William Ouchi
Encyclopedia
William G. Ouchi is an American professor and author in the field of business management.
Bill Ouchi was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. He earned a B.A. from Williams College
(1965), an MBA from Stanford University
and a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Chicago
. He was a Stanford business school professor for 8 years and has been a faculty member of the Anderson School of Management at University of California, Los Angeles
for many years.
Ouchi first came to prominence for his studies of the differences between Japanese and American companies and management styles. His first book in 1981 summarized his observations. Theory Z
: How American Management Can Meet the Japanese Challenge and was a New York Times best-seller for over five months. It currently ranks as the seventh most widely held book of the 12 million titles held in 4000 U.S. libraries. His second book, The M Form Society: How American Teamwork Can Recapture the Competitive Edge, examined various techniques implementing that approach.
Ouchi also came up with his three approaches to control
in an organization's management:
Arnold Schwarzenegger
of California
, and some of his proposals are being considered currently. In the 1990s, he served as advisor and chief of staff to former Los Angeles
Mayor Richard Riordan
. In 2009 his book, The Secret of TSL: The Revolutionary Discovery That Raises School Performance was published which explores the revolutionary potential of reducing total student load, the number of students a teacher interacts with on a daily basis over the course of a semester. Ouchi's premise has the potential to change school systems across the country as local principals control more of their own budgets to make creative hiring decisions aimed at reducing to eighty the total number of students each teacher interacts with on a given day.
In the business community, he serves on the boards of directors of The Hilton Foundation, AECOM
, FirstFed Financial
, Sempra Energy
, and Water-Pik Technologies.
Bill Ouchi was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. He earned a B.A. from Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
(1965), an MBA from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and a Ph.D. in Business Administration from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
. He was a Stanford business school professor for 8 years and has been a faculty member of the Anderson School of Management at University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
for many years.
Ouchi first came to prominence for his studies of the differences between Japanese and American companies and management styles. His first book in 1981 summarized his observations. Theory Z
Theory Z
Theory Z is a name applied to three distinctly different psychological theories. One was developed by Abraham H. Maslow in his paper Theory Z and the other is Dr. William Ouchi's so-called "Japanese Management" style popularized during the Asian economic boom of the 1980s. The third was developed...
: How American Management Can Meet the Japanese Challenge and was a New York Times best-seller for over five months. It currently ranks as the seventh most widely held book of the 12 million titles held in 4000 U.S. libraries. His second book, The M Form Society: How American Teamwork Can Recapture the Competitive Edge, examined various techniques implementing that approach.
Ouchi also came up with his three approaches to control
Social control
Social control refers generally to societal and political mechanisms or processes that regulate individual and group behavior, leading to conformity and compliance to the rules of a given society, state, or social group. Many mechanisms of social control are cross-cultural, if only in the control...
in an organization's management:
- Market control
- Bureaucratic control
- Clan control
Research regarding schools
In recent years Ouchi has turned his attention to the challenges posed for local schools by a top-down management style at the central office. He published an overview in 2003 in Making Schools Work. He chaired an education reform panel for GovernorGovernor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
of 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...
, and some of his proposals are being considered currently. In the 1990s, he served as advisor and chief of staff to former Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
Mayor Richard Riordan
Richard Riordan
Richard J. Riordan is a Republican politician from California, U.S.A. who served as the California Secretary for Education from 2003–2005 and as the 39th Mayor of Los Angeles, California from 1993–2001...
. In 2009 his book, The Secret of TSL: The Revolutionary Discovery That Raises School Performance was published which explores the revolutionary potential of reducing total student load, the number of students a teacher interacts with on a daily basis over the course of a semester. Ouchi's premise has the potential to change school systems across the country as local principals control more of their own budgets to make creative hiring decisions aimed at reducing to eighty the total number of students each teacher interacts with on a given day.
Other activities
In the larger community, Ouchi serves on the Advisory Board of the U.S. Commission on Presidential Debates, on the Board of Trustees of the Japanese American National Museum, and on the Board of Directors of The Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools - an operator of inner-city charter schools in Los Angeles. He previously served on the boards of Williams College, KCET Public Television, The California Community Foundation, Leadership Education for Asian-Pacifics, the Consumer Advisory Committee of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and of the Harvard-Westlake School.In the business community, he serves on the boards of directors of The Hilton Foundation, AECOM
AECOM
AECOM Technology Corporation is a professional technical and management support services firm. The company is ranked as the number one design firm for 2010 and 2011 by Engineering News-Record and number one by Architectural Record. It provides services in the areas of transportation, planning,...
, FirstFed Financial
First Federal Bank of California
The First Federal Bank of California was a community bank founded in 1929, and encompassed most of Southern California. As of 2009, It operated approximately thirty-nine branches....
, Sempra Energy
Sempra Energy
Sempra Energy is a Fortune 500 energy services holding company based in San Diego, California. It divides its interests into two broad categories: Sempra Utilities, including Pacific Enterprises/Southern California Gas Company and San Diego Gas & Electric; and Sempra Global, a holding company for...
, and Water-Pik Technologies.
See also
- Douglas McGregorDouglas McGregorDouglas Murray McGregor was a Management professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management and president of Antioch College from 1948 to 1954. He also taught at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta. His 1960 book The Human Side of Enterprise had a profound influence on education practices...
- Theory X and theory YTheory X and theory YTheory X and Theory Y are theories of human motivation created and developed by Douglas McGregor at the MIT Sloan School of Management in the 1960s that have been used in human resource management, organizational behavior, organizational communication and organizational development...
- Theory ZTheory ZTheory Z is a name applied to three distinctly different psychological theories. One was developed by Abraham H. Maslow in his paper Theory Z and the other is Dr. William Ouchi's so-called "Japanese Management" style popularized during the Asian economic boom of the 1980s. The third was developed...
- List of business theorists
External links and further reading
- "Beware of the Easy School Fix" opinion by Jay Mathews in The Washington PostThe Washington PostThe Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
September 26, 2009