“The Effective Executive” Commentary & Summary
The Definitive Guide for Getting The Right Things Done
As I inch closer towards the role as a public officer books like “The Effective Executive” become much more attractive. My objective is to find the most relevant books pertaining to the challenges that I am facing so that I can become a better, rather, effective executive.
Peter Drucker was an Austrian-born American management consultant, educator, and author, whose writings contributed to the philosophical and practical foundations of the modern business corporation [1].
Summary
Two Primary Objectives
- The executive’s job is to be effective, and
- Effectiveness can be learned.
An executive — one who makes decisions that affect your business — must be effective, that is, he must do what it takes; this book teaches us to do that, by teaching us to learn how to watch our time and to organize it, to ask ourselves about what we contribute rather than what is owed to us, to nurture the energy in ourselves and in others by focusing on strengths rather than weaknesses, concentrating on priorities by trimming the past and having the courage — rather than the intelligence — to determine what they are, making effective decisions based on 5 basic principles, and to understand that every choice has alternatives.
Chapter 1: Effectiveness Can Be Learnt
This chapter is tasked with reminding the reader of the book’s principal purpose. The purpose of the book is simply to teach oneself how to become effective. The subject matter is obviously oriented around business, yet the principles taught in the book can transcend beyond the domain of work.
Drecker proposes that the skills of an effective executive do not need to be intrinsic, they hardly are intrinsic to many effective executives. Rather, the skillset is learned over time, repetitiously practiced until the continuous actions become second nature until they become habits.
Think of the executive as a machine with the one task of completing an objective with extreme efficiency and effectiveness. We must optimize our desired output to produce non-proportional outcomes. He continues to argue that without effective tools such as intelligence and imagination become useless resources.
Who is an executive?
If the results of the organization’s performance can be significantly impacted by an individual worker’s decisions then by extension the employee is a Drecker’s definition of an executive.
If the role demands an individual to be well equipped with the necessary capacity to make the right decisions, then the executive better takes responsibility for their contribution. If the executive is unaware of their abilities then by default they should be replaced. If the executive recognizes that they are deficient in their abilities then they will either seek to gain the needed skills to learn the necessary abilities or resign. The effective executive will prioritize the organization’s objective over their own self-interest. The Effective executive is also a leader, therefore, adhering to Jocko’s leadership commandments as well [4].
Drecker prescribes the reader to read the 5 habits required by the effective executive, then he suggests that we self-audit to meet the criteria.
- The effective executive does time audits often. They know where their time goes and control as much of the finite asset as possible with immense efficiency,
- Effective executives emphasis outcomes over processes. They only look at processes during evaluation to make the desired outcomes more effective and efficient,
- Effective executives prioritize strengths over weaknesses. They do not neglect or become delusional of their weaknesses or capacities, respectively. Rather they focus on their own strengths, the strengths of their superiors, colleagues, and subordinates,
- Effective executives use the 80/20 principle. They audit their tasks and delegate or eliminate, focusing only on the tasks that produce non-proportional outcomes. “They know that they have no choice but to do first things first — and second things not at all.”
- Effective executives make effective decisions.
Chapter 2: Know Thy Time
The beginning portion of the chapter is a reverberation of the previous chapter, however, accentuating more on the time auditing. Drecker suggests that intentional execs begin with their time rather than tasks. This is something that I recently implemented and OMG the difference it made was pretty impressive so far. I am more effective with time as well.
This section prescribes the effective exec to audit so that they can delegate and eliminate unnecessary tasks. Remember, They know that they have no choice but to do first things first — and second things not at all.
This suggestion is something I learned from “4 Hour Work Week” a while back. I’m actually covering that next week hehe [2]. The book suggests that time is segmented into blocks assigns for a specific task. He suggests no less than 1.5 hours per tasks (or per block).
This next suggestion is one that I’ve been advocating for since 2016, and that is to implement the recording of time, auditing it, then performing time management. Those who do this understand that time, unlike other resources, is not renewable and is finite. No money could buy more time.
Drecker instructs Effective executives to sit down with high performing workers and ask them a series of questions.
- What should we at the head of the organization know about your work?
- What do you want to tell me regarding the organization?
- Where do you see opportunities we do not exploit?
- Where do you see dangers to which we are still blind? And
- What do you want to know from me about the organization?
Drecker then gives the likely (negative) outcomes if the executive does not address the worker with the questions listed above. The worker can unintentionally place their efforts towards non-effective priorities slowly deviating from the organization’s needs, or the worker can simply lose enthusiasm.
The author also pauses momentarily to define delegation. Often the word is used frivolously and maliciously. The effective executive tasks subordinates with their work as an act of “delegation” out of laziness or obliviousness. Delegation is a tool that is to be used only so that an individual can truly get to one’s own work.
The effective methodically asks subordinates, “What do I do that wastes your time without contributing to your effectiveness?”
He gave such a great idea for preventing us from wasting our time in meetings by using this email template for meetings. Anyone who needs to be invited is welcomed to join but the synopsis will be provided systematically allowing workers to focus on their tasks rather than meetings.
“I have asked Mr. X and Y to meet with me on (X.X.XXX) in Room XYZ to discuss the budget. Please come if you need information or want to take part in the discussion. But you will, in any event, receive right away a full summary of the discussion and of any decisions reached, together with the request for your comments.”
It’s interesting to see the shocking similarities between this book and Dalio’s, “Principles” [3]. The two propose the effective exec to make continual diagnostics, each providing a list of questions that need to be asked and properly answered or otherwise addressed immediately. Here are Dreckers questions:
1. Time-wasters often result from overstaffing.
- Peter affirms that HR problems that consume more than 10% of the executive's problems can be easily prevented by not exceeding the required number of workers in the organization.
- Too many employees, as Drucker explains, can cause unneeded friction between departments and employees when executing a task.
- To prevent overstaffing he suggests that organizations contract specialty workers on an as-needed basis ( or that is until you can be big enough to own the firm, but that another story).
2. Another common time-waster is mal organization
- Meetings need proper agendas with the information and the why disseminated properly to the subordinates so that the fewest amount of follow-up meetings are required, preserving times for cooperating workers in a particular task. “Meetings have to be an exception rather than the rule.”
- Frequent meetings signify lack of autonomy in the organization and signal to higher level management that a specific task is spread over too many individuals — leading to inefficiencies.
3. The last major time-waster is a malfunction in the information
- Like Dalio, Peter suggests that meetings are always properly prepared and “homework” is completed before the meeting [3].
- Since the senior executive has close to 3/4ths of their time allocated towards meetings and other job-relevant tasks, the effective executive should implement discretion on their time focusing only on a matter that makes real contributions towards the organization.
- Often senior execs will work a day at home to consolidate time and prevent interruptions.
- Delegating scheduling is almost imperative for the effective exec. Operational tasks like meetings, reviews, problem session. Once those tasks are scheduled for the week then the exec can allocate a portion of their day (usually mornings) and the remainder of their discretionary time towards important activities.
- Effective execs always log their time and continually analyze it to find inefficiencies.
I am building an app for myself, but if others are interested in using it please message me on Instagram (link below). Meant to help me track my day and use ML to improve what I am overlooking.
Chapter 3: What can I Contribute?
I liked this chapter. These little questions that Drucker continually placed in the book are ostensibly insignificant. However, these basic questions can radically improve the contribution of the executive.
“What can I contribute that will significantly affect the performance and the results of the institution I serve?”
Drucker adds weight on the difference between effort vs results. Regardless of the title that a member of the organization holds (senior exec or junior employee), if they focus on results rather than effort then they are by Drucker’s definition an executive.
Once again he emphasized the question, “What can I contribute?”.
Crucial Performance Metrics:
- Results for the organization is like calories to the body. Direct results are needed for the organization to thrive,
- Values and reaffirmations to the organization are like vitamins and minerals for the body. Values (mission and ethics) are integral components for the success of a company. If left absent then the company can degenerate into chaos and stagnation, and
- Continual development for members of the team is necessary for the company’s longevity.
We are basic monkeys at the foundation. “Monkey see monkey do” ring a bell? We, like babies, still use mirror neurons to emulate and act out in life. So, if the executive is focused on contributing then the standard for the subordinates are equally raised.
Drucker states, “Commitment to contribution is a commitment to responsible effectiveness.”
The Right Human Relations
Here Drucker observes that good execs don’t necessarily have good personal HR. Rather they focus on contributions in their work and their relationships.
The Effective Meeting
The meeting is a major component of the execs’ life. Therefore, the meetings’ purpose, results, and agenda is imperative to the exec for them to become effective.
Once again Peter offers invaluable questions that the exec should ask themselves (and immediate sub-mgmt):
- “why are we having this meeting?”,
- “Do we want a decision?”,
- “Do we want to inform?”,
- “Do we want to make clear to ourselves what we should be doing?”
The meeting should NEVER degenerate into brainstorming due to lack of preparation. Rather the strict agenda should allow each participating member to focus from the start on their contribution, as it pertains to the effectiveness of the organization.
Drucker lists the four basic prerequisites for effective HR:
1. Communications
Disseminate the why clearly as Jocko suggests, and leave no room for misinterpretation as Sivers suggests [4][5].
Once again ask these questions:
- “What are the contributions for which this organization should hold you accountable,”
- “What should we expect of you,” and
- “What is the best utilization of your knowledge and ability?”
Now that the subordinate has understood the expectations and delivered it is the execs responsibility to “judge the validity of the contribution.”
2. Teamwork
Emphasis on contribution required sideways communication between departments. Focusing on this over other discrepancies allows the organization to run like a well-tuned machine.
3. Self-development
I love this section because this promotes the exec to continually be self-auditing and improving. He lists, once again, more questions the effective exec should be asking themselves, in my opinion monthly.
- “What self-development do I need?”
- “What knowledge and skills do I need to acquire to make the contribution I should be making?”
- “What standards do I have to set myself?”
- “What strengths should I put to work?”
4. Development of others
Once again we are simple monkeys who do as we see. If we see our manager slacking off — putting in the minimum required amount of effort — then we too will perform with below average effort.
It is the execs obligation to inadvertently or otherwise promote the growth in their subordinates, or risk the potential stagnation of the workers, which is to the company’s detriment.
Chapter 4: Making Strength Productive
Strength is prioritized over weaknesses since those qualities can be used constructively to build the organization up. Strengths are the focal point in this chapter and the objective is to use all strengths as a vehicle for opportunity and success.
This is where I fundamentally disagree with Drucker. I agree that weaknesses can be eclipsed by strengths. However, I believe that weaknesses and personalities shouldn’t necessarily be overlooked either. Here I would prescribe Dalio’s perspective on strengths and weaknesses [3].
Needless To Say, the objective of the executive is to maximize the strengths of the subordinates while minimizing their weaknesses.
How do effective executives staff for strength?
I enjoy this section of the chapter as it resonates with my perspective on business operations, which I adopted after learning more about Dalio’s “Principles”[3]. The two authors propose that it is the executives' obligation to design the task effectively, and later properly pick (or mold) the right knowledge worker for the designed task.
Again, Drucker provides useful questions that we should ask as effective executives.
- “Does this man have strength in one major area?”
- “Is this strength relevant to the task?”
- “If he achieves excellence in this one area, will it make a significant difference? And if the answer is “yes”, he will go ahead and appoint the man.
It is also the moral responsibility to the organization and your subordinates to never appoint someone based on personal affinities or biases. The qualified candidate should always get the position over the loved family member.
The inverse of the appointment is the removal process. On a similar accord, the exec must promptly remove unqualified underperforming individuals who can easily metastasis the company culture.
The duty to remove employees is not the same as recklessly firing based on the smallest error. Rather the exec must balance the leadership dichotomies found in Jocko’s book [4]. The exec must be willing to continually train, prepare and assist members of the team before termination is finally conducted.
How do I manage my boss?
Wait, the executive, boss? I can’t manage my boss!?!? I know, you’re probably confused, but remember the effective executive, according to Drucker is
“if they focus on results rather than effort then they are by Drucker’s definition an executive.”
This section of the chapter is awesome because it totally flips peoples perspective as being an employee and their perception of their boss. The objective of this chapter is to empower the boss by promoting and supplementing their strengths. Like you, the boss is also human and subject to human flaws. Be compassionate and patient as well. Blaming someone else (even the boss) is deflecting responsibility and is the “easy button”. Don’t succumb to pressing the easy button.
Again with the proposed questions:
- “What can my boss do really well?”
- “What has he done really well?”
- “What does he need to know to use his strength?”
- “What does he need to get from me to perform?”
Chapter 5: First Things First:
Concentration is the uncommunicated secrete hidden in every executives’ arsenal. Whether the action is consciously made or not.
“The more an executive works at making strengths productive, the more will he become conscious of the need to concentrate on major opportunities. This is the only way to get results.”
Effective executives focus on 1st things first and 2nd things never. In other words, if the task is a 2nd-degree priority for the exec (consistently) then the task might need to be analyzed and considered for elimination or delegation.
Priorities and Posteriorities
Here is another suggestion from Drucker that I disagree with. He prioritizes courage over analysis for identifying priorities. If there’s anything we know its that emotions are fickle and unreliable tools for conducting a well-performing business. Also, the process is not iterable.
Here are his four identifiers used for priorities:
- Focus on the future over the past,
- Opportunities supersede the problems,
- Make a new path rather than going down an existing one, and
- Set high standards for your goals and pursue them with 100$ intensity. If you fail you will still be further than if you shoot for comfortable and safe.
Chapter 6: The Elements of Decision Making
This chapter overlaps significantly with Dalio’s “Principles”. Although I more align with Dalio’s proposals towards decision making in general [3].
Effective executives, make effective decisions.
Using the 80/20 rule Execs only prioritize the important decisions. Here is another parallel in the effective decision-making process that is shared with Dalio, and that is to conceptualize the problem at a higher level order of thinking [3]. Look at the big picture here.
One again Dalio and Drucker overlap with considering problems to be resolved with principles (premeditated decision based on a particular situation).
Unless a decision has “degenerated into work” it is not a decision; it is at best a good intention.
The Five Elements of the Decision Process:
1. Principles: The idea here is to create a general principle based on the general problem. With proper synthesizing of the machine — that is the organization — the effective executive can identify common problems and their common solutions.
Ask yourself a series of questions:
- “Is this a generic situation or an exception?”
- “Is this something that underlies a great many occurrences?”
- “Is the occurrence of a unique event that needs to be dealt as such?”
The objective is to identify the problem, identify the goal of the decision and its objectives. The boundary conditions must be created and defined, clearly. The more concise the boundary conditions are the more effective decisions can be.
More questions of course:
- “What is the minimum needed to resolve this problem?”
- “Is the form in which boundary conditions are probed?”
3. Compromise: The effective exec must begin with what is right rather than what is acceptable. For the exec to make effective decisions on what should be compromised the specific and clear boundary conditions must be understood. Otherwise, the risk of choosing the wrong compromise can be a negative result.
4. Action: Ideas, analysis, and their potential decisions are just that, potential. The objective of the exec is to actualize these decisions before they can actually be effective.
5. Feedback: Just as Dalio suggested the feedback loop as found in ML is equally important in the livelihood of the organization. The role of the exec is to observe that feedback so that corrective measures can be conducted to modify the principles model towards perfection [3].
Chapter 7: Effective Decisions
Drucker defines the decision as to the difference between the two alternatives rather than good or bad. I disagree, I think it is of the two valences.
We use post hoc fabrication to justify our opinions and usually seek facts that are biased towards the confirmation of our opinions. The effective executive understands that we form opinions which is a subjective perspective towards a problem but still seek facts or truths that truly test and confirm their opinions or challenge them. The goal is to find truths to make effective results, not to be right.
Disagreements are useful tools that allow the imagination to be stimulated and provide alternatives, and possibly better ones so that the machine can run as efficiently as possible. Rather than placing ego over efficiency attempt to prioritize the correct course of action to generate an effective decision.
Guidelines for effective decisions:
- Chart the pros and cons and make sure that the pros outweigh the cons, and
- The decision is binary — Act or Not, but do not compromise or “hedge”
Conclusion
Effectiveness is a skill that is mastered through self-discipline. Drucker, in my opinion, is engineering the executive to maximize the desired output (emphasis on effective results) while minimizing inefficiencies.
He immediately states that the effective executive is someone who meets these criteria, regardless of senior or junior status.
“If they focus on results rather than effort then they are by Drucker’s definition an executive.”
Drucker prescribes the reader to consider several steps to become an effective executive. Here are those steps.
1. Audit Your Time: Auditing your time is the necessary step in managing yourself. You must learn where the finite time you have throughout the day is being allocated accordingly towards producing effective results. Once you discover where your time goes you must prioritize the tasks so that you are doing first things first or risk not doing them at all. This is a small step that could be easily accomplished, and after proper examination, you will be slowly going towards the desired goal.
This starts heading towards 80/20, which we will discuss soon. Focus on priorities that produce effective results, and nothing else. Needless to say, you do not go around wasting others time either. Ask your team and subordinates, “What do I do that wastes your time without contributing to your effectiveness?”
Consider using blocks of time (no less than 1.5 hours) to focus on a single task. Drucker says to overpredict the time needed to complete a task (I agree), but I’d also suggest you to try assigning deadlines for tasks. Instead of 1.5 hours to do part of the work done 1.5 hours MAX to finish the work. The panic monster might be pushing you to finish quicker.
2. Contribution: You ask yourself what you can do to directly contribute to positively impact the results needed to complete the organization’s overall objective, to satisfy the mission.
The leader determines the culture. The effective executive sets the primary example with the task of producing effective results, positive contributions. The subordinates — members of the team — will follow the leaders’ example.
Once again he emphasized the question, “What can I contribute?”. Track your contribution’s performance by using this metric guide.
Crucial Performance Metrics:
- Results for the organization is like calories to the body. Direct results are needed for the organization to thrive,
- Values and reaffirmations to the organization are like vitamins and minerals for the body. Values (mission and ethics) are integral components for the success of a company. If left absent then the company can degenerate into chaos and stagnation, and
- Continual development for members of the team is necessary for the company’s longevity.
“Commitment to contribution is a commitment to responsible effectiveness.”
3. Strengths & Weaknesses: I enjoy this section of the chapter as it resonates with my perspective on business operations, which I adopted after learning more about Dalio’s “Principles” [3]. The two authors propose that it is the executives’ obligation to design the task effectively, and later properly pick (or mold) the right knowledge worker for the designed task.
The objective of the executive is to maximize the strengths of the subordinates while minimizing their weaknesses.
The inverse of the appointment is the removal process. On a similar accord, the exec must promptly remove unqualified underperforming individuals who can easily metastasis the company culture.
The duty to remove employees is not the same as recklessly firing based on the smallest error. Rather the exec must balance the leadership dichotomies found in Jocko’s book [4]. The exec must be willing to continually train, prepare and assist members of the team before termination is finally conducted.
And yes, you can manage your boss. Manage has accrued a negative connotation but it’s neither good or bad, just is; it’s usually positive anyway. The same concept is used on your upper management. You ask, “What does he need to know to use his strength,” or “What does he need to get from me to perform?” Take responsibility for your contributions.
4. 80/20 Principle: Back here, you’ll see this beaut again in “The Four Hour Work Week”. Basically, you will audit your time and priorities (tasks). You will audit the time and decide what can be eliminated or delegated. If it cannot be eliminated when you are tasked with making it as efficient as possible by using effective decision making (see the last step). The goal here is to focus solely on tasks that are relevant to the execs role and contribution and focus on the 20% of tasks that non-proportionally produce +80% of the positive results.
Here the effective exec is tasked with pursuing an opportunity for the organization by prioritizing the important contributions through the synthesizing process of business analytics.
5. Effective Decisions: Cultivating an environment that allows others to make opinions allows. This promotes others to participate in the decision process but also gives the exec a new perspective to solve the problem, possibly a better one.
The effective decision is concerned with rational action. Here is where I prescribe Dalio’s suggestion on decision making, rather his principles. Through synthesizing data from the company the effective exec can formulate effective decisions and run those decisions through a feedback loop. That feedback loop will produce a positive or negative reward and thus promoting the exec to continue the decision when the problem arises or to modify it more. Once the decision has been tested and well established you can create principles. Those are a pre-set of decisions to be made if the problem were to arise again. Both Drucker and Dalio agree on this.
In the decision-making process, you must also listen to feedback from members of the team. This will be additional data used to shape you into the effective exec you are meant to be.
Aside from those 5 steps for becoming an effective executive leadership was another component talked about in the book. I’d certainly promote Jocko’s ideology on leadership over Druckers (mainly bc it was more thorough).
Here is what you should consider.
- Use Leadership capital wisely,
- Disseminate the why thoroughly, leave no room for misinterpretation,
- Ask how you can contribute or improve your subordinates and review their answers and your actions, and
- Prioritize and execute. Don’t waste your time or the time of others.
Through practicing continual mindfulness at work you can become aware of your surroundings and form a radically different perspective. This will allow you to thrive as an effective executive as you journey towards self-development and improvement for yourself and the organization as a whole.
References
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Drucker
[2] “Four Hour Work Week” Tim Ferriss (Covering Next week)
[3] https://medium.com/@mondragon.ai/principles-commentary-1fe11554016d
[4] https://medium.com/@mondragon.ai/anything-you-want-by-derek-sivers-8123107f99b
[5] https://medium.com/@mondragon.ai/the-dichotomy-of-leadership-commentary-932ac604bd64
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Written by: Angel Mondragon.
