Robert H. Waterman Jr. (November 11, 1936 - January 2, 2022) was a non-fiction author and expert on

business management Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of management ...

practices. He was best known as the co-author, with

Tom Peters Thomas J. Peters (born November 7, 1942) is an American writer on business management practices, best known for ''In Search of Excellence'' (co-authored with Robert H. Waterman Jr.) Life and education Peters was born in Baltimore, Maryland. ...

, of ''

In Search of Excellence ''In Search of Excellence'' is a book written by Tom Peters and Robert H. Waterman Jr. First published in 1982, it sold three million copies in its first four years, and was the most widely held monograph in the United States from 1989 to 2006. T ...

''. Waterman later directed his own company, The Waterman Group, Inc., after 21 years at the management consulting firm

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

. ''

'' was published in 1982 and became a bestseller, gaining national exposure when a series of television specials based on the book and hosted by Waterman and Peters appeared on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcasting, public broadcaster and Non-commercial activity, non-commercial, Terrestrial television, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly fu ...

. The primary idea espoused was that of solving business problems with as little

business process overhead Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separate ...

as possible, and empowering decision-makers at multiple levels of a company. He is also the author of: *''The Renewal Factor'' *''Adhocracy: the Power to Change'' *''What America Does Right'' (''Frontiers of Excellence'' in Europe and UK).

Career

He earned his

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ye ...

geophysics Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

from the

Colorado School of Mines The Colorado School of Mines, informally called Mines, is a public research university in Golden, Colorado, founded in 1874. The school offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, science, and mathematics, with a focus on ener ...

in 1958, and

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

in 1961. From 1963 until 1985 Waterman worked for the management consulting firm McKinsey & Company becoming a Director in 1976. Later he served as a Founding Director of the electric power firm, AES.

Personal life

Waterman served as chair of the RLS Foundation, the national non-profit organization that sponsors research, raises awareness of, and looks for better treatments for

Restless leg syndrome Restless legs syndrome (RLS), also known as Willis-Ekbom disease (WED), is generally a long-term disorder that causes a strong urge to move one's legs. There is often an unpleasant feeling in the legs that improves somewhat by moving them. This ...

. He also served on the boards of the

World Wildlife Fund The World Wide Fund for Nature Inc. (WWF) is an international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named the Wo ...

, Scleroderma Research Foundation, US Ski Team, ASK Group, Boise Cascade, the AES Corporation, and McKesson. He died on January 2, 2022, in Palo Alto, California, at age 85.Robert H. Waterman Jr.
www.legacy.com

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Waterman, Robert H. Jr. Living people American business theorists American non-fiction writers Stanford Graduate School of Business alumni Colorado School of Mines alumni American financial businesspeople 1936 births