Business Skills for the 21st Century

Marc Baaij is an associate professor of strategic management at the Rotterdam School of Management (RSM) at the Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Previously he worked for the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) as manager of research and strategy consultant. Marc specialises in methods and techniques for strategy development and implementation, with a focus on stakeholder management and strategic foresight development. He has written professional books and scientific articles on strategic management, management consultancy, and structured problem solving. Besides teaching bachelor, master, and MBA students, Marc also provides open and in-company training in structured problem-solving and communication for managers, consultants, and other business professionals. He also serves as a soundboard for managers in cases of strategy development and implementation. Marc holds a master's degree in economics and is a PhD in strategic management.

Chapter 1: Introducing Business Skills for the Twenty-first Century Chapter 2: Identify Real Business Problems and Opportunities Chapter 3: Analyse Stakeholders of Problems and Opportunities Chapter 4: Deconstruct Problems and Opportunities Chapter 5: Develop and Conduct Relevant Analyses Chapter 6: Cooperate With Team Members and Other Relevant Stakeholders Chapter 7: Develop Complete and Consistent Solutions Introduction Chapter 8: Evaluate Solutions and Make Decisions Under Uncertainty Chapter 9: Communicate the Recommended Solution Chapter 10: Prepare for Solution Implementation Introduction Chapter 11: Facilitate and Evaluate an Implementation

'This book is THE book for anyone who wants to solve problems in a structured manner. The method presented in this book is practical, valuable, and proven. Even for those who are not inclined to approach problem-solving in a structured manner, I highly recommend reading this book as a first step. Marc Baaij brilliantly demonstrates his exceptional writing skills in this book.' -- Muel Kaptein 'This is a superb practical skills text employing a central area of Problem Solving to provide an extremely focused and rounded way of delivering this subject. The text delivers its key concepts and academic knowledge in a highly structured and engaging manner and there is an exceptionally good balance between knowledge, higher learning, and opportunities for reflection. This text provides students at any level of higher education to meet the challenges ahead.' -- Joel Arnott