The Decision-Making Studio podcast

#Society #Adventure #Journey #Resilience #Risk #Uncertainty #Ben Cattaneo #Business #The DecisionMaking Studio #Random #Authentic

26:18

How do you know when it’s time to make your next big career move? With International Women’s Day around the corner, we are excited to feature Avni Patel Thompson, Founder and CEO of Milo. Avni is building technology that directly supports the often overlooked emotional and logistical labor that falls on parents—especially women. Milo is an AI assistant designed to help families manage that invisible load more efficiently. In this episode, Avni shares her journey from studying chemistry to holding leadership roles at global brands like Adidas and Starbucks, to launching her own ventures. She discusses how she approaches career transitions, the importance of unpleasant experiences, and why she’s focused on making everyday life easier for parents. [01:26] Avni's University Days and Early Career [04:36] Non-Linear Career Paths [05:16] Pursuing Steep Learning Curves [11:51] Entrepreneurship and Safety Nets [15:22] Lived Experiences and Milo [19:55] Avni’s In Her Ellement Moment [20:03] Reflections Links: Avni Patel Thompson on LinkedIn Suchi Srinivasan on LinkedIn Kamila Rakhimova on LinkedIn Ipsos report on the future of parenting About In Her Ellement: In Her Ellement highlights the women and allies leading the charge in digital, business, and technology innovation. Through engaging conversations, the podcast explores their journeys—celebrating successes and acknowledging the balance between work and family. Most importantly, it asks: when was the moment you realized you hadn’t just arrived—you were truly in your element? About The Hosts: Suchi Srinivasan is an expert in AI and digital transformation. Originally from India, her career includes roles at trailblazing organizations like Bell Labs and Microsoft. In 2011, she co-founded the Cleanweb Hackathon, a global initiative driving IT-powered climate solutions with over 10,000 members across 25+ countries. She also advises Women in Cloud, aiming to create $1B in economic opportunities for women entrepreneurs by 2030. Kamila Rakhimova is a fintech leader whose journey took her from Tajikistan to the U.S., where she built a career on her own terms. Leveraging her English proficiency and international relations expertise, she discovered the power of microfinance and moved to the U.S., eventually leading Amazon's Alexa Fund to support underrepresented founders. Subscribe to In Her Ellement on your podcast app of choice to hear meaningful conversations with women in digital, business, and technology.…

The Decision-Making Studio Podcast

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The Decision-Making Studio Podcast (formerly known as the All Things Risk podcast) uses the lenses of decision-making, uncertainty and risk to better understand ourselves and our world. We feature fascinating guests across many fields from sport, the arts, current affairs and others. We have long-form conversations and our guests share insights, stories, tools and tips.

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The Decision-Making Studio Podcast

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updated 24 days ago

साझा करें

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251 एपिसोडस

#Society #Adventure #Journey #Resilience #Risk #Uncertainty #Ben Cattaneo #Business #The DecisionMaking Studio #Random #Authentic

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Ep. 242: Isobel O'Connell - A Sustainability Professional's Perspective on Business and Society 1:39:45

24 days ago1:39:45

1:39:45

What can we learn about business and society from a seasoned sustainability practitioner? Plenty! Meet Isobel O'Connell . Isobel has a couple of decades of experience in areas related to the environment, social issues - particularly local community consultation across the globe, human rights and related areas. She's now an advisor, and a board member, and was named one of the top global 50 women in sustainability. In this episode, she shares several insights and perspectives from her broad career in these areas. We get into a variety of stories, the different landscapes and definitions out there for things like ESG and corporate social responsibility, how these things have evolved, and how people who work in these areas navigate a variety of complexities and trade-offs when it comes to decision-making. This conversation provides a fascinating window into how both business and society interact via a career path you perhaps didn’t know existed. Show notes: Isobel on LinkedIn The Juukan Gorge destruction Double materiality assessment UN Global Compact Alison Taylor on The Decision-Making Studio Podcast OECD Guidelines for citizen participation processes _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ All our podcast episodes are here: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Our latest newsletter: https://us19.campaign-archive.com/?u=f19fc74942b40b513cf66af32&id=1e2a6c0ea9 Get in touch: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/contact-us…

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Ep. 241: John Morrison - On A Just Climate Transition 1:10:12

6 weeks ago1:10:12

1:10:12

This episode is about thinking differently around climate change, and it will help you think about this topic much more expansively. My guest is John Morrison , who is the CEO of the Institute for Human Rights and Business, which is a global “think and do tank” with consultative status at the United Nations. John serves on a number of boards and advisory councils, and he is the author of a new book called The Just Transition - A Systems Thinking Approach to Climate Action . And John posits that if we try to solve the climate crisis in isolation from tackling other challenges, particularly social challenges around how local communities and workers feel about a transition to a net zero world, we won't solve the climate crisis. Things are interconnected and we need to recognise that. So, we get into that. We talk about systems thinking, navigating the complexity of these topics, trade-offs, technology, accountability, and of course, decision-making. According to John, we need to move beyond narrow, linear and box-ticking type of approaches to these challenges. Otherwise, we are doing ourselves and the planet a huge disservice. Show notes: John Morrison The Just Transition - A Systems Thinking Approach to Climate Action The Institute for Human Rights and Business Herbert Simon Donella Meadows Free, prior and informed consent The EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive The EU Corporate Responsibility Reporting Directive Transition minerals _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ All our podcast episodes are here: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Our latest newsletter: https://us19.campaign-archive.com/?u=f19fc74942b40b513cf66af32&id=1e2a6c0ea9…

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Ep. 240: Dan Davies - On "The Unaccountability Machine" 1:18:05

8 weeks ago1:18:05

1:18:05

Why is it seemingly so difficult to find a human to speak to when having an issue with your bank or mobile phone company? And if you do, why do they sound like robots and/or aren’t empowered to make a decision that will solve your problem? More broadly and worryingly, why is it nearly impossible to hold an individual accountable for decisions that led to a major societal or organisational calamity like the Global Financial Crisis, or the UK’s Post Office Scandal? Something is going on, and today, we're going to talk about it. My guest is author Dan Davies , and we are talking about his latest book, The Unaccountability Machine - Why Big Systems Make Terrible Decisions and How the World Lost Its Mind . The book was long-listed for the Financial Times and Schroder's Business Books of the Year. Dan is a former investment banker turned author. His previous book, Lying for Money , was about the 2008 global financial crisis in which no banker went to jail. Dan became interested in why that was the case and to see if the same types of causes for that exist elsewhere. And they do. And it led him to write The Unaccountability Machine . Dan also has a wonderful term called the “accountability sink”, in which a human system delegates decision-making to a rule book rather than an individual, which means that when something goes wrong, no one is to blame. We get into all of that and so much more. Show notes: -The Unaccountability Machine : https://profilebooks.com/work/the-unaccountability-machine/ -Dan’s newsletter: https://backofmind.substack.com/ -Dan’s author page: https://profilebooks.com/contributor/dan-davies/ -Lying for Money : https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38605195-lying-for-money?from_search=true -Dan’s previous appearance on the podcast: https://allthingsrisk.libsyn.com/ep-89-dan-davies-lying-for-money -Stafford Beer: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stafford_Beer -Brian Eno: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Eno -“Designing Freedom”, Stafford Beer’s lectures from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNVZ3IuNlXY&list=PLW6YNX5jIRDEvjZz0_icNAaelHXArzfc- -Norbert Wiener: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norbert_Wiener -Neural Networks: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neural_network_(machine_learning) -Variety engineering: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variety_(cybernetics) -Good regulator in management cybernetics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_regulator -Ben Recht: https://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~brecht/bio.html -Jen Pahlka’s Recoding America : https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61796680-recoding-america -William Butler Adams / Brompton Bicycles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will_Butler-Adams _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ All our podcast episodes are here: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Our latest newsletter: https://us19.campaign-archive.com/?u=f19fc74942b40b513cf66af32&id=1e2a6c0ea9…

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Ep 239: Roger Spitz - On How To Disrupt With Impact 1:10:48

10 weeks ago1:10:48

1:10:48

Today, I welcome Roger Spitz back to the show. Roger is a futurist, author, and president of Techistential, which is a strategy consultancy. He's also the chair of The Disruptive Futures Institute , which is a global education hub. For the purposes of this episode, however, he is the author of a new book, Disrupt with Impact - Achieve Business Success in an Unpredictable World , which is all about helping to guide us through uncertainty and unpredictability. Roger was in London at the end of last year and we met up and recorded this fabulous episode in an external studio. We covered lots of ground with this chat, including what Roger means by “disruption 3.0”, uncertainty, AI, some of the shortcomings of our education system, and what leaders can and should be doing to disrupt with impact. Show Notes: Disrupt with Impact - https://www.thrivingondisruption.com/disrupt-with-impact Roger on LinkedIn - Roger Spitz Techistential – www.techistential.ai Roger on the podcast on episode 198 - https://open.spotify.com/episode/0LTP4xkhxwpjwpUEDeE7Xe?si=LhgixrbnRXGB9OXSccLK4Q Joseph Schumpeter - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Schumpeter Clayton Christensen - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clayton_Christensen Dr. Peter Bishop - https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-bishop-2866257/ Teach the Future - https://www.teachthefuture.org/ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ All our podcast episodes are here: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Our latest newsletter: https://us19.campaign-archive.com/?u=f19fc74942b40b513cf66af32&id=1e2a6c0ea9…

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Inbetweenisode: Uncertainty, Beautiful Uncertainty 14:42

11 weeks ago14:42

14:42

This “inbetweenisode” is based on the latest edition of our newsletter. It’s all about uncertainty. After two and a half decades of working with decision-making under uncertainty, I have come to the following conclusion: uncertainty is about emotion . Show notes: Our latest newsletter: https://us19.campaign-archive.com/?u=f19fc74942b40b513cf66af32&id=1e2a6c0ea9 Scenario planning guide: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/ben-cattaneo_scenario-planning-taster-guide-activity-7200947403045175296-EXlT?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Subscribe to our podcast: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast…

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Ep. 238: Daniel Wagner on Geopolitics in 2025 1:10:48

12 weeks ago1:10:48

1:10:48

For the past few years, I've had Daniel Wagner on the show at about this time of year to give a look ahead at the state of the world from a geopolitical perspective. We do that again as 2024 comes to a close and 2025 is just a few days away. Daniel is my co-author of Decision-Making in the Polycrisis Era . He is the CEO of Country Risk Solutions and knows quite a bit about geopolitics. This is a conversation that I hope gets you to be perhaps a bit more curious about the state of the world. It is concerning out there, and we don't shy away from that. But with understanding comes a better ability to act. _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Subscribe to our podcast: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast…

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Ep. 237: Dr. Eva van den Broek and Tim den Heijer - On "The Housefly Effect" 1:18:49

14 weeks ago1:18:49

1:18:49

Today, we're going to hear about something called “the housefly effect”, which is all about how little interventions affect our behaviour and how we don't even realize that. My guests are the co-authors of a fascinating book by the same name, The Housefly Effect – How Nudge Psychology Steers Your Everyday Behaviour. They are Dr. Eva van den Broek , and Tim den Heijer , both are based in the Netherlands. Eva holds a PhD in behavioural economics and is the founder of Behavioral Insights. She works with a lot of policymakers on these topics. Tim is a creative strategist, the founder of B.R.A.I.N. Creatives and has over 20 years of experience in advertising for some of the biggest brands in the world. And they make a great team, as you will hear. This conversation is a fun one, but it makes you think. And, as you listen to it, it's interesting to consider the choices that we make and whether or not there's something at play in these decisions that's almost imperceptible - the housefly effect. Small things can have big impacts. And if we understand that, it opens many fascinating possibilities. Show Notes: The Housefly Effect – https://www.amazon.co.uk/Housefly-Effect-Psychology-Everyday-Behaviour/dp/183501142X Eva on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/evdbroek/ Tim on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/timdenheijer/ Eva’s firm Stichting Behavioural Insights - https://www.behaviouralinsights.nl/ Tim’s firm B.R.A.I.N. Creatives - https://braincreatives.nl/wie Morioka Shoten – the Tokyo bookshop that only sells one book: https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/dec/23/japanese-bookshop-stocks-only-one-book-at-a-time Robert Cialdini - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Cialdini Gerd Gigerenzer – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerd_Gigerenzer Koen Smets – https://behavioralscientist.org/author/koen-smets/ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Subscribe to our podcast: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast…

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Ep. 236: Chris Darwin - On How Charles Darwin Thought and Made Decisions 1:18:45

15 weeks ago1:18:45

1:18:45

Today, we talk about one of the most influential people in world history - how he thought and how he made decisions. That person is Charles Darwin, the man who caused the Western World to reassess what it thought was true. Charles Darwin had a way of thinking and deciding and hear all about that in this episode. We obviously could not get Charles himself. However, we have fabulous conversation with his great-great grandson, Chris Darwin . Chris has very interesting background. Earlier his early life he had enough of hearing about his famous ancestor and he pursued a career in advertising. As you will hear however, he came back to Charles and how he thought and how he made decisions. Chris is based in Australia. He is an author, adventurer, and conservationist. He joins me in a stimulating, fun and insightful discussion into how Charles Darwin thought and made decisions. Show notes: The Darwin Challenge Chris on finding one’s purpose Tiny Habits by B.J. Fogg Atomic Habits by James Clear _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Subscribe to our podcast: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast…

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Ep. 235: Charles Hecker - On "Zero Sum - The Arc of International Business in Russia" 1:47:34

17 weeks ago1:47:34

1:47:34

Today, we talk about the arc of international business in Russia over the past 30-some years. Our guest is Charles Hecker . Charles is a self-professed “Russia geek” who has written a fabulous new book entitled Zero Sum - The Arc of International Business in Russia . It largely covers the time starting from the fall of the Soviet Union to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It's utterly fascinating on so many levels. International business in Russia, as you will hear, is almost like a huge natural experiment in decision-making. You will hear about complex to nuanced decisions, bad decisions, good decisions, and downright batshit crazy decisions. To fully understand and appreciate a topic as complex as Russia, you need to live and breathe it, and Charles has and does. He studied in Russia during the Cold War. He was a journalist there with Moscow Times in the 1990s and also led Control Risks Russia office in the country. Control Risks is a specialist risk consultancy where Charles and I were colleagues. Charles is also a great storyteller. That will come through in this conversation and it also comes through in the book which is filled with colour. In reading it, one can almost see, and smell vodka dripping from the page and imagine oneself in Russia in the nineties and the noughties. While it's impossible to go back in time and fully understand what people were thinking and feeling when they made decisions when it comes to business decision-making in Russia, Charles's account comes about as close as you can get. Show notes: Charles’ website - https://www.charleshecker.com/ Zero Sum - The Arc of International Business in Russia Charles on LinkedIn The loans for shares scheme The BRICS Mikhail Khodorkovsky Yukos The Kursk submarine disaster TNK-BP The Beslan school siege The Moscow theatre siege Putin’s 2007 speech at the Munich Security Conference The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Subscribe to our podcast: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Sign up for our “Decision Navigators” course: https://lnkd.in/eMZSPft4…

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Ep. 234: Dr. Gary Klein - On Lessons in Naturalistic Decision-Making 1:10:41

18 weeks ago1:10:41

1:10:41

Today, I bring you my conversation with an absolute legend, Gary Klein . Gary is a renowned pioneer in naturalistic decision-making. He has extensively researched how experienced professionals (e.g. experienced physicians, firefighters, police officers, etc.) make decisions in high-pressure environments, relying on their intuition without extensive analysis. This led Gary to develop the “Recognition Primed Decision Model”. And if you've ever come across the PreMortem technique, Gary invented that. The PreMortem is something that helps decision-makers anticipate failures before they occur. He's also collaborated with Nobel laureate, the late Daniel Kahneman, but did so as “collaborative adversaries” as he has a different take on cognitive biases. And you will hear more about that directly from Gary. Gary's work also inspired Malcolm Gladwell's book, Blink, and so much more. He is an absolute legend. In this conversation, we talk about the role of intuition and decision-making in reducing errors and enhancing insights, which Gary has done extensive work on. Gary shares some great context and advice on the PreMortem and so much more. I think Gary's work is essential to understanding and practising quality decision-making. Show notes: Gary’s website Naturalistic Decision-Making - www.naturalisticdecisionmaking.org Gary’s firm, ShadowBox LLC: https://www.shadowboxtraining.com/ Gary’s “Masterclass in Practical Decision-Making” QR code to the masterclass: Gary’s latest book, Snapshots of the Mind Recognition-primed Decision Model PreMortem method Gary’s article with Daniel Kahneman, “A Failure to Disagree” Gary’s book Seeing What Others Don’t – The Remarkable Ways We Gain Insights _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ Learn more about The Decision-Making Studio: https://thedecisionmaking.studio/podcast Sign up for our “Decision Navigators” course: https://lnkd.in/eMZSPft4…

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Ep. 233: The Decision Clinic with Ben Cattaneo and Dr. Melina Moleskis 1:15:04

20 weeks ago1:15:04

1:15:04

This episode is a bit different. It’s a “Decision Clinic” in which Dr. Melina Moleskis and I offer some views on three “decision dilemmas” submitted to us by wonderful listeners. The format is a bit like an “ask me anything” podcast. Enjoy! Show notes: Sign up for our Decision Navigators course: https://tdo04pxyq8y.typeform.com/to/Bgn3Qd5K FOCUS framework Weight and rate tool Hot and cold empathy gap Base rates Premortem Inversion Trip wires Susan David _ _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe to The Decision-Making Studio Podcast…

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Ep. 232: Dr. Dan Dworkis - On The Emergency Mind 1:14:32

22 weeks ago1:14:32

1:14:32

This episode is all about how to perform better in a crisis. I am joined today by Dr. Dan Dworkis . He's not only an emergency physician, he's someone who's taken the high pressure experiences of the emergency room and turned them into a framework for performing better under pressure across all kinds of fields from emergency medicine to the boardroom. He's the founder of The Emergency Mind Project . In this episode, we deep dive into how Dan helps teams and individuals build the skills needed to handle unpredictable situations. We get into understanding emergencies, decision-making under pressure, training for these types of situations, recognizing and responding to them, listening and learning from errors, debriefing, recovery, and so much more. Show Notes: The Emergency Mind Project Dan’s book: The Emergency Mind: Wiring Your Brain for Performance Under Pressure The Emergency Mind’s “ Crisis Skill Test ” Annie Duke Dave Snowden _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe to The Decision-Making Studio Podcast Have a tricky decision to make? Consider taking it to “ The Decision Clinic ” Get in touch: hello@thedecisionmaking.studio…

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Ep. 231: Prof. Joel Pearson - On The Science of When and How to Use Our Intuition 1:08:57

24 weeks ago1:08:57

1:08:57

In this episode, I sit down with Joel Pearson , a professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia where he is a Director of the Future Minds Lab and a leader in the science of intuition and decision-making. This conversation will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about intuition. We often hear that intuition should either be suppressed in decision-making or trusted like some kind of mystical superpower. The reality, as Joel reveals, is far more nuanced—and far more fascinating—than either of those extremes. Joel and his team have developed groundbreaking methods to measure intuition and mental imagery, offering a rare glimpse into how these elusive processes work in our brains. Throughout the episode, he breaks down his five rules for knowing when to trust your intuition and when to ignore it. He explains how intuition is a learned skill, not an innate talent, and how it can be both a powerful tool and a dangerous trap depending on the situation. He also introduces the concept of "mis-intuition," where our gut instincts lead us astray, and shares compelling examples of when intuition works and doesn’t. From life-or-death decisions in the military to everyday choices in business, this episode will challenge your assumptions and give you practical insights on making better decisions. This episode is a must-listen if you’ve ever wondered whether to trust your gut or dismiss it. Show notes: Joel’s website Joel’s book - Intuition: Unlock Your Brain's Potential to Build Real Intuition and Make Better Decisions Future Minds Lab Joel on LinkedIn Joel’s Five Rules for Using Intuition Self-awareness: Understand your emotional state before making intuitive decisions, as anxiety or stress can cloud judgment. Mastery: Intuition should be based on experience and repeated exposure to a domain, like a firefighter sensing danger in a burning building. Impulses and Addiction: Avoid confusing cravings or compulsions with intuition. Low Probability Events: Intuition is often unreliable when dealing with probabilities or rare events. Environment: Intuition is context-specific. What works in one environment might not transfer well to another, so be cautious in unfamiliar settings. Associative Learning (Pavlov’s Dogs) Context-Dependent Memory System 1 and System 2 Thinking (Daniel Kahneman ) and Thinking Fast, and Slow by Kahneman The Monty Hall Problem The Gambler’s Fallacy Alchemy by Rory Sutherland Gary Klein Box breathing _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe to The Decision-Making Studio Podcast https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ get in touch: hello@thedecisionmaking.studio…

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Ep. 230: Marischa van Zantvoort and Alasdair Philip - Leading with Impact (and more) Part 2/2 49:08

25 weeks ago49:08

49:08

This is Part Two of Two of our conversation with Marischa van Zantvoort and Alasdair Philip. You will probably get more out of it by listening to Part One. Show notes: Marischa Alasdair Magnifor Consulting William Gibson Gemba walks Neil Gaiman’s commencement speech – “Make Good Art” Sir James Black _ _ _ _ _ Like what you heard? Subscribe to The Decision-Making Studio Podcast https://thedecisionmaking.studio/ get in touch: hello@thedecisionmaking.studio…

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Ep. 229 : Marischa van Zantvoort and Alasdair Philip - On Leading with Impact (and more) Part 1/2 1:05:52

25 weeks ago1:05:52