The Tom Peters Phenomen

Tom Peters — guru, corporate messiah, author and fashion accessory. The first biography of a management legend, The Tom Peters Phenomenon uncovers the truth behind the hype, the reality behind the Peters mythology. Stuart Crainer traces the rise of a one-man industry from Vietnam, McKinsey and the Pentagon to a corporate Billy Graham.

Stuart Crainer gained unique access to Tom Peters, obtaining many hours of revealing interviews. He has built a complete picture by talking to Peters's former associates, his contemporaries, acolytes and opponents.

The Tom Peters Phenomenon is a searching account of a management icon, simultaneously demystifying the whole guru industry whilst explaining why managers continue to put such faith and dollars into a select few individuals.

• Acknowldgements
• One: The Birth Of Excellence
• April 1978, San Francisco
• The Charismatic Chameleon
• The Roots of Excellence
• The Magnificent Seven
• Mastering the Model
• Two: The Bestseller
• From Humble Pie to Apple Pie
• Back to Basics
• Death to Rationalists
• Big Is Beautiful
• Breaking the Mold
• The Legacy
• Three: Corporate Man
• December 2nd, 1974, San Francisco
• The Development of a Corporate Man
• Shaping The Man
• Building Bridges
• Back to School
• The Firm
• The Myth of the Renegade Consultant
• Leaving The Firm
• Mentors for Life
• Four: Peters The Corporation
• Back to Unreality
• The Skunk Goes Camping
• No Jack Welch
• On the Road With a Passion
• Corporate Man to Corporate Skunk
• Five: The Backlash
• November 1984, Palo Alto
• Fifteen Minutes of Fame
• Excellence Fails
• The Myth of Permanence
• Six: The Guru Gravy Train
• December 1988, London
• The Rise and Rise of the Guru Business
• Inventing the Guru
• Elvis Peters
• Those Who Pay Homage
• Does It Work?
• Delighting in Inconsistency
• Hard Cash; Hard Sell
• Seven: The Chaotic Revolution
• Welcome to the Revolution
• Setting the Change Agenda
• Eight: Liberating Management
• The Cuttings Service
• Peters the Columnist
• The Route to Liberation
• Writing in Hypertext
• The New Organization
• Discovering the World
• Wow?
• Nine: Uncle Toms's Cabin
• December 1996, London
• Fickle Fame
• Leaping Into the Unknown
• June 1996, Vermont

A good book about Peters. Written in a funny way, but can't be recommended, unless you want to understand the management consulting culture better.