The Six Disciplines of Strategic Thinking

How did John F. Kennedy put a man on the moon in just under ten years? What can chess teach us about actionable insights? And why should you shake up a business at a time of great success? All of these questions have their answer in strategic thinking. But what is strategic thinking exactly? Are we born with it, or can we nurture it? As a distinct and important capability in leaders, strategic thinking is a remarkably poorly defined, little understood concept, confined to management courses and board meetings. But in The Art of Strategic Thinking, world-renowned expert Michael Watkins shows leaders how they can benefit from it, as long as they have the tools to nurture it. Exploring the six specific mental disciplines that together constitute strategic thinking, each chapter shows how they can create value, and offers prescriptions on how to develop the strategic thinking mindset ourselves. Academically grounded but jargon-free, with real-world examples from all sectors and ages, The Art of Strategic Thinking assesses our innate ability to think strategically, and helps us to cultivate it, leading to better decisions that get proven results.

Michael D. Watkins is Professor of Leadership and Organizational Change at IMD, and co-founder of Genesis Advisers. He has spent the last two decades working with leaders as they transition to new roles, build their teams and transform their organizations. In 2023, he was inducted to the Thinkers50 Hall of Fame, in recognition for his outstanding contributions to the worlds of management and leadership. He is author of the international bestseller The First 90 Days, which The Economist recognized as "the on-boarding bible." With more than 1,000,000 copies sold in English, and translations in 24 languages, it has become the classic reference for leaders in transition and a standard resource of leading change.

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