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Vibrant Publishers

Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know

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  • Introduction to Decision Making
  • Scenario Planning and Prediction Markets
  • Group Mechanics
  • Heuristics and Programmed Decisions
  • Probability and Base Rate Neglect

 

BOOK SAMPLE

 

 

Decision Making Essentials ... by Vibrant Publishers

Bibliographic Details

Pages: 190 pages

Paperback (ISBN): 9781636510026

eBook (ISBN): 9781636510033

Hardback (Color): 9781636510040

Trim Size: 5.5” x 8.5”

Category: Business & Economics

Author: Mark Koscinski

Description

Make tough decisions with this dynamic toolbox of decision analysis techniques to transform the business!

Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know prepares new managers and leaders to assess tough decisions they face- and eventually make the right choice- by providing them with a tool box of decision analysis techniques to help them understand and analyze the decisions they make.

The chapters describe key techniques of decision analysis, including:

  • Cognitive biases and Prospect Theory
  • Heuristics
  • Probability and Expected Value
  • Bayes Theorem
  • Multi-attribute decision making, including the SMART, Elimination by Aspects, and Even Swaps methods
  • Game Theory
  • Prediction Markets
  • Brainstorming and Groupthink
  • Black Swan Events

Each chapter provides clear examples of the decision making tools and includes practice examples to help train the reader in using these critical tools.

About the Author

Mark Koscinski is an assistant professor of accounting practice at Moravian College in Bethlehem, PA, where he teaches a graduate level Decision Analysis class and several advanced accounting classes. He is a certified public accountant, and holds a BA with high honors and MBA from Rutgers University and a doctorate from Drew University. Prior to joining the faculty at Moravian College, Mark was a chief financial officer of various public and private organizations in the defense contracting, toy, investment banking, and banking industries. He has over forty years of experience in the business world, and has supervised every operation of an organization including sales and marketing. Mark is passionate about sharing his knowledge with his students. His background and experience gives him a unique position to write on management topics that are easy to understand for non-MBA graduates.

About the Series

The Self-Learning Management Series is designed to help students, new managers, career switchers, and entrepreneurs learn essential management lessons and covers every aspect of business, from HR to Finance to Marketing to Operations across any and every industry. Each book includes basic fundamentals, important concepts, and standard and well-known principles as well as practical ways of application of the subject matter.

Editorial Reviews

This is the first book that I've read that details decision-making with such depth. Mark Koscinki is able to take seemingly complicated information and break it down into short, easy-to-understand chapters, summarize the key points, and offer questions to ensure one's understanding of decision-making processes. I recommend it to those in leadership and to those aspiring to leadership roles!

- Jacqueline Childress, Austin Community College

 

The greatest threat to my business success and survival in the early years was the quality of my decision making. I did not know what I did not know and that made solid decision making risky. Every poor decision provided a lesson to learn and the motivation not to make the same mistake twice. As the business grew so grew the significance of the decisions. I never tire of learning new decision making models, practicing my decision making and helping others to learn as well. Decision Making Essentials is a great way to refresh my skillfulness and develop those around me. Being a strong process decision maker has contributed to my consulting effectiveness and value-added to my client relationships.

- Leslie Yerkes Founder, Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc.

 

In this unparalleled textbook, Mark Koscinski has done an excellent job providing the relevant keys to effective decision-making. By providing the necessary details of transforming decision-making into success, Mark Koscinski takes the simple art of choosing into a science that allows managers to consistently make those choices that benefit the workplace.

- Sonja B. Wilson, President at Wilson's Professional Training Services, Inc.

 

As a college professor I am constantly looking for ways to incorporate decision making skills into my classes and this is the perfect book. My students are provided with a flexible system that makes sense in today's world. My students will be able to learn how to make decisions based on the theory we are learning!

- Heather Nestorick, Luzerne County Community College

 

I think the book is a great addition to the Management Series. The author has included numerous examples to illustrate the concept which makes it easier to understand and follow. Some of the chapters seem to be a bit technical but overall the book is quite helpful for a beginner or businessman to successfully accomplish his decision making responsibilities.

- Tony Ruscitto, Corporate Director of HR, Fitzpatrick Hotel Group, North America

Customer Reviews

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Reviewed By Asher Syed for Readers Favorite
Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know

Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know by Vibrant Publishers and Mark Koscinski is one of twelve books in the Self Learning Management series, and came to fruition after Koscinskis wife requested that her husband make a chart for a manager who seemed to waffle when it came to making decisions. Broken down into eleven separate and interconnected chapters, the book covers virtually all aspects of the process and its considerations when making a firm choice. These include the personal pitfall potential of those making a decision based on their bias, their strengths and their weaknesses, research and outside discussion, planning and prediction, analysis and method, among many other variables. The book also includes anecdotal scenarios and sample questions, as well as a chapter summary and discussion questions.

Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to know stands out in its tone, honed by seasoned authority and university professor Mark Koscinski, and its function, a hallmark of Vibrant Publishers and the entire Self Learning Management series. I loved how the book pulled together more than just a laundry list of methods and instead focused on the entire process of decision-making. Theres a psychology to it that is as important as the methodology and external elements that are frequently ignored. My favorite section is one that gives the outline that Koscinskis wife asked of him; the Decision Tree, a graphic representation of all possible outcomesor at least the ones that can be thought of. In a day and age where theres a global pandemic, this book is likely to be far more important in that we must re-evaluate the possibility of the impossible. This is a fantastic book that will find itself useful to all decision-makers, from homemakers to CEOs.

J
Jeanie Winkelmann
Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know

As a psychology instructor and a librarian, decision making is a fascinating topic that has always intrigued me. I was eager to read Vibrant Publishers Decision Making Essentials by Mark Koscinski and hoped to come away with some new takes on familiar theories and, perhaps, some new information too. Koscinski is a professor of accounting and decision analysis, so I was prepared for business oriented content, anticipating that many of the same decision-making principles used in the business world would be applicable to everyday life.

As expected, the author focuses on decision-making in business, yet many of the concepts were applicable to general decision-making processes. Koscinski often cites examples from the world of accounting, but also uses every day scenarios as well as sports particularly baseball to illustrate concepts. I appreciated the inclusion of chapter summaries, discussion questions and a glossary. Koscinski writes with an approachable, relatable expertise that will make this book enjoyable for anyone interested in learning the ins and outs of how people make decisionsand for those who want to learn how to be a better decision maker.

Jeanie Winkelmann, MEd, MSLIS

M
Muneer Ahmad
Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know

Ive read quite a bit about decision making frameworks. This book is a great introduction for people new to the subject.

I enjoyed the layout of this book. It begins by discussing the mental aspects of decision making, moves on to explore a few different frameworks and ends with how to sell your decision. The flow of the information is very logical.

This book, by virtue of being a textbook, is easy to navigate. All of the important terms are in bold, there are some great questions at the end of each chapter, and the index provides a quick and easy way to find specific subject matter within the book. These attributes make this a very good choice to be a reference text for people who need to refer back to it later.

While this book seems to be targeted to businesspeople, its also general enough to be applicable in ones personal life. I recommend this book to everyone.

H
Henry C. Alphin Jr.
Decision Making Essentials You Always Wanted to Know

Koscinski provides a well-organized textbook on decision-making from both scientific and practical standpoints. There are real world examples that go along with the science of decision-making. I aim to make informed decisions on important topics, and I was looking for a way to better understand the science of decisions. After reading this book, I really wish I had learned this science during my MBA studies because decision-making is a leadership process that ties many disciplines together. Koscinski does this seamlessly, and I learned quite a bit. In addition, what I learned is useful and can be applied to my daily interactions and decision-making opportunities.