Whatever Fredmund Malik writes, carries weight. This book provides everything you need to know about effective management and day-to-day executive life - in terms that are concrete, practical and productive. The author answers the question of how executives can operate effectively and successfully and accomplish their organizational objectives. Now a classic among economics texts, this book contains the essential know-how for managers in both profit and not-for-profit sectors.

Prof. Fredmund Malik numbers among Europe's leading mangement thinkers. He is head of Management Zentrum St. Gallen, management training and consulting firm that maintains offices in St. Gallen, Zurich, London, Vienna, Toronto and Shanghai, and has roughly 220 employees.

ContentsPreface to the English Edition 11Foreword and Introduction 15Part IProfessionalism 21The Ideal Manager - the Wrong Question 23The Universal Genius 23The Effective Person 25No Common Ground 26Being or Doing27Interviews Are Useless 30Professionalism Can Be Learnt 31Erroneous Theories and Misconceptions 33Erroneous Theories 33Misconceptions and Errors 39Management as a Profession 46Constitutional Thought 46Management as a Profession 49The Most Important Profession in a Modern Society 51A Mass Profession 53A Profession without Training 55Elements of the Management Profession 58Part IIThe Principles of Effective Management 63Introduction65Focusing on Results72A Self-Evident Fact?73Misconceptions 74And what about Those Who Cannot Accept This?76Pleasure or Result?78Contribution to the Whole 84Position or Contribution?85Specialist or Generalist? 87Holistic Thinking88Contribution and Motivation 89Contribution instead of Title91The Consequence of Organization92Concentration on a Few Things 95The Key to Results95Rejection without Reason97Examples of Application100Utilizing Strengths 106Fixation on Weaknesses107Making Strengths and Tasks Compatible108Should Weakness Be Ignored?111No Personality Reform112Why Focus on Weaknesses? 114Learning from the Great115How Are Strengths Recognized? 117Types of Weaknesses119The Two Sources of Peak Performance121Trust123Robustness of the Management Situation124How is Trust Created?125Positive Thinking 138Opportunities instead of Problems 138From Motivation to Self-Motivation139Inborn, Learnt, or Forced? 141Freedom from Dependence144Doing Your Best146Summary: Management Quality 148Part IIITasks of Effective Management 151Preliminary Remarks 153Managing Objectives 156No Systems Bureaucracy157Personal Annual Objectives158The General Direction 158Basic Rules for Management by Objectives 158Organizing 171Warning against "Organizitis"171There Is no such Thing as "Good" Organization172The Three Basic Issues of Organizing173Symptoms of Bad Organization175Decisionmaking180Misconceptions and Mistakes180The Decision-Making Process188Participation in the Decision-Making Process199Supervising203There Must Be Supervision203Trust as the Foundation 205How Do We Supervise?206Measurement and Judgment 213Developing People217People instead of Employees218Individuals instead of Abstractions 218Additional Aspects226Synopsis: And what about all the other Tasks231Part IVTools of Effective Management 241Preliminary Remarks 243Meetings 246Reduce the Number of Meetings246Crucial for Success: Preparation and Follow-Up Work247Chairing a Meeting Is Hard Work and Requires Discipline 249Types of Meetings249Meetings Should not Degenerate into Social Occasions 252Types of Items on the Agenda252No Item without Action254Striving for Consensus255Are Minutes Required?255Meetings without an Agenda256The Most Important Factor: Implementationand Ongoing Follow-Up257Reports259The Small Step to Effectiveness260Clarity of Language 263Bad Practices, Unreasonable Demands, and Foolishness 265Job Design and Assignment Control 268Six Mistakes in Job Design268Assignment Control272Personal Working Methods 283Boring perhaps, but Extremely Important283Fundamental Principles of Effective Working Methods 285Regular Review and Adaptation 287The Basic Areas290The Budget and Budgeting300One of the Best Instruments of Effective Management,if Properly Applied301From Data to Information 303Special Tips306Clear Documentation312Performance Appraisal313No Standard Criteria314No Standard Profile 316A Better Method 317Where Is Standardization, Allied to Caution, Appropriate?318How Do the Experts Do