Ackoff's Best: His Classic Writings on Management

by Russell L. Ackoff

Book Overview

Ackoff, ein renommierter Autor, bekannter Consultant und Dozent hat in diesem Band seine wichtigsten Schriften f?r BWL-Studenten und interessierte Leser zusammengetragen. Er hat sich einen Namen gemacht durch seine Pionierarbeit auf den Gebieten Operations Research und Systemanalyse. Die in den Essays behandelten Themen besch?ftigen sich mit Unternehmensplanung, der Erl?uterung des Unterschieds zwischen Wachstum und Entwicklung und dem Einsatz von...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0471316342
• ISBN13: 9780471316343
• Release Date: February 1999
• Publisher: Wiley
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.57 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Great collection of essays

This book is a great colection of essays by a brilliant thinker. In essays ranging from topics such as crime, education, psychology, and management, Ackoff manages to outline what systems thinking is truly about. Though I often did not agree with his prescriptions, the creative nature of his solutions very unique, and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a thought provoking experience.

Ackoffs 2nd Best - right after Re-creating the Corporation

The only book by Ackoff that I would recommend more highly is Re-creating the Corporation. These two books summarize much of his thought and philosophy of business design. If you are looking for a better understanding on systems thinking and its implications for organization design and peformance, and did not find it in Senge's The Fifth Discipline, then here is a great place to go. Put on your thinking cap and delve into Ackoff's Best.

Highly Recommended!

This book collects provocative, insightful essays by Russell L. Ackoff, architect turned city planner turned behavioral scientist turned professor. True to his convictions about systems thinking, his pieces form a coherent whole. Like a successful system, the whole of this book is greater than the sum of its parts. And what parts: the roots of systems thinking; a properly irreverent approach to bureaucracy; the role of planning; a standard for mission statements; effective advertising advice. Ackoff is a voice in the wilderness as he fondly remembers his bureaucracy-bucking, folly-filled, smart-as-heck past. Although this book tends to veer toward the academic, managers and students of management will find it useful. We [...] recommend it to anyone seeking insight on creativity, education, and science. Tear into this book a little at a time; you won't be disappointed.

Journey into the mind of a great thinker.

A fascinating collection of writings, compiled by the author, which explores, first and foremost, systems thinking and its effects upon business and management. But beyond this, these writings delve into an astounding array of subjects including: the nature of planning; problem solving; managing; mission statements; creativity and constraints; consumer design; education; crime; advertising; design of management systems; the nature of science and methodology; objectivity; rationality; the future of operations research; and the role of business in a democratic society. This book is nothing less than a journey into the many-faceted mind of a great thinker. For those with a high level of curiosity about systems, organization, business, the human mind, and society, this collection is a gold mine, reflecting the richness of thought of this exceptional person. Highly recommended.