Friday Review: "Up the Organization"

Please note: I buy all these books. There are no freebies, no kickbacks and I would not take them if offered. These reviews are an honest representation of my thoughts having read the entire book, not just part of it (hence the delay in review as I worked evenings last week).

Released 1970
Robert Townsend

Basic Synopsis: Become a better manager in bite sized chunks.

This book covers a huge variety of topics, some oft covered, some not so such as:

• Laywers
• Mistresses
• Meetings
• Office space

Throughout his career, Robert Townsend managed to lead organisations such as Avis and American Express to greater things through his common sense approach. This book aims to empart those in simple language to all that read it. Although rapidly approaching the half century, this book is still almost as relevant as it was when written. Some license has to be taken to replace 'memorandum' with 'email' and skip over the comments about the steno-pool and the immensely dated "Guerilla guide for Working Women", but there are some fantastic points in there that ring as true today as in 1970.

The format is dictionary style, a brain dump in alphabetical order. At the back are also some further points he must have felt less important, along with a quiz to rate management effectiveness. Overall, it is quite accessible and simple for anyone to take something from, regardless of the level, and it really does hit everyone at some point. Whether as reminder, pointer or first time idea, the points covered are well thought out and things that we would all do well to remember such as:

“True leadership must be for the benefit of the followers... ...When the best leader’s work is done the people say ‘We did it ourselves’”

“When you’re on a business trip or vacation, pretend to be a customer and call the office and ask for help….Then try calling yourself up and see what indignities you’ve built into your own defences.”

“Don’t hire a master to paint you a masterpiece and then assign a roomful of schoolboy-artists to look over his shoulder and suggest improvements”

The book is available now from Amazon and eBay, and for pennies. As such a simple read, I would propose it to all. Another for my shelf.