The Daily Drucker

3 April Spirit of Performance

The purpose of an organization is to enable common men to do uncommon things.

Morality, to have any meaning at all, must not be exhortation, sermon, or good intentions. It must be practices. Specifically:

1. The focus of the organization must be on performance. The first requirement of the spirit of performance is high performance standards, for the group as well as for each individual.
2. The focus of the organization must be on opportunities rather than on problems.
3. The decisions that affect people—their placement, pay, promotion, demotion, and severance—must express the values and beliefs of the organization.
4. Finally, in its people decisions, management must demonstrate that it realizes that integrity is one ...