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Inside Nudging: Implementing Behavioral Science Initiatives
Inside Nudging is written for management professionals and scientists to feed their thinking and discussions about implementing behavioral science initiatives (which includes behavioral economics and finance) in business settings. Situations include the incubation of innovation centers, behavioral science overlay capabilities, and advancement of existing organizations. Companies need to develop grit - the ability and fortitude to succeed. The book introduces the Behavioral GRIT framework and covers key takeaways in leading an organization that implements behavioral science. Behavioral GRIT stands for the business functions related to Goals, Research, Innovation, and Testing.
The chapters are complemented by an appendix which covers ideas to introduce behavioral science initiatives. I argue that first a company needs to identify its goals and identify what type of predominant organization model it wants to pursue. There are five predominant organizational models I've seen. I also offer that a company should consider a number of implementation elements that may play a role during execution. Example elements include an advisory board and a behavioral science officer.
Note that the purpose of this book is not to teach people about behavioral science; there are many other books out there for those purposes. That said, Inside Nudging introduces some behavioral science concepts to provide context and help develop a common language between management professionals and scientists.
I see the application of behavioral science as still being in the early adoption phase. Many companies will benefit if they take time to develop the right approach. I hope Inside Nudging helps you with your journey.
Stephen Shu
Praise for Inside Nudging
"Steve Shu's thoughtful and very readable book Inside Nudging provides a unique opportunity to understand how the research from behavioral science can be best exploited by business. While many popular books on behavioral science make a strong case for the value of the research, none have addressed how to exploit it in such a helpful and practical manner. A rarely mentioned secret brought into full view here is the fact that using behavioral science effectively is not so straightforward. Written specifically for business people and consultants Steve Shu shares his wide experience of consulting to explain the challenges and pitfalls of translating the ideas and findings of academic research into actionable solutions for real business problems. This book shows you how by giving examples of how real consultancy projects were shaped to deliver valuable results for working businesses. Inside Nudging acts as an intelligent interface between the ideas of the nerds in academia and the needs of real business people and offers tremendous potential for any business that needs to understand how people respond to their actions." - Peter Ayton, Professor, Associate Dean of Research and Deputy Dean, Social Sciences, City University London
"Steve Shu has written an excellent book for companies looking to get started with behavioral economics. Through his use of case studies and actionable takeaways, he does a great job showing how decades of research can be combined with other business elements to accomplish amazing results. Inside Nudging is like an executive guidebook for practitioners." - Dilip Soman, Professor and Corus Chair in Communications Strategy, Co-Director, Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman (BEAR), Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto; Author of The Last Mile
"This may be a CEO or manager's first glimpse into how they can utilize behavioral science initiatives within their own company or life. " - Jenna Gould, San Francisco Book Review
The chapters are complemented by an appendix which covers ideas to introduce behavioral science initiatives. I argue that first a company needs to identify its goals and identify what type of predominant organization model it wants to pursue. There are five predominant organizational models I've seen. I also offer that a company should consider a number of implementation elements that may play a role during execution. Example elements include an advisory board and a behavioral science officer.
Note that the purpose of this book is not to teach people about behavioral science; there are many other books out there for those purposes. That said, Inside Nudging introduces some behavioral science concepts to provide context and help develop a common language between management professionals and scientists.
I see the application of behavioral science as still being in the early adoption phase. Many companies will benefit if they take time to develop the right approach. I hope Inside Nudging helps you with your journey.
Stephen Shu
Praise for Inside Nudging
"Steve Shu's thoughtful and very readable book Inside Nudging provides a unique opportunity to understand how the research from behavioral science can be best exploited by business. While many popular books on behavioral science make a strong case for the value of the research, none have addressed how to exploit it in such a helpful and practical manner. A rarely mentioned secret brought into full view here is the fact that using behavioral science effectively is not so straightforward. Written specifically for business people and consultants Steve Shu shares his wide experience of consulting to explain the challenges and pitfalls of translating the ideas and findings of academic research into actionable solutions for real business problems. This book shows you how by giving examples of how real consultancy projects were shaped to deliver valuable results for working businesses. Inside Nudging acts as an intelligent interface between the ideas of the nerds in academia and the needs of real business people and offers tremendous potential for any business that needs to understand how people respond to their actions." - Peter Ayton, Professor, Associate Dean of Research and Deputy Dean, Social Sciences, City University London
"Steve Shu has written an excellent book for companies looking to get started with behavioral economics. Through his use of case studies and actionable takeaways, he does a great job showing how decades of research can be combined with other business elements to accomplish amazing results. Inside Nudging is like an executive guidebook for practitioners." - Dilip Soman, Professor and Corus Chair in Communications Strategy, Co-Director, Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman (BEAR), Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto; Author of The Last Mile
"This may be a CEO or manager's first glimpse into how they can utilize behavioral science initiatives within their own company or life. " - Jenna Gould, San Francisco Book Review
146 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 22, 2016
6 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Steve Shu
4 books2 followersSteve Shu provides consulting services and specializes in incubating new initiatives and business lines with a primary focus on services, technology, and behavioral science. He has more than a decade of experience setting up behavioral science initiatives and nudge units. He serves as a Managing Principal at Digital Nudging Tech (formerly Digitai), a behavioral economics innovation firm. Steve has three decades of industry experience and has consulted to or had management roles at organizations such as The Voya Behavioral Finance Institute for Innovation, Allianz Global Investors Center for Behavioral Finance, Allscripts, Nortel Business Consulting, PRTM Management Consultants (acquired by PwC), and numerous startups. He is a Visiting Lecturer at the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University.
Steve has a PhD in behavioral finance from City, University of London, an MBA from the University of Chicago, and both an MEng and BS in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University. He has attended executive education training on Dynamic Management at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.
Steve has put his decades of experience into his solo-authored books, Inside Nudging: Implementing Behavioral Science Initiatives and The Consulting Apprenticeship: 40 Jump-Start Ideas for You and Your Business.
Steve has a PhD in behavioral finance from City, University of London, an MBA from the University of Chicago, and both an MEng and BS in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University. He has attended executive education training on Dynamic Management at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.
Steve has put his decades of experience into his solo-authored books, Inside Nudging: Implementing Behavioral Science Initiatives and The Consulting Apprenticeship: 40 Jump-Start Ideas for You and Your Business.
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January 29, 2019
If you have read a good number of the dozens of books on behavioral science theory, you may have found yourself thinking, "Okay, I get it. The research is interesting, but how do I use it in my company?"
Steve Shu does a great job answering this question. His GRIT model (Goals, Research, Innovation, Testing) is useful for thinking about the practical elements companies need to address when implementing behavioral science. And it doesn't end there. Steve draws on his experience to share 5 organizing models that companies usually use, as well as an ethical framework to help think through the implications of a given design. He ends the book with a reminder that understanding the impact of any intervention requires a level of testing rigor that most companies don't have experience with. If you don't test with rigor, it will be hard to say with any confidence (or statistical significance) that your design is a success.
Overall, the book is practical and useful. It helped me think clearly about the next steps I can take to bring more applied behavioral science to my company. Moreover, Steve's references helped me add a few more items to my to-read list. I'm inspired to continue learning. For me, that's the sign of a great book. For these reasons I give it 5 stars.
Steve Shu does a great job answering this question. His GRIT model (Goals, Research, Innovation, Testing) is useful for thinking about the practical elements companies need to address when implementing behavioral science. And it doesn't end there. Steve draws on his experience to share 5 organizing models that companies usually use, as well as an ethical framework to help think through the implications of a given design. He ends the book with a reminder that understanding the impact of any intervention requires a level of testing rigor that most companies don't have experience with. If you don't test with rigor, it will be hard to say with any confidence (or statistical significance) that your design is a success.
Overall, the book is practical and useful. It helped me think clearly about the next steps I can take to bring more applied behavioral science to my company. Moreover, Steve's references helped me add a few more items to my to-read list. I'm inspired to continue learning. For me, that's the sign of a great book. For these reasons I give it 5 stars.
Displaying 1 of 1 review