Welcome to the 7th edition of Quantitative Analysis for Decision Makers (previously titled
Quantitative Methods for Decision Makers).
It’s 30 years since this book was first published and much has changed in the world of
business and management since then. The internet was only just becoming available to
businesses, with the world wide web starting to develop at the same time. Smartphones
didn’t exist. Apple and IBM were about to introduce their first business laptops. Microsoft was still working on its first version of Windows.
One thing that hasn’t changed – and if anything it’s got worse – is the pressure that
managers are under at every level to make fast, effective decisions that turn out to be the
right decisions.
The contribution that quantitative analytical techniques can make to such decision
making is well researched. There is extensive empirical evidence that the relevant
application of such techniques has resulted in significant improvements in efficiency –
particularly at the microeconomic level – and has led to improvements in decision
making in both profit and not-for-profit organisations. Numerous professional journals
regularly provide details of successful applications of such techniques to specific business problems