It takes the average reader 3 hours and 51 minutes to read Organizational Intelligence by Harold L. Wilensky
Assuming a reading speed of 250 words per minute. Learn more
The prize-winning book Organizational Intelligence focuses on the structural and ideological roots of intelligence (informational and analytical) failures in government, industry, and other institutions. It provides groundbreaking theory and structure to the analysis of decision-making processes and their breakdowns, as well as the interactions among experts and the organizations they inform. In this book, both "organization" and "intelligence" are taken to their larger meanings, not just focused on the military meaning of intelligence or on one set of institutions in society. Astute illustrations of intelligence failures abound from real-world cases, such as foreign policy (the Bay of Pigs, Soviet predictions in the Cuban missile crisis), military (civilian bombing of Germany, Pearl Harbor), financial (AmEx's investment in a vegetable oil guru), economics (the Council of Economic Advisers) and industrial production (Ford's Edsel), as well as many other telling arenas and disciplines. Economic, cultural, legal, and political contexts are considered, as well as the more known institutions of government and commerce. The new Classics of the Social Sciences edition from Quid Pro Books features a 2015 Foreword from Neil J. Smelser, University Professor Emeritus at Berkeley and former chair of its sociology department. He writes that the book remains "one of the classics in organizational studies, and—in ways I will indicate—it is still directly relevant to current and future problems of organizational life. ... What makes this book a classic? It is a disciplined, intelligent, and elegant model of applied social science. ... The text itself, richly documented empirically, yields an informed and balanced account of the decision-making process as this is shaped by the quality of information available (and unavailable) to and used (and not used) by organizational leaders." Reviews of the book at the time it was written similarly attest to the originality and breadth of its interdisciplinary analysis. Amitai Etzioni wrote in the American Sociological Review: "This book opens a whole new field — the macrosociology of knowledge. It is as different from the traditional sociology of knowledge as the study of interaction is from that of the structure of total societies." He adds, "The power of Wilensky's contribution is further magnified by his historical perspective. He studies structures and processes, but not in a vacuum." Gordon Craig wrote in The Reporter that the book's examples from organizations "show a similar tendency to believe what they want to believe, to become the victims of their own slogans and propaganda, and to resist or to silence warning voices that challenge their assumptions.... In his fascinating analysis of intelligence failures and their causes ... in the public and private sectors, Wilensky finds that the most disastrous miscalculations are those which have occurred in the field of governmental operations, especially foreign policy and national security." The book explains how such highly institutionalized actors are vulnerable to informational pathologies. The new digital edition features active Contents, a fully linked Index, linked notes, and proper ebook formatting. It is a modern, quality, and authorized re-presentation of a classic work in social science and organizational studies.
Organizational Intelligence by Harold L. Wilensky is 226 pages long, and a total of 57,856 words.
This makes it 76% the length of the average book. It also has 71% more words than the average book.
The average oral reading speed is 183 words per minute. This means it takes 5 hours and 16 minutes to read Organizational Intelligence aloud.
Organizational Intelligence is suitable for students ages 12 and up.
Note that there may be other factors that effect this rating besides length that are not factored in on this page. This may include things like complex language or sensitive topics not suitable for students of certain ages.
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