Parkinson's Law (Library Binding)

~ Cyril Northcote Parkinson (Author) "WORK EXPANDS so as to fill the time available for its completion..." (more)
Key Phrases: Parkinson's Law, Colonial Office, Privy Council (more...)

Product Details

• Library Binding: 112 pages
• Publisher: Buccaneer Books (February 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568490151
• ISBN-13: 978-1568490151
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #80,762 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #36 in

  Books > Nonfiction > Government > Public Affairs & Administration

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great wisdom in a small package, January 3, 2000

By	Doug Vaughn (Washington, Dc USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Parkinson's Law briefly stated is that 'work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.' If it doesn't seem that an entire book could be written about this thesis then you haven't encountered the imaginative genius and the stinging comic wit of C. Northcote Parkinson. He is able to use this little insight as an analytic tool to expose much of what is wrong with organizations and why much in both business and government seems at odds with common sense. For example, why the British Colonial Office has grown in number of employees as the actual number of colonies declined - so that it employed more people when the number of colonies had been reduced to zero than when they were at their highest number. Witty, brilliant and always right on the money, Parkinson can make what should be deadly dull - a description of bureaucracy - into a delightful excursion through the halls of pompus human folly. Really great stuff. This book is a classic and can be read and reread with great pleasure.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite simply, the best business book ever written., May 3, 1999

By A Customer

As Peter Drucker was beginning his interminable series of texts on the details of business strategy, Parkinson wrote a book that describes how it really works in most big organizations, whether they be in business or the public sector.

His basic premises that work expands to fill the time available, that the important decisions fall victim to the easily understood, and that bureaucratic organizations that grow too large no longer need any outside contact have been demonstrated to me over and over during a 30 year career in business.

The decade of downsizing we are witnessing demonstrates just how much fat there is in most organizations. Parkinson had it right over 30 years ago

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The sine qua non of rules that organizations live by!, July 22, 2002

By	David S. Rose (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is one of more seminal books ever written. Once you read it you will NEVER again look at time management, the British Admiralty, a Board Meeting or a cocktail party in the same way. "Work expands to fill the time allotted to its completion" is the first and most famous rule, but the others (and the stories that illustrate them) are just as hilarious and dead on. Run, don't walk, to get this book, and you will be quoting and remembering it for the rest of your life.

While you're at it (and if you have a really dry, British and warped sense of humor), don't forget to check out "Gamesmanship" and "Lifemanship" by Stephen Potter.