The Shark and the Fish: Applying Poker Strategies to Business Leadership

Early on in his latest offering on life and poker, Swayne (Swayne’s Advanced Degree in Hold ’em) quotes Barack Obama as saying, “I’m a pretty good poker player.” He goes on to mention that Bill Gates and Dwight Eisenhower were also gifted at the game, thus adding an element of credibility to his argument that poker can make you a better decision maker in business or other areas of leadership. In this entertaining and pragmatic work, Swayne draws on his industrious career as a poker player and professional poker instructor to examine the fundamentals of strategic thinking: from mission and vision to tactical execution and understanding making bets and taking risk. The work has most impact when Swayne explains how he teaches novice players to make decisions on how to play various types of hands or discusses the importance of understanding your opponent inside and out. He illustrates his points with anecdotes from companies like Harley-Davidson, GE, and 3M. For nonpoker players, this work, despite its contemplative and humorous voice, may fall flat, as the descriptions of various modes of play and the frequent name dropping of professional players will mean nothing, but for players, the analogies to the business world will ring true. (Sept.)