Restraint, Focus, Simplicity: Are MBAs the Real Productivity Killers?

Originally published 2021-09-08Robin’s commentary

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Collected in Robin Shen’s Field Notes · Content type and attribution are shown above

English translation of the Chinese post originally published 2021-09-08. Translated 2026-10-29 with AI assistance. Historical figures and claims have not been updated or independently verified. 中文原文

Reading guide

Robin’s four-part formula: “Restraint, focus, simplicity, greater efficiency.” He follows it with a blunt jab: “Yes, you MBAs who like turning simple things into complicated ones—writing endless plans, designing endless processes, holding endless meetings, setting endless goals, and creating endless rules just to demonstrate your own value. In reality, you are the ones dragging down the company’s efficiency. To save Taiwan, start by drastically shrinking university business schools.” Rework identifies planning, meetings, workaholism, and rules as productivity killers. Robin notes that this may fit small startups particularly well, but these efficiency killers spread even more alarmingly in large companies—which makes the book especially relevant to their managers.

Key points

Restraint, focus, simplicity, greater efficiency.
A jab at MBAs: turning simple things into complicated ones.
Large companies need to be especially alert to the spread of productivity killers.

Distinct modular elements joined into a coordinated, balanced whole. — Management & organizationsThematic illustration · AI generated

Full text — English translation

Robin: “Restraint, focus, simplicity, greater efficiency.” Robin: “Yes, you MBAs who like turning simple things into complicated ones—writing endless plans, designing endless processes, holding endless meetings, setting endless goals, and creating endless rules just to demonstrate your own value. In reality, you are the ones dragging down the company’s efficiency.” To save Taiwan, start by drastically shrinking university business schools. First on the chopping block: undergraduate and graduate business administration programs. The productivity killers are planning, meetings, workaholism, and rules. Of course, this may fit small startups particularly well. But in large companies, those efficiency killers actually spread even more rapidly and alarmingly. That is why I think managers at large companies need this book even more.

These articles are personal notes, book excerpts, and collected reprints. Figures and events reflect the time of the original publication, are not current information, and do not constitute investment advice.

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