Concept of the Corporation Book

Drucker shines in his analysis of the minutiae of human organization, and how such decisions impact us on a level that is social and humane.

Part 1 provides necessary context of the ideals of the majority of the nation in that time period, which he writes to satiate.

Part 2 will be most useful to the business student, describing decentralization as a framework of human organization. He specifies this in the detail of General Motors' organizational structure, and goes on to argue with well researched evidence that this is the most efficient form of productive organization. He also provides a general set of values suggested to apply the concept of decentralization to other businesses.

Part 3, in my opinion, is the best part of the book. Drucker discusses each member of the organization and the ways in which the system both serves and fails them. With the nuance of a trained businessman he interrogates the reasons why, evaluates the success of the corporation from a social perspective, and ponders the ways in which the corporate system can be adjusted to best serve its members. It is a skilled melding of the big picture and small picture.

Part 4 is the weakest. In an attempt to use his findings to find a moral argument for the existence of the free market, he accidentally dives into a field of political theory for which he is unprepared. His arguments rest on assumptions that are never addressed or defended, and he ignores a good deal of historical political thought. It is far too broad a subject to devote one chapter of a book which is primarily about something else. Drucker's argument in this part is an early basis of what we can now understand as neoliberalism, but lacks the fully formulated ideology to make a rational argument.

Excepting the last chapter in which he strays into unknown territory an extremely well thought out and worthwhile read. A little dated at times, but surprisingly fresh at others. Great observational evidence of the forces of industrial capitalism.