Strategic Genius

The fast-track MBA in strategy Imagine having instant access to the world's smartest thinking on strategy - and being shown exactly what to do to guarantee that you get your own strategy right, every time. Strategy Genius makes it easy to apply what researchers know about strategic thinking to the real world. 40 chapters based on hundreds of cutting-edge business and psychology research projects reveal what works and what doesn't work in strategy. Each of the 40 chapters is a mini-masterclass in strategic thinking, explaining the research and showing you how to apply it for yourself. In business, conventional wisdom often says one thing while research says another. Strategy Genius cuts through the noise to bring you proven research and techniques for applying it that will simply make you a better strategist. Quick to read and intensely practical, this book will bring a little strategy genius into your day. 'Strategy is one of those topics that many people talk about without having much idea what they mean. Richard Jones is one of the exceptions. A very good book; I recommend it strongly' Peter Hiscocks, CEO Judge Business School Executive Education, University of Cambridge 'Genius conflated into something you can understand. A bit like Richard, really' Michael Wilson, Director of Business and Economics Editor, Arise Global Networks

Be productive without sacrificing peace of mind using Lazy Genius principles that help you focus on what really matters and let go of what doesn't. If you need a comprehensive strategy for a meaningful life but are tired of reading stacks of self-help books, here is an easy way that actually works. No more cobbling together life hacks and productivity strategies from dozens of authors and still feeling tired. The struggle is real, but it doesn't have to be in charge. With wisdom and wit, the host of The Lazy Genius Podcast, Kendra Adachi, shows you that it's not about doing more or doing less; it's about doing what matters to you. In this book, she offers fourteen principles that are both practical and purposeful, like a Swiss army knife for how to be a person. Use them in combination to "lazy genius" anything, from laundry and meal plans to making friends and napping without guilt. It's possible to be soulful and efficient at the same time, and this book is the blueprint. The Lazy Genius Way isn't a new list of things to do; it's a new way to see. Skip the rules about getting up at 5 a.m. and drinking more water. Let's just figure out how to be a good person who can get stuff done without turning into The Hulk. These Lazy Genius principles--such as Decide Once, Start Small, Ask the Magic Question, and more--offer a better way to approach your time, relationships, and piles of mail, no matter your personality or life stage. Be who you already are, just with a better set of tools.

The fast-track MBA in strategy Imagine having instant access to the world's smartest thinking on strategy - and being shown exactly what to do to guarantee that you get your own strategy right, every time. Strategy Genius makes it easy to apply what researchers know about strategic thinking to the real world. 40 chapters based on hundreds of cutting-edge business and psychology research projects reveal what works and what doesn't work in strategy. Each of the 40 chapters is a mini-masterclass in strategic thinking, explaining the research and showing you how to apply it for yourself. In business, conventional wisdom often says one thing while research says another. Strategy Genius cuts through the noise to bring you proven research and techniques for applying it that will simply make you a better strategist. Quick to read and intensely practical, this book will bring a little strategy genius into your day. 'Strategy is one of those topics that many people talk about without having much idea what they mean. Richard Jones is one of the exceptions. A very good book; I recommend it strongly' Peter Hiscocks, CEO Judge Business School Executive Education, University of Cambridge 'Genius conflated into something you can understand. A bit like Richard, really' Michael Wilson, Director of Business and Economics Editor, Arise Global Networks

A stimulating new inquiry into the fundamental truth of strategy - its purpose, place, utility, and value. This new study is animated by a startling realization: the concept of strategic victory must be summarily discarded. This is not to say that victory has no place in strategy or strategic planning. The outcome of battles and campaigns are variables within the strategist's plan, but victory is a concept that has no meaning there. To the tactical and operational planner, wars are indeed won and lost, and the difference is plain. Success is measurable; failure is obvious. In contrast, the pure strategist understands that war is but one aspect of social and political competition, an ongoing interaction that has no finality. Strategy therefore connects the conduct of war with the intent of politics. It shapes and guides military means in anticipation of a panoply of possible coming events. In the process, strategy changes the context within which events will happen. In this new book we see clearly that the goal of strategy is not to culminate events, to establish finality in the discourse between states, but to continue them; to influence state discourse in such a way that it will go forward on favorable terms. For continue it will. This book will provoke debate and stimulate new thinking across the field and strategic studies.

When faced with complex problems, military leaders frequently fail to reach desired strategic outcomes. A leader with years of personal experience and a track record of success often runs headlong into a highly complex operational environment and achieves poor results. These leaders often consider the situation from only a military perspective and, as a consequence, arrive at a simplistic understanding of the environment. This poor understanding frequently pairs well with biased solutions favored by military institutions. Even if they generate an innovative approach, few leaders possess the capability to achieve buy-in from superiors and subordinates to see it through. A leader who possesses a gift for strategic understanding paired with a capacity to realize new approaches would be the elusive strategic genius. What traits make a strategic genius? Though several military theorists such as Lawrence Freedman and Colin Gray warn that such rare genius may not exist, Carl von Clausewitz contends that such a leader is possible but would require a "harmonious combination" of several traits. While the Prussian provides some vague suggestions, his description of genius fails to offer tangible characteristics that are relevant to today's operational environment. Several modern theorists examine how such an individual might think and some offer how this person might lead but few combine these traits to develop the concept of strategic genius as a whole. Looking at both strategic thinking and strategic leadership through an interdisciplinary lens of complexity science, design theory, and history, this monograph examines how a leader's perspective on problems and style of communication can generate strategic genius. Rather than prescribing a set of characteristics, this work suggests that strategic genius requires a unique combination of diverse perspectives on complex and adaptive environments matched with the compelling courage to recognize and resist personal biases and gain institutional buy-in to achieve innovative results. Rather than searching for how to attain or how to practice strategic genius, this monograph simply asks what is strategic genius? To this end, instead of describing the development of strategic genius, this monograph attempts to describe its characteristics. In short, this work offers the what of strategic genius and only implies how such an ability develops. Rather than separating concepts of strategic thinking and strategic leadership, this monograph attempts to understand the effective combination of both within the same leader. This work uses abductive reasoning (synthesizing contemporary theories) to develop a working hypothesis and then tests this combined theory against two historical case studies.

Studies have shown that coming up with strategies and executing them with success requires specific strategic competencies. It is no longer just about the big idea. Moving beyond a broad, fuzzy picture, however, requires strategic thinking and understanding the management matrix. This guidebook can help you - identify critical functions of strategy, such as the alignment of operations, the continual improvement and innovation of systems design, and the allocation of effective recourses; - learn the six required competencies for strategic genius along with methods how to excel at each one; - reinvent thought processes so you can achieve organizational goals; - successfully navigate your way through office politics; - and answer many other questions tied to strategic management. Take a trip with author Reinier Geel as he shares a detailed study of the make-or-break factors of planning and execution. This guidebook sets a new paradigm for the strategic arena and is backed up with the essential knowledge so you can empower yourself and your organization.

Discusses George Washington's military strategies during the American Revolution and how his particular tactics aided in defeating the British army, including his utilization of European training techniques and his moral leadership.

This book presents the inventive genius behind technological breakthroughs by ten global companies including Alcoa, DaimlerChrysler, Honda, ST Micro and Visteon. Readers will gain understanding and insight into how cutting-edge technology is helping protect the climate and/or the ozone layer, while contributing to the company's bottom line. Each chapter chronicles the challenge and triumph of invention, introduces the engineers and executives who overcome conventional wisdom, and demonstrates the contribution these companies are making to environmental protection. In full colour and crammed with graphics to illustrate the creative process of technological breakthroughs, the book is accessible and informative. The genius of these ten companies will inspire the engineer, the policy-maker, the student, the environmentalist, the CEO and the investor alike.

This book provides a short and accessible introduction to the theory of strategy, examines the general theory of strategy in accordance with 23 key Principles and explains its nature, functions, and intended consequences. Theory of Strategy makes the radical argument that the familiar structure of strategy's general theory (political ends, strategic ways, military means - and assumptions) holds as sound for security at all times and in all places, of human necessity. Strategy is ever-varying in its character, but not in its nature, which is unchanging.