Rotman’s Jennifer Riel and Roger Martin have been nominated for the prestigious National Business Book Award for Creating Great Choices: A Leader’s Guide to Integrative Thinking.
The literary award of $30,000, sponsored by BMO Financial Group and Bennett Jones LLP, will be awarded on October 2, 2018 to “the most outstanding Canadian business-related book published in 2017.”
The concept of Integrative Thinking was first developed by Roger Martin in his book The Opposable Mind; in Creating Great Choices, Martin and Riel focus on helping the reader apply the integrative thinking process to their everyday life.
Creating Great Choices is an engaging collection which includes stories of successful integrative thinkers and a hands-on guide to the methodology of integrative thinking. The guide demystifies the theory, providing a practical approach to innovative problem-solving for any situation.
Integrative Thinking is a creative way at looking a decision-making, outlining a process for finding a third, better choice, instead of trading-off between two opposing choices. With an increasingly complex and divisive world, the ability to see beyond black and white thinking is a key ability for leaders who want to excel.
Integrative thinking allows for the greatest, most innovative solution and helps collaboration thrive. Instead of the loudest voice in the room winning, or sticking with the same, safe choices, an integrative thinking process provides a framework for identifying new or missed opportunities and highlights the true value of opposing ideas or proposals.
Jennifer Riel will teach an executive program on the topic, Integrative Thinking for Leaders, on October 5. The one day workshop introduces the methodology of integrative thinking and applies it to existing business problems, providing concrete tools for collaborative decision-making. For a first-hand learning experience in Integrative Thinking, apply now.
Jennifer Riel (MBA ’06) is an Adjunct Professor, Faculty-at-large and Managing Director of the Martin Prosperity Institute’s Knowledge Infrastructure Project at the Rotman School of Management. Former Dean Roger Martin is the Institute Director of the Martin Prosperity Institute and the Michael Lee-Chin Family Institute for Corporate Citizenship at the Rotman School of Management and the Premier’s Chair in Productivity & Competitiveness. He is the author of 11 books including Creating Great Choices written with Jennifer Riel (Harvard Business Review Press, 2017). Rotman Executive Programs offers a one-day workshop, Integrative Thinking for Leaders, which teaches leaders at all levels how to train their brains to think integratively.