The Elephant and the Flea [Hardcover]

Charles Handy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2002

From his childhood in an Irish vicarage, to Oxford University, to his first job as an oil executive with Royal Dutch/Shell in the Far East, to a professorship at the London Business School, to chairmanship of the Royal Society of Arts, and finally to his current status as an eminent social philosopher and international business guru, Charles Handy has viewed the business and economic workings of the twentieth century inside and out. Now, in the twenty-first century, Handy provides a firsthand account of how we got here and where we are headed. The Elephant and the Flea is a fitting capstone to Handy's brilliant career and colorful life.

In a tone that is at once learned, genial, witty, and wise, Handy takes us on his life's journey, looking back to such topics as his childhood and education and how they prepared (or, rather, did not prepare) him for a career in business; the changing nature of organizational life within the context of the old economy and the new; the great variety of capitalism around the world; and, through it all, his struggle to find meaning and fulfillment in work.

Handy uses the quirky, powerful metaphor of the elephant and the flea to describe and critique the great shift from the prevalence of behemoth, slow-moving, bureaucratic organizations that provided a lifetime of security and not much freedom or room for creativity, to a world in which we are much more independent and flea-like, flitting from job to job, latching onto elephants when we need to, but mostly flying solo and without safe havens.

This book is both a poignant personal memoir and a deep reflection on the past and future of world capitalism, with all its possibilities and pitfalls.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Charles Handy is always a delight to read, and The Elephant and the Flea--his autobiography-laced analysis of business over the past two decades--is no exception. In his 13th book, the United Kingdom's preeminent sage on commercial and industrial matters looks within and at education, marriage, religion, and society in order to assess the changing nature of employment. His literate and knowledgeable tale begins in 1981, when Handy decided to exchange a safe but stifling life with a corporation (the "elephant" of his title) for the riskier but potentially more rewarding existence of an independent (or "flea"). Mixing diverse experiences with cogent observations on the evolving workplace, he sets the scene for plausible projections about where we might yet be headed. "Just as the signs were there 20 years ago for those who wished to see them, so I believe we can glimpse the shape of the new capitalist world even if it may take another 20 years to develop," he writes. "We may not like what is coming but we would be foolish to think that we can plan our lives, or our children's lives, without giving some thought to the shape of the stage on which we and they will be strutting." Intensely personal yet remarkably universal, the book is another provocative, illuminating, and enjoyable work from the oil executive turned bestselling author. --Howard Rothman

From Publishers Weekly

A former oil executive and economist, as well as an early proponent of the "free agent" lifestyle, Handy (The Age of Unreason) uses his career as a telling example of how the nature of work has changed over the past 20 years and tries to predict how people will earn a living in the years ahead. Handy opens the book three-quarters autobiography, one-quarter social commentary with warm recollections of his Irish countryside childhood before elaborating his metaphor for the workplace, that of the elephant and flea. "Elephants" represent established corporations and large organizations of every kind, while "fleas" symbolize people who work independently as small-scale entrepreneurs. Handy, who used to work for Shell and has made his living as a lecturer and author since 1981, finds problems and opportunities in both kinds of establishments. Elephants, he contends, need to figure out ways to grow bigger while maintaining personal client relationships and rewarding creativity. The fleas need a better way to forge connections among themselves. Handy offers some general advice, but his main purpose is to try to make sense of the first 70 years of his life and the last two decades of the Western workplace. Some of his labor market analysis will seem familiar to readers, as it has already seeped into the cultural lexicon, but Handy's fans will appreciate this unusually personal look at the labor revolution. This is not the start-off book for those new to his work, however.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Harvard Business Press; First Edition edition (January 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578518229
• ISBN-13: 978-1578518227
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,088,616 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Handy Wants it Both Ways, July 12, 2002

By 

Craig L. Howe "The Pointed Pundit" (Darien, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Elephant and the Flea (Hardcover)

Charles Handy, a former oil company executive who recast himself as a freelance writer/thinker, desires success both ways.

While he celebrates the life of what he terms "the flea," --flexible, independent creative types -- he warns their life "is an invitation to selfishness and a recipe for a very privatized society."

Life, he says, requires a commitment to others. Something, he appears to believe can only be achieved by large organizations - the "elephants" of the world.

I found chapter entitled "The Problems of a Portfolio Life" particularly interesting. In it he describes three tensions which emerged from his decision to opt out of his organizational life for independence:

1. A lack of community.
2. The need for a driving passion.
3. The need to keep learning and developing.

He was particularly surprised by the first two points.

This is a book to be savored slowly; a book that explores three threads - the individual, the organization and society - and their interaction. When Handy publishes his treatise on how they should peacefully co-exist, I want to be first on line to purchase it.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Elefant and the Flea, June 29, 2002

By 

Raymundo Ramírez (Mexico, DF Mexico) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elephant and the Flea (Hardcover)

Mr. Handy's book sets forth some very original insights on democracy and the current challenges facing large organizations. Most significant to me, as a newcomer to "Fleadom" the book encouraged me to revisit my thoughts from a personal, family, societal and professional point of view. Mr. Handy's book was both inspirational and pragmatic.

3.0 out of 5 stars Good ideas, too many words., December 5, 2009

By 

Laszlo Boviz (Hungary) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Elephant and the Flea (Paperback)

Not enough practical information can be found in. There is too much triviality.
If the author could omit the needless words, the book would be the quarter of the whole.

It can be good for a very beginner flea. In other case keep looking for other books in the theme or from this author.