Business Problem Solving

The inability to set good strategy can sink a company - and a leader's career. A recent Wall Street Journal study revealed that the number one most sought after executive skill by organizations is strategic thinking, but few leaders have that skill set.

As a manager you have to make decisions - from daily choices about team priorities to deciding which long-term innovation projects to pursue. But most decisions don't have a clear-cut answer, and assessing the alternatives and the risks involved can be overwhelming. You need a smarter approach to making the best choice possible. The HBR Guide to Making Better Decisions provides practical tips and advice to help you identify the problem, evaluate your alternatives, select the right path forward, and follow through successfully.

“What would Jeff do?” Since leaving Amazon to advise start-ups and corporations, John Rossman has been asked this question countless times by executives who want to know “the secret” behind Amazon’s historic success. In this step-by-step guide, he provides 50½ answers drawn from his experience as an Amazon executive - and shows today’s business leaders how to think like Amazon, strategize like Bezos, and beat the competition like nobody’s business.

There are different kinds of difficult people, and what you'll learn first in this audiobook is to recognize them for who they are. You won't be able to cure them, they would have to go into therapy most of the time to become better versions of themselves. But you'll also find your weapons to overcome the obstacles these aggressive, negative, or just silent people erect on your path. Working in stages to assess the situation and the profile of the difficult people you face, you'll be able to shield yourself and turn their shortcomings into an opportunity for both of you.

Radical uncertainty changes the way we should think about decision-making. For over half a century economics has assumed that people behave rationally by optimizing among well-defined choices. Behavioral economics questioned how far people are rational, pointing to the cognitive biases that seem to describe actual behavior.

Are you tired of being manipulated by faulty logic and hidden biases? Do you want to sharpen your ability to think clearly and make sound decisions? What if you could spot hidden fallacies and challenge flawed arguments effortlessly? Whether you're navigating daily challenges, handling complex decisions, or just seeking to sharpen your mind, this book equips you with essential techniques that shape the way you think and see the world.

In the early 1980s, Harley-Davidson was on the verge of bankruptcy. In the general public's opinion, quality was substandard - of both motorcycles and riders. Harleys leaked oil and were often broken down. Riders were roughnecks, out to raise hell. The Harley-Davidson brand was tarnished. What s more, the charges were true.By the mid-1980s, Harley couldn't produce enough bikes to keep the public happy. Dealers were selling bikes off the showroom floor, struggling to assuage customers frustration.

If you constantly second-guess yourself, overanalyze small decisions, or feel mentally drained trying to solve problems, this audiobook offers a transformative shift. Designed for busy professionals and thinkers ready to level up their logic, this powerful 10-in-1 guide gives you the clarity and structure you’ve been missing. Through modern examples, proven tools, and timeless mental models, you’ll learn how to think critically under pressure, make confident decisions, and protect yourself from manipulation, bias, and misinformation. This isn’t about learning more—it’s about thinking better.

Sightline spells out the why and the how of collaborative strategy building. It pragmatically explains how to establish a clear destination with your team, while staying flexible about the routes you take to get there. With an emphasis on community building organizations, it’s a go-to resource for leaders craving clarity and conviction when responsiveness and adaptability are also required.

Drawing on the experience and insights of CEOs across several industries, as well as lessons from neuroscience, computer science, psychology, and philosophy, BCG's Martin Reeves and Jack Fuller provide a fascinating look into the mechanics of imagination and lay out a six-step process for creating ideas and bringing them to life. The Imagination Machine is the guide you need to demystify and operationalize this powerful human capacity, to inject new life into your company, and to head into unknown territory with the right tools by your side.

In a world filled with bad news, renowned author and creativity expert Nir Bashan offers some good news: Each problem we cause ourselves as humans, we can also solve as humans by looking at the world with curiosity. In The Solution Mindset, Bashan provides you with the tools you need to unlock your creative potential, both at work and in your personal life. This compelling book helps you overcome complex challenges by showing you exactly how to tap into your innate creativity.

Are you a good boss - or a great one? Get more of the management ideas you want, from the authors you trust, with HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing People (Vol. 2). We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you master the innumerable challenges of being a manager.

Why does your weather app say “there’s a 10 percent chance of rain” instead of “it will be sunny”? In large part, this is due to the insight of award-winning physicist Tim Palmer, who pioneered the introduction of uncertainty into weather and climate prediction. Now, he wants to apply it to how we study everything else.

There is an old saying about problems that you may have heard before, "There are no problems, only opportunities." To this simple-minded approach, Bill Gibson says, "Hogwash." Problems do exist. And you need to prepare for them and understand them before you can overcome them. Even the great problem solvers can't make problems go away, but they often find opportunities linked to them.

In the past few years, a number of well-known firms have failed; think of Blockbuster, Kodak, or RadioShack. When we hear about their demise, it often seems inevitable - a natural part of "creative destruction." But closer examination reveals a disturbing truth: Companies large and small are shuttering more quickly than ever. What does it take to buck this trend? The simple answer is: ambidexterity. Firms must remain competitive in their core markets, while also winning in new domains.

We all wish we had more time to pause and reflect about small decisions and big goals - and everything in between. But since we live and work in a vortex of tasks, meetings, decisions, and serious responsibilities, we rarely get the chance to step back. In this practical guide, best-selling author and Harvard Business School Professor Joseph Badaracco argues that you don't need long periods of solitude and tranquility to reflect well.

Successful decision-makers are fierce interrogators. They square critical thinking with open-mindedness by blending information, intuition, and experience. Balancing these elements is at the heart of Decisions Over Decimals.

Why are some of us better than others at committing to a decision? How can we move from indecision and procrastination to smart choices? What are the forces that hold us back and how can we successfully overcome them? The Art of Decision Making explores, analyses and navigates the idea of volition: ''the power to use one's own will in order to make decisions.' By drawing on diverse sources, Joseph Bikart has created a precise map of the intricate paths we take when we move from will to action.

For more than 40 years, The Boston Consulting Group has been shaping strategic thinking in business. The Boston Consulting Group on Strategy offers a broad and up-to-date selection of the firm's best ideas on strategy with fresh ideas, insights, and practical lessons for managers, executives, and entrepreneurs in every industry. Here's a sampling of the provocative thinking you'll find inside.

Millions of readers remember The Goal, the landmark business novel that sets forth by way of story the essential principles of Eliyahu Goldratt's innovative methods of production. Now, from the AGI-Goldratt Institute and Jeff Cox, the same creative writer who co-authored The Goal, comes VELOCITY...