Self-Study Course on Peter Drucker's Teachings

During the past year, I created and curated self-directed Fall and Spring Semesters based around the teachings of Peter Drucker.

The inspiration was the self-study programs (of varying length) that Drucker worked on throughout much of his adult life.

In the outline below, I’ve made some changes and adaptations from the earlier courses, so even if you worked on the Fall 2020 course, you’ll find fresh material this time.

I’ve divided the semester into weekly segments, starting with the week of September 13, and ending the week of November 29. I’ve included topics for each week, plus two books to draw from.

Activities for each topic/week:

Find and read at least one chapter or section in each of the listed books. If you don’t have access to the entire book, sections of some may be accessible in a Google Books search.

Read as much relevant material as you can from these books during each week; you are not expected to read the entire books in such a short period of time!

• Find and read at least one article or book section by other writers about Drucker on the topic of the week (or) find and watch one video (such as a lecture, or conference session, related to the topic).
  
  Each week after you have read the chosen material, write a brief (1-2 pages) statement on the following:
  
  
• Drucker’s central point regarding the topic, based on your interpretations of the readings
  
  
• Applicability to your current life and work
  
  
• Future implications for your life and work

Weekly Syllabus

Week 1: September 13, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Self-Management
Drucker Book: Management Challenges for the 21st Century

Additional Reading:

Living in More Than One World: How Peter Drucker's Wisdom Can Inspire and Transform Your Life, by Bruce Rosenstein

Week 2: September 20, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Effectiveness and Decision Making
Drucker Book: The Effective Executive

Additional Reading:

Peter F. Drucker on Management Essentials (The Drucker Library, Harvard Business Review Press)

Week 3: September 27, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Teaching and Learning
Drucker Book : The Age of Discontinuity

Additional Reading:

A Class With Drucker, by William A. Cohen Ph.D.

Week 4: October 4, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship
Drucker Book: Innovation and Entrepreneurship: Practice and Principles

Additional Reading:

Peter F. Drucker on Business and Society (The Drucker Library, Harvard Business Review Press)

Week 5: October 11, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Teamwork
Drucker Book: Management: Revised Edition

Additional Reading:

Peter Drucker's Five Most Important Questions: Enduring Wisdom for Today's Leaders

Week 6: October 18, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Nonprofits and Social Impact
Drucker Book: Managing the Non-Profit Organization

Additional Reading:

Peter F. Drucker on Nonprofits and the Public Sector (The Drucker Library, Harvard Business Review Press)

Mid-term Assignment

Visit a local library or bookstore for a field trip/site project. Spend at least 30-60 minutes browsing the shelves for books covering the topics covered in weeks 1-6. These books can be written by Drucker and/or other authors.

After you return, write an essay of 750-1000 words about books and authors you discovered that particularly resonated with you for their work on one or more of the topics.

For instance, you could write about discovering new authors on creativity as well as teamwork, and possibly how those topics combine in interesting new ways.

Week 7: October 25, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Communication
Drucker Book: The Ecological Vision: Reflections on the American Condition

Additional Reading:

Classic Drucker: Wisdom from Peter Drucker from the Pages of Harvard Business Review

Week 8: November 1, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Information and Knowledge
Drucker Book: Managing in the Next Society

Additional Reading:

The Drucker Lectures: Essential Lessons on Management, Society and Economy

Week 9: November 8, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Marketing
Drucker Book: Management: Revised Edition

Additional Reading:

Drucker on Marketing: Lessons from the World's Most Influential Business Thinker, by William A. Cohen Ph.D.

Week 10: November 15, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Leadership
Drucker Book: Management: Revised Edition

Additional Reading:

Drucker on Leadership, by William A. Cohen Ph.D.

Week 11: November 22, 2021

Topic: Drucker on Developing a Global Worldview
Drucker Book: A Functioning Society: Selections from Sixty-five Years of Writing on Community, Society, and Polity

Additional Reading:

Peter F. Drucker on Globalization (The Drucker Library, Harvard Business Review Press)

Week 12: November 29, 2021

Topic: Drucker on the Future
Drucker Book: Managing in the Next Society

Additional Reading:

Create Your Future the Peter Drucker Way, by Bruce Rosenstein

Potential Starting Sources of Information

• Articles and books found online via Google and other search engines (including material from Corporate Learning Network!)
• Articles and books in your own personal library
• Articles and books from public/academic/corporate libraries
• Drucker Institute: https://www.drucker.institute/
• Drucker School of Management/Claremont Graduate University: https://www.cgu.edu/school/drucker-school-of-management/
• Global Peter Drucker Forum: https://www.druckerforum.org/home/

Final Project

Write an essay of 750-1000 words about the main points of what you've learned; what topics were most valuable and what readings you would like to pursue in more depth in the future. Feel free to include your thoughts about authors besides Drucker that you plan on investigating in more depth after you have completed the course.

Projected Outcome

Your work on this course will deepen your knowledge of Peter Drucker, but it will also increase your knowledge about the various topics covered during the 12 weeks. You will ideally have learned about new online and print resources, and will have discovered new authors.

You will also have developed more familiarity with your local bookstores and libraries, which will be valuable no matter what you are studying (or just becoming more curious about) in the days and months ahead.

After the Fall semester is over, start thinking about the Spring semester, which I will write about early in 2022!