483:
And which companies genuinely get it? That very direct approach generated a list of 62 companies, which led to interviews with the people at those companies. Then, because McKinsey is McKinsey, we felt that we had to come up with some quantitative measures of performance. Those measures dropped the list from 62 to 43 companies. General
Electric, for example, was on the list of 62 companies but didn't make the cut to 43—which shows you how "stupid" raw insight is and how "smart" tough-minded metrics can be.
159:, Peters "was asked to look at 'organization effectiveness' and 'implementation issues' in an inconsequential offshoot project nested in McKinsey's rather offbeat San Francisco office." While Daniel's first project was focused on Business Strategy, this second project was concerned with Organization, which Peters defined as involving "the structure-and-people side." This "Organization" project was seen as less important, according to Peters in a
434:. Peter Drucker may be an Austrian, but he's more German than the Germans when it comes to hierarchy and command-and-control, top-down business operation. Take a look at the business bible according to Peter Drucker, and you'll see. Organizations are about organization! You vill be in your place! That was the received order of the day. So, in my mind, Peter Drucker was the enemy. A good enemy, but still the enemy."
305:"Professionalism in management is regularly equated with hard-headed rationality … It doesn't teach us to love customers. It doesn't instruct our leaders in the rock-bottom importance of making the average Joe a hero and a consistent winner … It doesn't show, as Anthony Athos puts it, that ‘good managers make meanings for people, as well as money." (p. 29)
314:
drive business goals and activities. It also more "open" than "closed," meaning that outside forces such as market pressures can shape the evolution of structure and organisation within a firm. This leads to an increasing concern with the ongoing evolution of an organization, and the role of culture in maintaining and shaping an organization.
572:. Since October 1982, when the book was published, the companies on the authors' list earned an average total return of 1,305%, or 14.1% annually. This return outdistanced the DJIA companies, which earned an average annual return of 11.3%, and the S&P, whose companies earned an average annual return of 10.1%."
313:
The fourth chapter puts these concerns into a historical context, exploring the evolution of management theories between 1900 and the time of publication of the book in the early 1980s. The latest era of management is characterised as more "social" than "rational," meaning that real human motivations
475:
This is pretty small beer, but for what it's worth, okay, I confess: We faked the data. A lot of people suggested it at the time. The big question was, How did you end up viewing these companies as "excellent" companies? A little while later, when a bunch of the "excellent" companies started to have
293:. They then used their 7S framework as a lens through which to evaluate organizational excellence. They conducted in-depth interviews with leaders at 43 "excellent" publicly traded companies using this lens. They then reduced the set of emerging insights from these interviews down to eight "themes."
168:
Despite being described as "marginal," the project "had an infinite travel budget that allowed to fly first class and stay at top-notch hotels and a license from McKinsey to talk to as many cool people as could all around the United States and the world." Peters admits that "There was no carefully
482:
started out as a study of 62 companies. How did we come up with them? We went around to McKinsey's partners and to a bunch of other smart people who were deeply involved and seriously engaged in the world of business and asked, Who's cool? Who's doing cool work? Where is there great stuff going on?
285:"...any intelligent approach to organizing had to encompass, and treat as interdependent, at least seven variables: structure, strategy, people, management style, systems and procedures, guiding concepts and shared values (i.e. culture), and the present and hoped-for corporate strengths or skills."
245:
titled "The
Planning Fetish." In this article, he "stressed the importance of execution and dismissed the whole idea of strategy." As strategy was McKinsey's main operation at the time, this was seen as a "frontal assault" on the company, leading Mike Bulkin, the head of the New York office, to
253:
was that "structure is not organization." This also happened to be the title of a 1980 journal article authored by Bob
Waterman, Tom Peters, and Julien Phillips in which they argue that the "picture of the thing is not the thing...An organizational structure is not an organization."
430:"But I did have an agenda. My agenda was this: I was genuinely, deeply, sincerely, and passionately pissed off! ... Who was I pissed off at? At Peter Drucker, for one. Today, everybody acts as if Peter Drucker has always been one of those who gets it. Go back and read
515:
founding editor Alan M. Webber, based on a six-hour interview with Peters. Peters reviewed and approved the article prior to publication, but the actual phrase "we faked the data" was Webber's, and Peters had not actually used these words during the interview.
594:
as the "Delusion of
Connecting the Winning Dots". Rosenzweigh opines that it was not possible to identify the traits that make a company perform simply by studying already-performing companies as Peters and Waterman did, similar to a retrospective
203:
office requested Peters to present his findings to
Siemens, which provided the spur for Peters to create a 700-slide two-day presentation. Word of the meeting reached the US and Peters was invited to present also to
309:
By contrast, a more "social" form of management takes into account the realities of what really motivates people. This set of real human motivations is explored in the third chapter, "Man
Waiting for Motivation."
489:
Was our process fundamentally sound? Absolutely! If you want to go find smart people who are doing cool stuff from which you can learn the most useful, cutting-edge principles, then do what we did with
155:
Peters states that directly after graduating with a PhD from
Stanford and returning to McKinsey, Daniel handed him a "fascinating assignment." Motivated by the new ideas coming from Bruce Henderson's
317:
Ultimately, these chapters would be seen in today's terms as advocating for leadership over management. Leaders articulate values and purpose, and achieve buy-in to vision and values from employees.
196:. Peters then outlines eight "mundane" tools that every manager has at their fingertips. He described this article as a "tentative presentation" and "the first public expression of these ideas."
126:
explained when interviewed in 2001 to mark the 20th anniversary of the book's publication. In the same interview, Peters claims that he and
Waterman were both consultants on the "margins" of
411:
was probably the preeminent management theorist. Drucker presaged and covered similar perspectives to Peters and
Waterman's approach to management theory, for example in Drucker's 1954 book
82:
First published in 1982, it sold three million copies in its first four years, and was the most widely held monograph in the United States from 1989 to 2006. The book explores the art and
257:
In
December 1981, Peters left the company, after agreeing to a fifty percent royalty split with McKinsey. Waterman stayed at the firm for three more years, but received no royalties from
494:: Start by using common sense, by trusting your instincts, and by soliciting the views of "strange" (that is, nonconventional) people. You can always worry about proving the facts later.
669:
301:
The second chapter of the book, "The Rational Model," introduces and then critiques the rationalist approach to management. An example of the rationalist mindset is reproduced below:
831:
476:
some down years, that also became a huge accusation: If these companies are so excellent, Peters, then why are they doing so badly now? Which I'd say pretty much misses the point.
580:
Peters remarked that the criticism that "If these companies are so excellent, Peters, then why are they doing so badly now," in his opinion "pretty much misses the point."
564:"Over a five-, 10- or 20-year period, the Excellence index—an unweighted basket of the 32 public companies among Peter's and Waterman's 43—substantially outperformed the
107:, America was looking to Japan as the rising economic force. American businesses were studying Japanese management techniques and looking to learn from their successes.
169:
designed work plan. There was no theory that I was out to prove. I went out and talked to genuinely smart, remarkably interesting, first-rate people." In addition to
720:
471:
had been "an afterthought... a hip-pocket project that was never supposed to amount to much"). One of them, however, used the term "faked data:"
361:– creating in all employees the awareness that their best efforts are essential and that they will share in the rewards of the company's success
1025:
277:
Peters and Waterman were concerned with how organizations were organized and managed. They wondered whether structure follows strategy, as
865:
17:
524:, Peters says he was "pissed" when he first saw the cover. "It was his damn word," he says. "I'm not going to take the heat for it."
339:– a preference for doing something—anything—rather than sending a question through cycles and cycles of analyses and committee reports
111:
went against this trend, by focusing on American companies and studying what made the most successful American companies successful.
841:
467:
published an article entitled "Tom Peters's True Confessions". Most of the "confessions" were humorously self-deprecating remarks (
1120:
1097:
556:
in the 1980s. However, the set of "excellent" companies studied, as a whole, still outperformed the market. A 2002 analysis in
355:– breaking the corporation into small companies and encouraging them to think independently and competitively (aka, "split-up")
144:
launched two projects; the first and major one, the Business Strategy project, was allocated to top consultants at McKinsey's
856:
Waterman, R. H., Peters, T. J., & Phillips, J. R. (1980). Structure is not organization. Business Horizons, 23(3), 14-26.
650:
A reorientation from a focus on strategy to recognising the importance of "soft" aspects of business like culture and people.
1135:
588:
The research methodology employed by the authors of this book is also severely criticized by Phil Rosenzweigh in his book
274:
In the first chapter of the book, Peters and Waterman introduced the background for the book and their research methods.
600:
565:
646:
Tom Peters has identified several key contributions from the book, that changed the field of future management books.
963:
1130:
789:
328:
Peters and Waterman found eight common themes which they argued were responsible for the success of the chosen
189:
141:
486:
Were there companies that, in retrospect, didn't belong on the list of 43? I only have one word to say: Atari.
1125:
919:
160:
156:
454:
book, to my amazement . . . I found everything we had written (was) in some corner or other of that book.'"
1017:
589:
540:
is not widely regarded as being great at predicting future success for individual "excellent" companies.
320:
These chapters set the foundation for the rest of the book, which address eight core themes for the book.
278:
79:
43:
898:
346:
290:
228:
193:
182:
656:
Bringing management ideas to a broader audience than previous theorists like Peter Drucker had reached.
653:
The use of research and the novel use of specific case studies to bring ideas about management to life.
127:
725:
386:
241:
389:
to central values of the company combined with tolerance for all employees who accept these values
943:
807:
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138:
83:
227:—came together at a two-day retreat in San Francisco to develop what would become known as the
1021:
837:
738:
730:
223:
In 1980, Waterman joined Peters, and—along with Waterman's friends in academia Tony Athos and
638:
as the most influential business and management book from the decades between 1980 and 2000.
152:
and was given significant resources, but could not manage to effectively implement strategy.
664:
178:
663:
also opened up the way for further research and publication around excellence in business.
695:
621:
541:
289:
They used these seven "variables" to create a visual framework, which became known as the
224:
192:" and "inventing new processes"—structure and system, respectively—were only two tools of
1060:
216:
consolidated the presentation into eight themes. These eight would form the chapters of
990:
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quoted Peters as saying, "Get off my case. We didn't fake the data." According to
188:
In a 1978 article, "Symbols, Patterns and Settings," Peters argued that "shifting
820:
Peters, T. (1980). The Planning Fetish. Manager's Journal," Wall Street Journal.
620:
remains a widely read classic and an influential book for leaders and managers.
329:
446:"'I had considered at least a little of what Bob Waterman and I had written in
742:
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213:
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170:
123:
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75:
39:
833:
The Firm: The Story of McKinsey and Its Secret Influence on American Business
734:
545:
367:– insisting that executives keep in touch with the firm's essential business
1098:"Leadership Hall of Fame: Tom Peters, Author of "In Search of Excellence""
1012:
The Halo effect and Eight Other Business Delusions That Deceive Managers
212:, the PepsiCo management required a tighter format than 700 slides, so
205:
18:
In Search of Excellence: Lessons From America's Best-Run Companies
630:
had sold over 4.5 million copies. A 2002 panel of experts convened by
200:
249:
The primary "innovative" theme that under-girded what would become
549:
442:, Peters re-read a wider body of Drucker's work, and commented:
458:
281:
had suggested. To address this, their perspective was that:
1043:"When Everyone Was Excellent, Leading Your Company Article"
379:– few administrative layers, few people at the upper levels
185:
was directly influential on the direction of the project.
679:
are widely known influential later works in this genre.
373:– remaining with the business; "The company knows best."
324:
Part 3: The eight characteristics of excellent companies
552:
and others did not produce excellent results in their
790:"A Brief History of the 7-S ("McKinsey 7-S") Model"
57:
49:
35:
27:
1982 book by Tom Peters and Robert H. Waterman, Jr.
1009:
760:
758:
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754:
752:
450:to be new,' Peters said ... 'But upon rereading
235:. In June 1980, Peters published an op-ed in the
920:"Peter F. Drucker: Right Man for His/Our Times"
784:
782:
780:
616:Almost 40 years after its original publication
533:Market performance of the "excellent" companies
893:
891:
332:. The book devotes one chapter to each theme.
914:
912:
8:
899:"Peter Drucker: Guiding Light to Management"
30:
459:Peters's alleged confession of "faked data"
29:
422:in 1968. Peters claims that when writing
231:, the same framework that would organize
1096:Ohannessian, Kevin (December 26, 2011).
1061:"The 20 Most Influential Business Books"
937:
935:
933:
426:, he was "pissed off" at Peter Drucker:
90:used by several companies in the 1980s.
687:
103:In 1982, at the time of publication of
626:magazine reported that by March 1999,
511:, the article was actually written by
385:– fostering a climate where there is
7:
964:"The Real Confessions of Tom Peters"
1079:"Tom Peters: planning is overrated"
836:. Simon and Schuster. p. 151.
383:Simultaneous loose–tight properties
25:
765:Peters, Tom (November 30, 2001).
208:, but unlike the hyper-organised
181:'s theory of motivation known as
696:"Earlier monographs list - 1997"
297:Part 2: Intellectual orientation
246:demand that Daniel fire Peters.
122:did not start out as a book, as
944:"Tom Peters's True Confessions"
808:"Tom Peters's True Confessions"
767:"Tom Peters's True Confessions"
729:. Washington, D.C. 1984-09-16.
1041:Hyatt, Joshua (May 15, 1999).
991:"Excellence Sought--And Found"
1:
942:Peters, Tom (November 2001).
830:McDonald, Duff (2014-09-30).
353:Autonomy and entrepreneurship
343:Staying close to the customer
566:Dow Jones Industrial Average
452:"The Practice of Management"
418:Peters first read Drucker's
359:Productivity through people
270:Part 1: Approach and method
1152:
507:'s article. As related by
432:Concept of the Corporation
413:The Practice of Management
1083:www.managementtoday.co.uk
1008:Rosenzweig, Phil (2007).
190:organizational structure
31:In Search of Excellence
661:In Search of Excellence
636:In Search of Excellence
628:In Search of Excellence
618:In Search of Excellence
538:In Search of Excellence
469:In Search of Excellence
448:In Search of Excellence
440:In Search of Excellence
424:In Search of Excellence
420:The Effective Executive
405:In Search of Excellence
377:Simple form, lean staff
259:In Search of Excellence
251:In Search of Excellence
233:In Search of Excellence
218:In Search of Excellence
157:Boston Consulting Group
120:In Search of Excellence
109:In Search of Excellence
105:In Search of Excellence
71:In Search of Excellence
1121:1982 non-fiction books
365:Hands-on, value driven
347:customers' preferences
80:Robert H. Waterman Jr.
44:Robert H. Waterman Jr.
503:ran an article about
438:After publication of
371:Stick to the knitting
291:McKinsey 7S Framework
229:McKinsey 7S Framework
194:organizational change
183:Theory X and Theory Y
74:is a book written by
1136:Self-published books
1016:(1st ed.). US:
926:. November 14, 2005.
349:and catering to them
199:In 1979, McKinsey's
177:, Peters notes that
810:. 30 November 2001.
726:The Washington Post
242:Wall Street Journal
32:
463:In December 2001,
137:In 1977, McKinsey
1027:978-0-7432-9126-2
905:. April 14, 1985.
903:Los Angeles Times
576:In an article in
403:Before and after
399:The "Drucker gap"
337:A bias for action
237:Manager's Journal
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796:. March 8, 2011.
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665:Jim Collins
570:S&P 500
345:– learning
165:interview.
1115:Categories
1018:Free Press
976:2015-04-04
949:2008-07-17
924:Tom Peters
878:"Split-Up"
866:Forbes.com
794:Tom Peters
743:1330888409
706:2021-06-15
683:References
599:without a
528:Criticisms
394:Discussion
387:dedication
214:Tom Peters
171:Karl Weick
148:corporate
142:Ron Daniel
124:Tom Peters
94:Background
88:management
76:Tom Peters
40:Tom Peters
735:0190-8286
667:'s books
612:Reception
546:Wang Labs
265:Key ideas
139:director
134:office.
128:McKinsey
50:Language
1047:Inc.com
480:Search
210:Siemens
206:PepsiCo
115:Origins
99:Context
84:science
53:English
1065:Forbes
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995:Forbes
840:
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642:Impact
634:rated
632:Forbes
607:Legacy
558:Forbes
492:Search
201:Munich
36:Author
550:Xerox
1022:ISBN
838:ISBN
739:OCLC
731:ISSN
700:OCLC
623:Inc.
173:and
78:and
63:1982
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