How Leaders Decide: Tackling Biases and Risks in Decision-making by Harjeet Khanduja is my recent read. And guess, what did I get from this book? Any idea? This book is a Bhagwad Gita of business management; at least to me, I would say the same without any exaggeration on my part. It shows us the mirror. Akin to Bhagwad Gita, this book helps you understand how to make smart and effective decisions for the steady growth of your business or company. Because, how much ever you contemplate, how much ever you read and study, how much ever you explore and analyse your surrounding, eventually it is all about decisions you make. Decision-making occurs at every level, right from day-to-day mundane decisions taken by lower-level employees or far-reaching executive decisions that may require years of deliberation. It is the decision that decides your future. The decisions you might have made in the past are responsible for where you (organisation) stand today. And the decision which you will take today will be responsible for what you (the organisation) will be tomorrow. One right decision can make your company the topmost business organisation (in a specific sector) on this planet and one wrong decision can take your organization to the worst of the situations possible on this planet. Harjeet Khanduja’s recent book, How Leaders Decide, elaborates how decisions impact the overall growth or extreme loss of an organisation.

In total, the book contains 25 chapters. The author has split these 25 chapters into five parts, evenly and equally. Therefore, the five parts have five chapters each. However, what pulls my attention is the name of the chapters. Like all other parts of the book, the chapter’s name is worth some attention. And Harjeet has carefully considered the importance of it and titled each chapter thoughtfully and creatively so that they are capable enough to raise your curiosity. At the same time, they tell you a lot. For instance, Laugh With Many, Don’ Trust Any; Disconnect to Reconnect; Unintelligent Passion etc. Another thing that impressed me about this book is that every chapter begins and ends with a quote. These quotes are not random quotes but they carry introductory and concluding messages of the chapter. Any reader with a sharp comprehension skill will easily manage to decode these quotes.

The book starts with basic knowledge. What are decision-making, different styles of decision-making, and decision-making philosophies? The book distinguishes between general decision-making and organisational decision-making. It ventures in-depth into the entire decision-making process, the biases it involves and the risks it entails. The book presents varied examples of both winners and losers of the corporate industry. By losers I mean, the leaders whose decisions went wrong and the organisation had to suffer its consequences. And winners are those masters whose foresightedness, thorough analysis, advanced planning and thoughtful decisions lead their company or business to another level of success. And all this, Harjeet has done in an extremely simple manner. He has mastery in transforming complex business topics into an easy essay kind of article that can be understood by readers from various backgrounds without any issue. He has explained everything in a step-by-step way. It will clear all the doubts and blocks of the readers. I must say, Harjeet has a well-planned, well-written, well-developed, and well-researched book to offer and anyone who is interested in understanding decision-making at an organisational level must read the book!

I would summarise this book as the one that entertains, enlightens and motivates. It is practical. It is realistic. It is inspirational. It is a masterpiece. Yes, you read it right, it is a masterpiece! The author has compiled his slightly more than two decades of experience in this book and it can be seen reflected in the writing style and content. Harjeet’s education, his personal as well as professional experience, his expertise, his deep thinking and research he did and the examples he has portrayed will surely lead you on the correct path. When you read this, you will undoubtedly agree with me. Management students, corporate aspirants, employees in their early stages of careers, professionals who aim to achieve big goals, and business leaders and managers, this book is an apt choice for everyone. If one understands and follows the ideas shared in the book, this book will assure that you enter in next level of your growth journey.

You can get a copy of this book from Amazon India by clicking the link to the book below.

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Review by Ashvamegh Book Corner