Inc. Magazine Profiles Inside Corporate Developments

Business magazines rarely cover their own corporate developments — and in most cases, they shouldn't. But Inc. magazine took a unique opportunity to tell the story of what happened when it went on the auction block this summer, along with its sister publication, Fast Company.

In the September cover story, "The Anatomy of a Sale," Editor-at-Large Bo Burlingham chronicles the emotionally wrenching experience that taught the staff a lot about what a company is worth, calling "the sale of a company one of the most intense educational experiences you can have in business."

When Inc.'s editor-in-chief, John Koten, heard the news that its German parent company was shedding its U.S. magazines, he decided to take an active role in the auction process to get the right people interested in bidding. Otherwise, he is quoted as saying, "That would be the end of Inc. as we know it, and we'd all be screwed."

Burlingham had this take on the situation: "After four years of declining ad sales, shrinking budgets, multiple reorganizations and the decimation of Inc.'s conference business, it had become clear that being owned by the subsidiary of a subsidiary of a German conglomerate was not what this entrepreneurial magazine needed. Its sale, I figured, might well turn out to be a blessing for all concerned. On the other hand, there was also a chance that the sale could prove to be a one-way ticket to magazine oblivion."

He explores the factors that affected the sale, the search for buyers and the stress of putting out a magazine while all of this was going on. In less than a month's time and after some last-minute financial and legal wrangling, Joe Mansueto, founder and CEO of Morningstar Inc., the Chicago-based investment research firm known for its mutual-fund rankings, beat out The Economist Group and other large contenders with a winning bid of $32.75 million.

Burlingham admits Mansueto has his work cut out for him since the business magazine market is in a slump, and both magazines have circulation problems that will require major investments to fix. But the staff believes a proven entrepreneur like Mansueto has a better chance of making the magazines successful than most owners would.

While no editorial staffers left during this period, the editor-in-chief of Fast Company, John Byrne, resigned shortly after the announcement to join BusinessWeek as executive editor. But not before putting out the magazine's September issue dedicated to the topic of leadership and featuring two major stories on, of all things, failure.

In his editor's note, Byrne writes, "the very essence of leadership is dealing with our failings and fumbles in pursuit of our ideals. So it is that we offer up a compelling narrative of a unique leader who falls from power, moves through the difficult stages of grief and learns how to make sense of it all."

The cover story, "My Brilliant Failure," by Jennifer Reingold, follows the firing of David Pottruck, the former CEO of Charles Schwab, and offers advice on how to survive a downfall if that happens to you.

Copyright © 2008 Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism