MEMO

To: All Entrepreneurs

From: Ira A. Jackson
Henry Y. Hwang Dean and Professor of Management

The Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management

It’s hard to recall a busier and more interesting summer – from the stunning pageantry and athleticism of the Beijing Olympics, to the drama and importance of the quadrennial Democratic and Republican Conventions. Here at the Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management in Claremont, things have been moving along briskly as well. We, too, are experiencing a period of both renewal and new beginnings.
There’s always too much information to convey in a short note. After two years as dean, I confess that I have yet to master the art of containing my enthusiasm for the people and programs that constitute our remarkable community and for the purpose that unites us
Let me try to simply capture the range of progress and positive energy that we experience every day here at Drucker. I hope that this “teaser” note from the dean entices you to learn more on your own, to get more actively engaged, to enroll in a class, to make contact with a fellow alum, to send us a strong student prospect, to reach out to a special faculty member, to let us know of an internship opportunity – or to simply experience the pride we feel in our remarkable little institution.


Exploring the Possibility of Life on Mars and
Providing Professional Management Education to Help Lead the Economic Transformation in China:
Let me start by highlighting a couple of alumni who are helping to change the world. Barry Goldstein (EMBA 03) is the project manager at JPL for NASA’s Phoenix Mars Mission (Phoenix Mission NASA Article), which is successfully digging for and exploring new frontiers of knowledge about the building blocks of life on the Red Planet, three feet deep and 35 million miles from earth. Shuming Zhao (CGU PhD ’90) the dean of the Nanjing Business School (Shuming Zhao Article), recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of his school with the opening of a handsome new 20-story building and an international conference on globalization. This conference attracted 400 academic participants from 20 countries, whom I was proud to address in the opening plenary session. More and more I’m finding Drucker grads shaping the future, not just here in America, but in countries around the world. Barry and Shuming put to practice Peter Drucker’s challenge that we ought to lead lives that are not only personally successful, but significant to society as well.

Orienting a New Class of Talented Future Managers and Leaders Through a Unique Odyssey Project:

Later this month, we will welcome a diverse and accomplished group of new students who will participate in a unique journey of personal and professional discovery, called The Odyssey. This is a shortened version of the pioneering course that Charles Handy, the founder of the London Business School and the author of 20 books on business and society, and his wife, Elizabeth, taught for us last winter. Through an unusual process of narrative and photographic introspection and reflection, students will be able to gauge how their values align with their careers and their aspirations. Through this course they will be able to compare where they find themselves at the outset of their Drucker journey, and where they will find themselves, perhaps transformed, a couple years hence, when they depart from Drucker.

Engaging the Entire Drucker Community in a Day of Fast-Paced Learning, Social Networking and Personal Inspiration:

Drucker Day, Nov. 8, will provide an opportunity for our entire extended family to rekindle old friendships, to make new acquaintances, and to learn new insights. Mini courses will be offered by seven of our Drucker School faculty members, and we’ll hear from extraordinary students and alumni, as well as from CGU President Robert Klitgaard. The highlight of the day will be our distinguished keynote speaker, Daniel Yankelovich, author of 10 books, founder of the preeminent research firm Yankelovich, Skelly and Wright, founder of Public Agenda, and one of the world’s leading public intellectuals. Last year we heard from leadership guru Warren Bennis of USC and Rosabeth Moss Kanter of Harvard Business School. Please join Doris Drucker and many others for a Drucker Day that looks to be as intellectually nourishing as well as personally memorable.

Putting Peter Drucker’s Principles and Practices to Work in New Ways Around the World:

In June we hosted here in beautiful Claremont, our second annual Drucker Society Global Symposium, with over a dozen groups from eight countries on four continents. These Global Drucker Societies apply Peter’s wisdom and extend his reach and impact around the world. In Seoul, CEOs gather regularly in Drucker book clubs to read his teachings and discuss how to introduce his humanistic approach to management in their companies. In Dallas and in Brazil, Drucker Societies will soon be holding workshops—based on curricular material provided by the Drucker Institute—to help nonprofit and NGO leaders run their organizations more effectively. In Dubai, the former dean of the Maastricht School of Management in the Netherlands, who now lives in the Middle East, is developing a Drucker workshop on entrepreneurship. His target audience: women who feel locked out of society. In Los Angeles and New York, Drucker Society leaders are well along in developing a curriculum that will bring Drucker into high schools. The idea is to show students, in a dynamic, age-appropriate fashion, that effective management and ethical leadership are how dreams get turned into reality. Drucker Societies are, in short, sparking what appears to be a grass-roots global movement for effective management and ethical leadership.

Speaking of leadership, our new Drucker Institute now has both a superb executive director in Rick Wartzman, former Pulitzer Prize-winning business editor of the LA Times, and a fabulous board chairman in social entrepreneur, Bob Buford, founder of the Leadership Network and author of four books, including “Halftime” and “Finishing Well.”

The Drucker Institute’s passionate clarion call for “Closing the Responsibility Gap” has now been heard by more than 30 groups in four countries, and is beginning to fan the flames for reform and smarter stewardship in organizations ranging from small NGOs to major corporations and even entire nations.

Bringing Thought Leadership to a World Thirsty for New Knowledge and Insights About How to Improve Institutional Performance, Accelerate Innovation and Produce a Better World:

Last month here at Drucker we heard a provocative and inspiring message from one of the world’s leading thinkers about the role of business and society – Professor David Cooperrider, founder of the Center for Business as an Agent of World Benefit (Center for Business Website), based at the Weatherhead School of Business at Case Western University. Earlier in the month, Professor Craig Pearce, widely considered one of the nation’s leading authorities on shared leadership, authored a stimulating piece in the Wall Street Journal, entitled “Follow the Leaders,” which reports on his research findings that poorly-performing teams tend to be dominated by the team leader, while high-performing teams have a shared-leadership structure.
Also found in the Wall Street Journal: Procter & Gamble CEO AG Lafley wrote in response to a column about Drucker’s increasing influence in China and Asia that Drucker’s teachings are very much alive in America, as well – “Guru Drucker still smiles on the U.S... The Drucker Institute and Drucker School of Management are working to make Peter’s teachings and writings more accessible. As a new generation of leaders comes of age, these activities are all the more important” writes AG.
Prof. Vijay Sathe (a perennial winner of the “best teacher” award in our MBA Program) has recently published “Manage Your Career: Ten Keys to Survival and Success When Interviewing and on the Job.” Our friend Jim Collins, author of “Good to Great,” comments that Vijay is a “passionate teacher who cares deeply about the life arc of each individual student. In his vibrant classroom, he translates strategic management into a personal discipline – and here, in these pages, he brings to you and me the benefits of his wise mentorship.”

Hitting Pubs in Oxford, Bringing Drucker Home to Austria, Celebrating Innovation in Korea, Learning from the Founder of Teach for America, Getting a Taste of Leadership from the Trenches, and Looking for a Few Good Men for a Course on Women and Leadership:

Okay, I knew this last heading would get your attention. Yes, we are looking for a few good men – to enroll in a terrific new course on “Women and Leadership,” taught by our new Visiting Professor Katharina Pick (we have lots of strong women already enrolled).
The pub-crawling accompanied a wildly successful two-week long intensive course at Oxford on international finance and the EU.
The insights on leadership flow from John Bachmann, senior partner at Edward Jones, a company that has expanded from 200 to more than 10,000 locations. John, who is also chairs the school’s Board of Visitors, will share his learning and insights in an intensive course this fall, entitled “Lessons in Leadership.”
Wendy Kopp, the founder of Teach for America and one of Time Magazine’s 100 most influential leaders, will keynote our fall conference in LA on Oct. 28 on challenges and innovations in the social sector, capped by the award dinner celebrating the winner of the Peter Drucker Nonprofit Innovation Award. The Drucker Society of Korea will toast the most innovative and impactful business, governmental and civil society organizations in that nation at the end of this month, and the new Drucker Society of Austria is preparing to honor Peter posthumously on his 100th birthday by toasting his legacy in his home of Vienna.