Page 79 - The Way to the Top

But regaining independence was a massive undertaking that required the
most meticulous planning. That we succeeded in realizing our objective

was due entirely to our attention to detail.

We had to marshal compelling arguments to persuade DuPont’s board
that it was in the shareholders’ interest to allow us to separate. That meant
extensive in-house planning and research. But we didn’t trust our own
brainpower alone. We brought in outside investment bankers and financial

experts—first, to help us make our case to the board, and then to lay the
groundwork for the Initial Public Offering (IPO). We also hired our own
legal counsel to help us negotiate our way through the transition, rather
than relying on DuPont’s legal department. Extensive planning preceded

every step in the process.

In the end, our planning was rewarded even beyond our greatest
expectations. When the Conoco stock began trading on the floor of the
New York Stock Exchange on October 22, 1998, the IPO was greatly
oversubscribed. In fact, at $4.4 billion, it was the largest IPO in U.S.

history up to that time.

On the morning after, my wife, Linda, and I rang the opening bell of the
New York Stock Exchange to celebrate Conoco’s triumphant return as an
independent, public company. Conoco was once again free to pursue its

growth objectives as the fifth-largest energy company in the United States.

It was one of the proudest moments of my life. Amid the euphoria, I
paused to remember the Five Ps—because it was planning that put us
there.

Five Ps