The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done

Unfortunately, this book - which may be great - was spoiled for me by the actions of the previous owner, who took a bright pink felt pen and drew lines through many passages. I found this very annoying, so was unable to concentrate properly on the content.The star rating I have given is based on the views of very many people who have recommended it over the years, and the fact that I did feel that it contained many worthwhile insights.

It is not a long book, but if you ever bother thinking about reading a business book, this is the one. It is not current, so some of the references to big industry are very dated, but the concept remains the same - good (excellent) executive performance is excellent executive performance. If this is not mandated reading in a business school - then it is not a business school.

Would buy again

The best book of its kind IMHO

A+

As an author and an intellectual, the late Peter F. Drucker was a true business sage. Recognized as the father of modern management, Drucker forecast numerous pivotal trends, including decentralization, privatization and the development of the information society. He introduced the concept of the "knowledge worker," a term he employs widely in this fascinating book. His internal study of General Motors, Concept of the Corporation, greatly influenced how businesses conduct their affairs. Each Drucker book is a genuine business classic, including this one. getAbstract believes it will help you think productively about what you do. No one writes more intelligently or presciently on management and its functions than Drucker. All executives, even those who are already effective, will benefit from reading this informative, enlightening book.

I bought this book six months ago here from Amazon UK but I haven't gotten around to reading it yet because the typesetting was so poor - it instantly put me off. The book type clearly hasn't been set from digitized text; it's been scanned from some source, cleaned up and printed on the page as an image. The individual characters are thick and blobby. The font weight is so heavy that sometimes top loop of an 'e' is completely filled in. The weight of the font varies throughout the book - in my copy, the font in the starting third and final third looks bolder than the font of the middle third.Despite this, the text is still very legible - it's like a good photocopy. However, it isn't nearly as good as a modern book, newspaper or laser print.I fully expect it to be the classic it's been since it was first published. Unfortunately, this print, as an object unto itself, can only get a 4 from me.

Peter F. Drucker is probably the greatest management thinker of the 20st Century. He has been Professor at New York University and at 83 years old still teaches at the Graduate Management School of Claremont University, California. This book, originally published in 1966, is split up in seven chapters, plus a conclusion.Effectiveness is not just about intelligence, imagination and knowledge, it is about getting results. And the author believes that "effectiveness can be learned - and it also has to be learned." In Chapter 1 - Effectiveness Can Be Learned, Drucker discusses the five habits of the mind that have to be acquired to be an effective executive: 1. Know thy time; 2. Outward contribution, or what can I contribute?; 3. Making strength productive; 4. First things first; and 5. Effective decision-making. Each of these elements of executive effectiveness are covered in the next five chapters.In Chapter 2 - Know Thy Time, Drucker explains the three-step process that is the foundation of executive effectiveness. Step 1 is the recording of time; step 2 is the management of time; and step 3 is the consolidation of time. Time is the limiting factor. "Time is the scarcest resource, and unless it is managed, nothing else can be managed.""The focus on contribution is the key to effectiveness: in a man's own work ...; in his relations with others ...; and in his use of the tools of the executive ..." This outward contribution is the subject of Chapter 3 - What Can I Contribute? The executive is accountable for the performance of the whole. This accountability results in four basic requirements of effective human relations in order to manage the effectiveness of the team: 1. communications; 2. teamwork; 3. self-development; and 4. development of others. "To focus on contribution is to focus on effectiveness."It is also the executive's task to use the strength of each man as a building block for joint performance. The unique purpose of organization is to make the strengths of associates, superior(s), and one's own strengths productive. This task is the subject of Chapter 4 - Making Strength Productive. One of the major challenges is to staff from strength, which follows four rules: 1. Be aware of "impossible" job(s); 2. Make each job demanding and big; 3. What can a man do, not what a job requires; and 4. To get strength one has to put up with weaknesses. Personally, I believe that this chapter is probably the most important (and complicated) subject of the book."If these is any one 'secret' of effectiveness, it is concentration. Effective executives do first things first and they do one thing at a time." In Chapter 5 - First Things First, Drucker explains that effective executives concentrate on the one task right now, then review the situation and pick the next one task that now comes first. This requires courage to let certain tasks and matters go, in order to concentrate on the really important events.Chapter 6 - The Elements of Decision-Making, which is quite a long chapter is the start of the second part of the book. "Effective executives do not make a great many decisions. They concentrate on the important ones. They try to think through what is strategic and generic, rather than 'solve problems'. So what are the elements of the decision process? 1. "Is this a generic situation or an exception?" Most problems are really generic.; 2. What the decision to accomplish?; 3. What is right, rather than what is acceptable?; 4. Converting the decision into action.; and 5. Feedback has to be built into the decision. This sounds simple, but is rather difficult in practice.But what about the decision itself? "A decision is a judgment. It is a choice between alternatives." And this is the subject of Chapter 7 - Effective Decisions. Contrary to common knowledge one does not start with facts, but one starts with opinions. "To determine what is a fact requires a decision on the criteria of relevance, especially on the appropriate measures. This is the hinge of the effective decision, and usually its most controversial aspect." And the right decision ultimately grows out of the clash and conflict of divergent opinions and out of consideration of competing alternatives. Although the book was originally published in 1996, the master of management also includes some important aspects on the impact of the computer on decision-making.Finally, Drucker concludes with the conclusion that effectiveness MUST be learned. He bases his assumption on the fact that the executive's job is to be effective and that effectiveness can be learned. He believes that effectiveness is based on the subjects discussed in chapters 2 to 5. And he concludes that effectiveness will/has become more important for the knowledge worker.As usual, another great book by Peter Drucker. Although the book was originally published in 1966, it still strikes home the simple basic of effectiveness. This book is not only for business executives, but for all people wanting to become effective and in any field required. The author makes use of great examples from the greatest thinkers in time. I recommend this book to readers who did like Larry Bossidy's Execution and Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The author uses simple business US-English.