Game Theory

Management Strategy Consulting - Links

Strategy+Business(Booz-Allen Hamilton)

McKinsey Quarterly(McKinsey)

Executive Agenda(A.T. Kearney)

Mercer Management Journal(Mercer Management Consulting)

Course and Direction (Center for Simplified Strategic Planning)

IdeaBridge White Papers(IdeaBridge Consulting)

Many Worlds

Harvard Business Review(Harvard Business School)

Knowledge at Wharton(University of Pennsylvania)

California Management Review (Haas School of Business)

Business Strategy Review (London Business School)

Sloan Management Review(Sloan School of Business)

CEO Refresher(Refresher Publications)

Strategic Finance(Institute of Management Accountants)

The Magazine: Strategy(Fast Company)

Management First(MCB University Press)

Leadership

'Lincoln on Leadership' is a prescribed text book for our leadership class. Best book on the topic. Anyone wants to be a leader should read this book to understand how Lincoln shaped America. This is still relevant in today's society. The book that has become 'Clinton's private bible about how to govern'.

Never Ever Give up - A short video on Abraham Lincoln

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4qHUZxwC80

BATNA Negotiation - Getting to Yes

Best Alternative to Negotiated Agreement - BATNA

We had a wonderful negotiaton session. ILWs Intensive Learning Weekend.

The acronym, as you may know, stands for the ‘best alternative to a negotiated agreement’ – the options when your negotiations fail to result in an agreement. “This term was first used by Roger Fisher and William Ury of the Harvard Program on Negotiation in their famous book, ‘Getting to Yes’.”

Your BATNA determines the point at which you can say no to an unfavourable proposal, the book explains. “Thus, it is critical to know your BATNA before entering into any negotiation. If you don’t, you won’t know whether a deal makes sense or when to walk away.”

The second key concept is the reservation price, also known as the walk-away, or ‘the least favourable point at which you would accept a deal’. Together with BATNA, this gives you the confidence in negotiation.

Third, ZOPA, the ‘zone of possible agreement,’ or the range in which a deal can take place. This exists in ‘the overlap’ between the high and low limits between the parties’ reservation prices. Therefore, no ZOPA, no overlap, no agreement, “no matter how skilled the negotiators.”

Lastly, value creation has to happen through trades, meaning goods or services have only modest value to their holders compared to ‘exceptional value to the other party’.
Both parties end up satisfied, however, because “each party usually gets something it wants in return for something it values much less.”

Economically Speaking

Here is a question that came up.

How is the price determined in a black market?
Economic Answer: The price is determined by supply and demand in a competitive market.
In a competitive market, the supply and demand determines the price. If the supply is more, the demand will be less and price will be lower. If the demand is more and the supply is less the price will be higher.

The other layman answer: Whatever the sellers asks for...

An interesting articles in New York Times:
Flesh Trade: Selling Kidneys for Money
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/09/magazine/09wwln_freak.html?_r=2&ex=1189569600&en=5baab363cbbfbb67&ei=5070&oref=slogin&oref=slogin