The Business Policy Game

In the early 1980s, Springfield Remanufacturing Corporation (SRC) in Springfield, Missouri, was a near bankrupt division of International Harvester. Today it's one of the most successful and competitive companies in the United States, with a share price 3000 times what it was thirty years ago. This miracle turnaround is all down to one man, Jack Stack, and his revolutionary system of Open-Book Management, in which every employee understands the company's key figures, can act on them and has a real stake in the business. In Stack's own words: 'When employees think, act and feel like owners ... everybody wins.' As a management strategy, 'the great game of business' is so simple and effective that it's been taken up by companies from Intel to Harley Davidson.

The Game Changer powerfully demonstrates how some organisations in business and sport have done more than raise their performance; they have also changed the rules of the game or the game itself within their industry. It gives examples of the strategies and governance programmes that have emerged to accomplish this, and the challenges of executing them. This book brings to life strategic management in business, sport and not-for-profit organisations. It explores many of the theories taught on MBA and other professional programmes through case studies from the worlds of sport and business, written by authors who have played a part in the change. Alistair Gray has spent much of his career in senior roles in these sectors and brings a unique insight to the field, as well as providing the reader with tools and techniques for improvement in governance and performance. The Game Changer is essential reading for both professionals looking for methods to improve their own performance and to embed strong principles of governance, and business students looking for real-life lessons from practice.

“I am hard pressed to think of another book that can match the combination of practical insights and reading enjoyment.”—Steven Levitt Game theory means rigorous strategic thinking. It’s the art of anticipating your opponent’s next moves, knowing full well that your rival is trying to do the same thing to you. Though parts of game theory involve simple common sense, much is counterintuitive, and it can only be mastered by developing a new way of seeing the world. Using a diverse array of rich case studies—from pop culture, TV, movies, sports, politics, and history—the authors show how nearly every business and personal interaction has a game-theory component to it. Mastering game theory will make you more successful in business and life, and this lively book is the key to that mastery.

Business executives, managers, and negotiators regularly interact in ways that resemble a game of chess. Yet while game theory is the leading tool in academia for analyzing such interdependent choices, its use in the business world has been limited by its perceived lack of practicality. Until now, that is. "Game Theory for Business: A Primer in Strategic Gaming" outlines a straightforward, practical approach for using game theory. The book demonstrates how Strategic Gaming has, can, and should be applied to help savvy strategists and negotiators shape and play the game of business effectively.