The Mathematical Corporation: Where Machine Intelligence and Human Ingenuity Achieve the Impossible

In an age when data is king, Sullivan and Zutavern (senior v-p and v-p, respectively, of consultancy Booz Allen Hamilton) attempt to prove that human smarts are still valuable, but their far-reaching arguments add up to little more than banal truisms. The authors posit a new form of leadership that relies on machine intelligence, utilizing robust data science. They researched hundreds of organizations to find out how technology and leadership combined would influence the behavior and success of business, government, and nonprofit organizations. The “hidden digital world” relies on data, they write, and this data can help businesspeople understand how people work. The authors stress the power of intuition and the fact that machines, for all their usefulness, are incapable of creativity. Discussions of ethics and what should be considered private data are thought-provoking, but the book is bogged down by high-minded language that sounds lofty but is low on content. Grandiose claims (including the paradoxical title) are paraded out but add up to an unnecessary argument for combining rich data and strong leadership; it’s hard to imagine who would disagree with the precept. (June)