Laurence J. Peter
Overview
 
Dr. Laurence Johnston Peter (September 16, 1919 – January 12, 1990) was an educator and "hierarchiologist
Hierarchical organization
A hierarchical organization is an organizational structure where every entity in the organization, except one, is subordinate to a single other entity. This arrangement is a form of a hierarchy. In an organization, the hierarchy usually consists of a singular/group of power at the top with...

", best known to the general public for the formulation of the Peter Principle
Peter Principle
The Peter Principle states that "in a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence", meaning that employees tend to be promoted until they reach a position at which they cannot work competently. It was formulated by Dr. Laurence J...

.

He was born in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, and began his career as a teacher in 1941. He received the degree of Doctor of Education
Doctor of Education
The Doctor of Education or Doctor in Education degree , in Latin, Doctor Educationis, is a research-oriented professional doctorate that prepares the student for academic, administrative, clinical, or research positions in educational, civil, and private organizations.-Differences between an Ed.D...

 from Washington State University
Washington State University
Washington State University is a public research university based in Pullman, Washington, in the Palouse region of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1890, WSU is the state's original and largest land-grant university...

 in 1963.

In 1964, Peter moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, where he became an Associate Professor of Education, Director of the Evelyn Frieden Centre for Prescriptive Teaching, and Coordinator of Programs for Emotionally Disturbed Children at the University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...

.

He became widely famous in 1968, on the publication of The Peter Principle
Peter Principle
The Peter Principle states that "in a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence", meaning that employees tend to be promoted until they reach a position at which they cannot work competently. It was formulated by Dr. Laurence J...

, in which he states: "In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence ...
Quotations

In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence.

The Peter Principle (1968), ch. 1

Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status.

Peter's Quotations: Ideas for Our Time (1977) ISBN 0-688-03217-6, p. 83

Television has changed the American child from an irresistible force into an immovable object.

Peter's Quotations, p. 324

When you see yourself quoted in print and you're sorry you said it, it suddenly becomes a misquotation.

Peter's Quotations, p. 418

The only valid rule about the proper length of a statement is that it achieve its purpose effectively.

Peter's Quotations: Ideas for Our Time, Introduction, p. 10

The habitually punctual make all their mistakes right on time.

Peter's Quotations: Ideas for Our Time, p. 181

 
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