Managing Management Time: Who's Got the Monkey?

I started my management career in 1970 and was lucky to have attended a 2 day seminar in 1972 from William Oncken and I have read all his books. Once you read his work you quickly realize that you never have to read another management book again. His understanding of human nature and the real dynamics of organizations is profound. His work is as relavant now as it was 30 years ago. This is a must read for anyone trying to get ahead in corporate America.

Funny, memorable and inspiring.After 20 years in business I finally got it. And it came from this book. When I first became a supervisor my company provided me with a course in 'monkey management'. I thought I understood it and my roll in it but I was only on the receiving end of the monkeys.This book not only taught me how to be a professional manager, but also explained how to make my subordinates and myself 'professional managees'. That's whats not taught in so many management courses and seminars. Don't think because this book is out of print that it's no longer relevant. I've been to seminars with Ken Blanchard, Tom Peters, et al. Oncken had them cold a long time ago.

Oncken has condensed time managment, functional managment, peer communications, project/task mangement and control and oraganizing the content of a job to maximize the effectiveness of the manager and his/her team. This is the only course I've been exposed to (in over 20 years) that is not only practical, but blends the various activities and responsibilities of management into a cohesive useable philosophy and work ethic. The 'monkey theory' is easily adopted with a minimum of fuss. Bill promises that after a two day seminar you will NOT be saddled with two more days of work, but within one day of applying the tools learned during the seminar you will be caught up. I SUBMIT that reading the book and using the principles presented will net the same results. A job that becomes simultaneously controllable, fun and effective.

This is a funny well-written and well thought out book based on reality about who people are and how they function. Case studies do not impart the same depth of information about human nature. If you still need an MBA after reading this, maybe you should be thinking about getting your Ph.D. in economics or your J.D. It is not so much a retrospective based on narrowly defined circumstances as it is a prospectus on the human condition. No, it does not review the fine art of credit derivatives, nor is it going to knock Drucker and Bennis off your shelf. It will make Drucker and credit derivatives concepts that work in the same sentence.