Chapter 5
第五章
What is a Business
企業是什麼
The first conclusion to be drawn from the Sears story is that a business enterprise is created and managed by people. It is not managed by “forces”.
從西爾斯的故事中,我們得到的第一個結論是:企業是由人創造和管理的,而不是由“經濟力量”創造和管理的。
Economic forces set limits to what management can do.
經濟力量限制了管理者所能做的事情。
They create opportunities for management's action.
經濟力量創造了新機會,讓管理者能有所作為。
But they, by themselves, do not determine what a business is or what it does.
但是,經濟力量本身卻不能決定企業是什麼或做什麼。
Nothing could be sillier than the oft-repeated assertion that “management only adapts the business to the forces of the market”.
我們常聽到的說法“管理就是設法讓企業順應市場的力量”是無稽之談。
Management not only finds these “forces”; management creates them by its own action.
管理者不僅要發現這些“力量”,還要靠自己的行動,創造這股力量。
Just as it took a Julius Rosenwald fifty years ago to make Sears into a business enterprise, and a General Wood twenty-five years ago to change its basic nature and thus insure its growth and success during the depression and World War II, it will take somebody — and probably quite a few people — to make the decisions that will determine whether Sears is going to continue to prosper or will decline, whether it will survive or will eventually perish.
就像50年前,朱利葉斯·羅森沃爾德使西爾斯公司成為一家企業;就像25年前,伍德將軍改變西爾斯的根本體制,在經濟蕭條和第二次世界大戰期間,確保西爾斯仍然成長壯大;今天,西爾斯也必須仰仗某個人(或幾個人)的決策能力,來決定西爾斯的興衰存亡。
And that is true of every business.
而且,每一家企業都會面臨相同的考驗。
REFERENCE:
- draw conclusion 得出結論
- Sears story 西爾斯的故事
- business enterprise 企業
- create 創造
- manage 管理
- economic forces 經濟力量
- set limits 限制,設限
- management 管理者
- opportunity 機會
- action 作為,行為
- determine 決定
- silly 愚蠢荒唐的
- oft-repeated 多次重複的
- assertion 斷言
- adapt 順應,適應
- market 市場
- not only 不僅
- just as 就像
- Julius Rosenwald 朱利葉斯·羅森沃爾德
- General Wood 伍德將軍
- change 改變
- basic nature 根本體制
- thus 因此
- insure 確保
- growth 成長
- success 成功
- during 期間
- depression 經濟蕭條
- World War II 第二次世界大戰
- probably 很可能
- decision 決策
- whether 是否
- continue 繼續
- prosper 繁榮
- decline 衰退
- survive 生存
- eventually 最終
- perish 滅亡
The Practice of Management
Peter F. Drucker
* 本書為第一部從實際執行層面立論的管理學書籍,第一部兼顧管理現有企業和創新未來企業的著作
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