“I was curious first for our own business, and all the companies we became early investors in … of the characteristic distinguishing hallmarks of organisations that excel and stay at that top,” Moritz tells me over the phone from Claridges, the day after he and his co-author had dazzled a packed crowd at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

“Silicon Valley is full of companies that fizzle out – there’s not many examples, Amazon etc, that flourish. Casting around for organisations and leaders [to learn from] led to Manchester United and Sir Alex Ferguson.”

The pair first met at Old Trafford seven or eight years ago, and finally found time to write the book after Ferguson retired and Moritz took a back seat as chairman of Sequioa Capital.

A few of the anecdotes – sorry, leadership lessons – seem familiar, but there’s certainly enough new to keep anyone with an interest in a titan of the sport engrossed.

Not always mentioned in the stereotype of Ferguson as a fire-breathing, grudge-bearing, red-faced Scottish dragon are his terrific storytelling ability and sense of humour, and Moritz does a fine job of catching these, often in simple one-liners attesting to Sir Alex’s unshakeable rectitude.

“Eventually, I just got rid of them all” – on three nuisance players; “I remember feeling like I’d almost gone through a cleansing ritual” – of selling seven big-name United players; “It was simple. We just agreed that no player should be paid more than me” – on contract negotiations.

Less clear to me is that one can emulate Ferguson’s incredible success just by following his leadership principles, which seem the same as in any management book: work (extremely, obsessively) hard, do your research, pay attention to details, treat people with respect, etc. I know no amount of book-learnin’ is going to instil Fergie’s fire into my lily liver.

“I don’t remember many periods of self-doubt,” he says in one of history’s all-time great moments of understatement.

“A strong personality is an expression of inner strength and fortitude” and “I cannot imagine how anyone, without firm convictions and deep inner beliefs, can be an effective leader” are other maxims that make my own personality, conviction, etc, shame-facedly study their fingernails.

Moritz says the Fergie Filosophy is open to all. “[That his leadership is seemingly god-given] is certainly true today as a man in his 70s but I’m not sure people would have thought that in his early 30s,” he says. “The difficult thing about leadership is putting these principles into practice every day.”

There’s certainly no question Ferguson did so – “You sold
your own son” is the punchline to one of his favourite stories,
about the abuse his wife gives him over a particular transfer.

Obsession doesn’t even begin to describe his relationship with football, and he reveals that he would have happily carried on managing United had his wife’s sister not died, prompting the realisation that perhaps, finally, he should spend some time with the long-suffering Cathy.

It seems highly doubtful that many aspiring middle managers will possess – or even want to – his unrelenting determination.

It’s true that without some of the great man’s drive and self-belief, you won’t get anywhere in life, but I think most of us will be happy to sit at a seven out of 10 on that scale – rather than causing all the scale’s gauges to explode, screaming ferociously at it for being weak of character and later selling the scale to Brentford; nevertheless, Fergie’s recipe for success still makes for interesting reading. 

Leading, by Alex Ferguson and Michael Moritz, is available now, published by Hodder and Stoughton