MANAGEMENT MATTERS NETWORK - Key Persons

Peter F. Drucker's name is synonymous with management. His writings consistently offer rich and practical insights served up in a soufflé of good style. Drucker sought to define, clarify, and systematize management practices so that they could be taught, learned, and practiced. He was once asked if he had "invented" management, which was obviously something people had been doing for years. Drucker replied that his book The Practice of Management (1954) made it possible for people to learn how to manage, something that up to then, he said, only a few geniuses seem to be able to replicate. "I sat down and made a discipline of it… Look," Drucker added, "if you can't replicate something because you don't understand it, that it really hasn't been invented; it has only been done." Slightly paraphrasing Drucker: The development of management as a discipline gives to today's executive a capacity to perform well beyond that of the ablest executive of 50 years ago, and enables the outstanding executive to achieve what the management genius of yesterday could hardly have dreamt of.

Many MMN contributors have spent considerable time analyzing Drucker's insights, philosophy and prolific writings….and have thoughtfully and thoroughly explained the depth and subtlety of one of America's most remarkable minds. More importantly, these Drucker disciples have illustrated, time and again, how to use Drucker's timeless principles and practices to achieve extraordinary management results. We strongly suggest members of the MMN community consider essential thoughts derived from Peter F. Drucker. Then go straight to the source. And dig deep!