Peter Drucker

In 1934, Peter Drucker married Doris Schmitz, whom he had known since he was a student at the University of Frankfurt. They had four children; three daughters and one son.

In 1943, Drucker became a naturalized American citizen. He had a varied interest and an affinity to Japanese culture, coauthoring a book on Japanese painting. His works were also very popular in Japan.

Even after he stopped taking classes, Drucker continued to work, acting as consultant to business houses as well as non-profit organizations. In many cases, he did not take any fees.

Peter Druker was born on November 19, 1909 in Kaasgrabengasse, at that time a tranquil avenue in the Viennese suburb of Döbling. His father, Adolph Bertram Drucker, was an economist and a lawyer, occupying a high position in the government service.

His mother, Caroline Bond Drucker, was a student of medicine with an interest in psychiatry. A strong-willed and independent lady, she was the one who ran the household. For a brief period, she also worked in the medicinal field.

The couple was an ardent supporter of social reformer Eugenia "Genia" Schwarzwald. They were also socially very active, holding frequent soirées at home. In these gatherings, everybody from state officials to lawyers, doctors, psychologists, scientists and philosophers were invited and they would discuss all kinds of topics over dinner.

Peter was the elder of his parents’ two children, having a younger brother named Gerhard. From an early age, Peter and his brother were allowed to take part in the soirées. Thus Peter came to know intellectual giants like Joseph Schumpeter, Friedrich Hayek, Ludwig von Mises and Hans Kelson from an early age.

It is not known where he started his education; but when he was in the fourth grade, he was enrolled at a co-educational school set up by Genia. Here, he imbibed an appreciation for craftsmanship, respect for the task, value of discipline and also learned to organize his tasks.

In 1927, Peter Drucker passed from Döbling Gymnasium and thereafter moved to Hamburg for a one-year apprenticeship at a cotton export-import firm. But due to the apathy of the manager he did learn anything. Instead, he spent the time reading—mostly literature and 19th century history.

Sometime during this period, he discovered the work of Danish philosopher Kierkegaar, which would later have immense influence on him. Moreover, this was also the time when he made his first attempt at journalism, writing articles for ‘Der Österreichische Volkswirt’. He also started studying law at the behest of his father.

In 1928, Peter Drucker moved to Frankfurt, where he found employment with the F’rankfurter General-Anzeiger’, a daily newspaper and a rival to the famous ‘Frankfurter Zeitung’. Here, he quickly rose to become one of the paper’s three editors.

Although Peter was primarily responsible for the foreign affairs and economic departments, he was required to work in all the departments, including women’s section or even music. He also had to cover political rallies and press conference, thus acquiring a wide experience.

In 1931, studying in private, Peter Drucker earned his doctorate in international and public law from the University of Frankfurt. Thereafter, he remained in Germany for two more years.In 1933, when Hitler came to power, Peter left the country, moving first to England and then to the USA.

On reaching London in 1933, Peter Ducker first obtained the position of a trainee at an insurance company. Later he was appointed an economist at a bank, whose director was an Austrian. All the while, he continued to record his experiences in Germany since the takeover of the Nationalist Socialist Party.

In 1934, he was sponsored by his director to attend Lord John Maynard Keynes’ seminar in Cambridge; but was sorely disappointed. He later said, while Keynes was only interested in the behavior of commodities, he wanted to learn about the behavior of people.

In 1936, he published his first work, 'Die Judenfrage in Deutschland' (The Jewish Question in Germany). It was later revised and republished in English as ‘The End of Economic Man’ and met with a broad and positive response. However in Germany, the book was banned and burned.