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The Effective Executive - Peter Drucker

By Josh Kaufman

When you’re in charge of a business, the most important job you have is not simply to ensure that “things get done” – it’s to ensure the right things get done, at the right time, and in the right way.

In The Effective Executive, you’ll learn that the role of leadership in every organization is to set clear priorities, focus the strengths of the people on those priorities, and make tough choices about what to do and what not to do in the face of uncertainty.

Drucker argues that every executive should have a standard, core set of personal skills: effective time management, clear communication, and the ability to make solid decisions based on the data available. These aren’t inborn abilities; they can only be developed through study and experience, and leaders should ensure that these skills are developed in subordinates through training and experience.

Each point is illustrated with several historical examples, so you’ll really understand why each idea is important and how it looks in the real world.

(You’ll see two more books by Drucker in the Personal MBA Reading List for a reason: they really are all they’re cracked up to be. Drucker’s influence on the business world is so profound that you can find seeds of almost every other book on this list in material he wrote decades ago.)

(The Personal MBA also recommends two other books by Peter Drucker: Innovation and Entrepreneurship and The Essential Drucker.)

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