Rating: 
Summary: You will be the Peter Principle if we don't read this book.
Review: "The Peter Principle; why things always go wrong" by Dr. Laurence J. Peter and Raymond Hull, William Morrow & Company, Inc., New York, 1969, 179 pages in paperback. The Peter Principle: In a Hierarchy Every Employee Tends to Rise to His Level of Incompetence. The author provides an insightful analysis of why so many positions in so many organizations seem to be populated by employees who exhibit signs of incompetence. A most disturbing concept since we all tend to all rise to our own level of incompetence. This concept is likely to be ignored by most senior managers and consultants since to admit it is to admit that we may also be at our own level incompetence. Ignorance is bliss? The end result is that non-growing companies are more likely to have incompetent employees at many levels of the organizational structure whereas growing companies add new positions and employees so fast that the inevitable results of the Peter Principle may be forestalled as long as growth continues. "Employees", as the author points out, "do not want to be incompetent", but when management offers promotions that put the employees into their level of incompetence, the employees have no way of knowing that ahead of time. After all, if the offer is made it is because management "knows" the employee can do the job competently. Many managers are at their level of incompetence thus they make these poor selections.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't take it too seriously
Review: Dr Peter's very on target analysis of rising to the level of incompetence is presented with great wit. The originality, so in contrast to the "positive thinking" which Dr Peter deplores, gives one much food for thought. The entire work is highly entertaining and enjoyable, the principle one that we'd be wise to observe. Excellent.
Rating:
Summary: the peter principle
Review: I read this book in the '70s when it first came out. It says it all!!! NEVER, did I know, how many times I would see this principle be exhibited; from the supreme court justices to the lowliest worker. It's so frightening it me nauseas. This small book is absolutely the most important book ever written.If all people could learn from "the peter principle" and "the road less travelled" and put the knowledge to practice, we would be a 100% different world than we are today. By all intensive purposes, I am a well read person, however, these two texts, make all things learned, viewed with a greater awareness.
Rating:
Summary: the peter principle
Review: I read this book in the '70s when it first came out. It says it all!!! NEVER, did I know, how many times I would see this principle be exhibited; from the supreme court justices to the lowliest worker. It's so frightening it me nauseas. This small book is absolutely the most important book ever written.If all people could learn from "the peter principle" and "the road less travelled" and put the knowledge to practice, we would be a 100% different world than we are today. By all intensive purposes, I am a well read person, however, these two texts, make all things learned, viewed with a greater awareness.
Rating:
Summary: Good until the end
Review: I read this book with great enthusiasm, having heard so much about it. And sure enough, the first few chapters were great. But the ending was kind of a letdown. I feel that Dr. Peter built up my expectations and then failed to deliver what I really needed: how to avoid the P.P.
Rating:
Summary: quite humorous and ironic, but realistic
Review: I think that most people will view this book with an apprehensive nature. Why? Simply because almost all readers know the basic theme of this work: that people in the business world, not matter what field or area, rise naturally to their own level of incompetence.
I think most would consider their jobs quite productive, especially if they are working in their chosen fields. I cannot imagine that many people work their ways up the chain of command simply to be less productive. (And according to Dr. Peter, denial is one of the symptoms!)
I really enjoyed the book, which is full of humor and irony, but I worry that readers will either not take it seriously or either go to the other extreme and consider the principle to be an all-inclusive unavoidable trap. It does not help that Dr. Peter in his quirky way, offers no real solution to the dilemma.
So I suggest that readers give much thought to the evidence that the book presents (each example does after all make quite a lot of sense). It had me identifying related cases in the jobs I've had.
Finally, The Peter Principle is an easy read, divided by chapters and subdivided by categories with several examples. Quick readers should able to read it thoroughly in around two days, especially if the sarcastic wit holds them.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightning ... to a certain extent
Review: It is true: this books is quite humorous and intriguing.
The first time I read it I was fascinated by the whole idea. I was able to relate this to many other ideas used in problem solving and critical thinking. However, upon a second reading I started to see some inconsistencies, and a couple of things started to annoy me.
However, the book is great in that it gives great cohesion and logic to the justification and mechanisms of incompetence in the world. His ideas are very engaging and, in more than a way, sadly funny at the same time.
As is my experience, this book should be read at least twice.
For the thorough reader, three times is recommended. Why?
Because the ideas are very appealing at first, but on a second pass you will start to notice certain inconsistent ideas.
Very worth reading, and if you should read it just once, it is more than worth the try.
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Summary: JD
Review: Look at the bell-curve. Not the controvertial book by Herrnstein and Murray, but the statistical bell curve used in grading and whatnot. The bell curve proves two things:1) One half of the people you meet--that is every other person you meet--is below average. 2) Only 1/4 of the people you meet are really smart--those of the upper quartile--and in a democracy they will always be out voted. Our hope is in that upper 25%, yet they will always be in a minority, with the lesser 75% of us misunderstanding them, or dragging them down. Now you see how this book makes sense! Keep in mind that a theory is only as good as it's data. Luckily, we can verify the Peter Principle rather easily. Just look around your workplace, and look at what goes on. You will see the Peter Principle in al it's glory. A painfully true book!
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Summary: JD
Review: The Peter Principle is an excellent book, if you want to know the secret to FAILURE. Laurence Peter's self-proclaimed principle that "each person rises to their highest level of incompetence" only serves to demonstrate Peter's dislike for people and his own failure in life. It has been said that it takes no more than to read the first chapter of any book to determine whether or not the author likes people, meaning that the author is truly interested in telling a story, sharing facts regarding an issue or teaching a new-found knowledge to the reader. Peter on the other hand, begins assuming that people are inherently failures, and it is only a matter of time and effort before they become that. Peter's self-fulfilling prophesy, eeerrr, theory, is no better demonstrated than in his own book, the Peter Principle. It was the transition to his highest level of incompetence. I would not recommend this book to anyone who believes in leadership, success, the trail and tribulations on the road to success and the richness and diversity of people and the endurance of the human spirit. Napoleon Hill wrote in his book: Think and Grow Rich and I will paraphrase: The difference between those who are truly successful and those who are not is this, there are those who fail, fail and fail, then give up; they are the unsuccessful in life. Then there are those who fail, fail and fail, then get up; they are the truly successful. Unfortunately, Peter didn't realize the importance of encouraging people to succeed, instead he chose only to present the scenario that if you've done well, stop at that, you couldn't possibly get any better?! I suggest to the Amazon.com readers to save their time and money from this book.
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Summary: Unscientific nonsense
Review: this book supposedly coined the popular phrase, known as Peter's principle, "people get promoted until they reach their level of incompetence", which is a somewhat funny and simplistic statement that appeals to our natural envy by making fun of successful people. Unfortunately, this simplistic view is all there is to this book. Such cases of management incompetence exist, of course, but in reality, things are just more complicated than that. The book does not even remotely consider the possibilty of people learning or advancing mentally - up to the point that even schoolchildren failing a grade are characterized as having reached their level of incompetence. The same gross oversimplification can be found throughout the entire book. It is an endless repetition of obviously fictitious examples of incompetence that serve to illustrate the dubious principles that it promotes. While the book never stops claiming its own scientificness, it provides little more than "argument by repetition". The book culminates in praising the "power of negative thinking" and describing clever ways to avoid getting promoted. No doubt it can serve as an excuse for underachievers, but it does nothing to justify the popularity of "Peter's principle".
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