Peter Scholtes died peacefully this morning [11 July 2009] in Madison, Wisconsin. His family was with him.

My father wrote about the First Street Garage project in W. Edwards Deming’s Out of the Crisis (pages 245-247). Peter (who was working for the City of Madison at the time) and he became good friends working on that project together. Peter went to work for Joiner Associates afterwards and was a primary author of the Team Handbook. And Peter spent many years working with Dr. W. Edwards Deming and moving forward Dr. Deming’s ideas.

I would meet with Peter when consulted in Washington DC (which he did a good deal) and when I would visit Madison. He was extremely funny, compassionate, competent and effective. It was always a joy and educational to spend time with him. His Leader’s Handbook is the first management book I recommend to anyone. Peter enriched my life and the lives of many of others. And he will continue to do so through his works and those who were influenced by him.

Peter was a great friend and a wonderful person to talk with. I valued our shared interest in improving people’s lives by improving the practice of management. Peter was a priest before moving into management improvement. He retained his focus on helping people lead rewarding lives as a consultant. And we shared the desire to make the huge amount of time people spend working a much more rewarding experience. Making progress in that vein requires not just a wish to do so but the ability to learn and effectively apply ideas to affect real improvement. He was exceptionally gifted at this difficult task and was aided here, as with most things he did, by his considerable empathy and respect for others. His books provide evidence of this gift and effort. And those who were lucky enough to hear him speak enjoyed his ability to use humor to great affect in the effort.

In one of his last speeches, for example, when he speaking at the Deming conference (where the photo was taken) he used the action of kissing to underscore a point he was making about systems thinking and he described the challenges of gathering accurate data by recounting a radio interview he had heard about a research scientist who, in order to accurately assess the hibernation activities of bears, had to discretely sneak up on them during hibernation and well… take their temperatures in a non-genteel way.

I am very lucky to have developed friendship’s with several of my father’s friends. The photo shows me with two during my last visit to Madison: Peter and George Box.

It was a happy surprise when I found out Peter Scholtes wrote They Will Know We are Christians by our Love (link to a nice mp3 recording of the song). I think it is a wonderful song. Here are the words to that song (and a webcast is below):

We are one in the spirit we are one in the Lord

We are one in the spirit we are one in the Lord

And we pray that all unity will one day be restored

And they’ll Know we are Christians by our love, by our love

Yes they’ll know we are Christians by our love.

We will walk with each other we will walk hand in hand

We will walk with each other we will walk hand in hand

And together we’ll spread the news that God is in our land.

We will work with each other we will work side by side

We will work with each other we will work side by side

And we’ll guard each man’s dignity and save each man’s pride

All praise to the father from whom all things come

And all praise to Christ Jesus his only son

And all praise to the spirit who makes us one.



Peter Scholtes died peacefully the morning of July 11, 2009. His family was with him. The past few months he suffered several strokes. A memorial service will be held in the next few weeks.

Related: Peter R. Scholtes talks about about being a priest on the South Side of Chicago in the 1960s, working with Dr. Martin Luther King and more – Reward and Incentive Programs are Ineffective — Even Harmful – ASQ Deming Medal to Peter Scholtes – posts related to Peter Scholtes

More performances of They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love.