Peter Drucker on Consulting: How to apply Drucker s principles for Business Success

by William A. Cohen

Peter Drucker is known worldwide as The Father of Modern Management. But he was also the world s most famous and successful independent consultant. The methods developed by Drucker remain highly relevant and continue to be used in today s organizations. This book, written by Drucker s first executive PhD graduate of the program he developed, is the first book to reveal in detail Drucker s methods and ideas as a consultant. Jack Welch noted that his success at GE was based on Drucker s consulting advice. Bill Bartmann became the 25th wealthiest man in America at one point. He, too, credits Drucker s advice in helping with his success. This book is an encyclopaedia of Drucker s consulting approaches and how and when to apply them. Any consultant will find this book invaluable. However, executives and managers will also gain new insight into Drucker s thinking and methods, and why they continue to have such tremendous influence over today s organizations.

Genres: Business

256 pages, Hardcover

First published June 7, 2016

About the author

William A. Cohen, Ph.D. (Pasadena, CA) is an authority on leadership and strategy formulation and deployment. He gives speeches and seminars for the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, the Air War College, the FBI Academy, all four armed services, and corporations from Boeing to The Cheesecake Factory. He is the author of many books including The New Art of the Leader, The Wisdom of the Generals , and How to Make It Big as a Consultant (978-0-8144-7073-2).

Reviews

[Katarzyna Sikora-Smets · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very interesting insights into how Drucker operated, but if you already know a bit about coaching, there's not much new in here. The stories are the most interesting part.

[Ronald J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

William Cohen was Peter Drucker’s first PhD student, and he was written several books on Drucker’s thinking and impact on his life. This one focuses on Drucker’s approach to consulting, which was all about asking questions and leading with his ignorance, not his knowledge. He referred to himself as a social ecologist. Marvin Bower, founder of McKinsey and Company was one of his early mentors. The book covers Drucker’s life and also his major contributions to management and marketing thinking, along with his approach to ethics. One of his rules was “What everyone knows is usually wrong.” There’s a chapter on how to approach risk, one on how to think like Drucker, Einstein, and Sherlock Holmes, others on self-confidence, innovation and abandonment, and why people have no limits. The book concludes with essays written by some of Drucker’s former customers. I always recommend reading Drucker, and since I discovered Cohen, I now read anything by him on Drucker. This book is a good addition to your Drucker collection.

[Wayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was a goodreads.com free book ... well written with some great tips for management or anyone that wants to be a better leader in their work place.. easy to read and understand...

[Margot Note]

"These are the five vital question of Drucker's, which Frances [Hesselbein] called 'The Five Most Important Questions You Will Ever Ask about Your Organization':
1. What is our mission?
2. Who is our customer?
3. What does the customer value?
4. What are our results?
5. What is our plan?" (131).
"You don't need to build a giant consulting organization to do a lot of good, gain a lot of fame, and make a lot of money as an independent consultant. Drucker answered his own phone, even at the height of his fame. There is no reason why we can't do the same or similar things 'they' tell us not to do" (286).
"The client is the real expert" (288).