Sounds like an interesting topic!
> Why do good companies go bad
I find interesting the systemic explanation of Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith in "The Dictator's Handbook"^1: In any publicly traded company, if the executives (or the board) are not ready to do whatever it takes to maximize profit, they will be replaced by people who are. It becomes a selection process creating tyrants. If you're lucky (as employee, customer, or human living on the same planet), whatever it takes might be aligned with employees and customers' interest. When times are bad, whatever it takes has no limits, it becomes a question of survival or progression for business leaders.
I'm curious to see how much that maps with what you identified in your new book! Patagonia is private and under the control of a few benevolent dictators ; Costco and Nordisk are a bit more surprising, I'm keen to know more.