Super Deciders: The Science and Practice of Making Decisions in Dynamic and Uncertain Times - Hardcover

Feser, Claudio; Laureiro-Martinez, Daniella; Frankenberger, Karolin; Brusoni, Stefano

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1394239777 ISBN 13: 9781394239771

Publisher: Wiley, 2024

Synopsis

Dramatically improve the decisions you make every day using insights from the latest neuroscience

We make hundreds of decisions daily, from small ones – such as what to wear today and how to drive to work – to big ones – such as the company strategy and whether to launch a restructuring program that may impact thousands of people. In business, studies suggest that company executives spend 40% of their time making decisions and that the effectiveness of their decisions largely drives the results of the companies that they lead.

In Super Deciders: The Science and Practice of Making Decisions in Dynamic and Uncertain Times, a team of renown researchers and business advisors deliver an application of the latest advances in neuroscience to effectively making the most difficult decisions, those we make in dynamic environments, in situations of uncertainty when we need to predict outcomes, we’re missing relevant information, time is scarce, and the environment is constantly changing.

The book is written in three parts. In the first part, the book offers a practical framework for making effective decisions under uncertainty. In the second part, the book discusses approaches to effectively implement those decisions, thus managing change at every level, from the individual to the organizational. Finally, the book develops suggestions on how leaders can diagnose and improve – in themselves and in the people they lead – the cognitive abilities relevant to decision-making.

You’ll also find:

• An enlightening business narrative detailing the journey of a fictional leader of an international travel operator named Inuk.
• Six cases that put you into real-life situations of making difficult decisions and that help you assess your decision-making effectiveness.
• An accessible and fun introduction to the neuroscience of decision-making.

Ideal for managers, executives, directors, and other business leaders, Super Deciders is a can’t-miss decision-making playbook that you’ve been waiting for.

About this title

About the Author

CLAUDIO FESER, a senior partner emeritus at McKinsey & Company, serves on multiple company boards, including as chairperson. He teaches innovation and leadership at the University of St. Gallen and ETH Zurich, Switzerland.

DANIELLA LAUREIRO-MARTINEZ is a Senior Scientist in the Technology and Innovation Management Group at ETH Zurich, Switzerland, where she leads the COLAB, a research group focused on cognition, learning and adaptive behavior.

KAROLIN FRANKENBERGER is Professor of Strategic Management and Innovation and the Dean of the Executive School of Management, Technology and Law at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland.

STEFANO BRUSONI is Professor of Technology and Innovation Management and Vice-Rector for Continuing Education at ETH Zurich, Switzerland.

From the Back Cover

PRAISE FOR SUPER DECIDERS

“The decisions we make today are more complex and interconnected than ever before. Super Deciders rigorously cuts through the noise with tools that help leaders of all kinds reach more informed and impactful decisions.”
―GREG CASE, Chief Executive Officer of Aon

“Companies in dynamic, uncertain times should not rely on ‘either-or’ but ‘and’ decisions that lead to agile strategies. The current business needs to be constantly improved and optimized while agile strategies create further options for the future.”
―JOERG REINHARDT, Chairman of Novartis

“Super Deciders brings discipline into the decision process that leaders face daily as they navigate their way to the strategic vision for their organization. Every decision needs to be influenced by the clarity of the vision for stakeholder value creation! How to bring those disciplines into the daily leadership cadence is critical for every leader and this book offers new insights into this critical leadership skill.”
―ROBERT CHAPMAN, Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer of Barry-Wehmiller and author of The Wall Street Journal bestseller Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family

“Super Deciders masterfully weaves together the science of decision-making with the magic of storytelling. A must-read for anyone seeking clarity in turbulent times.”
―ROLF DOBELLI, Founder of WORLD.MINDS and author of the million-copy bestseller The Art of Thinking Clearly

“With a scientific journey through recent findings on how our brain understands problems and on how it makes decisions, Super Deciders develops a structured approach to decision-making that helps leaders navigate today’s volatile, unpredictable, and ever-changing markets. Insightful concepts delivered with remarkable simplicity.”
―SABINE KELLER-BUSSE, President, UBS Switzerland

“This timely book is an essential read for every decision-maker in organizations. The book lays out a systematic approach to problem-solving by bringing insights from research in neuroscience, psychology, and management to augment our experiences and intuitions with a more scientific approach to decision-making. The Super Deciders model provides actionable insights to decision-makers to know better what drives them―their goals, preferences, and values―and how they can make better decisions to build more adaptive organizations in an increasingly complex and uncertain world.”
―VIBHA GABA, The Berghmans Lhoist Chaired Professor of Entrepreneurial Leadership, INSEAD

From the Inside Flap

The ability to make effective decisions is key to a leader’s performance and success. Mastering this ability is no easy feat. Leaders make most decisions in dynamic situations, when relevant information is missing, time is scarce, uncertainty is pervasive, and the environment is constantly changing.

This book is about making great decisions in such situations – what we call super-decisions. There is no general rule or mathematical formula for making such decisions exactly or perfectly. However, understanding some simple but fundamental principles of the neuroscience and psychology of decision-making can significantly enhance a leader’s performance and success.

In Super Deciders, a team of renowned scientists and business strategists distills relevant research to deliver a practical and insightful model that leaders can use not only to navigate complex decision-making scenarios, but also to work on themselves and to become “Super Deciders”. Some individuals may be better than others at making decisions, but everyone can become better at it.

The authors explain their model and the relevant research in an accessible and easy-to-follow way using the story of a fictional leader of a company. With this book, you’ll learn to make better decisions in a variety of situations, spanning from crafting sustainable corporate strategies to tackling people-related decisions, to making work-life balance decisions, to orchestrating a company transformation.

Perfect for managers, executives, directors, and other business leaders, Super Deciders is a must-read guide for decision-makers across the board.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1394239777
• ISBN 13: 9781394239771
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 320