Phil Rosenzweig

Professor Emeritus of Strategy and International Management

Phil Rosenzweig is Professor Emeritus of Strategy and International Management. He is Co-director of Transition to Business Leadership and was Co-director of the Dual Executive MBA Program with CKGSB.

His areas of expertise include strategy, firm performance, and complex organizational design. He has written on the management of multinational firms, with articles published in Strategic Management Journal, the Journal of International Business Studies, Academy of Management Review, Management Science, and California Management Review. He has also authored numerous case studies on firms including Microsoft, Daimler Benz, Matsushita, Heineken, Accor, MTN, Dubai Aluminium, and Vodafone.

More recently, Rosenzweig has focused his attention on critical thinking and managerial decision making. His 2007 book, The Halo Effect and the Eight Other Business Delusions that Deceive Managers, takes a critical look at the errors that pervade much business thinking. It was named Best Business Book of the Year by getAbstract and favorably reviewed in Harvard Business Review, the Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and dozens of other newspapers and magazines. It has been translated into 14 languages. His 2014 book, Left Brain, Right Stuff: How Leaders Make Winning Decisions, extends research about decision making into the world of strategy and management.

Drawing on more than 30 years of business and academic experience, he has consulted with numerous firms in Europe and North America and has taught executive courses in North America, South America, Europe, Japan, Singapore, and the Middle East. Most recently, he has worked closely with CKGSB regarding China and Chinese management.

Prior to joining IMD, Rosenzweig was an assistant professor at Harvard Business School from 1990 to 1996. Prior to his academic experience, he worked with Hewlett-Packard in California from 1979 to 1986. He received his PhD from the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania in 1990, his MBA from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1980, and his BA in economics from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 1976.

Academic publications
The halo effect...and the eight other business delusions that deceive managers
Book
The halo effect...and the eight other business delusions that deceive managers
StrategyPerformance MeasurementOrganizational Design
Much of our business thinking is shaped by delusions - errors of logic and flawed judgments that distort our understanding of the real reasons for a company's performance. In this book, the author ...
2 June 2014
Left brain, right stuff: How leaders make winning decisions
Book
Left brain, right stuff: How leaders make winning decisions
LeadershipPsychologyDecision Making
A renowned business expert examines decision-making in critical, big-time situations where the outcome shapes the destiny of companies, countries, sports teams, political campaigns, or the military...
30 January 2014
Article
The choice of entry mode in sequential foreign direct investment
InvestmentOrganizational LearningOrganizational Design
This study uses a dynamic model to analyze sequential entries into the US from 1975 to 1992. The findings show that several independent variables which explain a firm's initial mode of entry do not...
1 August 2001
Article
Managing the new global workforce: Fostering diversity, forging consistency
Global BusinessDiversity and Equity and InclusionOrganizational BehaviorCulture
As the result of rapid foreign investment, many multinational firms now have workforces that are spread across continents and countries, and that include an increasingly complex blend of cultures a...
1 December 1998
Article
Industry and regional patterns in sequential foreign market entry
InvestmentGlobal Business
This study empirically investigates industry and region of origin patterns of sequential foreign market entry by multinational corporations (MNCs) at the line of business level. The authors use eve...
12 November 1998
Article
Influences on human resource management practices in multinational corporations
Organizational BehaviorGlobal Business
An examination is made of human resource management (HRM) practices in 249 US affiliates of foreign-based multinational corporations (MNC). It is shown that in general affiliate HRM practices close...
1 May 1994
Article
Why is managing in the United States so difficult for European firms?
Global BusinessLeadershipOrganizational Behavior
As European multinational corporations (MNC) have rapidly increased their investment in the US, many have encountered serious problems in managing their US affiliates. Some challenges are encounter...
1 March 1994
Article
When can management science research be generalized internationally?
General Management
Discussion about international generalizability has rarely addressed the full scope of management science research. A number of obstacles to international generalizability are identified, and how t...
1 January 1994
Insight for Executives
How to strategize your way out of complex problems
Article
How to strategize your way out of complex problems
InnovationLeadershipGeneral Management
In Solvable, Arnaud Chevallier and Albrecht Enders have developed a three-step process for complex problem solving: frame, explore and decide.
10 June 2022
Geographical location – or helping to create it – dictates companies’ success
Article
Geographical location – or helping to create it – dictates companies’ success
CompetitivenessStrategyLeadership
To boost company performance, executives must support the competitiveness of their countries and embrace public-private collaboration to help articulate and implement national strategy, say IMD Pro...
29 April 2022
How China’s retail revolution puts consumers’ needs at the center
Article
How China’s retail revolution puts consumers’ needs at the center
ChinaDigital
China’s retail revolution draws on convenience and technology to fulfil customer needs in innovative ways.
24 January 2022
What is the relative importance of the public sector and its role in creating prosperity – with implications for public spending and taxation?
Article
What is the relative importance of the public sector and its role in creating prosperity – with implications for public spending and taxation?
Competitiveness
What is the relative importance of the public sector and its role in creating prosperity – with implications for public spending and taxation?
21 July 2021
From your personal or professional experience, what other example of gender bias can you think of?  What is the source of this bias, and how serious is the effect?
Article
From your personal or professional experience, what other example of gender bias can you think of?  What is the source of this bias, and how serious is the effect?
Diversity and Equity and Inclusion
From your personal or professional experience, what other example of gender bias can you think of? What is the source of this bias, and how serious is the effect?
1 May 2021
Of the many examples of gender bias provided in this book, which do you find most striking, or surprising, or memorable?
Article
Of the many examples of gender bias provided in this book, which do you find most striking, or surprising, or memorable?
Diversity and Equity and Inclusion
Of the many examples of gender bias provided in this book, which do you find most striking, or surprising, or memorable? We look forward to discussing your answers related to the book of the month
1 May 2021
Thinking of your particular circumstances – personal or professional – how can you draw upon the insights of this book to take action?
Article
Thinking of your particular circumstances – personal or professional – how can you draw upon the insights of this book to take action?
Diversity and Equity and Inclusion
Thinking of your particular circumstances – personal or professional – how can you draw upon the insights of this book to take action? We look forward to discussing your answers related to the book...
1 May 2021
Phil’s Book Club: Review of The Ride of a Lifetime
Article
Phil’s Book Club: Review of The Ride of a Lifetime
LeadershipStrategy
Our book for April, The Ride of a Lifetime by Disney CEO Robert Iger, was published in 2019 and has been a major best-seller. I picked it for a few reasons: it tells the story of a man’s career, so...
22 April 2021
How business people should read books
Article
How business people should read books
Culture
No doubt you have your personal favorite kind of reading, whether novels or science fiction, mysteries or adventure or some other genre that gives you pleasure.
18 March 2021
Book Club: 2021 reading list
Article
Book Club: 2021 reading list
CultureWork-life Balance
Each month, we will discuss one book, and add a new book to the list, so you will always be able to plan ahead.
17 March 2021
Why business leaders should join a book club
Article
Why business leaders should join a book club
Work-life BalanceCulture
In a world of 24-hour news cycles, podcasts and webinars, Tweets and Ted Talks, is there still a role for books? The answer, of course, is: Yes.
8 March 2021
Article
員工對工作滿意,公司績效就會好?30年商管專家:未必!
LeadershipPerformance Measurement
The halo effect is a psychological phenomenon that creates and maintains a consistent and coherent impression internally to reduce cognitive dissonance. In addition to reducing cognitive confusion,...
14 January 2021
Article
O que torna as decisões estratégicas diferentes
LeadershipStrategyGlobal BusinessInvestmentEmerging EconomyChina
China’s foray abroad is not new. In addition to the acquisitions of established companies in Europe and the Americas, China is also undertaking extensive investment in many developing regions of th...
27 April 2017
China: Slowing at home but expanding abroad
Article
China: Slowing at home but expanding abroad
China Emerging Economy Global Business Investment Strategy
China’s foray abroad is not new. In addition to the acquisitions of established companies in Europe and the Americas, China is also undertaking extensive investment in many developing regions of th...
16 March 2016
Article
How to use decision models
Decision MakingTop TeamOrganizational Learning
The article offers suggestions on using strategic decision¦models in business. It is suggested that executives should ask themselves before using a model on whether they directly influence the outc...
26 September 2014
Article
A head for good decision; winning decisions require two different skills - left brain and the right stuff
Decision MakingLeadershipPsychology
Left brain is shorthand for a deliberate and analytical approach to problem solving. It’s a bit of a misnomer,¦because both of the brain’s hemispheres are used in many tasks. Problem solving isn’t ...
16 February 2014
Article
The benefits - and limits - of decision models
Decision MakingStrategyTop Team
The growing power of decision models has captured plenty of C-suite attention in recent years. Combining¦vast amounts of data and increasingly sophisticated algorithms, modeling has opened up new p...
11 February 2014
Article
The benefits - and limits - of decision models
Decision MakingStrategyTop Team
The growing power of decision models has captured plenty of C-suite attention in recent years. Combining vast amounts of data and increasingly sophisticated algorithms, modeling has opened up new p...
1 February 2014
Article
Making better decisions over time
Decision MakingPsychologyLeadership
Managers make a wide range of decisions, from routine calls they face on a recurring basis, to large-scale¦strategic decisions they may encounter just once in their careers. For issues that are oft...
6 January 2014
The four categories of decision making
Article
The four categories of decision making
Decision Making Strategy
Decisions are a part of life and while they range in complexity, we face various decisions on a daily basis. But how can we best make decisions that lead to optimal outcomes? With an ever-growing w...
14 November 2013
How managers let themselves be deceived
The Halo Effect - Updated ed.