Ackoff's Best Quotes

“When those managed, governed, or ruled know how to function better than those who manage, govern, or rule them, the less effective autocratic management or rule is. A democratic organization-that is, one in which the members have considerable freedom and opportunity to make choices-can't be adequately modeled organismically precisely because such modeling misses this most important characteristic of such a social system: the ability of its parts to make choices. This inadequacy is particularly apparent where problem solving is involved.”
― Russell L. Ackoff, Ackoff's Best: His Classic Writings on Management

“We can drive a car down a deserted turnpike in good weather with few changes of direction and acceleration; hence we do so without giving it much conscious thought. The worse the weather and the road, and the heavier the traffic (hence the more unpredictable the driving of others), the more we have to concentrate on our driving and the more frequently we have to change our direction and speed.”
― Russell L. Ackoff, Ackoff's Best: His Classic Writings on Management