Books by Russ Ackoff

Memories

With a foreword by Peter Senge
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This collection of stories, drawn from his life experience, was selected by Russ Ackoff because they stood out in his memory as instances where he learned something. Here we discover the extent of Russ' travels and influence around the world. Each story is used to illustrate a belief, principle or conclusion central to Russ Ackoff's theories of Systems Thinking and Design Thinking.

Differences that make a difference

With a foreword by Charles Handy
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This book's aim is to 'dissolve' some of the many disputes in professional and private life that revolve around misunderstandings, and to show how the apparently insignificant misinterpretations of language and meaning can have far-reaching consequences for organisational health.

This book brings together 57 definitions of important terms and concepts that underpin Ackoff's contribution to organizational learning.

Read more about Russ Ackoff here

Management f-LAWS: How organisations really work

This is the first collection of 81 of Ackoff’s f-Laws, each with a ‘considered response’ from British management thinker and pioneer Sally Bibb.

Published in 2007, Management f-Laws is available in print only.

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Systems Thinking for Curious Managers with 40 new f-LAWS

This second collection contains a further 40 of Ackoff’s f-Laws and an introduction to Ackoff’s view of Systems Thinking for managers and other interested newcomers to his work.

Published in 2010, Systems Thinking for Curious Managers is available in print, on Kindle and as an ebook.

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Ackoff’s F/Laws: The Cake

This full collection brings together the original text of all Ackoff’s 122 F/Laws and his commentary on each of them. It’s the ideal way to explore Ackoff’s thinking on organizations and management.

Published in 2012, Ackoff’s F/Laws: The Cake is available on Kindle, as an ebook and in print as a hardback.

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From reviews of these collections of f-Laws:

"f-LAWS [are the], uncomfortable truths about the (mistaken) way most organisations are run. The flaws come from decades of repeated management mistakes and conventional business teaching."
Peter Day, BBC

"If you ever need a reality check after stumbling out of some appalling management meeting, or just need cheering up on a long business trip, this is the book for you. Just about every myth or pompous delusion about management gets punctured in the course of 160 feisty pages."
Stefan Stern ~ The Daily Telegraph

"This book is fun - not something one can often say about a management book. It's also a compact piece of distilled wisdom. That's because it has its origins in the fertile mind of Russ Ackoff..."
Charles Handy

"...you are left in no doubt that you are in the presence of one of the profoundest and wittiest brains ever to engage with the bizarre human activity called management."
Simon Caulkin, The Observer