Herbert Simon on organizational decision-making for long-term survival

Abstract

This essay summarizes the Harry Camp Lectures of Herbert Simon as they pertain to organizational decision-making. Organizations struggle to survive in ways not unlike organisms in the natural world, whether by means of domination or adaptation — though with the profound advantage of making conscious decisions how to adapt, rather than trusting to trial-and-error. Unfortunately, many experts in decision-making advise organizations to adopt methods for optimization that are unrealistic, if not impossible, such that the objective of survival is actually threatened by such advice.

Citation

Harter, N. (2014), "Herbert Simon on organizational decision-making for long-term survival", International Journal of Innovation Science, Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 249-256. https://doi.org/10.1260/1757-2223.6.4.249