Lonestar Electronics Inc. (A)

In 2002, Dr. Jose Garcia, president of Lonestar Electronics Inc., convened the company’s managing board and raised the issue of company productivity. Garcia believed that Lonestar, a designer and manufacturer of instruments and systems headquartered in Houston, Texas, had achieved success over the previous five years as a result of the company’s rolling annual plan. He challenged the board to plan for the company’s next growth phase as Lonestar prepared to take its place alongside other great companies like Texas Instruments, IBM and Hewlett-Packard/Compaq.