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Russell L. Ackoff

Russell L. Ackoff Biography

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“Perhaps the most costly disassembly in which our culture has been engaged is the disaggregation of life itself into work, play, learning, and inspiration. Each of these aspects of life has been separated from the others by creating institutions for engaging in only one at a time, excluding the other three as much as possible. Businesses are designed for work, not play, learning, or inspiration. Country clubs, theaters, and sports stadiums are designed for play, not work, learning or inspiration. Schools are designed for learning, not work, play, or inspiration. Museums and churches are designed for inspiration, not work, play, or learning. However, one of the most important products of systems thinking is the realization that the effectiveness with which any of these four functions can be carried out depends on the extent to which they are carried out together, in an integrated way.”

PlayInspirationWorkLearningOrganizationWork Life Balance
Book:Re-Creating the Corporation: A Design of Organizations for the 21st Century
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“It is the satisfaction we derive from 'going there' in contrast to the satisfaction derived from 'getting there.' Recreation provides 'the pause that refreshes.' It recreates creators.”

SatisfactionCreatorContrastPausesRecreation
Book:The Democratic Corporation: A Radical Prescription for Recreating Corporate America and Rediscovering Success
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“Common sense … has the very curious property of being more correct retrospectively than prospectively. It seems to me that one of the principal criteria to be applied to successful science is that its results are almost always obvious retrospectively; unfortunately, they seldom are prospectively. Common sense provides a kind of ultimate validation after science has completed its work; it seldom anticipates what science is going to discover.”

KindSeemsResultsCommonSuccessfulUltimatePropertyObviousCommon SenseCuriousWorking ItPrincipalCriteriaAnticipateValidation
Author:Russell L. Ackoff
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“Most corporate mission statements are worthless. They consist largely of pious platitudes such as: "We will hold ourselves to the highest standards of professionalism and ethical behavior." They often formulate necessities as objectives; for example, "to achieve sufficient profit." This is like a person saying his mission is to breathe sufficiently.”

PersonsRiskAchieveExampleBehaviorHighestStandardsManagementProfitMissionsBreatheStatementsObjectivesCorporateSufficientEthicalWorthlessPiousProfessionalismRisk ManagementPlatitudesMission StatementEthical Behavior
Book:Management in Small Doses
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“Traditional education focuses on teaching, not learning. It incorrectly assumes that for every ounce of teaching there is an ounce of learning by those who are taught. However, most of what we learn before, during, and after attending schools is learned without its being taught to us. A child learns such fundamental things as how to walk, talk, eat, dress, and so on without being taught these things. Adults learn most of what they use at work or at leisure while at work or leisure. Most of what is taught in classroom settings is forgotten, and much or what is remembered is irrelevant.”

ChildrenUseSchoolWalksTeachingTaughtAdultsDressesFundamentalsAssumingForgottenSettingTraditionalSettingsRememberedClassroomLeisureIrrelevantAttendingUnschoolingTraditional Education
Book:Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back on Track
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