---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: [Management] has authority only as long…"
description: "\"[Management] has authority only as long as it performs.\" — Peter Drucker"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png"
---

#  \[Management\] has authority only as long as it performs.

![“&#91;Management&#93; has authority only as long as it performs.” quote by Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png)

> “\[Management\] has authority only as long as it performs.”

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Authority is justified only when it delivers results; without performance, power loses legitimacy.

**In simple terms:** Authority depends on results.

Key Takeaway

Earn and keep authority by delivering value.

Themes

leadership authority performance

Mood

critical reflective

Type

advisory strategic

When to use this quote

- team management
- project delivery
- organizational change
- performance reviews

Key Concepts

management theory legitimacy accountability

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you measure the performance that justifies authority?
- What happens when authority is retained despite poor results?

A Different Perspective

Authority without results can breed resentment and disengagement.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/) [Authority Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority-long-3692570/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Long Performs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-performs-3692571/) [Management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management/) [Management Authority](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/management-authority-3692569/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/)

## Related quotes

> [Do I think it's OK to fight authority as long as you're only talking about the high school teacher? No.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mellencamp/do-i-think-it-s-ok-to-fight-authority-as-long-as-you-re-only-talking/)

[John Mellencamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mellencamp/)

> [They must find it hard to take Truth for authority who have so long mistaken Authority for Truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-massey/they-must-find-it-hard-to-take-truth-for-authority-who-have-so-long/)

[Gerald Massey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-massey/)

> [Management means, in the last analysis, the substitution of thought for brawn and muscle, of knowledge for folkways and superstition, and of cooperation for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-means-in-the-last-analysis-the-substitution-of-thought-for/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Teamwork is neither "good" nor "desirable." It is a fact. Wherever people work together or play together they do so as a team. Which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/teamwork-is-neither-good-nor-desirable-it-is-a-fact-wherever-people/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [The computer actually may have aggravated management's degenerative tendency to focus inward on costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/the-computer-actually-may-have-aggravated-management-s-degenerative/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [“Someone asked me once at a talk why I so stress the positive with my students yet am such an unstinting critic of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derrick-jensen/someone-asked-me-once-at-a-talk-why-i-so-stress-the-positive-with-my/)

[Derrick Jensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derrick-jensen/)

> [People are always casting me for what they call my 'authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-hunt/people-are-always-casting-me-for-what-they-call-my-authority/)

[Linda Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-hunt/)

> [“Does it follow that I reject all authority? Perish the thought. In the matter of boots, I defer to the authority of the bootmaker;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-bakunin/does-it-follow-that-i-reject-all-authority-perish-the-thought-in-the/)

[Mikhail Bakunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-bakunin/)

> [“This world is indeed of our ownership, but the authority (over it) is not received. However much cleansing one accomplishes, that is how much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/this-world-is-indeed-of-our-ownership-but-the-authority-over-it-is/)

[Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/)

> [In any given society the authority of man over man runs in inverse proportion to the intellectual development of that society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-joseph-proudhon/in-any-given-society-the-authority-of-man-over-man-runs-in-inverse/)

[Pierre-Joseph Proudhon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-joseph-proudhon/)

> [Obedience is the psychological mechanism that links individual action to political purpose. It is the dispositional cement that binds men to systems of authority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/obedience-is-the-psychological-mechanism-that-links-individual-action/)

[Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/)

> [“The idea of authority, which they represented, was associated in our minds with a greater insight and a more humane wisdom. But the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-maria-remarque/the-idea-of-authority-which-they-represented-was-associated-in-our/)

[Erich Maria Remarque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-maria-remarque/)

> [Sometimes it's easier for people who are in authority to be authoritarian, because people know where you stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/sometimes-it-s-easier-for-people-who-are-in-authority-to-be/)

[Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/)

> [“I'm of the age and immaturity level that I cannot give you my respect solely because you are older or ranked higher on an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-goros/i-m-of-the-age-and-immaturity-level-that-i-cannot-give-you-my-respect/)

[Erica Goros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-goros/)

> [At a distance, we cannot conceive of the authority of a despot who knows all his subjects on sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/at-a-distance-we-cannot-conceive-of-the-authority-of-a-despot-who/)

[Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/)

## More by Peter Drucker

> [One reason for the tremendous increase in health-care costs in the U.S. is managerial neglect of the "hotel services" by the people who dominate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/one-reason-for-the-tremendous-increase-in-health-care-costs-in-the-u/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [No executive has ever suffered because his subordinates were strong and effective.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/no-executive-has-ever-suffered-because-his-subordinates-were-strong/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Results is all that separates one company from another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/results-is-all-that-separates-one-company-from-another/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [“There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all. Peter Drucker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/there-is-nothing-so-useless-as-doing-efficiently-that-which-should/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Our society has become an employee society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/our-society-has-become-an-employee-society/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Replace your pursuit of success with the pursuit of contribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/replace-your-pursuit-of-success-with-the-pursuit-of-contribution/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Management means, in the last analysis, the substitution of thought for brawn and muscle, of knowledge for folkways and superstition, and of cooperation for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-means-in-the-last-analysis-the-substitution-of-thought-for/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Don't try to innovate for the future. Innovate for the present!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/don-t-try-to-innovate-for-the-future-innovate-for-the-present/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [The critical question is not "How can I achieve?" but "What can I contribute?"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/the-critical-question-is-not-how-can-i-achieve-but-what-can-i/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [We can say with certainty - or 90% probability - that the new industries that are about to be born will have nothing to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/we-can-say-with-certainty-or-90-probability-that-the-new-industries/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [When it rains manna from heaven, some people put up an umbrella. Others reach for a big spoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/when-it-rains-manna-from-heaven-some-people-put-up-an-umbrella-others/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [The enterprise can fulfill its human and social functions only if it prospers as a business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/the-enterprise-can-fulfill-its-human-and-social-functions-only-if-it/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [The computer actually may have aggravated management's degenerative tendency to focus inward on costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/the-computer-actually-may-have-aggravated-management-s-degenerative/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [Nobody can predict the future; the idea is to have a firm grasp of the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/nobody-can-predict-the-future-the-idea-is-to-have-a-firm-grasp-of-the/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

> [An executive should be a realist; and no one is less realistic than the cynic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/an-executive-should-be-a-realist-and-no-one-is-less-realistic-than/)

[Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

[Explore all 603 Peter Drucker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/)

## More Authority quotes

> [I don't believe in competitions between artists. This is insane. Who has the authority to say someone is better?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-arkin/i-don-t-believe-in-competitions-between-artists-this-is-insane-who/)

[Alan Arkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-arkin/)

> [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/)

[Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/)

> [I think people need to be comfortable questioning the authority of a doctor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susannah-cahalan/i-think-people-need-to-be-comfortable-questioning-the-authority-of-a/)

[Susannah Cahalan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susannah-cahalan/)

> [At a distance, we cannot conceive of the authority of a despot who knows all his subjects on sight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stendhal/at-a-distance-we-cannot-conceive-of-the-authority-of-a-despot-who/)

[Stendhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stendhal/)

> [Throughout human history, as our species has faced the frightening, terrorizing fact that we do not know who we are, or where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-leary/throughout-human-history-as-our-species-has-faced-the-frightening/)

[Timothy Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-leary/)

> [“I'm of the age and immaturity level that I cannot give you my respect solely because you are older or ranked higher on an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-goros/i-m-of-the-age-and-immaturity-level-that-i-cannot-give-you-my-respect/)

[Erica Goros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-goros/)

> [In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-a-coyne/in-the-end-theologians-are-jealous-of-science-for-they-are-aware-that/)

[Jerry A. Coyne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-a-coyne/)

> [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [Miracles are like candles lit up until the sun rises, and then blown out. Therefore, I am amused when I hear sects and churches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/miracles-are-like-candles-lit-up-until-the-sun-rises-and-then-blown/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [The execution was set for the 29th of March, at nine in the morning. This delay was due to a desire on the part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/the-execution-was-set-for-the-29th-of-march-at-nine-in-the-morning/)

[Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/)

> [I started with the belief that every person who came to the laboratory was free to accept or to reject the dictates of authority.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-milgram/i-started-with-the-belief-that-every-person-who-came-to-the/)

[Stanley Milgram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-milgram/)

> [The rationale which accompanies that imposition of male authority euphemistically referred to as 'the battle of the sexes' bears a certain resemblance to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-millett/the-rationale-which-accompanies-that-imposition-of-male-authority/)

[Kate Millett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-millett/)

> [“We are at the mercy of whoever wields authority over the things we either desire or detest. If you would be free, then, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/we-are-at-the-mercy-of-whoever-wields-authority-over-the-things-we/)

[Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/)

> [Sometimes it's easier for people who are in authority to be authoritarian, because people know where you stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-streep/sometimes-it-s-easier-for-people-who-are-in-authority-to-be/)

[Meryl Streep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-streep/)

> [The victory of Hamas is not only based on the corruption of the Palestinian Authority. Hamas has a vision and a program, and this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ismail-haniyeh/the-victory-of-hamas-is-not-only-based-on-the-corruption-of-the/)

[Ismail Haniyeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ismail-haniyeh/)

[Browse all 4,003 Authority quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authority/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "[Management] has authority only as long as it performs.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Peter Drucker"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-has-authority-only-as-long-as-it-performs/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Authority"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-has-authority-only-as-long-as-it-performs/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/435/peter-drucker-393_authority_management-has-authority-only-as-long-as_2836235.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“[Management] has authority only as long as it performs.” — Peter Drucker",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Peter Drucker",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "[Management] has authority only as long...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-has-authority-only-as-long-as-it-performs/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/management-has-authority-only-as-long-as-it-performs/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
