The Drucker Society of Los Angeles Blog

Drucker Business Forum - Driving Organic Growth

2011-10-20T15:08:00.000-07:00

Excellent presentation today!

Drucker Business Forum: Bernie Jaworski on Driving Organic Growth in Los Angeles.

Its great the Drucker School has added another Professor in Marketing.

Writer of Student Papers

2010-11-16T13:56:00.000-08:00

Appalling ethics, but fascinating article.

The Shadow Scholar - The Chronicle of Higher Education
The man who writes your students' papers tells his story

The person writes everything from admission essays to a PhD level.

Amazon.com says it will match Wal-Mart's free shipping offer

2010-11-16T11:45:00.000-08:00

For consumers this is great. I see it as a loss leader for WalMart to get people to test purchase from their store. Its unfortunate for smaller retailers, but that is the history of WalMart for physical stores and Amazon online.

Amazon.com says it will match Wal-Mart's free shipping offer - LA Times

Buggy Whips

2010-11-14T15:33:00.000-08:00

Peter Drucker talked about the Buggy Whip, and the challenge that you could have made a better buggy whip, but that would not have helped deal with the tremendous decline in the market for them, with the introduction of the car.

I feel the same is happening with GPS devices and I am surprised it has taken this long to be noticed. When I first saw the iPhone with a GPS inside (iPhone 3G), I thought GPS stocks would be good to short (2 1/2 years ago). I am surprised it has taken this long to be noticed.

Smartphone Sales Taking Toll on G.P.S. Devices - NY Times

The same thing seems to be happening with cameras, where the camera inside a smart phone has become good enough

Best Practices Innovation

2010-10-31T17:52:00.000-07:00

How to build a culture that creates innovation that can be used? Do you do it through a huge project, or through small units that come together and then are end? Many technical companies are using small short lived groups for a project. And how do you tap into outside innovation successfully? To engage your customers to get their feedback in an effective manner?

Everybody’s Business: Innovation: It Isn’t a Matter of Left or Right

When the Assembly Line Moves Online

2010-10-31T17:50:00.000-07:00

This could be a major change in how work is done and managed.

When the Assembly Line Moves Online - NY Times

Inside Look at Companies

2010-10-13T14:39:00.000-07:00

It's amazing the amount of information you can find out about a company before you start there. And it's pretty accurate. I looked at a former employer and I was surprised at the comments I read at http://www.glassdoor.com/

Ethics & Measuring Teachers

2010-09-28T17:26:00.000-07:00

L.A. teacher who killed himself recalled as caring - SG Tribune

I have such mixed emotions on this. It's sad when anyone takes their life. But, I also want kids to have the best education possible.

Questions to think about:

1. Could the release of data been done in a better way. Perhaps by not giving the names of teachers who are below average, but showing their schools?

2. Would this have been prevented if a teacher for 14 years had been given feedback previous to the release on how he was doing?

3. Would the system change if names had not been put with teacher scores?

Age discrimination is dark underside to Silicon Valley's youth culture

2010-09-27T09:37:00.000-07:00

I am so glad I am working on my own business. Reading the article just made me feel numb. A person who worked for a company for 27 years and just discarded. Sad.

Age discrimination is dark underside to Silicon Valley's youth culture - Mercury News

Future of Work

2010-09-07T09:21:00.000-07:00

It's amazing to still here there is a shortage of trained programmers and Engineers in the US. It seems there is a shortage for a certain age of programmers. Of those just out of college and are seen as cutting edge, and relatively cheap. And the competition is overseas in India, Eastern Europe, and even China.

What is not mentioned is the hidden costs of moving an operation overseas. Of the communication issues that can often increase development time when there is a lack of a good specification that reduces constant changes. Communication with offshore workers can also be a challenge. Of the hidden infrastructure costs. And also the increase in the wage of programmers in other countries.

For some companies it makes sense to outsource overseas. For others it does not.

And for the workers, how do they stay competitive so they can stay employed? Theoretically by staying on the cutting edge. But from stories I have heard from out of work people I have met over the years, I wonder about this. With age discrimination a fact in the technology field, it becomes more challenging to find new opportunities.

Once a Dynamo, the Tech Sector Is Slow to Hire - NY Times

No gold stars for successful L.A. teachers

2010-08-30T10:30:00.000-07:00

It seems like the true focus of the Education Industry should be effective Teaching, and that often its not.

One would think you would want to build on success? And learn what works and does not work.

And its amazing how many education fads are not tested before they are rolled out on a large scale. An example is logically lower class sizes should help scores, but do they really?

No gold stars for successful L.A. teachers - LA Times

Age in Silicon Valley

2010-08-30T09:51:00.000-07:00

Good article - Silicon Valley’s Dark Secret: It’s All About Age - Tech Crunch.

I view technical workers as akin to migrant wokers. And when you get too old, your out the door. When I read about a labor shortage in Engineering I wonder what is being pushed.

And yes, I am not suggesting my daughter get an Engineering Degree like her Father did. The ups and downs of high tech employment explain why there are less people taking Engineering and Computer Science.

Possible thinking of person choosing a major:

My Father got laid off as an Engineer when his job was replaced by an H1B. Now going to school to become a Math Teacher. My Mother is working as an accountant and always has a job. Which major will I choose?

My 2 Cents:

1. H1B should be allowed to change jobs without any impact to their immigration application. I view the current system as indentured servitude. In the current system if you change jobs your immigration time for a green card is reset to zero.

2. Older workers are often more productive than younger workers. Unfortunately many firms discriminate against older workers. Short sighted, but true. I am not sure what can be done for this.

3. Make it easier for older workers to become Entrepreneurs.

4. Make it easier for technical workers, such as programmers, to be consultants. A change in the tax code in 1996 killed this industry.

Burrito Pricing

2010-08-30T09:43:00.000-07:00

I was at a Mexican Market in Fontana and I was surprised at the pricing at $6.99

A Pork Burrito cost more than a local Mexican Restaurantin Rowland Heights that is $5.99

And Chipotle is about the same price.

Why the same price at a market that is aimed at a lower income group based on its location. The owners are very careful about where they site their markets.

My guess is its within a price range that their customers feel comfortable paying for a burrito. Even though logically I would expect a lower price at the market. And the market ownership has probably tested the pricing to find out the highest they can sell for. Pricing is a bit of a black box science and without testing its just a guess.

Hazards of Blogging

2010-08-23T16:54:00.001-07:00

Its so easy on the Internet to track a person. Every click you take is being monitored, unless you sign up for some type of anonymous services (which most people don't).

Blogger beware: Postings can lead to lawsuits - LA Times

Restaurants Starved for Business?

2010-08-23T13:46:00.000-07:00

Is this a long term change or only a short term during this period of economic pain?

U.S. restaurants starved for business - LA Times
The number of restaurants operating nationwide dropped this year for the first time in more than a decade, a survey shows, with California accounting for almost a third of the losses.

Coupons in the Journal?

2010-08-23T09:30:00.001-07:00

Yes, for the last couple of weeks I have been getting coupons in my Saturday edition of the Wall Street Journal.

Some guesses:

1. Robert Murdoch is willing to try new things for income.

2. The use of coupons by higher income people has become more acceptable.

Drucker Questions for the Economy

2010-08-18T23:15:00.000-07:00

Who is your customer?

Key question to ask.

What do they want?

Jobs.

What can you provide them of value?

The question is how can you provide them with jobs.

How do you measure success?

Creation of jobs.

A great column from Thomas Friedman that got me thinking about this. Really Unusually Uncertain.

And I am sure Peter Drucker would have suggested, always test before doing on a large scale. I remember this comment from a conversation with a candidate for California Governor that Peter Drucker.

Something I have learned, is do lots of small projects, for there will be a lot of failures, but the ones that succeed will have a huge benefit.

My worry is the so called jobs bills have not created jobs that have the potential to have a huge payoff in creating more jobs. A few bets on a larger scale in one area, green energy, make work shovel ready jobs (sidewalks to no where - my area got some nice road dividers), but not for creating lots of different businesses. The challenge of a new business is knowing which one would succeed. Which business is going to be the next Google, Facebook, Netscape, etc. And which ones are going to be miserable failures. And which ones just limp along.

Using Data in Education

2010-08-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

Good article in the LA Times on Education that I hope leads to some positive changes.

Who's Teaching LA's Kids

The article was discussing using real student data to measure success for teachers in the LAUSD, and how the LAUSD is not using this tool. One of the famous questions of Peter Drucker was, how do you measure success.

What was missing from the article was mentioning that Teach For America does this already. They use a lot of data to find out what type of candidates make the best teachers, what is the best teaching methods, measuring students in the class, and taking the appropriate action.

Privacy

2010-08-15T10:21:00.000-07:00

I am surprised about how much I can find out about a person from public sources.

Two sites to look at:

http://www.spokeo.com/

http://www.peekyou.com/

I was googling an LA Times writer and I now know a lot more about him that I expected:

http://www.peekyou.com/jason_song/39452680

HP used to equal Happy People

2010-08-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

The ethics of what has happened to John Hurd are amazing. As well as the game theory involved.

Basics:

1. HP no longer means Happy People as an alumni from undergraduate loved to say 20 years ago. He did get a job with them, which was his dream. 2/3rd of HP employees per an internal survey would leave immediately if they could get an equivalent job.

2. Even if your being 100% ethical, do not put yourself in a situation that is questionable. Being alone with a member of the opposite sex who is not family is asking for problems.

3. Everybody is replaceable.

Questions to consider:

1. Was the resignation due avoiding the PR Nightmare (ala Tiger Woods), or following the HP way?

2. How much money was the private settlement to Jodie Fisher?

3. Did the outcome surprise Gloria Allred?

4. Should hp have fired Mark Hurd? The poll on Venture Beat is 73% no.

5. Is the hp way dead?

References:

Here's The Real Reason HP CEO Mark Hurd Was Fired - Valley Wag
Mark Hurd Resignation: Did the H-P Board Overreact? - Deal Journal
'Jodie [Fisher] Will Likely Get 300000 Thank You Notes' - WSJ
Hewlett Took a P.R. Firm’s Advice in the Hurd Case - NY Times

Catch 22 with a National Security Letter

2010-08-10T22:30:00.000-07:00

‘John Doe’ Who Fought FBI Spying Freed From Gag Order After 6 Years - Wired Magazine

What a nasty Catch 22 situation from an ethics viewpoint. How do you fight something you are not allowed to discuss at all, even with your lawyer. And 200,000 of these letters have been issued.

Higher Education Bubble?

2010-08-08T20:57:00.000-07:00

I have a conflicting feelings about my graduate school that I graduated 12 years ago from.

On the one hand it gave me a huge amount of tools that have helped me tremendously.

On the other hand it cost a lot and the job hunting help was a disappointment. I got my first job out of school due to a Alumni who had similar feelings about the school.

When I attended a college tour for my daughter, the student tour leader kept on talking about how wonderful the food was. And at the cost of the private school, I would hope so. But paying $200,000 for 4 years of college with room and board is a chunk of money. One instructor at my graduate school referred to his degree as his BMW (a BMW cost about the same at the time as his degree). With the continued inflation in college costs, much faster than the cost of living, I wonder if something is going to radically change. I don't see how college costs can keep on increasing at a faster rate than inflation. And the end result is not increasing in the quality as measured by demand after college.

Reference:
Further Thoughts On The Higher Education Bubble

Jobs - What should be done?

2010-08-08T20:44:00.001-07:00

Peter Drucker talked about how you could tell the health of a country by looking at its import/export balances. For many years the US has run an imbalance in trade. Energy imports have made up a large part of this. The US has been lucky enough that foreign investors have finance this.

With Peter, his advice often would come down to asking a simple question that made you think. It got to the core of the issue.

I wonder what his question would be for the US economy. And his questions would often lead to more questions.

A hypothetic statement:

What is needed is to make US industries more competitive.

Questions to ask of this:

What does competitive mean?
How would you pick and choose what to focus on?
How do you measure success?
What if this does not work?
Who would choose what industries to focus on?
How will other countries react to this?

Using simple who, what, where, and how questions are simple tools.

99 Weeks and Depression

2010-08-03T00:03:00.000-07:00

The unemployed are people and deserve to be treated with compassion and dignity.

99 Weeks Later, Jobless Have Only Desperation - NY Times

Future of Marketing?

2010-08-02T14:26:00.000-07:00

Peter Drucker spoke in one of his last lectures about how marketing needed to change as the web made finding product information easier. Where before the biggest problem was getting customers with saturation bombing. Marketing now has become more focused and that changes the marketing conversation.

This is step in that process and potentially a huge one.

What You Want: Flickr Creator Spins Addictive New Web Service - Wired.

Technology & Kidnapping

2010-08-02T14:24:00.000-07:00

Brazil Kidnapping Ring Used Web to Find Victims

With so much of a person information online this makes sense.

MBA Cost?

2010-06-16T15:02:00.001-07:00

An article about Law Schools, but also applicable to MBA Schools. Is the high cost of a non first tier MBA's worth it?

Wake Up, Fellow Law Professors, to the Casualties of Our Enterprise - Balkanization

I would guess this may also apply to many career centers that help MBA Students:

The law graduates posting on these sites know the score. They know that law schools pad their employment figures—96% employed—by counting as “employed” any job at all, legal or non-legal, including part time jobs, including unemployed graduates hired by the school as research assistants (or by excluding unemployed graduates “not currently seeking” a job, or by excluding graduates who do not supply employment information). They know that the gaudy salary numbers advertised on the career services page—“average starting salary $125,000 private full time employment”—are actually calculated based upon only about 25% of the graduating class (although you can’t easily figure this out from the information provided by the schools). They know all this because they know of too many classmates who didn’t get jobs or who got low paying jobs—the numbers don’t jibe with their first hand knowledge.

Moonshine or the Kids?

2010-05-23T23:32:00.000-07:00

Moonshine or the Kids? by Nicholas Kristof of the NY Times.

Very uncomfortable article to read. And the US tried prohibition and that was counter productive.

How to get the social change necessary so the people make different choices?

MBA + Start Up = ?

2010-05-12T20:31:00.000-07:00

A good article that brings up some relevant points:

Is an MBA a Plus or a Minus in the Startup World?

Since I am now working on my own start up its a good question.

Some of the classes and experiences I had in my MBA were extremely relevant. One could even say its Peter Drucker fault I started this business. I presented my business plan in a class of Peter Druckers. The challenge with the statement is all MBA programs are not created equally. Some are very theoretical, while others are more useful. It also depends on the classes you choose. One class that was extremely useful to me was Entrepreneurship and Revitalization. The class took Harvard Business School cases and asked you to analyze them. Often the results we came up were different than what was recommended. It was taught a street smart strategy teacher (with a Harvard MBA) who had run a small business, and was an excellent compliment to some of the more more theoretical classes I took.

Note: Since I have not been working on it full time until recently I still regard it as a start up. I got an A- on the paper and got the honor of sitting next to Peter as he discussed my business and his advice and comments were very useful.

Druckerian Job Hunting

2010-05-12T19:35:00.000-07:00

Unemployment is something most non-government workers will have in their career. It is often a life changing event. Sometimes there is a warning, but often there is not. One day you are a gainfully employed member of society that is an "engineer", "programmer", or some other position, and the next day you are "seeking new opportunities".

Looking for a job is hard work. Low pay, high stress, and the length is unknown. With the current jobless recovery, many workers have been out of work even longer than normal. There are now people who have outlasted their 99 weeks of the extended unemployment.

I know of name brand university graduates with an MBAs who are still looking. Its a brutal hiring environment. And the longer you are out of work, the easier it is to become depressed. Sending out hundreds of resumes with no results is hard on the ego. Its sad how dehumanizing the hiring process is at most companies. And what is even worse is when you get an interview, and find out after you get there its a company that wants you to pay them to get their help to get you a job. And they pull all the emotional levers on you.

So what can be done to help the unemployed? Retraining seems to be of limited use, when there is an abundance of workers. Job seeking seems to reward the extroverted, which leaves behind those who are a bit introverted. Job hunting via Monster is a form of buzz word bingo, where you stuff your resume full of the right buzzwords to increase your chance of getting a hit. Linkedin is good, but also for the extroverted.

10 Druckerian Suggestions:

1. Get a coach. Somebody to tell you the truth and you will listen to. This can be a friend or even a paid career coach.

2. Set daily goals and go over them with your coach.

3. Develop a marketing plan for yourself. Ask the Drucker questions of yourself:

1. Who is your customer
2. What do they want, and
3. What can you provide they want?
4. What is your results (and how do you measure them).
5. What is your plan?

4. Join Toastmasters. It is good to get out of the house and do something fun and that helps your public speaking and confidence. This will also show when you interview.

5. Reward yourself when you succeed at a task. Keeping up your motivation is key.

6. Treat yourself as a product. Look at what you can provide of value. Ask yourself would a potential employer know this? How can you demonstrate this? What is the best way to show this?

7. Prioritize. All tasks for job hunting, as in any job, are not created equal. As Peter Drucker lectured in class, use the Pareto Principal. Use the 80/20% rule, and focus on the 20% that makes a difference and gets results. Responding to ads on monster is similar to a direct mail campaign. The positives on Monster is its easy to send out a huge amount of resumes. The negatives is a very low response rate and a lot of other people doing the same thing. If you are going to send out using Monster, how do you make yourself stand out from others? What can you do to survive the electronic sorting for keywords, and then the 5 second test, and then the couple minute review. Each stage of this filtering process is different, so you will need to tailor what you submit accordingly. A term that Bryan Eisenberg uses for conversions is scent. How do you keep the scent through out the filtering process?

8. Peter Drucker spoke of how jobs were changing. How you were no longer employed by one company for life, but will have a career. And you will need to keep up your skills in your field. So you become more like a consultant, instead of the traditional worker.

9. How can you become known as an expert in your field? Before web 2.0 it would be through speaking at trade shows and publications in journals. Now its become easier through twitter, blogs, and linkedin. Do a blog post a day on your area of expertise. Tweet the blog post. Answer questions on linkedin. Join associations in your area. Develop the expertise to become a public speaker in your area. Figure out who would be interested in your area and speak to them. Teach a continuing education class in your area of expertise. It may not generate much income directly, but it adds to your credibility and may result in referrals.

10. Don't be afraid to ask friends for help! When I graduated with my MBA I did not immediately have a job after graduation. One of the things that helped me get my first MBA job was Peter Drucker agreeing to be a reference for me.

Terror Suspect has MBA!

2010-05-05T11:10:00.000-07:00

The terror suspect has an Engineeering undergraduate and an MBA.

Man held in NYC car bomb attack to appear in court today‎ - USA Today.

I wonder what this says about the MBA degree.

Is an MBA just a trophy degree that does not teach you in depth skills, but enough so you can get hired and trained by a company? A generalist, but not an expert?

If 90% of Management books are not worth the paper they are written on, what does this make an MBA degree?

A Druckerian Small Business Plan

2010-04-27T00:11:00.000-07:00

Something I have been thinking about creating - A Druckerian Small Business Plan.

The question is what would be in it?

Of course the basic Drucker questions and answering them.

Who is your customer
What do they value
What can you provide them of value

And later on asking how do you measure success?

And how do you know you are going in the right direction?

A quote I heard about Peter and a previous Dean of the Drucker School at lunch. The Dean was telling Peter about all the great things that was happening and how he was making the trains run on time.

And Peter asked, "but are the trains running in the right direction?"

Another favorite Drucker question of mine, "are you doing the right work?"

and being effective vs. efficient.

All important areas to consider in a business plan.

I need to go re-read Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Peter did so much of his work with large corporate clients, and then later in his career with non profits.

Drucker & Politicians

2010-04-27T00:03:00.000-07:00

Peter Drucker shared a stage with Al Checchi and they had a discussion about governing. Mr. Checchi was full of great ideas, but Peter commented that no matter how great the idea sounds, always test. For by testing you will find out what really works, and what does not.

When I listen to campaign promises, I often think back to Peter's words of wisdom. Test.

For business, testing is also a necessity. And for those doing web related items, a great book to read is Always Be Testing about using Google Web Site Optimizer.

Tech Tool Shop in Silicon Valley

2010-04-26T23:41:00.000-07:00

This would be so much fun! I know people who if they knew about this, they would probably move from Southern California to have access. It's a giant tool shop with super high tech and machine tools that you can use by paying a monthly fee of $125.

For the hobbyist technician type this would be heaven.

Cassidy: Silicon Valley's TechShop is a tinkerer's paradise - Mercury News

The Drucker angle...

Who is your customer?
What do they value?
What can you provide them of value?

This is so easy to answer for this. Machine tools are not very glamorous, but they are needed to build prototypes and for start ups that build any type of hardware.

A part time job I had in college was working for an Engineer's Engineer who ran his company as an Engineers toy shop. He built prototypes and he had a huge selection of tools. From a stencil maker, engraver, to a lathe, to an excellent wood shop. And of course the electronic labs. Working there was an adventure that was a lot of fun. If he knew about this he would probably move to Menlo Park to be near it.

Five Nuggets of Life Advice from Peter Drucker - October Speaker

2009-10-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

October Speakers Series - Bruce Rosenstein

Five Nuggets of Life Advice from Peter Drucker

Author of Living in More Than One World: How Peter Drucker’s Wisdom Can Inspire and Transform Your Life

In his presentation, Bruce Rosenstein, who interviewed and wrote extensively about Peter Drucker for USA TODAY will share Drucker’s secrets for leading a profoundly fulfilling life including.

Living in more than one world; with diverse people, activities and pursuits
Developing your core competencies
Creating your future through what you do today
Exercising your generosity through work with nonprofits, social entrepreneurship and mentoring
Teaching and Learning
Event Information

Date: October 31st, 2009
Time: 2:00-4:00 p.m.
Place: The Drucker School of Management (Burkle 16)
Claremont Graduate University
1021 N. Dartmouth
Claremont, California 91711

Please RSVP to druckerla@gmail.com

Annual membership is $30 and $20 for students. If you purchase an annual membership you admission to this event will be free. Make check payable to: CGU/Drucker Institute, and please write 'Drucker Society of Los Angeles' in the notes line. Send your check to Edie Young, Treasurer, Drucker Society of Los Angeles, P.O. Box 2125, Upland, CA 91785 or bring it to this event.

Flyer Attached

If your interested in being a board member please send an E-Mail to druckerla@gmail.com

Industrialization of groceries

2009-06-16T18:32:00.000-07:00

My first visit to a super walmart, located in Orlando. Wow! Everything is on wheels in their grocery area. And they bin every thing in the fruit/vegetable area, so reduced labor. I can see why grocery stores in California are afraid of walmart. They also have ready to eat stuff too!

Why are these type of efficiecies not seen in grocery stores in the los angeles area? The video on the checkout stands is a change at albertsons, which is why I only shop there when I have to. Versatel machine at their store in Rowland heights isvso low I need to bend down to use it (both machines).)

I remember peter Drucker's point of looking outside your business. Are grocery stores?

Hiring Ethnical and Projects

2009-05-12T10:35:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine just went through a grueling interview and was asked to do a design for the company to show his skill in the area. Unfortunately the company did not ask him to come in to explain his design, and did not pay him for the time to do that.

This happened to me, where I developed a business plan and gave a presentation for a company that was supposedly looking to hire a person. No offer, so the company got some very good free consulting. I heard later they hired no one for the position...

So when I later got in a position to do hiring, when I asked a person to do some analysis I actually paid them for the hour they spent doing it if they did not get the job. I felt it was ethical to do, I wish more companies did this.

Drucker and Verizon SPAM Calls

2009-03-02T08:56:00.000-08:00

I just received a call from Verizon. It went like this.

1. Can I talk to the person in charge of your phone plan.
That's me...

2. What is your name
Ray

3. This call may be recorded.

4. This call is to discuss your phone plan options.
Please put me on your do not call list.

Drucker's three questions:

1. Who is your customer
Me

2. What do they want.

a. Be treated with respect.
b. Save money.

3. What can you provide of value

a. Lower prices
b. Treat with respect (Calling me up with an unfriendly call, you may be recorded, which caused a bit of anxiety)

3+ How do you measure this?

I would treat the call as a failure since I asked to be put on their do not call list.

Billboards and the Economy

2009-02-27T20:39:00.001-08:00

Internet Bubble
In 1998 I graduated from the Drucker School and got a job up in Silicon Valley. Lots of billboards of Internet and Technology firms along Highway 101. The company I was with, Amdahl, was so proud when the got a billboard. All the billboards were taken by technology companies.

Silicon Valley Today
Apple has a great billboard off the 101 Freeway for the iPod, I can't think of any other technology companies when I visited Silicon Valley a couple of months ago. More consumer companies.

San Gabriel Valley Last Year
At the 605 and 60 Freeway, a big billboard advertising home loans and the current interest rate.

San Gabriel Valley Today
At the 10 and 605 Freeway, a billboard advertising bankruptcies for $799.

Dell Customer Service

2009-02-24T16:17:00.000-08:00

Dell is an amazing company, but in the area of customer service I have been surprised at how inefficient they are. They seem to just throw resources at a problem in my two experiences with them, one still ongoing. I appreciate how they are focused on fixing problems, but if I was a Dell shareholder I would worry about the cost.

First Incident
The first case was with a laser printer I bought. The printer crumpled the paper, so Dell sent another one. This one the door on the side would not close I think. So they sent another one. Finally my Mother just took the part from one Dell Printer and switched it out with the part on the original printer to fix the problem. While I was going through the Dell Tech. Support, I asked about my laptop that had been having three issues, I figured why not ask since I was already on the phone.

Second Incident
The three problems were silk screen on the keyboard had come off (minor, but since I was on the phone. My IBM think pad did not have this issue), the track pad was not 100% working, and while I was on the phone, the computer shut off due to heat issues. A band aid on the heat issue was put something under the computer on the back to improve the ventilation to prevent over heating. So Dell sent a box to return the laptop and finally I returned it.

Double Checking:
Before returning it I chatted with Dell tech support to make sure they knew about all three issues. I was assured they did. Then inside the box it said include the HD, but the tech. said not to. So again I did a chat and was told I did not need to include the HD. So finally after finding the right size screw driver I removed the HD and dropped it off at FedEx.

Checking Status Problem:
So I went online to Dell.com to find out the status. Spend a while looking around and can't find anything. Do another chat and find out the unit arrived, but there is no way for me to find out online the status directly.

Redundant Communication:
Then I get an E-Mail unit is being returned. Then I also get a call saying the same thing while I was on the phone with a customer (wonders of call waiting).

Units Arrives Home:
Then today the unit finally arrives back. I get the repair sheet, and all the had been check marked was the keyboard and track pad. So I call up and ask what had been worked on. My answer was only those two items were noted. Argh!!! I looked and found my chat transcript where I had contacted Dell to make sure of the three things. I was told the Dell person did not have access to this. But I should check out my Dell and see if it has a heating problem, and they would call back tomorrow morning. So I install the HD, and find out for some reason Dell used two different size screws for securing the HD.

3 Failure Points:
My opinion there were at least 3 failure points on this:

1. Original contact with Dell, Technician should have typed in Heat Issue.
2. When I contacted Dell to double check it should have been entered.
3. Ability to see issues on my laptop online could have caught this in time.

Future:
Now to see if the laptop overheats tonight or not.

IBM Service
My one interaction on my wife's ThinkPad, when it was still IBM doing the service was amazing. We had bought the laptop used ad the CD Rom on it failed. I called up IBM, they took the S/N and mailed out a new part. Amazingly smooth operation. I wonder how the support is with Lenovo, and if they still have the quality on the ThinkPads that IBM did (wonderful keyboard).

Why a Microsoft Physical Store?

2009-02-15T07:43:00.000-08:00

Peter Drucker has 3 famous questions that I would suggest Microsoft should apply to it's project to open 25 Physical Microsoft stores.

1. Who is your customer (everyone selling through reseller channels).

2. What do they value (something that helps them do what they need to do effectively/efficiently).

3. What can your provide of value (good products & reseller support).

My guess is Microsoft is copying Apple's stores. Apple had the challenge that few resellers were carrying their product limiting their distribution
channel.

Store Opportunity

Opportunity	Apple	Microsoft
Distribution Channels	Few resellers and poor distribution channels.	A+ distribution channels and reseller network
Profit Margin	High on Hardware and Software	High on Software, poor on PC Hardware
Channel Issues	Minimum since Apple produces Hardware and Software	Challenge which PC Manufacturer to have in store. Hp, Sony, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba, Acer, Lenovo, or ? Any decision will upset part of Microsoft's channel.
Brand	A+	Poor
Revenue Potential	Excellent	Poor (what are they selling and they are competing with their existing reseller channel).
Reseller Channel Power	Low	High including hp, Dell, etc.
MP3 Players	iPod	Zune
Mobile Phone	iPhone	Windows on phones for other manufacturers.
Games	iPhone	XBox

SWAT Teams and Totalitarism

2009-02-01T07:16:00.000-08:00

Deadly Force - Washington Post.

A SWAT Team invaded the house of the mayor of a city, broke down the door after the mayor's wife screamed, shot their two dogs, ransacked the house, and then claimed it was the fault of the mayor's wife for screaming.

What would Peter Drucker say about SWAT Teams that act in such a totalitarian manner?

Claiming their actions are justified by the "war on drugs" for their actions. This reminds me of how totalitarian regimes justified their actions that everything had to be given to the nation, including freedom. By protecting our nation from drugs, the SWAT teams with their paramilitary culture act against it.

The key here is the incentive that police get for the war on drugs, anything they confiscate goes to fund their department. So if your found guilty of being a drug dealer, the police can seize all your property. The police department that did the raid last year got $2.5 Million dollars from drug related property seizures.

2009-01-13T20:30:00.000-08:00

Dear Drucker Society of Los Angeles Members and Friends,

Thank you for the many opportunities to learn and enjoy as the Drucker Society of Los Angeles has grown. As co-founder and co-president, I have had the pleasure of seeing the Society blossom from a few dedicated people to over a hundred, and growing.

We have had exciting speakers, instituted a pro bono think tank on the recommendation of a member, and will soon be giving a special presentation on teamwork and the fulfillment of dreams to high school students. Our website has showcased the thought of Doris Drucker and other excellent thinkers, and we initiated the Inspiration Awards to show appreciation to people who make a truly Druckeresque difference in the world.

I have spent over a year seeing the Drucker Society of Los Angeles bloom. It has been immensely gratifying to meet or interact with many of the kind members of the Society, and to be in close contact with Rick Wartzman and Zachary First at the Drucker Institute.

This year, my schedule has changed to the point that I will not be able to attend our events, and from experience the Society needs and deserves great focus and time. Luckily, we have a full board in place, and in October we will have elections for those who will serve for the next two years (board members may serve up to two, two-year terms in a given office. Bylaws are posted on the website in the About Us section.). I have had the honor to serve alongside Gus Bojorquez as co-founder and co-president, and now Gus will continue to serve as sole president with the same verve he has shown throughout.

Thank you again for your insights, enthusiasm and dedication to the ideas of Peter Drucker. The renowned guru wrote of the importance of feeling that one has made a contribution. I am happy to have been one small part of a team that is itself engaged in keeping his great legacy alive. I know that the Drucker Society of Los Angeles will continue to bring fine thoughts to the community, and to participate in meaningful dialogue regarding the excellent principles of Peter Drucker.

Best wishes for a wonderful and fulfilling 2009, and beyond.

Respectfully,

Elisa Mann

The Best to You in 2009

2009-01-11T18:58:00.001-08:00

The Drucker Society of Los Angeles wishes you and your loved ones the best of all that is most important in life. Peter Drucker studied and influenced business, as well as other sectors of society such as government and the nonprofit world. At the end of the day, he noted that people are the most important element in effective organizations. May you and those about whom you care have a safe and fulfilling year.

Panda CEO Tom Davin to Speak January 10, 2009

2008-12-25T20:43:00.000-08:00

Hosted by the Drucker Society of Los Angeles, CEO Tom Davin of Panda, Inc., the Chinese restaurant chain, will be speaking on business principles from 2-4 p.m. on January 10, 2009 at the Mahalo Building at 902 Colorado Boulevard, Santa Monica, CA 90401. Panda, Inc. has used the teachings of Peter Drucker to help instill a strong ethic in the organization.

The admission price is $25 ($15 for students), and includes one year of membership in the Drucker Society of Los Angeles. To attend, send a check payable to "CGU/Drucker Institute," with "Drucker Society of Los Angeles" in the notes line, to Abraham McNiel, Associate Board Member, Drucker Society of Los Angeles, P.O. Box 6029, Alhambra, CA 91802.

In times when the need for excellence and integrity in management is clearer than ever, leaders must work with their organizations to prove their value to customers, again and again. Find out what is important during a challenging economy and how principles of ethics are translated into action.

Observer

2008-12-20T06:35:00.000-08:00

Drucker Society of Los Angeles member Tony Morales, a graduate of the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management who lives in Portland, Oregon and works for Nike, thought of the one best word to describe Peter Drucker:

"Observer."

Writes Tony, "It is the most difficult thing -- to observe without judgment. By observing we can take action. Without action, there are no results. That is what I am doing. I am taking action and making a difference. This takes courage. In the end, we must reflect and do it all over again to innovate and bring something new into the world."

What is your one best word to describe Peter Drucker or his ideas?

Inspiration Award Winner Judy Vaughan of Alexandria House

2008-12-08T12:06:00.000-08:00

The winner of the first Drucker Society of Los Angeles Inspiration Award is someone who is a daily inspiration to people who need someone unflinchingly on their side.

Judy Vaughan is a Catholic nun with a 10-year-old adopted daughter. Eleven years ago, after a careful effort to ask people in a Los Angeles neighborhood what kinds of services they would want in a nearby shelter, she founded Alexandria House, a transitional shelter for women and children who are emerging from extremely difficult circumstances. Unlike short-term shelters which give people a place to sleep for up to three days, Alexandria House shelters otherwise homeless women and their children for months, and helps them to find jobs and places to live. Alexandria House also provides after-school tutoring and enrichment programs for children in the neighborhood, functioning as a safe, warm point of learning and development.

When accepting the Inspiration Award, Judy shared her leadership principles, such as, "never ask people to do what you yourself would not do," and "always say thank you." She said that she was constantly learning, and asked that people consider getting involved with helping teens to find the "step up" that would help them blossom.

To learn more about the many warm, caring facets of Alexandria House, visit http://www.alexandriahouse.org/. Toys for the holidays and volunteer time throughout the year are much needed and appreciated.

Peter Drucker stressed the importance of innovation, responsibility and effectiveness. In constantly finding new ways to give, unfailingly supporting people in bettering their lives, and creating a center for positive change in a dynamic neighborhood, Judy Vaughan together with her staff and volunteers at Alexandria House exemplify the best of Peter Drucker's ideals.

Managing Conflict in the Workplace

2008-11-18T09:55:00.000-08:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

On Saturday, November 15, 2008, consultant and executive coach Hugh Leonard gave a talk to the Drucker Society of Los Angeles. His topic was conflict resolution in the workplace.

By the time a consultant gets called in to help a company resolve issues, there is a palpable set of feelings in the workforce and/or managerial ranks of unhappiness, disgust, frustration and anger. A careful set of protocols are applied to understand what is happening, find the causes, generate plans for likely solutions, and then take action to change. The whole process takes about a year, if not more.

Hugh first hears from management, who hire him to help. They share their view of the problem, and he takes a careful approach to discovering if there are more dimensions to the issues. Almost invariably, there are. He interviews several people at many levels of the company, then painstakingly crafts a document, using people's own words without attribution or hints as to their roles, to accurately express what he finds. Often, much is unsaid, and he adds his analysis of underlying concerns, while being sure to relay why his conclusions are drawn from the interviews.

A process then unfolds in which he shares the findings with all of those concerned, both managers and employees, and gets feedback. He lets both sides know that this ultimate sense of discord has been the result of decisions over time -- it is theirs; they "own" it. He is clear that he is not going to "solve" the issues -- only the people involved can make direct changes that will impact the organization and their own quality of life.

Those involved are then asked to take part in a process of letting go of behaviors that have led to the difficulties. They are asked to create new beginnings, new ways of approaching their work and each other. They learn new skills to manage conflict, skills they might not have ever been exposed to before.

Hugh also analyzes the system of work, the set of businesses and departments interlocking, as a whole. He understands that often structural elements must change so that people can do their own work better, day to day. He reports to management on which structural forces may be making the problem worse, or helping to create it.

He then coaches supervisors and sets up a system of mentoring for employees. They have been asked to "own" the problems they are facing during the feedback session, and have been asked to make productive changes. Hugh gives them more ways to institute positive behaviors that replace the negative ones.

He follows up periodically to see how the company and the people within it are doing. Like Peter Drucker, Hugh believes that a company is a linked set of people, and that people are the most important element. He quotes Drucker, "A company is really its people -- their knowledge, capabilities and relationships." Also, regarding the issue of management responsibility, "Management is about human beings and its task is to make their strengths effective and their weaknesses irrelevant."

When Hugh is called in, emotions run high, people are angry and bitter, and work is suffering noticeably. At times his analysis brings forth a recommendation for firing someone or several people; other times he might find that individuals are best referred to counseling for underlying anger that is masked as resentment at the company situation. Mainly he believes that work is sacred, and that people have a natural call to do their best, and find fulfillment through it. He appreciates when disentangling the negative emotions that have sprung up around dysfunctional systems and counterproductive behaviors, leads to a renewed vigor at work.

Hugh led teams in the audiences through a simulation of a counselor listening to a person with a problem. The process mostly involved listening to understand, with two or so questions asked at each of four stages: gathering data, identifying the cause of anger, planning for productive change, and acting. Sample questions for the first stage included, "Describe what happened?" or "How do you feel in that situation?" For identifying the cause, questions included, "How would you characterize this issue?" and "What motivates him/her?" For productive change, a plan created by the person who is frustrated, questions included, "What are your plans?" and "What outcomes do you expect?" Finally, for the action phase, when the impacted person is dealing with the need for change, questions included, "What are you doing now?" and "If you decide to do nothing, why?" There are more questions in each category, but a key point was to not focus too much on one part of the process rather than another. Usually two questions or so are enough to understand fairly well what is happening, and to move to the next stage.

To contact Hugh Leonard, email hleonard@msn.com.

Elegant Gathering, December 7, 2008

2008-11-14T01:25:00.000-08:00

Dear Drucker Society of Los Angeles Member,

Celebrate an evening of enjoyable company and fine dining with the Drucker Society of Los Angeles. Share conversation and laughter in a relaxed and elegant setting. Bring friends and family for an end-of-year gathering at Shiro Restaurant in South Pasadena, for a three-course meal you will long remember.

Sunday, December 7, 2008
8 p.m.

Shiro Restaurant
1505 Mission St
South Pasadena, CA 91030
(626) 799-4774
www.restaurantshiro.com

Presentation of the first Drucker Society of Los Angeles Inspiration Awards.

Featuring a three-course meal with salad, your choice of entree, and dessert.

Parking is free.

The cost is $45 per person, including tax and tip. The cost, however, does not include alcohol, although iced tea, hot tea, soft drinks and coffee are included. Payment is in advance.

RSVP by Wednesday, November 26, 2008 with the number of people attending and with your check made out to "Shiro Restaurant," to our Treasurer Edie Young. Her address is,

Edie Young

Treasurer

Drucker Society of Los Angeles

P.O. Box 2125

Upland, CA 91785

Space is limited, and reservations will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis, including receipt of advanced payment.

We hope to see you there!

Cordially,

The Drucker Society of Los Angeles Board

Peaceful Transfer of Power

2008-11-05T10:14:00.001-08:00

by Elisa Akiko Mann

Every election is historic; it ushers in new ideas, continues building on past power, or some uneasy amalgam of both. The 2008 election of Barack Obama to the United States Presidency unleashed a catharsis among many, while others still felt caution about what the future would bring.

The nation has many deep issues to continue to grapple with, including access to jobs, improvement of infrastructure, the accessability and affordability of health care, and nightmare scenarios such as nuclear war. No one doubts that despite the powerful rise of Barack Obama, that racism still exists, that civil rights are still unevenly applied, that sexism, ageism, homophobia and more barriers exist -- even in a country that wants to pride itself on holding a light up to the world.

Yet it is undeniable that the promise of democracy shows itself at its best when those who strongly believe they have the best answers for difficult times urge cooperation for the sake of the nation as a whole. John McCain, Obama's rival, gave a gracious and thoughtful speech conceding the election. Earlier in the election cycle, Hillary Clinton gave a masterful speech urging her supporters to give their energy to Barack Obama's campaign. For all that the Presidency of George W. Bush has been marked by extreme controversy, no one doubts that he will stand behind the new president when it is President Bush's time to step down.

Barack Obama and all of us in this nation have a lot of work to do, to increase health, decrease crime and drug use, change the perception of our nation in the eyes of other powers (through our actions), and move forward with constructive policies in the Middle East. The economy needs help and increased confidence, in a context where the thought processes that led to its painful spasms are often looked to in order to help it get better.

The media at times mention the fear that expectations placed on one man are too great, as though they would like to cushion Barack Obama from effects of euphoria from the election, or from aspects of the reality of the job that he strove mightily, with an incredible organization across the country, to earn. Expectations are the least of it. People in the United States, and in other countries around the world, need to see sustained actions that add to the common good.

In the meantime, the fact that contention can be resolved, that an election once again can express change without violence, and that people with widely different beliefs can coexist or even unite for the sake of greater ideals, gives real hope. Far from audacious, such hope is workaday.

Peter Drucker wrote that even the best plans have to eventually "degenerate" into work. As many points of light as it takes, as many dreams.

What does this say about Education

2008-10-24T21:48:00.000-07:00

A recent WSJ article, For Argument's Sake referenced a video on YouTube of two college professors screaming at each other. These article has more background on what happened:

The background of the argument say so much about our society.

Resolving Conflicts

2008-10-24T14:10:00.000-07:00

(The talk by Hugh Leonard is filled to capacity. We are unable to accept further reservations at this time. Please see below for ways to contact Hugh Leonard directly if you would like him to speak at another event.)

The Drucker Society of Los Angeles presents speaker Hugh Leonard, consultant and executive coach, on the topic of conflict resolution in the workplace.

Who: Hugh Leonard, Consultant and Executive Coach

What: Conflict Resolution in the Workplace

Where: (A residence), South Pasadena, CA 91030

When: Saturday, November 15, 2008, 7 – 9 p.m.

The talk is complimentary, and refreshments will be served.

Please note that due to space considerations, attendance will be limited to the first 18 people to respond. (The attendance limit has been reached.)

Hugh Leonard is a consultant in human resource development with over 30 years of professional experience working in Europe, Asia, and the United States with a multitude of federal agencies and private corporations. While working in Japan for 17 years, as a Catholic priest and missionary, he founded and directed an industrial counseling venture for the improvement of workplace communications, cross-cultural understanding, teamwork and performance improvement. Also while in Japan, he taught at the university level, conducted a radio program, and wrote five books generally having to do with human communication, in Japanese.

Mr. Leonard has lectured for 6 years on Ethics in Business at Cal State Riverside. For over four years he has conducted a life planning program called Life Integration Quest and Discovery (LIQD). He is presently completing, pro bono, a 6-session, 18-hour workshop for a group of seniors in the Culver City Senior Center, while finishing a book on Work, Interiority and Productivity. The book is the basis of programs for the development of a strong inner life in employees for increased personal satisfaction, creativity, effective working relationships and productivity at work.

Mr. Leonard has masters' degrees in Asian Studies, Human Resource Development, Applied Theology, and Theology. He is also an Executive Coach, with professional qualifications from the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara. He is a qualified Spiritual Director with certification from the Stillpoint organization, of Pasadena. He is presently midway through a 3-year course in Spiritual Care for Seniors at the Center for Spirituality and Aging of Anaheim. He may be contacted at (323) 299-3224 or by e-mail at hleonard@msn.com; his website is www.nowwebecomeourselves.com.

What Does the Customer Consider of Value?

2008-10-17T19:00:00.000-07:00

by Elisa Akiko Mann

Peter Drucker often taught by sharing stories of real people and the results they had accomplished. At times, though, he shifted to the Socratic method, asking questions to elicit responses. Among the questions he posed to those who would start or revitalize organizations, were “What is our mission?” “Who are our customers?” “What do our customers consider of value?” “What are our results?” and “What is our plan?”

A question he returned to again and again was “What do our customers consider of value?” The most subtle of his questions, the answer depends on the perception of other people’s needs, ideas, and likings.

He wrote frankly of his own. He had a desire to participate fully and to contribute well to his society. He loved teaching, and knew that advising others was his strength. His customers, his clients and his students, valued his intelligence and his willingness to speak about what he considered most important. They valued his honestly.

Listening to what customers consider of value is sometimes straightforward, sometimes a puzzle. Often people say directly what they think – and are not heard. Management often has barriers to hearing, processing or acting upon direct feedback if it contradicts the company environment or their own sense of comfort. Another problem is that there are times when the customer either does not know what he or she wants, or does not know how to express it. The feedback might be too vague to understand.

The art of accepting new ideas – for, after all, “not invented here” syndrome can apply to comments by customers as much as by comments from those inside the company – is not easy to instill. It takes openmindedness and a willingness to learn something that can contradict what someone has already had to “learn” to function within the company, the general ethos. Going a step further and clarifying what is important to a customer, to the customer’s satisfaction, takes a sense of purpose…and courage.

Even if management learns how people feel about the products and the company, they face at times an uphill battle convincing others within the company that change is within the company’s interest. Yet companies that keep trust with their customers earn the right time and again to enjoy their customers’ business. The failure to listen, and eventually to adapt to present and future needs, causes a disconnect between the company and its customer base.

What does the customer consider of value?

What do any of us consider of value? Would we be able to articulate our hopes clearly if we knew that organizational structures, be they companies, nonprofits, or government entities, were honestly listening? And prepared to respond?

The Freedom to Innovate

2008-09-18T14:41:00.000-07:00

by Elisa Akiko Mann

Peter Drucker was careful to point out in Innovation and Entrepreneurship that innovation can take place in a wider social realm than in pure technology. Of course, the technology space is good at understanding, adopting and driving innovation. It plans for incremental advances but also cherishes its more dramatic acts of creative destruction, when a new platform takes over much of the market of an old one, or an entire industry takes a back seat to (or even all but vanishes in the face of) a new one.

Yet the deepest progress lies in social innovation. It is a fragile progress that is guarded by people’s ideals and actions. In a sense, social innovation deals with simple things, even boring concepts, that can hardly be called innovative. Often they involve outreach of something important from one group to another: if people do not have work, see if they can be helped to find it or to create it; if people do not have enough to eat, see if they can be given food or sold it at prices they can afford it; if people are systematically being denied universal human rights, see if the context around them can be changed to provide more freedom and more safety. In general, the shift is from practices that are more harmful, more oppressive, and more unkind to those that are less harmful, more freeing, and kinder – whether the circumstances are political, economic, or due to natural forces. Often what is being extended or expanded is taken for granted by groups that do not customarily have to grapple with the lack, at least within their memory.

One of the longest ongoing social innovations has been the extension of equality – equal rights under the law, equal treatment in public places, equal respect and dignity, equal education and prospects for advancement. Many groups in the United States and elsewhere have faced treatment as second class citizens, from the Irish to the Chinese and Japanese – in social rejection and in discriminatory laws. It is a major benefit that now our laws are geared towards more inclusion and nondiscrimination, rather than deliberate exclusion in terms of property rights and other values. Laws, however, have their limits. It takes the internalization of respect and the extension of acceptance to create a just society.

Deep and abiding ramifications of inequality have left their trace over the centuries, due to the legacy of slavery and racism. The Emancipation Proclamation issued by Lincoln was a major step in our nation’s history, but it still left many problems to be solved. Discrimination was still written into our Constitution, and it took many years for voting rights to be correctly extended. The Civil Rights Movement inspired bravery from many sides, mainly within and also beyond the African-American communit(ies), to establish that every person should have a right to dream, a place at the counter, the chance for work, a seat anywhere on the bus, and water from the same source as the next person. We still have a way to go as a nation, as extraordinary as our nation is, before health statistics, economic statistics, and even crime statistics show that we have fully dealt with the legacies of slavery and integration. We have a thriving middle class of African-Americans, gains in the work force and in government, yet still also have communities where victimization is high, drugs are rampant, and health standards are lower than they should be. And this is not true only of African-American communities, but impoverished Caucasian, Hispanic and Asian ones as well, which live not far from more prosperous representatives of their particular groups.

My point is not that one group or another is a victim of the most difficult times in history – victimization and oppression are all too human, and history has multiple examples of real and enduring pain, across ethnic and racial lines. One need only remember the Holocaust to see that centuries of injustice could spill into almost unimaginable cruelty.

The newest advances in screen clarity for video games, interplatform connectivity, high fidelity sound, remote vehicle guidance and medical diagnostics are important, life enhancing, and even lifesaving. Entrepreneurs and workers are right to advance each craft. There are at least as many risks taken and kinds of ingenuity shown, however, by intelligently, thoughtfully, persistently insisting that we continue to make progress in the social realm. More health care, including preventative nutrition, for more children, more adults, more seniors. More inclusion and extensions of excellence in schools. More meaningful work. What is the algorithm for honest social equality? The measurements may be much tougher to gauge, but they are felt. We know them when we experience them. Incredible gains have been made, over years and even centuries. Even the everyday extensions of friendship, justice and fairness make the world that much more thoughtful, but the big gains -- in health, safety, opportunity -- still remain important.

For reference, below is one of the greatest speeches on the “innovation” of having children play together, on economic equality being a basis for justice, and on the universality of ideals. It is by Martin Luther King, Jr., as quoted on the website American Rhetoric: Top 100 Speeches (http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.htm). He would likely be the first to agree that the ideals of justice and freedom stretch across all boundaries. His approach turned away from hate, and embraced partnership.

I Have a Dream

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation.

Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.

But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today to dramatize a shameful condition.

In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."

But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand the riches of freedom and the security of justice.

We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice. Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.

It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.

But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.

We cannot walk alone.

And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.

There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities. We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Whites Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream."

I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."²

This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:

My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!

And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.

And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:

Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

The Practical World of Venture Capital

2008-08-27T16:34:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

Richard Koffler, CEO of Koffler Ventures, LLC, spoke with the Drucker Society of Los Angeles on August 23, 2008 at the Angel City Café in Bellflower. A member of the executive committee of the Tech Coast Angels Los Angeles network, he has served as president of the Los Angeles Venture Association and the Technology Council of Southern California.

He also serves on the advisory boards of the Center for Technology Commercialization at the University of Southern California and the Wells Fargo Center for Small Business and Entrepreneurship at the College of Business and Economics at California State University, Northridge. He has been a C-level executive for 25 years, launching and nurturing technology ventures, with an education in computer science from MIT and Berkeley.

What he found separated teams that went on to have successful ventures from those that did not, were several basic ideas. First, the founders had to have a drive and passion, an abiding belief in what they were doing that allowed them to persevere in the face of challenges. Second, management had to spend its time nurturing its team(s), playing the role of mentor and coach. Third but in his view most important, the leader/CEO had to have unshakable integrity that was evident to the rest of the team. Trust had to be earned, and values had to be real, and displayed. Essentially, the leader had to keep his or her word.

Other ideas were important as well. For example, the team(s) had to be able to respond to the market, and especially to respond to the unexpected. A team was better at handling new information, in general, than just one person alone. The value of having multiple viewpoints made for better flexibility and a higher chance of making the right responses.

Also, competence for the business was a real necessity. Learning on the job is difficult in a pressured environment – it is important that each person know what he or she is doing. This tenet translates into venture capitalists having interest in teams that have worked together in one space before, branching out into a related field, but not trying something completely outside their expertise.

As further advice to those seeking to earn venture capital, Koffler reminded the audience that they had to look for high returns and ultimately a big payoff, which keeps venture capital interested. He cautioned that venture capital is neither necessary nor necessarily optimal for all businesses, and that keeping ownership in something that people believe in passionately, and bootstrap, may be more important than having an early infusion of means but losing major control and ownership of the business.

Koffler reminded us that 100% of business plans do not go as planned, and that the best leaders, as Peter Drucker said, are good managers. They respond thoughtfully to opportunities and they strive to recognize market changes. They delegate so that everyone can do more as a whole, and they nurture their teams. Koffler echoed Peter Drucker’s idea that it is important to know who the customer is, and what that customer considers of value.

Koffler learned through many ups and downs the value of each of the recommendations he gave, and suggested that venture funding should never be sought for its own sake. The founder should have an abiding, realistic faith in being able to create a vision into a working business, beyond the first infusion of funding. He also warned against “founderitis,” in which those who started a company and wanted it to grow to a greater scale were resistant to hearing and acting upon changes needed to succeed – often centering upon a loss of their accustomed control.

In response to a question about what Koffler wished he had known many years ago, he mentioned the lifestyle balance of golf and yoga, and its importance. He is still hard at work, his latest company being LatinoLA, itself part of a larger Internet group of new ventures.

Doris Drucker Shares Thoughts on Peter Drucker

2008-08-10T00:01:00.000-07:00

Doris Drucker, author and wife of the late management philosopher Peter Drucker, shared her thoughts via email with Elisa Mann, co-president of the Drucker Society of Los Angeles.

Question: What was your first impression of Peter Drucker when you met him?

Answer: I first met Peter at a Seminar on International Law. It was held once a week in the evening at a University professor's house and was attended by eight or ten undergraduate law students, and by Peter and another young man, Fritz K., who both had just got their doctoral law degrees. The whole degree system was different in Germany in those days. You did not waste time getting an undergraduate degree, you started right out in law school or medical school or whatever after graduating from High School . Anyway, those two young men ran the seminar, the professor just sat by and listened in. They discussed cases and argued with one another and both were extremely erudite and knew a lot about precedents and historical data. I remember one case they – we – discussed at great length. Fritz K. flew the flag of the old Kaiser monarchy from his little kayak, instead of the black-red-gold flag of the German Weimar Republic which had replaced the Kaiser Empire. When he sailed in his kayak in Italy, I think it was in the Bay of Naples, the Italian Police came after him and told him that it was against the International Law of the Sea to fly an outdated flag. So Peter and Fritz engaged in long arguments in the seminar whether the Law of the Sea applies only to registered big ships or also to small craft. Both thoroughly enjoyed themselves – and entertained us – by quoting all sorts of precedents from Greek history and such. I am sure they invented a lot but nobody dared to challenge them as to their sources. I thought Peter was extremely knowledgeable and entertaining as well.

Question: Did you and he always agree about his business theories?

Answer: Of course we had different opinions on a number of subjects, but that was all right; it would have been boring if we had agreed on everything.

Question: Do you have a favorite among his writings, for example his books or articles?

Answer: I like "Adventures of a Bystander" because it is the most personal of all his books.

Question: When you consider his legacy, of what are you most glad?

Answer: I am most glad that he had such a long and interesting life, good health, wonderful friends, and lots of challenges and opportunities. Regarding Peter's legacy, Dean Ira Jackson [of the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management] said it best in an article he wrote for the Ontario Daily Bulletin of March 5, 2007: "Peter was the founder or the father of modern management. He has been described as the most important thinker about business and organizations of our times. He has had a profound impact on everyone in the field. He viewed organizations not as mechanical inventions or as financial balance sheets, but as essentially human enterprises, and he put people first. His insights about knowledge workers, his focus on employees as assets, rather than expenses or liabilities, his ideas about the importance of the non-profit sector, his emphasis on creativity and innovation, his early emphasis on sustainability and environmental stewardship – those and other powerful teachings have all helped to shape the field . Peter pointed the way to a future that others couldn't see but that almost everyone now acknowledges." These sentences are excerpts from Dean Jackson's article but they express better than I can what Peter stood for.

Druckerian - What is that?

2008-08-09T17:57:00.001-07:00

What does Druckerian mean? Obviously something to do with Peter Drucker, who was a true polymath. His interests ranged from history to Japanese art to management to non-profits. His resume included being a banker, reporter, consultant, professor, mentor, husband, and Father. And he loved to read and was a life long learner.

My 2 cents...

Doing the right thing ethically.

I would enjoy your opinion!

Guru Drucker Still Smiles on U.S.

2008-07-15T21:12:00.000-07:00

Guru Drucker Still Smiles on U.S. - refreshing letter to the editor in the WSJ from A.G. Lafley , Chief Executive Officer of Procter & Gamble. It corrects some mis-communication in an earlier article in the Wall Street Journal.

Subtle Innovations

2008-07-15T20:02:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

New knowledge as a basis for innovation is perhaps the most classic understanding of what innovation is. In Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Peter Drucker devotes a chapter to describing the requirements and the risks of new knowledge as a starting point for ventures. More subtle, however, is a slender chapter on a different inflection point for innovation: changes in perception. When people feel a certain way and are prepared to act on their perceptions, the underlying reality might be at an equipoise with regard to their looking at things one way or another, but their choice to see the glass as half full or half empty can impact their decisions. That subtle understanding can lead to opportunities.

One case that Drucker shares is sales of Encyclopedia Britannica. At a time when people began to see themselves as middle class, and to identify that idea with specific kinds of surroundings, ideas, and products, to purchase an encyclopedia became a sort of badge. They were emerging from a time of greater class differentials, and could have continued to see themselves in higher or lower strata with respect to others, but instead, a new perception was emerging of a group that had aspirations and a respect for knowledge, specifically for the sake of their children. Those who sold the encyclopedia saw the fit between ideals and a practical source of more understanding (these were in days before electrons carried information straight to search engines online). A set of books on topics mundane and erudite conferred a sense of intellectual and economic comfort, but it also touched upon a particular perception for its purchasers that their children would, with the encyclopedia around, do better in school. And doing better in school would help the children rise in the workplace, and help the whole family. Knowledge and education would meet in a virtuous loop.

Another example given by Drucker is the willingness of a company such as Citibank, traditionally staffed by men, to gather in women. The game for large companies was to recruit the highest performing men from universities. When managements were informed that the best students in finance and marketing were more and more women, traditional managements told the recruiters to work harder to find the best men. Citibank suggested instead recruiting the women. To them, the talent pool had a new aspect and a new opportunity, not just a shrinkage of what they were used to in the past. The change in perception was that women entering the workforce could be a helpful trend instead of a threat.

Drucker warned that changes in perception are difficult to master. Often what seems a shift for a year or two turns out to be a passing fad, rather than a change with deeper consequences. At the same time, he suggests that if one is to take most advantage of a change in perception, having the first mover advantage is important. Trying to catch up after others have already staked claims in a field becomes challenging. Because of these tensions, Drucker suggests that any perception based innovation “start small and be very specific.”

Unexpected Innovations

2008-07-11T19:08:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

In his book Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Peter Drucker writes about several ways that firms can innovate. Among them is the idea of watching for the unexpected, being aware of it, and taking best advantage of what it has to offer. Both unexpected successes and unexpected failures, if analyzed and embraced, can lead to good outcomes.

Management can at times overlook a good trend because it does not fit with the perceived norms of the business. For example, one company leader kept trying to get appliance sales more in line with what he expected the industry averages to be, so that fashion sales, the product the store was more closely aligned with, would be a greater proportion of total sales. Drucker pointed out that he had a good opportunity to increase and encourage the growth of appliance sales instead, meeting the needs of the customers and having more fashion sales as a secondary rather than a primary draw.

A competing store took the opportunity to encourage appliance sales, and did well. The customers who came in found what they needed, and appreciated it.

The first store leader had “a good problem to have,” but saw it as something strange rather than something positive. Drucker kept close to his own mantra of paying attention to what the customer considered of value.

In a home building example, a firm was having difficulty trying to sell small homes to young couples. Expectations had changed among the demographic; people did not expect to stay in one house forever, and felt that they would probably buy a new home. Their first home therefore had to be salable to help them with their dream of a larger home, later.

The house builders took the ideas to heart, and made the kitchens nicer and more inviting. They procured permits so that more building could take place with respect to the small homes – they could be expanded over time. They told prospective new owners that when they moved in, the homes would be comfortable, but that they could grow with their families as the years went by. So instead of buying a small house that could probably not help finance their future dreams, home buyers selected a place that could evolve with them.

Even failure has its place in the world of innovation. Of course, not every idea has wings, and most ideas and most businesses do not make it in the marketplace. Competition can be fierce, resources can be scarce, and even the most well funded of concepts does not always have either good execution or the real consent of the marketplace.

Sometimes, however, failure points to an opportunity that is hidden. It shows where a thought was misguided or where the needs of the marketplace were not understood. This was exactly the case in the home building story above: the first “basic house” that was offered was a failure. It was designed to be an affordable option for people to live in. Yet it was offputting to people because it did not meet their dreams – their sense of their own real needs. Instead of merely blaming customers for not understanding the quality and value of the houses, the company asked them what they wanted, and what was important to them. The result was an expansion of the business from one to seven metropolitan areas in five years.

Drucker notes that innovation comes from sideways, not from the center. It is not exclusively in the high technology arena, although that sector understands the importance of the innovation role. He points out that social innovation can be as important as the technological, and points to examples of social, process and managerial organization in Japan as effective examples.

Drucker also notes that things, whether naturally occurring or socially constructed, are not resources until they are recognized as valuable. Penicillin, for example, was seen as a nuisance until its medically beneficial aspect became clear. Drucker constantly looks for insight, for the match between what is and what meets a human need.

Innovation, whether drawn from success or from thought and research after failure, is a bridge between needs and resources. Drucker suggests systematically allowing for innovation, and keeping eyes and ears open, because it can spring from the most unexpected places. Can we recognize it if we see it?

Building Tables

2008-06-21T00:16:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

He was old; his skin was mottled, his hands were wrinkled, and he sat slightly hunched over. Little hair was left on his head. His eyes were bright, and a slight smile was on his face, as though he were amused or on the verge of being delighted.

He said hello. His voice still had the accent that he brought from his homeland, yet was clear and deep.

He was a famous person, and he knew that his inspiration had brought people together. We were assembling picnic tables to be donated to local schools, learning the virtues and tribulations of teamwork in the process. Peter Drucker, management theorist, author, consultant, and teacher, had come to watch our progress.

We were busy; there was little time to chat. We had to saw wood, align pieces, hammer nails, and coordinate ourselves during the process. About thirty of us showed up for the volunteer project, and despite our best efforts only one team finished the table before sunset. We did not have time to paint it, though. Others would have to step in and make the tables complete and presentable before they were given to the schools, meaning that we, mainly faculty and students of Claremont Graduate University, had more to learn about teamwork and time management. Or maybe, reading directions.

Peter Drucker did not seem to mind. He watched our progress.

I never had Peter Drucker as a teacher in class. I heard him give general talks after he was retired, to the Claremont community. One thing I remember was that he said his favorite company, among the best he knew, was family owned and had been for generations. They made surgical equipment of the finest quality, and he admired them.

Late into his life he maintained a sense of wit and humor. He was always cogent. His opinions were as strong and decisive as ever. Yet he was human; one of the few things he said to me, outdoors when students were putting together tables for even younger students, was that he was cold.

Peter Drucker had many students in his lifetime. His thoughts and work have influenced those who are themselves among the most influential. Much has been written about his legacy. It continues to be created through the research and consideration of others. He left his books as a testament to his work and thought, and contributed through the actions of those influenced by him. As time moves on, interpretation and reinterpretation will continue, on a slightly more abstract plane than one student asking another, “What did he mean by that?” Yet the fact of his existence will remain: the learning he took from the world, the lessons he left for the world, the time he spent with loved ones and with students and with fans.

One can imagine him saying things succinctly about his own legacy. He did talk about it; he felt his writings expressed his lessons to be shared.

To learn more about the person who sat quietly outside on a cool day as eager volunteers built picnic tables for elementary school students, as the volunteers found out what it takes to saw straight in the process, and were humbled by the setting of the sun, see some of his video footage at http://ccdl.libraries.claremont.edu/col/dac (enter “video” under “Search”). He could talk about world politics or the proper running of a global organization. Yet he still had times where, like all of us, he felt cold. And he wanted us to learn how to put a wooden picnic table together in small groups, for younger children, before the sun went down.

Tomorrow Will Be Here

2008-06-20T10:58:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

In the revised book Management updated by Joseph Maciariello, Peter Drucker summarizes his chapter “Strategic Planning: The Entrepreneurial Skill” in the following way:

“Strategic planning prepares today’s business for the future. It asks, What should our business be? It asks, What do we have to do today to deserve the future? Strategic planning requires risk-taking decisions. It requires an organized process of abandoning yesterday. It requires that the work to be done to produce the desired future be clearly defined and clearly assigned. The aim of strategic planning is action now.”

These are frightening ideas in simple sentences. They require fortitude and vision – and perhaps good luck, although what Drucker advocates is thought, good sense and assiduous decision making instead of reliance on luck. Consider his sentences one by one.

“Strategic planning prepares today’s business for the future.”

Strategic planning is concerned with the future of the business but grounded in what happens at this moment, today. The decisions immediate in time help lay the groundwork for the unfolding of the future viability of the business, even if planning horizons are deep into the future. Too deep, and so much may change that the vision of the future may not align with the reality. A constant feedback mechanism has to be instituted to keep decisions in line with what is true as time unfolds.

“It asks, What should our business be?”

The business will change. Right now, an understanding is needed of what the business is, but for the future the question shifts to what it should be, given that externals – customers, environment – necessarily evolve. Any look at the history of technology, as new approaches and materials fundamentally impact the way many people interact in daily life, shows that the question “What should our business be?” is pertinent. At the same time, businesses grounded in tradition have to keep the connection to their roots, especially if customers have come to rely on their authenticity.

“It asks, What do we have to do today to deserve the future?”

Drucker has a strong emphasis on contribution, performance, meeting customer expectations, and work for the sake of meeting needs – not just work for the sake of doing the same thing over and over again. How can a business and the people within it stay relevant? What resources do they need, what knowledge and materials, what internal structures, to stay abreast of customer demands and to fulfill expectations in a way that customers desire the business to continue?

“Strategic planning requires risk-taking decisions.”

Courage and good sense have to be married in finding the right risks to take. Not all risks are created equal. Drucker advocated – so easy to write, so challenging to achieve – finding the right risks and being sure to embrace them. Playing too cautious could lead to obsolescence, as could indiscriminately taking risks without discretion.

“It requires an organized process of abandoning yesterday.”

This is the most terrifying and electrifying of Drucker’s concepts. He advocates planned abandonment of ideas that do not work – get rid of them, he says, and keep going, bringing in what will help instead. For a person who cares deeply about traditions and likes the beauty inherent in the timeworn, it is difficult to appreciate the sense of momentum and strategic discretion inherent in “moving forward.” Yet Drucker knew that if organizations started to solidify their practices around what had been done before, and mindlessly continued even if their customers or constituents needed new approaches, processes and products, the organizations would ossify. Social organizations would not be as responsive to new needs. Businesses would grow unable to adapt. Society would suffer. Identify what does not work and bring in what helps more.

However, be careful to conserve what is working, not make change for change’s sake. Consider what happened when New Coke was introduced. Recently a more gentle introduction of new concepts in the beverage line has met with a far more comfortable reception.

“It requires that the work to be done to produce the desired future be clearly defined and clearly assigned.”

Accountability is established. Clear thinking is required, as well as clear communication.

“The aim of strategic planning is action now.”

And who takes that action? Managers. Knowledge workers. Top leaders. Volunteers. Workers throughout the organization. Planners….

The most beautiful thing that Drucker writes about is that the need does exist for measurement, metrics, facts, and numbers, yet an even greater need exists that these be fully understood as tools of real human beings who bring their own judgment, experience, even hunches to bear. Drucker does not push away facts – he demands them. He does not denigrate scientific precision and accuracy – he appreciates them. However, he sees their place as to inform, not to dictate, and likens managerial insight and courage to a doctor using the knowledge of science to make a human decision. The facts can add balance, but the manager adds good sense, and takes responsibility.

What would we do differently Monday morning if we knew it would help prepare the organization for meaningful change? What risks would matter?

Contributing With Care

2008-06-19T21:57:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

Bill Clinton ends his book Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World with a simple word: Give. He talks of ways that people can share their time, knowledge, money and ingenuity, whether in their own communities or around the world. He details inspiring stories of people who found ways to help one another, and cautions about the need to work with established organizations that are used to dealing with the special logistics of major emergencies.

One of the basic assumptions of Bill Clinton’s book is that most people have extra time, knowledge, money or ingenuity to give. It seems obvious that in one of the richest countries on Earth, resources exist to help alleviate dire situations and to create opportunities for others. Yet in the midst of great prosperity is also great need.

For those who are lucky to be able to give, it can be a great joy. Even very modest contributions can make a real difference, and the ways to reach out are almost uncountable. Bill Clinton writes person to person, asking each individual to understand what moves him or her and to express caring through personal generosity.

When it came to the decisions and strategies of businesses, Peter Drucker was not an unmitigated fan of giving. He cared deeply about social responsibility, and saw it as an important part of the role businesses played in the world, yet he felt that first and foremost businesses had a responsibility to fulfill their primary reasons for being. He wrote in Management: Tasks, Responsibilities and Practices, “To do something out of social responsibility that is economically irrational and untenable is…never responsible….The result is always greater damage.”

The example he cited was a plant placed in a town to help alleviate unemployment. The project was economically unfeasible, and the plant became unable to deal with its own environmental impacts. Peter Drucker wanted to be sure that any social responsibility taken on by the company could be economically supported. To try to fulfill a responsibility without the necessary backing was unsustainable.

Did Peter Drucker want businesses to stay away from good works? Far from it. He simply noted the practical limitations of their actions, and wanted them to give in thoughtful and self-aware ways, when it was appropriate, and when they could afford to do so in a realistic way. Decisions based on giving could not become a substitute for strategies that could keep the business thriving. The more the business thrived, the more that it could contribute.

In Giving, in the chapter entitled “How Much Should You Give and Why?” Bill Clinton looks at how much some who have spectacular fortunes have given, expresses beliefs from many religious systems that support giving without expecting anything in return, and suggests that giving is intrinsically, deeply important: “There’s a whole world out there that needs you, down the street or across the ocean. Give.”

Peter Drucker would doubtless concur with the impulse to give and the multitude of needs. Yet he cautioned businesses to give in the right time, in the right way, for the right reasons -- to contribute with care in all senses of the word.

Lifelong Growth: Memories From Peter Drucker

2008-05-29T13:43:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

In “Revitalizing Oneself – Seven Personal Experiences,” from Management, Peter Drucker wrote of seven lessons he learned that made a great difference in his life. He shared them in the hopes that others would have their own revitalizing experiences.

An opera by Verdi, Falstaff, taught him to strive for perfection, time and again. When Drucker researched more after seeing the opera, he was thrilled and surprised to learn that Verdi was eighty when he wrote it. Drucker himself was eighteen at the time, and decided that if he reached an advanced age, he would remain inspired.

A story about the Greek sculptor Phidias taught Peter Drucker about the meaning of excellence: Phidias created beautiful statues to adorn the roof of a temple, but the city accountant of Athens refused to pay his bill in full. The reason was that the people of Athens could only see the front of the statues, so the rest were supposed to be superfluous. Phidias responded, “The gods can see them….” Drucker took the lesson to heart that things had to be done well for their own sake. The gods could see them. He noted that he did not always live up to his perfectionist ideal, but he appreciated the need for quality. He wrote, “Whenever people ask me which of my books I consider the best, I smile and say, ‘The next.’”

As a young journalist, Peter Drucker found out that he had to know about many subjects, so he took up intense studying. Over time he developed a system of spending every three years or so reading about a new discipline. He studied for more than sixty years in this way, picking up new knowledge.

The next experience that made a meaningful impact on his way of learning and producing was gained from a newspaper editor in chief, who twice a year spent time thoroughly discussing the quality of work. First the editor would go over what was done well, then what people tried to do well. He moved to what people did not try hard enough to do, then to what had been done badly, or not at all. Two hours would then be spent by each participant projecting work for the next half a year. It was almost ten years later that Peter Drucker remembered those sessions, and incorporated a two-week period into each year, going over his work and planning for improvements.

The fifth experience was a difficult one: a senior partner in a firm in which Peter Drucker had been hired, called him to task for continuing to do the kind of work he had done very well at a previous firm. The senior partner wanted him to change to be effective in his new position, supporting the partners differently from providing the securities analysis he had been used to doing. Although Drucker was furious (his own word) to be asked to change, he realized from that point on that in each new position, to be effective his work would have to be tailored for the specific reality of the job. He appreciated the lesson, having been made to think through what was necessary to contribute in the new circumstances.

The sixth experience that transformed Peter Drucker was gained from his studies of early modern European history. Both the Jesuit Order and the Calvinist Church asked their adherents to write down what they expected from decisions they made. This provided a method for them to see if their results matched their anticipation, and allowed them to learn and to adjust accordingly. Drucker adopted this method for fifty years: “It brings out what one’s strengths are….It brings out where improvement is needed and what kind of improvement is needed. Finally, it brings out what an individual cannot do and therefore should not even try to do. To know one’s strengths, to know how to improve them, and to know what one cannot do – they are the keys to continuous learning.”

Finally, Peter Drucker learned three things from economist Joseph Schumpeter. First was to ask how one wanted to be remembered; second was that the answer to the first question should change as one aged, due both to increasing maturity and to changing external circumstances; and finally, “one thing worth being remembered for is the difference one makes in the lives of people.” A young Schumpeter claimed that he wished to be remembered as “Europe’s greatest lover of beautiful women, and Europe’s greatest horseman – and perhaps also as the world’s greatest economist.” A much older Schumpeter changed his wish: “I want to be remembered as having been the teacher who converted half a dozen brilliant students into first-rate economists.”

Peter Drucker had a long and productive life. He remembered and shared what worked for him to keep him inspired.

Thoughts by a Green Druckarian on "Effective Executive"

2008-05-19T03:07:00.000-07:00

by Arabella Santiago

Now, it's difficult for me to share any earth shattering insight on Drucker's writings and practices because I'm still green (as in a newbie, not environmentally friendly, although I try to be). You see, I fell in love with business after reading Drucker's Innovation and Entrepreneurship and figured that joining the society would allow me to expand my knowledge.

But what I realized is this: becoming one of the board members of a fledgling organization means a large commitment of time and responsibility centered on developing and growing a group from the ground up. Which also means that although I love helping the society strategize, recruit and pursue relevant projects, I've barely had any time to actually read, discuss and understand even one of Drucker's books. How embarrassing that here I am, trying to be a Drucker evangelist, but I'm far from being a Drucker expert!

So tonight I took some time to read Peter F. Drucker's The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done (Harperbusiness Essentials), considered a must read when studying Drucker's best practices in management. I'm not far into the book, but one of its key ideas is that being effective means knowing what needs to get done. Effectiveness is not efficiency, which according to Drucker, "is the ability to do things right rather than the ability to get the right things done." Meaning, you can become completely efficient at doing the wrong things -- so completely ineffective!

You can also read Drucker's article, "What Makes an Effective Executive", which was published in an issue of Harvard Business Review from 2004; download the PDF version here, un gratis. (YAY!)

In the article, Drucker cites his then 65-year career as a consultant working with and observing the practices of a variety of CEO's and world leaders. (FYI, Drucker died in 2005 just over a week before his 96th birthday). Drucker states that some of the best CEO's he's encountered followed the eight practices listed below:

Asked, "What needs to be done?"

Asked, "What was right for the organization?"

Developed action plans

Took responsibility for their actions

Took responsibility for communicating

Focused on opportunities rather than problems

Ran productive meetings

Thought and said "We" rather than "I"

There is one thing in the article that I do disagree with: Drucker states that an effective executive can only focus on one, or at most two, task(s) at a time. Maybe that's the A.D.D. entrepreneur in me that's disagreeing. I like juggling multiple tasks on most days, and then having "do or die" time when necessary. On the other hand, if I did listen to Drucker's one or two tasks formula, perhaps I would become more effective.

I'll try this out this week. But now I realized that focusing on one or two tasks makes picking the right task (or two) more important than ever. Such is the "reality" of the effective executive, as Drucker explains in his book...but we'll talk about that another time.

Peter Drucker's Faith in Management

2008-05-15T23:30:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

I do not agree with every single word that Peter Drucker writes, but I admire the way that he writes it. His writing is vivid. He uses examples drawn from multiple time periods. He sees the big picture, and talks about movements through history – often with a unique perspective. He thinks for himself.

This is evident even from one part of an introduction to his weighty work Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices. In “The Emergence of Management,” he looks at the transition in types of work from mainly family related enterprises to corporate employment. He traces the centrality of government as an institution to a world in which there are many centers and multiple power bases for people to understand and interact with, and he notes the emergence of management as a worldwide event, as institutions proliferated.

He notes that the responsibility to perform is what managers have in common. Managers are, to Peter Drucker, a form of hero – at least if they are effective and perform well for their institutions and for society as a whole. He writes, “Today’s developed society, sans aristocracy, sans large landowners, even sans capitalists and tycoons, depends for leadership on the managers of its major institutions. It depends on their knowledge, on their vision, and on their responsibility. In this society, management – its tasks, its responsibilities, its practices – is central: as a need, as an essential contribution, and as a subject of study and knowledge.”

One might submit that the aristocracy, landowners, capitalists and tycoons are still present. In many cases they have effectively become one and the same with top management. Yet the call for leadership and the faith in the vision and experience of managers, may be a song that our society still needs to hear. We know from everyday perusal of the newspapers that there are failures in management and vast mistakes in judgment that have real-world consequences of the most painful kinds. Yet it is important to remember the kind of faith Peter Drucker writes about, that the vast majority of those practicing the craft of management each day have it within them to make their best decisions and to rely on thoughtful principles. Multiple transactions go exactly right, alongside the bad news that also occurs.

Peter Drucker writes with bold strokes, without endlessly worrying about minor exceptions. He states the main point with a sweep over centuries, and then reroutes attention to his contemporary time. He is a fan of management, a believer in its power to perform something different from miracles; instead, to deliver everyday effectiveness:

“The most important reason for focusing on business management is that it is the success story of this century. It has performed within its own sphere. It has provided economic goods and services to an extent that would have been unimaginable to the generation of 1900. And it has performed despite world wars, depressions, and dictatorships.”

Against the reality of world wars, depressions and dictatorships, Peter Drucker balances the sum total of all organized management, working each day to craft, deliver, serve, help, heal, produce, and sell. His vote is for the peaceful continuance of managerial action, in effective and thoughtful ways.

Even the backlash against management, he writes, may be in part caused by expectations that become hard to fulfill: “It is also business management to which our society increasingly looks for leadership in respect to the quality of life. Indeed, what sounds like harsh criticism of business management tends often to be the result of high, perhaps unrealistically high, expectations based on the past performance of business management. ‘If you can do so well, why don’t you do better?’ is the underlying note.”

With high standards of innovation and mantras of continuing improvement, many businesses strive to outdo themselves. One may argue that it is governments that are charged with the underlying safety and wellbeing of their citizenry. Yet the success of business has led to assumptions about hopes and expectations for more and better goods and services, and their widespread distribution, and the many real powers of businesses have led to an understanding that they need to pay constant attention to safety and people’s wellbeing.

Peter Drucker was a realist, and looked at phenomena as they were, not as he wished they would be. He knew that management was not always heroic, and that very bad counterexamples existed to his principle of responsible leadership. It never changed his belief in the importance of managers and management, and his sense that their greatest contribution was a world-changing stream of innovations, processes and distributions, worked toward one careful decision at a time.

A Moment to Reflect on Challenges

2008-05-13T23:55:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

In “The New Challenges,” part of Peter Drucker’s introduction to his book Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices, he acknowledges that expectations have risen as productivity has. Just because there is more in the world, does not mean that people suddenly want to make do with less (although some may, and there are movements for simplicity); many simply want more. They do not necessarily only want more for themselves; they want more available to all who need and want basic, or beyond basic, goods and services.

This is a management challenge. To Peter Drucker, productivity follows the attention of people focused on bringing new things to market, and creating new ways to distribute what they have to more people. He calls for more innovation, a mantra that has since become common sense.

Drucker explains that the major model that surfaced and influenced several industries in an early management boom, the idea of decentralization, was originally created to help specific manufacturing companies. It was not suited for all management tasks, especially in nonmanufacturing industries. It could not be the hope for all business challenges, although at first it was put forth as though it might be. Nowadays many models exist, from centralization to decentralization and hybrids in between, or innovations beyond. How does a business separate the advice that is most suited to its continued success, from the fads of the day, even in so central an issue as organizational structure? Early organizations in the management boom had to learn from trial and error what made sense for them, and had the growing pains that stemmed from sometimes taking ill suited advice.

Another challenge that Drucker brings forth is that of bringing employees to their optimum working life within their companies. In the transition from “worker” to “knowledge worker” – people whose livelihoods depend upon specialized knowledge that they bring to their company or other organization -- Drucker wants the knowledge worker to have strong self-knowledge about the way he or she works best. As importantly, he wants the company to have the flexibility and foresight to adapt to letting the worker shine in the way that he or she is most suited to producing good outcomes. His sense is that personnel management of the day (this version of Management was published in 1974) was not sufficient: “We will have to learn to lead people rather than to contain them.”

Progress has been made in the over thirty years since his words were written. However, it is not yet everywhere the norm for companies to bend to the temperaments, personalities, and strengths of their employees, and it is not the usual expectation. Negotiation often has to be initiated by an employee or employees, rather than a presumption from the company that individualization will occur.

Drucker puts forth an ideal, a call for humanity to pervade our organizations, and for the meaning of life to be part of an organization’s purpose. He writes, “Management will increasingly be concerned as much with the expression of basic beliefs and values as with the accomplishment of measurable results. It will increasingly stand for the quality of life of a society as much as for its standard of living.” Hospitals in particular have to walk that line every day.

Drucker also warns against romanticizing the past. He writes of the goal of a clean environment, that such a goal had been a luxury in bygone times: “That the masses of yesterday, in city slum or sharecropper’s shanty, enjoyed clean air, clean streets, safe water, and wholesome unadulterated food is nostalgic delusion.”

Drucker is as dismissive of unwarranted nostalgia as he is of management practices that do not work. Yet although a hope may have been a luxury in the past, that does not invalidate it as an important goal for the future. Of such dreams are meaningful movements made. The quality of all our lives depends on the environment we share, and Drucker acknowledged the increasing importance businesses placed on the greater world’s air and resources.

Difficulties and challenges still remain, not least in the sense that environmental and other dangers are still the norm in many places. Those city slums and sharecroppers shanties may have changed in some areas, but they have never left, and have resurfaced or evolved in others.

Yet a breath is needed. We can still take a moment to reflect on places where progress has been made, through concerted efforts over time. We can take a moment to learn from natural disasters and the need for preparation and response. We can see that for-profit, non-profit and government organizations ideally join together in response when common humanity is at stake (there are sad exceptions where the coordination is worse or missing; progress in the future will build more proactive links of acceptability for aid).

The new challenges are to give or to trade more in responsible ways to those who need or want the goods or services, in a time of higher and higher expectations and seemingly ever increasing marvels. Yet to do so with a sense of meaning and purpose in and beyond the business realm, maintaining people’s creativity and dignity. Peter Drucker asked for his ideals to become real.

The Social Responsibility of Business

2008-05-13T23:19:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

Businesses exist to serve social purposes, according to Peter Drucker. They have to function in ways that make sense to the society in which they are situated – and in the case of multinational corporations, they often have to function in ways that make sense across more than one society, at a deep level.

In “The Dimensions of Management” from Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices, Drucker identifies three tasks that allow a corporation to contribute well to society:

Fulfilling its purpose and mission
Creating productive work through the achievement of workers
Managing the social side of its impacts and responsibilities.

For for-profit businesses, economic performance is the mission. Other organizations and institutions may have other purposes that are central, but still need to function within economic constraints. The fulfillment of mission through careful strategy keeps organizations able to exist and contribute.

People are the means through which businesses or any organization achieve their missions, and Drucker calls for them to be treated with respect. At the same time he states that it is a management task that workers be helped and encouraged to be highly productive.

Because business or any institution has impacts on its employees, society as a whole, and the environment, business leadership through management (and ideally the whole enterprise) have a special expectation that they will be brave enough, and foresighted enough, to do the right thing – even in a complex environment. Social responsibility was not a fad to Peter Drucker, but a principle.

To fulfill responsibilities, management has to balance present and future concerns. At issue is risk: seemingly spectacular results for the short term that waste resources in a way that endanger the survival of the company in the long term, or wild bets on the far future without strong foundations in reality, can lead to complete decline. Enough attention, analysis and care have to be paid to both present operations and future initiatives to keep the enterprise healthy.

Drucker is strict about effectiveness. A business should focus on the core of its capabilities that bring it extraordinary results. Efficiency is also important, but it cannot be the leading issue; it must go alongside but not usurp what is effective in driving the business forward. To that end, management must be active in fulfilling the tasks that are necessary for the business to flourish.

Writes Drucker, “Success cannot, one might say, be continued forever. Businesses are, after all, creations of man which have no true permanence. Even the oldest businesses are creations of recent centuries. But a business enterprise must continue beyond the lifetime of the individual or of the generation to be capable of producing its contributions to economy and to society. The perpetuation of a business is a central entrepreneurial task – and ability to do so may well be the most trenchant and definitive task of management.”

So many businesses do not pass this test. Many enterprises last as long as there is one talented person to strive and keep producing something day after day, but once his or her (or both of their) enthusiasm and energy end, the business folds. I submit that these businesses are as important as those that have stretched centuries; they are the culmination of earnest effort and sometimes their quality is unmatched. They touch lives and they transform people. Yet they are effective because their management (often also the same people doing so much else – or everything else -- in the business) does every task necessary, and either cannot or prefers not to have a succession plan. These contributions within one lifetime are still real, and still impactful.

For an enterprise to have a life of its own beyond those who first breathe life into it, or for the succession of people who exemplify the meaning of the business to be successful, brings to the fore all the central management tasks, from communication to strategic planning. As society and the environment change, the nature of social responsibility each cadre of management faces, evolves. The challenges shift to a future which is unpredictable, but which carries the strands of many deeply held traditions. What is bedrock is the responsibility that Peter Drucker writes of, to the environment and the society as a whole.

What Difference Does It Make?

2008-05-10T23:07:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

Peter Drucker wrote in Management, "...one thing worth being remembered for is the difference one makes in the lives of people." He wrote it in a context of high achievement, and he was a proponent of that: he wanted performance, results, good decisions, responsibility ongoingly achieved.

The world he studied and helped mold was management itself: research intensive, decision rich, ambitious. In his book, he gave insight and step-by-by ways to apply ideas in the organizational world, from exercising good judgment in choosing the right people for the right jobs, to understanding the crucial nature of self responsibility.

There are many other differences to be made in the lives of people, tiny yet impactful. They make life more meaningful, in an effective way.

1. Have a kind, sincere word.

I know someone who is dying of a disease. She is long past the age to work, and stays in her home each day. Yet every time I see her, she has nothing but kind words to say, and she still remembers things about people and asks about them. She decided a long time ago that she would live in a way that made sense to her and was true to her values -- to focus on the loving side of life. I wonder if I would have the character to do so, if the situation were reversed.

2. Plant a seed or a plant.

Each time something of beauty enters the world, those who see and experience it are enriched.

3. Give back through a donation or a microfinance loan.

When we reach out personally or through institutions to help people heal or to gain livelihoods, we help to create a stronger world.

4. Teach a child to cook nutritious food.

There are places in the world, including close to home, where adequate food is in short supply. We can donate goods or help in kitchens that give free food. Where we are lucky enough to take food for granted, passing along family recipes can lead to a cherished memory as well as provide a practical help.

5. Listen to a friend.

Sometimes we all need someone to simply listen.

6. Share a special find.

Keeping special things to oneself or to a small group can be very important. When practical, though, let others know if you have come across something wonderful. (An example might be the thought of Peter Drucker, and his revised work with his colleague Joseph Maciariello. Another interesting thought resource is the talks on www.TED.com.)

7. Laugh.

It's the best refreshment. Peter Drucker had a strong sense of humor.

8. Offer realistic hope.

Sometimes we all need a little perspective, or information about resources that we do not ourselves know. Be a provider of realistic options, if they exist.

9. Remember to stay in touch.

All the business and organizational rules of communication apply, but on the personal level, an email, letter, card or hug can be an invaluable encouragement. So can a word from a mentor.

10. Learn something new that you care about.

Peter Drucker wrote that he learned a new discipline every three or four years. For some, learning a new game, a computer language, or how to complete a homebuilding project would be just as satisfying. In my case, my stepmother's father taught me watercolor techniques, and many good days were spent bonding with dabs of color on paper. Learning to observe and to share time creating peacefully, was also priceless.

It Would Profit Us If…

2008-05-07T22:50:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

In “What Is a Business?” from Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices, Peter Drucker makes the case that a business cannot be defined, or fully described, in terms of profit. Yet he is also clear that profit is necessary, at least to cover future risks and to keep production possible; to avoid loss. Profit allows a company to be a good neighbor and a good contributor to the greater society, if it has the heart and sense to be so.

What defines a business is more than the flow chart of what money goes in and out, and what the business gets to distribute and reinvest. That flow chart is important, and meaningful, but not enough. Drucker goes so far as to say that the concept of “profit maximization” is “meaningless,” as it has become too diffused in everyday parlance. He finds the more basic terms “profit” and “profitability,” however, “crucial.”

Marketing, innovation and productivity are factors that lead to profit, in Drucker’s view. Focusing on the “profit motive” is not a likely incentive for most; doing the strategic work necessary to have efforts flow towards creating customers is more likely to produce results.

Mechanisms for reaching profit necessarily involve people who have to find ways to understand other people and what makes them care to buy. Thus the purpose of a business is to “create a customer,” through gaining a full and nuanced sense of what the customer considers of value. This is the marketing function, which ideally stretches through the organization, to be alert to customer wants and needs: “It is the whole business seen from the point of view of its final result, that is, from the customer’s point of view.”

Another mechanism that can help lead to profit is innovation. A static economy does not provide for growth; it takes new, better, different, or unusual-in-context creations to respond to latent demand or to help to create more demand. A new use for an old product may also create an innovation. Drucker separates innovation from invention by suggesting that invention has the smaller realm: innovation can take place in societal or economic contexts, not just technological ones. In today’s world, as in the past, innovation and invention within the technological context continue to have far-reaching impacts on both the societal and economic spheres, but the point is well taken. Invention is only one kind of innovation.

Using resources wisely to create customers (who meet their needs and wants through their sales choices) is what Drucker calls productivity. He writes, “Productivity means that balance between all factors of production that will give the greatest output for the smallest effort.” Perhaps because he himself made his living by thinking, teaching, writing and consulting, he was quick to note that livelihoods were changing with the rise of knowledge workers, people whose work could include specific expertise but also the charge to design, conceive, and manage. Imagination and creativity based on expert knowledge became formal and informal parts of the factors of production.

Understanding the needs and wants of the customer – what the customer considered of value to him- or herself, or to those on whose behalf he or she was buying – went hand in hand with creating novel, thoughtful ways to meet those changing needs, or with meeting existing needs in ingenious ways. If the internal operations of the business, including the way that workers interacted and performed, could be improved ongoingly, efficiencies and effectiveness could be reached in meeting those customer preferences.

Given a positive difference between what it cost to produce the goods or services, and the amount gathered from sales – minus taxes – companies could realize profits. At that point, their ability to invest in their communities would begin. Drucker identifies several functions of profit: “the test of performance”; “the premium for the risk of uncertainty”; “investment that makes possible both additional and better jobs”; and the payer of “the economic satisfactions and services of a society, from health care to defense, and from education to the opera.” Managements responsible for profit were nothing more and nothing less than individual people, often in a group, making decisions about the future of businesses and their role in the world.

Drucker was pro-profit. Yet he was not pro-profit maximization, unless that could mean something specifically tied to responsibilities and possibilities that were practical. He believed in progress but also in restraint, and was a realist with high ideals. He stated, “Not every management can do everything, nor should any business necessarily go into those activities which seem objectively to be most profitable. Every management has specific abilities and limitations.” He admired people who ethically advanced their business interests within a wider context; he did not expect them to jump to or to incorporate whatever might create more gain if they did not have or could not garner the actual skills to do so.

There are many contributions that are necessary to a meaningful world beyond classic profit realization: parent-child interactions; loving relationships; caring friends; respect for the natural world; good ideas; the appreciation of art, humor, beauty and warmth; the joys of accomplishment and movement, including dance and athleticism. Experiential moments provide most of the rationale for why we “give back,” and how we are motivated to put forth efforts towards business results. Some people have a pure work ethic, whereas others work for family or sustenance. In either case, it takes profit for a business to continue, but generally more than profit for people to want to continue it.

Value-Laden Management

2008-05-01T22:36:00.000-07:00

By Elisa Akiko Mann

Peter Drucker does not mind laughing at what he perceives as folly. In the second part of his introduction to Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices, “The Management Boom and Its Lessons,” he writes of two books, bestsellers, that he states predicted wrongly. Economist J. Kenneth Galbraith in The New Industrial State wrote of the invincibility of corporate management at a time when managers faced threats from raiders. French journalist-politician Jean-Jacques Servan-Schreiber wrote Le Défi Américain (The American Challenge), which according to Drucker, “predicted that American management was taking over the world (or at least Europe) and that there was a ‘management’ gap between America and Europe which made American domination all but inescapable fate.” Yet the European economy started to outperform the American, and the U.S. was faced by more competition from both Europe and Japan.

The books reacted to a management boom, but could not escape the realities of a management bust (actually, Drucker writes about two booms and busts, one after each World War). Management was less prevalent and less an acknowledged function before the boom, and the rapid exchange of knowledge slowed dramatically during the bust. Time after the slowdown, though, did not create a world that was like the one before the boom occurred. Management as a discipline, a field, a study, with transferable skills, was here to stay. Peter Drucker was able to chronicle a discernable, meaningful pattern of human behavior applied towards specific goals.

According to Drucker, certain skills in the general management field were not enough. To know finance, to understand technology, to understand quantification – these could help. They could not, however, define in full what was needed for good management. Drucker is specific: “Management has to give direction to the institution it manages. It has to think through the institution’s mission, has to set its objectives, and has to organize resources for the results the institution has to contribute. Management is…responsible for directing vision and resources toward greatest results and contributions.”

Management has its own mission, and it is one that must be clear about what the organization as a whole has to accomplish. Drucker goes on, “[Management] has to organize work for productivity, it has to lead the worker toward productivity and achievement. It is responsible for the social impact of its enterprise. Above all, it is responsible for producing the results – whether economic performance, student learning, or patient care – for the sake of which each institution exists.”

In short, Peter Drucker is concerned with the purpose of the enterprise, whatever it might be, and wants to ensure that the management fulfills the purpose well. He states that specific managerial skills are crucial to encourage: communications within each organization, making decisions when there is uncertainty, and strategic planning.

Although he sees managerial tasks as similar worldwide, Drucker is careful to write that the practice of management is neither culture-free nor value-free. It comes laden with the specifics of the situation. The organization is embedded in a cultural context, and so are the people who work within it. They may be embedded in multiple contexts at once. It is important, in Drucker’s view, to understand the context(s) well, so that decisions can be contributory, impactful and positive. To learn how to manage in different contexts, then, it makes sense for us to learn from each other. We cannot assume our contexts work universally, even if we wish to acknowledge universal human values that transcend each specific situation. Managers and all of those in companies or other organizations must deal with understanding their mission and the values it implies, while respecting and learning from others. This is much easier said than done, especially in pressured contexts with time dependent decisions.

Drucker details the way management evolved as a discipline in several countries, and traces management concepts through history. He places it on par with engineering, law or medicine as a field, and states that it is based on knowledge and responsibility. If he laughs at books that state predictions that are not in line with what he perceives as the greater reality of their era, he still knows exactly where they stand in the context of the field he studies, what sentiments they expressed and why, and what they meant for their time. He places them in the unfolding context of the managerial saga.

What is your favorite Peter Drucker Quote?

2008-04-22T13:50:00.000-07:00

Peter F. Drucker has a number of famous quotes. On the surface they are simple questions and/or statements, but their simplicity masks their depth.

My favorite Drucker quote/question is: Are you doing the right work?

What is your favorite quote? Please add it below in the comments!

Some sites with quotes of Peter Drucker:

Extending a Legacy: Professor Joseph Maciariello Helped to Carry Forward Peter Drucker’s Work to a New Generation of Leaders

2008-03-02T07:25:00.000-08:00

By Elisa Mann

“Brilliant and famous” is how Professor Joseph Maciariello thought of Peter Drucker, his colleague of 26 years. When Peter Drucker was teaching at New York University, Joseph Maciariello was teaching at Union College in Schenectady, New York and was attending New York University. He wanted to take classes with Drucker but could not; Drucker’s class schedule was too full.

Instead, over time Professor Maciariello became a colleague of the man he admired, and ultimately helped to extend the legacy of Peter Drucker. They worked together towards the end of Drucker’s life. They wrote four books together, a number of articles, and created three internet training modules called Leading Change.

Among the books were The Daily Drucker, translated into fifteen languages and soon to be translated into more, The Effective Executive in Action, Management Cases, a casebook including a third new cases developed by Professor Maciariello, and Management, the revised edition. The Daily Drucker was the idea of HarperCollins, the New York publisher. It combines 65 years of Drucker’s ideas into one volume, in daily readings of about 120 words each.

Drucker was known to be able to develop “proverbs” on management, short stories and ideas that stayed in people’s minds. In The Daily Drucker, Professor Maciariello combined Drucker’s own words to give gems of thought for each day of the year, on topics that meant the most to Drucker.

Even more massive a project than compiling The Daily Drucker, was revising Management, Drucker’s magnum opus. The index alone is 77 type-written pages. One way or another, Professor Maciariello was either reading, studying or teaching from Management for 20 years; now he has helped to revise it for future generations.

Why does Professor Maciariello work so assiduously on the oeuvre of Peter Drucker? Towards the end of Drucker’s life, the reason was that Professor Maciariello was able to help, and was welcomed to do so. From Professor Maciariello’s viewpoint, he got to work with a genius, he felt he had a lot he could learn, the work of Peter Drucker embodies values that Professor Maciariello shared and wanted to encourage, and he felt a simple kinship. A bond.

Both men had roots in Western Europe, and Professor Maciariello often saw in Drucker’s work the hand of someone with deeply held values. Integrity, decency, the difference between right and wrong – Professor Maciariello shared these.

Professor Maciariello systematized Drucker’s precepts and added his own viewpoint. He agreed with Drucker’s focus on people in management, and appreciated that Drucker’s legacy lived on through others who cared about his ideas, whether of strategy, knowledge workers, or systems. “I helped him extend his legacy,” said Professor Maciariello. “It was one of the main purposes of my life and work.”

Blogging for Drucker

2008-02-01T08:51:00.000-08:00

by Arabella "Abbie" Santiago
I did a quick Google with the keywords "peter drucker blog" and found that there are many postings on Peter Drucker's work, but I did not find one blog completely dedicated to Drucker. So, as part of my responsibilities at the newly formed Drucker Society of Los Angeles, I will personally manage this blog and make sure that it is constantly updated with interesting and informative jabberings on Drucker and the best practices in management and leadership. Of course, I can't do this all by myself. Members of the society and beyond will also contribute yummy content that will hopefully get you started on Blogging for Drucker.

Here are some blog posts I found during my quick search:

As you can see, most of these were posted more than a year ago. Speaking on behalf of the Drucker Society of Los Angeles, it's time to keep the discussion on Drucker going. And we'll begin with this blog.

The Drucker Society of Los Angeles Blog

Drucker Business Forum - Driving Organic Growth

Writer of Student Papers

Amazon.com says it will match Wal-Mart's free shipping offer

Buggy Whips

Best Practices Innovation

When the Assembly Line Moves Online

Inside Look at Companies

Ethics & Measuring Teachers

Age discrimination is dark underside to Silicon Valley's youth culture

Future of Work

No gold stars for successful L.A. teachers

Age in Silicon Valley

Burrito Pricing

Hazards of Blogging

Restaurants Starved for Business?

Coupons in the Journal?

Drucker Questions for the Economy

Using Data in Education

Privacy

HP used to equal Happy People

Catch 22 with a National Security Letter

Higher Education Bubble?

Jobs - What should be done?

99 Weeks and Depression

Future of Marketing?

Technology & Kidnapping

MBA Cost?

Moonshine or the Kids?

MBA + Start Up = ?

Druckerian Job Hunting

Terror Suspect has MBA!

A Druckerian Small Business Plan

Drucker & Politicians

Tech Tool Shop in Silicon Valley

Five Nuggets of Life Advice from Peter Drucker - October Speaker

Industrialization of groceries

Hiring Ethnical and Projects

Drucker and Verizon SPAM Calls

Billboards and the Economy

Dell Customer Service

Why a Microsoft Physical Store?

Store Opportunity

SWAT Teams and Totalitarism

The Best to You in 2009

Panda CEO Tom Davin to Speak January 10, 2009

Observer

Inspiration Award Winner Judy Vaughan of Alexandria House

Managing Conflict in the Workplace

Elegant Gathering, December 7, 2008

Peaceful Transfer of Power

What does this say about Education

University Fires Professor Who Mooned :: Inside Higher Ed

Resolving Conflicts

What Does the Customer Consider of Value?

The Freedom to Innovate

The Practical World of Venture Capital

Doris Drucker Shares Thoughts on Peter Drucker

Druckerian - What is that?

Guru Drucker Still Smiles on U.S.

Subtle Innovations

Unexpected Innovations

Building Tables

Tomorrow Will Be Here

Contributing With Care

Lifelong Growth: Memories From Peter Drucker

Thoughts by a Green Druckarian on "Effective Executive"

Peter Drucker's Faith in Management

A Moment to Reflect on Challenges

The Social Responsibility of Business

What Difference Does It Make?

It Would Profit Us If…

Value-Laden Management

What is your favorite Peter Drucker Quote?

Extending a Legacy: Professor Joseph Maciariello Helped to Carry Forward Peter Drucker’s Work to a New Generation of Leaders

Blogging for Drucker