Chapters

1. Why Decision-Making Matters (00:00–01:10)
   The premise of the podcast and the crisis faced by London Business School during COVID.
2. Francois’s Decision Framework (01:11–03:00)
   Research, multiple perspectives, mental models, and the use of a “leadership script.”
3. Admissions Dilemma During COVID (03:01–04:30)
   Faced with major income loss, would LBS lower standards to admit more students?
4. Defining Priorities: Safe and Open (04:31–06:20)
   Why Francois rejected the simplicity of “safety first” and instead embraced honest tension.
5. Community-Driven Trade-Offs (06:21–08:00)
   How clarity in messaging inspired collective responsibility across the school.
6. Fast Thinking, Structured Governance (08:01–09:50)
   Creating task forces with focused remits, and leveraging contrasting personalities for balance.
7. The Power of Thinking Twice (09:51–12:00)
   Inspired by a meeting with the C-suite of a Fortune Global 500 company; reinforces the value of stepping back and asking again.
8. Learning from a Personal Property Miss (12:01–14:20)
   A story about London housing and the anticipated impact of the Jubilee Line expansion—an example of economic foresight.
9. Bending the Curve of the Future (14:21–16:00)
   Long-term investments in teaching spaces and faculty capabilities paid off unexpectedly when remote teaching became necessary.
10. Think in 3D, Speak in 2D (16:01–18:10)
    Wisdom from an LBS Governor on visualizing institutional complexity and simplifying messaging.
11. Warren Buffett, Simplicity & Persuasion (18:11–20:00)
    Referencing Warren Buffett, the Berkshire Hathaway chairman, as a model of effective and simple communication.
12. Final Tools for Better Decisions (20:01–26:00)
    Leadership scripts, “what else” thinking, success squared, and tuning your radar to future-shaping possibilities.

 Key Takeouts

• Use a Leadership Script: Anchor decisions in your organisation’s purpose and personal values. Francois drew on institutional strategy from LBS and principles developed during his tenure at the Wisconsin School of Business.
• Don’t Default to Binary Choices: The “third alternative” method echoes practices seen in systems thinking and decision design.
• Transparency Builds Trust: Rather than parroting “safety first,” Francois and his team communicated a nuanced dual priority—resonating with an academically sophisticated audience.
• Empower the Collective: The LBS community embraced a shared mission that echoed ideas of collective action and organisational behaviour common in management literature.
• Simplify to Persuade: Referencing research on persuasion similar to that of Robert Cialdini, Francois underscores the need to distil complex arguments into a few strong points.
• Tune Your Radar to Opportunity: Citing psychological research into luck—such as work by Dr. Richard Wiseman—Francois explains how openness to possibility enables us to see and seize opportunity.

Great Quotes

“I’d rather die protecting our identity than take risks in faking it.”
— Francois Ortalo-Magné

“Safe and open—that’s a tension, not a slogan. And it’s one we had to navigate together.”
— Francois Ortalo-Magné

“Think in 3D if you must. But speak in 2D if you want others to follow.”
— Francois Ortalo-Magné (via an LBS Governor)

“What else? That’s the question that unlocks better decisions.”
— Francois Ortalo-Magné

“People who feel lucky aren’t just lucky. They’re tuned in. They notice.”
— Francois Ortalo-Magné

References:

• Francois Ortalo-Magné: Economist and academic, former Dean of London Business School and Wisconsin School of Business.
• London Business School (LBS): One of the world’s premier institutions for business education.
• Bruce Whitfield: Award-winning journalist, author, and host of The Art of Deciding podcast.
• Warren Buffett: Legendary investor and communicator, noted for simple, effective explanations of complex ideas.
• Jubilee Line: A key London Underground line whose expansion influenced housing prices—used as a case in economic forecasting.
• Wisconsin School of Business: Business school at the University of Wisconsin–Madison where Francois served as Dean.
• Fortune Global 500: Annual ranking of the world’s largest corporations by revenue.
• Dr. Richard Wiseman: Psychologist known for research into luck, chance, and perception.https://richardwiseman.wordpress.com/
• Robert Cialdini: Renowned psychologist and author of Influence; noted for his work on persuasion and decision-making.