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Peter Drucker reflects upon his two novels with indulgence, describing the first as “my seventieth birthday…present” (Drucker, 1987, p. 12). Upon reading these novels, aspiring novelists might well agree. For, whilst Drucker is proud to describe himself as “a professional writer” (Drucker, 1987, p. 9), and has been remarkably successful as a non-fiction writer, it does not seem unfair to speculate that were it not for his illustrious name, he might never have secured a publisher for these novels. There is very little in the way of a plot, the characters are unmemorable and the dialogue is boring. One might thus well ask why bother to review a novel of so little literary merit written nearly twenty years ago? Such a question is easily answered. Drucker wrote his 1984 novel The Temptation to do Good for a specific purpose. And that purpose is intimately connected with ethical issues in organizations.

Various realities, both political and economic were experienced by Drucker within Weimar Germany. Such realities were a result of those historical developments germane to the emergence of modern Germany. In particular it was “the triumph of industrial capitalism (which) changed the reality of German life” (Stern, 1992, p. 30). This “triumph” was however tempered by the crash of 1873 which led to Germans, prior to 1945, harbouring a “violent resentment against the new industrialism” (Stern, 1974, p. xxvii). In attempting to research those formative influences upon Drucker’s later managerial thought, which denies the relevance of business ethics, cognisance has to be given to this German history. The search for a so-called “third way” in Weimar Germany, and the later triumph of Nazism, were both developments which stemmed from this history.

Representing the soft and hard sides of management, ethics and quality are core aspects of an organization. Both are a philosophy as well as a process that seek to optimize behavior through clarifying the purpose and nature of work. This study examines Drucker′s treatment of these central components of management. Following a discussion of the methodology employed, each concept is analyzed. The implications of the findings are then explored.

Practical wisdom is central to the tremendous success of Peter Drucker as a management thinker. The paper aims to argue that the attractiveness of his writings is mainly due to the underlying Christian value system, which is the basis for the coherence of his thinking, and the reference system for his normative statements and practical wisdom.

The paper discerns the moral foundations of Peter Drucker's work by highlighting explicit value statements in his early writings, some even before he turned to management. Against this background, examples are provided of how he translates his values in practical wisdom into dealing with management challenges.

A major driving force of Drucker's entire work is seen as the secularization of his religious beliefs. His practical suggestions for modern corporations are deeply influenced by Christian faith. Up to now this has been largely unknown or ignored.

The paper rests on limited text analysis which should be extended in future research. If Drucker's success may be at least partially attributed to his moral tone, any effort to redeem management and to anchor it as a liberal art can deploy his work.

Dissecting the moral background of the most influential management thinker in the last century the paper reveals that Drucker's practical wisdom is the result of a deep connection between Christian values and knowledge. It clearly points to an integrated research perspective, and above all it calls for a rigorous inquiry into moral assumptions underlying any writing on management.

To provide students, professors, political leaders, members of non‐governmental sector and economists with a review of Drucker's major works on recent changes in politics, government, society and economy.

This article briefly illustrates and discusses Drucker's thoughts and analysis presented mainly in the books Post‐Capitalist Society, New Realities and Managing in a Time of Great Change. However, reference is also made to other books and articles written by Drucker, as well as papers and books produced by other authors on his works or on subjects discussed in his works.

This article provides Drucker's views on recent changes in politics, government, society and economy, which have brought about new realities and challenges and have fundamentally transformed politics, economy and the society. Thorough considerations of these challenges would not provide fixed solutions but rather support and would enable governments, organizations and society at large to anticipate these transformations. It is believed that Drucker has made sound analyses of which one ought to take notice.

This article provides a useful source of information on political and economic changes in this turbulent world and recommendations on how to anticipate these changes.

It is believed that this paper contains an original review of Drucker's politically oriented writings. The findings and recommendations in this article can be useful for scholars, students, politicians, economists, leaders of civil society organizations and businesses to better understand the transformations taking place in society and hence enable leaders to make better decisions.

The purpose of this article is to explore and evaluate Peter Drucker’s ideas on governmental reform, responsibilities, and management. Through an examination of his writings, as well as the work of a number of public administration scholars, Drucker’s views are analysed and assessed in the context of recent public management literature. The article situates Drucker as a de facto public choice theorist, given his advocacy of privatization and his minimalist position on government, in general. Although he is an internationally‐renowned management theorist, Drucker’s views on the public sector are found wanting on both the theoretical and practical levels. The article concludes that governmental reform is far more complex than Drucker seems to realize, and that it requires a healthy respect for democratic values and the public interest, as well as the principles and practices of modern management.

Drucker's views about ethics are supported by the philosophical foundations of Aristotle and Confucius with regard to the responsibilities and interdependencies that exist between individuals, organizations, and societies. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate Peter F. Drucker's work in the field of ethics as being applicable to the twenty‐first century and beyond.

The approach used to research the topic was qualitative and constructive in nature. Primary resources relied on published scholarly work from Peter F. Drucker and Aristotle, in connection with work from other scholarly sources.

The research demonstrates the continued viability of Peter F. Drucker's work in the field of ethics, as being applicable to the twenty‐first century and beyond.

The paper offers substantive underpinnings for the current study of ethics in the business disciplines, while at the same time suggesting that “plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose” (The more things change, the more they stay the same).

As a contribution to honor the life and works of Peter F. Drucker, the paper is original in that Drucker's work in the field of ethics is highlighted. The paper is supported by ancient philosophical underpinnings that offer a foundation for Drucker's work and allow his lessons to continue for generations to come.

The political philosophy of American federalism was a critical influence on the work of Peter Drucker. Drucker drew on federalist ideas to devise ways to distribute and check power within organizations, curbing the darker side of human nature. In this article, the authors aim to discuss the history of federalism, and to demonstrate how Drucker used that philosophy to shape his own management theories. The article also seeks to provide suggestions for applying federalist principles to today's organizations.

Drucker's own writings, as well as historical primary sources, are analyzed to illustrate the influence of federalism. The authors use specific examples from Drucker's own work, including his study of General Motors and his concept of management by objectives, to illustrate how federalism informed Drucker's vision for a functioning society of institutions.

Although Drucker has been criticized as a utopian, he, like the federalists and their philosophical forefathers, grappled with the role and nature of virtue in society, the balance between individual liberty and the greater good, and the need for checks and balances on power. As evidenced by Drucker's work, federalism offers a potential solution to today's organizations for managing complex networks and alliances, as well as creating an effective top‐management team.

Future research into the applicability of federalism to contemporary organizations is suggested.

This paper provides an in‐depth analysis of the impact of federalist principles on Drucker's work, and offers specific suggestions for applying federalism to managing organizations today. It provides an important connection between the discipline of management and the liberal arts.

The emergence of diversity in organizations is typically traced to the 1960s when legislation was enacted in the USA to prohibit discrimination against ethnicity, gender, national origin, race, and religion. However, Peter Drucker found that workplace diversity had its origin in the aftermath of World War I. In response, this paper aims to address the historical evolution of workplace diversity through the lens of Drucker.

The paper traces the historical evolution of Drucker's perspective on workplace diversity and the circumstances that catapulted him to advocate for understanding and valuing diversity in organizations. Further, it uses passages from Peter Drucker's published accounts to illustrate his understanding of demographic trends and how these trends impacted the competitiveness of the organization and management of workplace diversity.

Drucker's early life experiences influenced him to become a tenacious advocate for workplace diversity. As a reflection of these experiences, Drucker's understanding of human resource management led him to implore his readers to use human resource practices to leverage the power of evolving demographic trends. Drucker later refined his prescriptions on workplace diversity by incorporating several assumptions from the strategic human resource management literature into his research.

Future workplace diversity research would benefit from evaluating Drucker's propositions on leveraging the power of demographic trends through human resource management practices.

This historical analysis of Drucker's vast body of research provides substantial insight into his practical arguments for understanding and valuing diversity in organizations. To the best of one's knowledge, organizational researchers and management historians have not extensively evaluated Drucker's contributions to the workplace diversity literature.

This paper considers Drucker's “theory of the business” as a management concept applicable to the challenging of firm performance. The paper seeks to do this by using the theoretical framework developed by Drucker as a tool to apply to organisation planning. In addition the paper aims to demonstrate the often “silent” but influential role assumptions have on organisations. Thus, the paper seeks to invite a reassessment of the role assumptions play in organisations and to present a new and topical perspective on Drucker's original “theory of the business” argument.

A close review of Drucker's “theory of the business” article is outlined and a range of recently published (1994‐2008) works on related subject matter is reviewed. It is argued that the “assumptive design framework” at the heart of the theory of the business has potential to act as a powerful planning and strategy tool for enterprises. In addition the review demonstrates the “silent” positive and negative influences business assumptions have on organisation and management practice.

As a general review the paper provides new knowledge about the practical potential of one of Peter Drucker's seminal published articles in an area largely untouched by business or management research. It illustrates how research employing Drucker's “theory of the business” concept in the context of assumptions in business can have major benefit for organisations, especially growth‐oriented businesses.

This is the first paper to address the empirical potential of Drucker's conceptualisation of the “theory of the business” and exposes a unique Drucker‐inspired business and planning proposition that has significant potential for business management, especially in turbulent times