The Black Swan Problem: Risk Management Strategies for a World of Wild Uncertainty

An incisive framework for companies seeking to increase their resilience

In The Black Swan Problem: Risk Management Strategies for a World of Wild Uncertainty, renowned risk and finance expert Håkan Jankensgård delivers an extraordinary and startling discussion of how firms should navigate a world of uncertainty and unexpected events. It examines three fundamental, high-level strategies for creating resilience in the face of “black swan” risks, highly unlikely but devastating events: insurance, buffering, and flexibility:

The author also presents:

• Detailed case studies, stories, and examples of major firms that failed to anticipate Black Swan Problems and, as a result, were either wiped out or experienced a major strategy disruption
• Extending the usual academic focus on individual biases to analyze Swans from an organizational perspective and prime organizations to proactive rather than reactive action
• Practical applications and tactics to mitigate Black Swan risks and protect corporate strategies against catastrophic losses and the collateral damage that they cause
• Strategies and tools for turning Black Swan events into opportunities, reflecting the fact that resilience can be used for strategic advantage

An expert blueprint for companies seeking to anticipate, mitigate, and process tail risks, The Black Swan Problem is a must-read for students and practitioners of risk management, executives, founders, managers, and other business leaders.

Håkan Jankensgård is a risk philosopher and modeler. He has been passionate about the philosophy, theory and practice of risk management for over 25 years. He has done extensive academic research into various aspects of this field such as the theory of enterprise risk management, firms' hedging strategies, risk governance, and risk capital. This research has been published in well-respected, peer-reviewed academic journals like Financial Management, Journal of Banking and Finance, Journal of Accounting Business & Finance, and European Financial Management. He is actively developing the concept of Risk budgeting, which is about incorporating knowledge about risk and risk appetite into the forecasting models that management uses for financial and strategic decision-making. Jankensgård is a professor of corporate finance and holds a PhD from Lund University.