The author employs jargon, to be sure, but he explains each piece of jargon with admirable clarity.
A business consultant argues for the importance of learning through human interactions rather than always emphasizing computer-generated data.
Producing a mixture of how-to text and trenchant philosophy, Madsbjerg illustrates his formula for problem-solving with rich, captivating anecdotes, many of them mini case studies. The author clearly explains his bafflement at the devaluation of individual human judgment based on close observation followed by analytical thought. Madsbjerg is no Luddite—he fully understands the value of data generated by algorithms—but he feels certain that one finely tuned human mind can solve problems that are beyond the grasp of emotionless computers. The author’s concept of “sensemaking” includes five steps: understanding the culture in which businesses are trying to sell their products and services; relying on data that is collected via human observation rather than just preprogrammed algorithms; viewing individual behavior in a natural rather than a compromised setting (“the savannah—not the zoo”); trusting the kind of creative insights that qualify as sudden revelations; and using tools from the natural world, supplemented by computer data, rather than vice versa. Certainly, some elements of sensemaking could also be termed by the less-innovative term “common sense.” Madsbjerg relates how faculty at the U.S. Naval Academy stopped teaching celestial navigation in the late 1990s after deciding to rely on satellite technology and GPS. In the past year, though, the academy has reinstituted the teaching of navigating by the stars. Why not use all available tools, combining them to guide a ship’s course? After offering dozens of interesting examples from the material world of corporations, Madsbjerg relates an especially memorable sensemaking study of how hostage negotiator Chris Voss relied on his humanities training to broker the release of journalist Jill Carroll from Iraq.
The author employs jargon, to be sure, but he explains each piece of jargon with admirable clarity.Pub Date: March 21, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-316-39324-9
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Hachette
Review Posted Online: Jan. 2, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
BOOK REVIEW
Occasionally wonky but overall a good case for how the dismal science can make the world less—well, dismal.
“Quality of life means more than just consumption”: Two MIT economists urge that a smarter, more politically aware economics be brought to bear on social issues.
It’s no secret, write Banerjee and Duflo (co-authors: Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the Way To Fight Global Poverty, 2011), that “we seem to have fallen on hard times.” Immigration, trade, inequality, and taxation problems present themselves daily, and they seem to be intractable. Economics can be put to use in figuring out these big-issue questions. Data can be adduced, for example, to answer the question of whether immigration tends to suppress wages. The answer: “There is no evidence low-skilled migration to rich countries drives wage and employment down for the natives.” In fact, it opens up opportunities for those natives by freeing them to look for better work. The problem becomes thornier when it comes to the matter of free trade; as the authors observe, “left-behind people live in left-behind places,” which explains why regional poverty descended on Appalachia when so many manufacturing jobs left for China in the age of globalism, leaving behind not just left-behind people but also people ripe for exploitation by nationalist politicians. The authors add, interestingly, that the same thing occurred in parts of Germany, Spain, and Norway that fell victim to the “China shock.” In what they call a “slightly technical aside,” they build a case for addressing trade issues not with trade wars but with consumption taxes: “It makes no sense to ask agricultural workers to lose their jobs just so steelworkers can keep theirs, which is what tariffs accomplish.” Policymakers might want to consider such counsel, especially when it is coupled with the observation that free trade benefits workers in poor countries but punishes workers in rich ones.
Occasionally wonky but overall a good case for how the dismal science can make the world less—well, dismal.Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-61039-950-0
Page Count: 432
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Review Posted Online: Aug. 28, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2019
SEEN & HEARD
Career and business advice for the hashtag generation. For all its self-absorption, this book doesn’t offer much reflection...
A Dumpster diver–turned-CEO details her rise to success and her business philosophy.
In this memoir/business book, Amoruso, CEO of the Internet clothing store Nasty Gal, offers advice to young women entrepreneurs who seek an alternative path to fame and fortune. Beginning with a lengthy discussion of her suburban childhood and rebellious teen years, the author describes her experiences living hand to mouth, hitchhiking, shoplifting and dropping out of school. Her life turned around when, bored at work one night, she decided to sell a few pieces of vintage clothing on eBay. Fast-forward seven years, and Amoruso was running a $100 million company with 350 employees. While her success is admirable, most of her advice is based on her own limited experiences and includes such hackneyed lines as, “When you accept yourself, it’s surprising how much other people will accept you, too.” At more than 200 pages, the book is overlong, and much of what the author discusses could be summarized in a few tweets. In fact, much of it probably has been: One of the most interesting sections in the book is her description of how she uses social media. Amoruso has a spiritual side, as well, and she describes her belief in “chaos magic” and “sigils,” a kind of wishful-thinking exercise involving abstract words. The book also includes sidebars featuring guest “girlbosses” (bloggers, Internet entrepreneurs) who share equally clichéd suggestions for business success. Some of the guidance Amoruso offers for interviews (don’t dress like you’re going to a nightclub), getting fired (don’t call anyone names) and finding your fashion style (be careful which trends you follow) will be helpful to her readers, including the sage advice, “You’re not special.”
Career and business advice for the hashtag generation. For all its self-absorption, this book doesn’t offer much reflection or insight.Pub Date: May 6, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-399-16927-4
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Portfolio
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014
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