Jack Beatty is the author of "The World According to Peter Drucker" and is currently a senior editor for The Atlantic Monthly. In this interview Beatty explains how Drucker’s European upbringing and education affected his work and world view, referring to him as a “Viennese gentlemen of the old school.” He relates how the rise of Hitler in Germany coupled with the rise of fascism in Europe influenced Drucker and led to his book, "The End of Economic Man," which analyzes the hole that fascism filled in European society and the failure that awaits a society built around the market. Beatty argues that this same European background combined with Drucker’s arrival in the United States in the late 1930s handicapped Drucker’s ability to fully appreciate the importance of the New Deal, the Wagner Act and the rise of unions in American history. From there he discusses the premise behind Drucker’s book, "The Future of the Industrial Man" and the important role that oligopolies and industrial corporations play in today’s market. Beatty then relates how Drucker became involved with General Motors and how his experiences there led to his “discovery of management.” This launches Beatty's discussion on what he views as Drucker’s greatest work, "The Practice of Management" and the revolutionary ground that it staked. Towards the middle of the interview Beatty discusses Drucker’s role as a management consultant. In the second half of the interview, Beatty discusses his book, "The World According to Peter Drucker." He then goes on to relate Drucker’s ideas concerning pension funds and what he terms, “pension fund socialism.” This discussion leads into the topic of Drucker’s consulting work with Megachurches. Beatty ends the interview by explaining why Drucker will be remembered as a moral philosopher.
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