Disequilibrium

Disequilibrium" is an essay that connects the dots between various academic disciplines and does a great job at simplifying the increasing complexity of today's world. It contends that in the foreseeable future, our world will be lurching from one global crisis to the next as it becomes much more susceptible to shocks and surprises than just a few years ago. Consequently, we will all have the impression of being on the verge of constant instability, with random occurrences happening all the time. The book provides a conceptual framework that explains why this is so (looking in particular at how ever-increasing interdependency, complexity, velocity and transparency interact with each other, creating feedback loops in the process). It also analyses what this all means for decision-makers and argues that the complexity of the world is progressively overwhelming their capabilities (particularly in the case of politicians and bankers) to make sensible, well-informed decisions. The last chapter (largely based on interviews and conversations with key decision-makers and leading investors) provides some important insights and “tips” on how not only to cope with, but also benefit from these dramatic changes.

"Disequilibrium" is an essay at the intersection of economics, geopolitics, and political and environmental science: it connects the dots between various academic disciplines and does a great job at simplifying the increasing complexity of today's world. It contends that in the foreseeable future, our world will be lurching from one global crisis to the next as it becomes much more susceptible to shocks and surprises than just a few years ago. Consequently, we will all have the impression of being on the verge of constant instability, with random occurrences happening all the time. Essentially, the world has become a conveyor belt for constant surprises. The book provides a conceptual framework that explains why this is so (looking in particular at how ever-increasing interdependency, complexity, velocity and transparency interact with each other, creating feedback loops in the process). It also analyses what this all means for decision-makers and argues that the complexity of the world is progressively overwhelming their capabilities (particularly in the case of politicians and bankers) to make sensible, well-informed decisions. The last chapter (largely based on interviews and conversations with key decision-makers and leading investors) provides some important insights and “tips” not only on how to cope with, but also on how to benefit from these dramatic changes. "Disequilibrium" has been endorsed by some of today's most prominent thinkers and decision-makers. It contains a foreword by Klaus Schwab, founder and executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, an organization famous for its annual gathering of global thinkers, global CEOs, and some of the world's most famous opinion and policy-makers in Davos.

Thierry Malleret is the co-founder and main author of the Monthly Barometer, a succinct predictive analysis exclusively provided to private investors and some of today's most influential opinion and decision-makers. He was until 2011 a senior partner at IJ (Informed Judgement) Partners, an investment boutique for ultra-high-net-worth individuals based in Geneva, and prior to that managing partner at Rainbow Insight, an advisory boutique which he founded, providing tailor-made intelligence to investors. Previously, Thierry founded and headed the Global Risk Network at the World Economic Forum, a network that brings together top opinion and policymakers, CEOs and academics to look at how global issues will affect business and society in the short and long term. For a number of years in succession, Thierry conceived and put in place the programme for Davos and spoke at global, industry and regional events. His other professional experience includes: investment banking (as a Chief Economist and Strategist of a major Russian investment bank and as an Economist at the EBRD in London), think tanks and academia (both in New York and Oxford) and government (with a three-year spell in the Prime Minister's office in Paris). Thierry has written several business and academic books, and has published four novels (two of which under a pen-name). In addition, he is a public speaker with some of the world’s leading agencies. He also sits on several advisory boards. He was educated at the Sorbonne and Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales in Paris and at St. Antony's College, Oxford. He holds two MAs (in Economics and History) and a PhD in Economics. With his English wife Thierry has four daughters.