Policy Seminars

Speaker: Jackson Nickerson
Olin School of Business

Topic: A THEORY OF STRATEGIC PROBLEM FORMULATION
Date/Place/Time: Friday, April 10, 2009 at 11:45AM-1:15PM
UCLA Anderson Entrepreneurs Hall C303
Abstract:
We develop a theory of strategic problem formulation for complex, ill-structured problems. Based on a limited number of assumptions, we theoretically identify a core set of impediments that limit the comprehensiveness of the formulation activity. We then use these impediments to derive design goals, which, if satisfied by an appropriately designed mechanism, can expand problem formulation comprehensiveness. We design a structured process that indeed satisfies the goals and discuss its use in several real-world applications.
Link to paper (if available): click here for paper