Who Inspires me 2: Tom Peters
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I studied for a PhD in the 1990s and early 2000s. It took me seven years to complete it part-time. The host for this PhD was Manchester Business School. Inevitably I came across the work of Tom Peters – I had heard of his work much earlier when I read about the influence that “In Search of Excellence” had on the management world. Written with Robert Waterman and based on work that he had developed whilst at consulting firm, McKinsey – it was a book which launched the quality agenda to a whole new level.
Back then, this book felt like the crowning glory of a view on the world. Looking back now, it was just the start. Tom Peters went on to champion the cause, and also develop his thinking. I read “Liberation Management” and “Thriving on Chaos” with enthusiasm. Then, in the 2000s I was caught up in the work he was developing focused on an article he wrote for “Fast Company” magazine which popularised the term “Brand You” (see the original article here). This was the first time I had come across this idea that we are all brands. In Tom Peters’ world we are all in need of some personal branding if we are to survive the highly disruptive world of work where there are no such things as careers and lifelong jobs anymore. We need to make sure that others understand what we are all about, what our unique selling points are.
In many ways, Peters was way ahead of the curve, writing before the influence of the internet took hold. He predicted through this concept of personal brand, what would become a growing sense in which we all define ourselves either through our Facebook page, or our blog.
As Peters found his own way onto the web, I started to follow his blog – a series of increasingly noisy rants. He also started to produce short videos, and then found his way onto twitter. Somewhere in the middle of this shift, he produced the book “Re-imagine” which was published by Dorling Kindersley. Early versions of the book were beautifully designed and captured the essence of the importance of brand in delivering the message.
Tom Peters is still showing little sign of slowing down, in spite of the fact that he is celebrating his 72nd birthday on the day I am writing this. He travels the world delivering keynote presentations with voluminous slides and big bold messages. His current preoccupations are the fact that so many businesses are ignoring the importance of women for their brands. He is not just talking about women as customers here, but also the desperate need for businesses to open up their boardrooms to women. He also emphasises the importance of older people as they become more numerous.
His message then, whilst still being very much about the importance of quality in delivery (“Little Big Things” from 2010 is all about the little things that make a difference), is also about the need to see the highly disrupted modern world we live in. To recognise that nothing is certain, everything is up for grabs. We need to embrace this or die in the water.
He emphasises the fact that many of the companies he celebrated in his first book “In Search of Excellence” back in 1982 went out of business or had to radically change their business model.
So, why does Tom Peters inspire me? He has helped me to understand the importance of being absolutely clear about what I am focused on. Absolute clarity about the need to deliver massively to clients. (He gives fantastic examples in his books of how companies go to massive lengths to satisfy the customer.) His concept of Brand You is one that I return to frequently. Many of the bloggers I read draw on this and develop their own version. It’s Tom Peters we have to thank for steering us into a world where we all need to constantly reinvent ourselves, and be crystal clear about what we are delivering to the world.
1 thought on “Who Inspires me 2: Tom Peters”
I think the issue in your last but one para is interesting as I studied the history of management fads as part of my masters of which in search of excellence was one. The adaptive approach of some of those companies failed over time when it should have best worked and perhaps management ideas are, partly, the same.