Press Release: Rebalancing Society

New book provides insight on transforming our society

The world is out of balance, says Henry Mintzberg, and the consequences are proving fateful: the degradation of our environment, the demise of our democracies, and the denigration of ourselves, with greed having been raised to some sort of high calling. But it’s not too late to set things right. www.mintzberg.com

Mintzberg argues that a healthy society is built on three balanced pillars: a public sector of respected governments, a private sector of responsible enterprises, and what he calls a plural sector of robust voluntary associations (nonprofits, NGOs, etc.). Communism collapsed because the public sector was overbearing—balance triumphed in 1989, not capitalism. But that misunderstanding has led to the private sector becoming overbearing.

Many governments are now so co-opted by their private sectors that they won’t be able to lead the process of renewal. Corporate social responsibility, however laudable, cannot compensate for the corporate social irresponsibility we see all around us. Henry Mintzberg outlines specific ideas for strengthening the plural sector so that it can actually lead radical renewal. If we care at all about our planet and our progeny, change must be led by each and every one of us and not by some of “them.”

Henry Mintzberg is the Cleghorn Professor of Management Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He has is the author of the bestselling books Simply Managing, The Rise and Fall of Strategic Planning, Managers Not MBAs, and Mintzberg on Management.

For more information please contact:
Katie Sheehan: ksheehan@bkpub.com
Matt Fagaly: mfagaly@bkpub.com