is an affiliate of the drucker school of management
We tend to think of the
Renaissance Man ( or Woman) as a
thing of the past. But as Peter
Drucker made clear, at a time when
knowledge has become a more
critical resource than land, labor or
capital, it’s incumbent on every
“ educated person” to be conversant
across a wide range of disciplines.
“ We neither need nor will get
‘ polymaths’ who are at home in
many knowledges,” Drucker wrote.
“ In fact, we will probably become
even more specialized” as the 21st
century rolls on.
“ But what we do need— and
what will define the educated person
in the knowledge society— is the
ability to understand the various
knowledges,” Drucker added. “ What
is each one about? What is it trying
to do? What are its central concerns
and theories? What major new
insights has it produced?”
This passage came to mind in
recent weeks, as we had the good
fortune of taking part in a panoply of
Drucker- related activities, across the
country and around the world. Their
disparate nature speaks to the
vastness of Drucker’s own body of
work— its remarkable ability to
contribute meaningfully to the
conversation, no matter what is
being discussed.
In mid- June in South Korea,
more than 300 corporate executives,
social entrepreneurs and academics
gathered for a Drucker Centennial
conference on innovation. Drucker’s
ideas infused nearly every
presentation, whether on leadership,
entrepreneurship or cross- sector
collaboration.
From Seoul, it was off to San
Francisco for this year’s National
Conference on Volunteering and
Service, where First Lady Michelle
Obama delivered a powerful keynote
address on a theme that was central
to Drucker’s thinking: how creating a
Rick Wartzman, executive director of
the Drucker Institute, writes a bimonthly
column for BusinessWeek online that ties
Peter Drucker’s work to today’s headlines.
For a list of all of his columns, click here.
Rick’s recent “ Drucker Difference” columns:
• Boredom, Not Rigor, Dampens Volunteers' Spirits June 26, 2009
• GM: Lessons from the Alfred Sloan Era June 12, 2009
• A Company Is More Than Its CEO May 29, 2009
• Solving the Health- Care Conundrum May 15, 2009
Letter from Claremont
“ The Drucker Difference” on BusinessWeek. com
Drucker Society Spotlight
How Drucker Societies worldwide are
advancing ethical leadership and effective
management.
When does 1 + 1 = 3? Or maybe even
4 or 5?
When different parts of the Drucker
Society Global Network work together to
expand their reach and results.
Individual Drucker Societies are
already bringing positive change to their
local communities— equipping
businesswomen in the Persian Gulf with
Drucker's insights about entrepreneurship,
empowering high school students in L. A.
to implement effective community- service
projects, and instilling a Drucker- based
sense of values among corporate leaders
in India.
But to become a true network, the
Drucker Societies will need to multiply
their impact.
With this in mind, the Institute
recently launched a dedicated online
platform for the Drucker Societies. The
members- only site fosters communication
Continued on the next page Continued on the next page
claremont graduate university
Get informed.
Check out the latest Drucker Apps for usable insights on work and life from the father of modern management.
1021 n dartmouth ave, claremont, ca 91711
THE WINDOW “ I don’t predict. I just look out the window and see what’s visible but not yet seen.”
— Peter F. Drucker
The newsletter of the Drucker Institute www. druckerinstitute. com July/ Aug 2009
is an affiliate of the drucker school of management
vibrant nonprofit sector is essential to fostering civic engagement and maintaining
a healthy society overall. Scores of nonprofit leaders, meanwhile, attended our
workshop on using Drucker’s management principles to make their organizations
more effective.
From San Francisco, it was back home to Claremont, where we put on a small
symposium on yet another topic: marketing in turbulent times. Hosted by Jenny
Darroch, a professor at the Drucker School of Management, the event drew senior
marketing executives from a variety of industries— food products, office supplies,
entertainment and more— for a lively discussion on connecting with the customer
during the recession and after the downturn ends.
As we moved from event to event, and from subject to subject, it was a
powerful reminder of what it takes to be an “ educated person”— and how grateful
we are that Drucker lived up to his own ideal.
Rick Wartzman and Zach First
Executive Director and Managing Director
The Evidence
The need for ethical
leadership and effective
management— that is, the
need for Peter Drucker’s
principles and practices— has
never been greater.
Last year barely ½ of the worldwide population said that
it trusted businesses and NGOs to do
what is right.
Who will vouch for your
integrity?
Source: Edelman Trust Barometer
In his conclusion to the Seattle Art
Museum’s book on Japanese painting,
Song of the Brush, Peter Drucker wrote:
“ To understand Japanese art and
Japanese life, one has to accept the
polarity between the ornate and the
austere; between male supremacy and
female power; between spoiled and
indulged brats and disciplined
scholars… this polarity… gives
Japanese art, Japanese literature, and
Japanese industry their dynamics and
creativity.”
Drucker’s knowledge of Asia, and
Japan specifically,
was deep and few art
critics would be able
to trace, as he did,
the tensions in
Japan’s cultural
landscape— not only
though painting, but
also through
Japanese writing and
the country’s
approach to
management.
In addition to writing about
Japanese art, Drucker took an active
role in promoting it. In 1986, then- Mayor
of San Francisco and current U. S.
Senator Dianne Feinstein appointed
Drucker to the city’s Asian Art
Commission. The panel works to
strengthen the city’s Asian Art Museum
and thereby enhance San Francisco’s
quality of life.
True to his belief in management as
a liberal art, Drucker interpreted and
supported Asian art in order to deepen
the American understanding of the East.
In recognition of
Drucker’s unique
contributions, the world-renowned
Sanso
Collection featured in
Song of the Brush will be
on display in Claremont
in November 2009 as
part of the Drucker
Centennial celebration.
For more on the Drucker
Centennial, click here.
and information- sharing that allows
Societies from diverse and distant
parts of the world to inform and
support each other's efforts.
These cross- Society links are
already reaping dividends.
Veteran Societies in Dallas and
New York, for instance, are helping
the newly launched Drucker Society
of Hawaii develop an effective
framework for its Drucker book club.
At the same time, Society leaders
from the Middle East and Asia are
exploring plans for a joint CEO
conference. And the Philadelphia
and New York Societies are co-developing
a Drucker workshop for
an upcoming national conference on
social responsibility.
With this major new tool in
place, the Drucker Society Network
has begun to add up to more than
the sum of its parts.
Check out our video update for more
on the Drucker Societies’ impact
around the world.
Society Spotlight, cont’d
Letter from Claremont, cont’d
The newsletter of the Drucker Institute www. druckerinstitute. com July/ Aug 2009
FROM THE ARCHIVES
