The new society: the anatomy of the industrial order

Table of contents

pt. 1. The industrial enterprise
pt. 2. The problems of industrial order: the economic conflicts
pt. 3. The problems of industrial order: management and union
pt. 4. The problems of industrial order: the plant community
pt. 5. The problems of industrial order: the management function
pt. 6. The principles of industrial order: exit the proletarian
pt. 7. The principles of industrial order: the federal organization of management
pt. 8. The principles of industrial order: the self-governing plant community
pt. 9. The principles of industrial order: the labor union as a citizen

In The New Society, Peter Drucker extended his previous works, The Future of Industrial Man and The Concept of the Corporation, into a systematic, organized analysis of the industrial society that emerged out of World War II. He analyzes large business enterprises, governments, labor unions, and the place of the individual within the social context of these institutions. Although written when the industrial society he describes was at its peak of productivity, Drucker's basic conceptual frame has well stood the test of time.
Following the publication of the first printing of The New Society, George G. Higgins wrote in Commonweal that "Drucker has analyzed, as brilliantly as any modem writer, the problems of industrial relations in the individual company or 'enterprise.' He is thoroughly at home in economics, political science, industrial psychology, and industrial sociology, and has succeeded admirably in harmonizing the findings of all four disciplines and applying them meaningfully to the practical problems of the 'enterprise.'" This well expresses a contemporary critical opinion.
Peter Drucker's new introduction places The New Society in a contemporary perspective and affirms its continual relevance to the industry in the mid-1990s. Economists, political scientists, psychologists, and professionals in management and industry will find this seminal work a useful tool for understanding industry and society at large.