InfomaniaOur Favourite Books of 2012Another year, another 11,000 business books published. So, like gold panners, we’ve sifted through the shale, mud and granite of the publishing world to find a few nuggets of worthwhile reading. Here’s some of the 2012 haul.

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking(Susan Cain)

We spend an inordinate amount of time in meetings, but much of it is dominated with the ideas of the best talkers, not necessarily the best thinkers. Cain o! ers a powerful argument for rethinking the lazy assumptions about personality types.

Governing the World: The History of an Idea(Allen Lane History, Mark Mazower)

A wonderful study of 200 years of attempts to create global governance.

Are We Getting Smarter? Rising IQ in the Twenty-First Century(James R. Flynn)

This isn’t a relaxed, populist read but if you’re interested in how our intelligence is evolving, Flynn’s remarkable study of IQ development is fascinating.

From the Ruins of Empire: The Revolt Against the West and the Remaking of Asia(Pankaj Mishra)

Our world is dominated by the intellectuals of the West. Mishra introduces readers to the forgotten thinkers of the East and urges us to take stock of our long-cherished Western values.

What Money Can’t Buy: The Moral Limits of Markets(Michael Sandel)

One of the most important books of 2012. A nursery introduces " nes for parents who are late picking up their infant children. Result: more parents are late. The " ne makes us less moral, more calculating, seeing it as a payment for more time rather than a penalty for transgressing our moral responsibility. Sandel surveys how free market thinking has pervaded into previously unimaginable domains of our culture and counts the cost to our society.

Antifragile: How to Live in a World We Don’t Understand(Nassim Nicholas Taleb)

A big idea that feels timely and true. Taleb, author of The Black Swan and Fooled by Randomness, argues we need to focus on “antifragility”- things that become stronger under stress. He’s an opinionated, in-your-face writer who has an abundance of con" dence in his views. Marmite. We love it.

The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do, and How to Change(Charles Duhigg)

A comprehensive tour of the latest science of how habits are formed and what it means for personal and organisational change.

The Strategist: Be the Leader Your Business Needs(Cynthia Montgomery)

A marriage of strategy and leadership that starts with why your company matters.

The Righteous Mind: Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion(Jonathan Haidt)

Brain science sheds new light on the possibility that our political and religious beliefs are hardwired given our brain preferences. Controversial, but powerfully thought-provoking.

Liars and Outliers: Enabling the Trust That Society Needs to Thrive(Bruce Schneier)

Why does society work? Schneier argues that four forces are at work: moral pressure (values and social norms); reputational pressure (peer pressure in intimate groups); institutional pressure (the rules and norms of large groups) and security systems (mechanisms designed to induce cooperation).

Thinking the Twentieth Century: Intellectuals and Politics in the Twentieth Century(Tony Judt, Timothy Snyder)

A fascinating tour of thinkers of the last century. Judt’s last book before he died.

The New Emerging Market Multinationals: Four Strategies for Disrupting Markets and Building Brands(Amitava Chattopadhyay and Rajeev Batra with Aysegul Ozsomer)

In 2005, 44 of the companies on Fortune’s Global 500 list were from emerging markets. In 2010, there were 113. Low labour costs and abundant natural resources are typically cited as the key sources of competitive advantage of emerging market competitors. Here we see how blinkered a view that is. Time to wake up!

The Wide Lens: A New Strategy for Innovation(Ron Adner)

Innovation thinking driven by opening up an organisation’s awareness to its environment.

Kill the Company: End the Status Quo, Start an Innovation Revolution(Lisa Bodell)

A slew of ideas to get your people thinking and acting di! erently.

The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail - But Some Don’t(Nate Silver)

The US pollster whose predictions have astounded the market with their accuracy. Humans are over-con" dent in their predictions. Silver advocates being the ‘fox’ who keeps an open mind, adjusts theory to evidence, and is wary of ideology.

Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty(Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson)

This is a big book full of deep ideas about globalisation. We’re entering a new era of geopolitics where assumptions that prosperity equates to inclusion should be carefully challenged.

The Hour Between Dog and Wolf: Risk-taking, Gut Feelings and the Biology of Boom and Bust John Coates)

A thesis on the impact of testosterone, cortisol and adrenaline on markets, risk and decision-making. Fight Club anyone?

Des

ign

& C

on

ten

t ©

dpa

201

2

+44 1483 414000ideas@dpacoms.comwww.dpacoms.com@dpafusionwww.dpacoms.com/blog