Peter Block, consultant and speaker, helped initiate the interest in empowerment; these days his work centers primarily on bringing of service and accountability to organizations and communities. He is a partner in Designed Learning, a training company that offers consulting skills workshops designed by Peter to build the skills outlined in his Flawless Consulting books. He received a Masters Degree in Industrial Administration from Yale University in 1963; he performed his undergraduate work at the University of Kansas.
Peter is the author of many best selling books, including Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used, second edition (1999); Stewardship: Choosing Service Over Self-Interest (1993); and The Empowered Manager: Positive Political Skills at Work (1987). His most recent books are The Answer to How Is Yes: Acting on What Matters (Berrett-Koehler, 2001), Freedom and Accountability at Work: Applying Philosophic Insight to the Real World, co-authored with consultant and philosopher Peter Koestenbaum (Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer, 2001), and Flawless Consulting Fieldbook & Companion: A Guide to Understanding Your Expertise (2000).
The books provide ways to create workplaces that live out their intentions and are also more habitable. Flawless Consulting is a widely praised book on the staff role in organizations. The Empowered Manager focuses on creating an organization of our own choosing. Stewardship is about the right use of power and designing organizations for service. Peter has published over 60 articles on organizational change and building productive communities. His books have been widely reviewed in newspapers and journals throughout the country.
Peter serves on the Boards of Directors of the Association for Quality and Participation and Connecticut Public TV and Radio. He helped found The School for Managing & Leading Change.
He has received several national awards for outstanding contributions in the field of training and development, including the American Society for Training and Development Award for Distinguished Contributions; the Association for Quality and Participation President's Award; and Training Magazine HRD Hall of Fame.
Peter lives in Ohio and his office is in Mystic, Connecticut.