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Up The Organization - The next book to add to The Manager's Bookshelf
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One of my personal favorite people, Robert Townsend, died in1998. Very few businessmen had the positive effect on society that he had. His book ''Up the Organization,'' was published in 1970. It was on the New York Times nonfiction best-seller list for 28 weeks. The book spent seven weeks as # 1.
Quite simple, the book is a guide to management, or rather THE guide to management. Townsend followed McGregor's theory x theory y philosophy. He believed that people enjoyed their work and properly motivated they would be quite productive.
I refer to Up The Organization as Bathroom Reading. The book is comprised of a series of short pithy essays on business topics. An example is:
Compromise and King Solomon
Compromise is usually bad. It should be a last resort. If two departments or divisions have a problem they can't solve and it comes up to you, listen to both sides and then, unlike Solomon, pick one or the other. This places solid accountability on the winner to make it work.
Condition your people to avoid compromise. Teach them to win some battles, lose others gracefully. Work on the people who try to win them all. For the sake of the organization, others must have a fair share of victories.
When you give in, give in all the way. And when you win, try to win all the way so the responsibility to make it work rests squarely on you.
The book can be purchased online for a few cents. Buy it, read it and share it!
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