Up the Organization : How to Stop the Corporation from Stifling People and Strangling Profits (Commemorative ed.)

A blockbuster business classic returns as relevant as ever!

A "New York Times" bestseller in each of two separate releases (1970 and 1984), this classic work lapsed out of print for more than a decade.

Now it's back at last in this commemorative edition that features a Foreword by Warren Bennis.

New contributions include tributes from Townsend's close friends and associates: "Up the Publisher: On Editing Robert Townsend" by Robert Gottlieb, former Editor-in-Chief, "Knopf", and former Editor, "The New Yorker; "Robert Townsend's Cure for Management Heartburn" by James O'Toole, Research Professor, University of Southern California; "How Robert Townsend Changed My Company and Me," Bob Davids, former CEO, Radica Games; and, "No Reserved Parking: the Life of Robert Townsend," by Robert Townsend, Jr. and Joan Townsend. Robert Townsend's timeless observations are still relevant in today's business world.His classic remarks include such insights as: "There's nothing fundamentally wrong with our country except that the leaders of all our major organizations operate under the wrong assumptions," and "One of the most important tasks of a manager is to eliminate his people's excuses for failure." This new edition also includes a previously unpublished Townsend essay on leadership.

Robert L. Townsend (d. 1998) drew upon his early experiences as a banker at American Express (1948-62) to become the highly successful president and chairman of Avis Rent-a-Car.

Under his leadership, Avis experienced a celebrated turnaround, fueled by the "We Try Harder" advertising campaign in the 1960s.