Bill’s prior books to reinforce the need for focused data-driven decision-making in a world drowning in data. The practical tools and framework make it a valuable resource for anyone looking to optimize profitability and drive sustainable growth.”
—Eric Buechele, 80/20 Leader, Strategy Deployment, Organizational Change