Anthony Stafford Beer Quotes

The purpose of a system is what it does. There is after all, no point in claiming that the purpose of a system is to do what it constantly fails to do.

It is terribly important to appreciate that some things remain obscure to the bitter end.

Too close a view may interfere with one's grasp of an overall problem or concept.

Instead of trying to specify a system in full detail, specify it only somewhat. You can then ride on the dynamics of the system in the direction you want to go.

If cybernetics is the science of control, management is the profession of control.

Management problems are not respecters of the company organization, nor of the talents of the people appointed to solve them.

It is the concept of likelihood that a real understanding of probability resides, and we must learn how to measure it.

A slowly moving queue does not move uniformly. Rather, waves of motion pass down the queue. The frequency and amplitude of these waves is inversely related to the speed at which the queue is served.

The system of transportation is not coherent; it is not treated as integral. Roads compete with with railroads and airlines in chaotic fashion, and at immense cost to the nation.

The strategies that managers employ are at least as important as the facilities at their disposal.

A stochastic process is about the results of convolving probabilities-which is just what management is about, as well.

There is, then, a logical priority about the arrangements, and logic has nothing to do with time.

Policy-making, decision-taking, and control: These are the three functions of management that have intellectual content.