They say you can judge a person by their bookshelf. So what better way to introduce our Nexford University leadership team than by asking them to pick their top reading recommendations to share with you?

From evocative fiction to how technology is set to disrupt our professions, tales of eccentric physicists and practical decision making, read their good reads recommendations in the first of our two-part blog (Read Part Two of our Recommended Reads blog series) And enjoy getting to know some of the innovators leading Nexford University a little better.

They might be very different book choices, but what connects them is a focus on the human, rather than the academic, experience.

Just as Nexford is all about the individual, and tailoring your learning experience to your personal goals, this reading list is all about different versions of what it means to be human; how we interact, make choices, succeed and influence.

By Anthony Doerr

Selected by: Francis Ali, Global Finance Director Pulitzer Prize-winning, a New York Times bestseller and winner of the Carnegie Medal For Fiction, if you don’t usually read novels, this is a great place to make an exception. It follows the story of a blind French girl, and a German boy whose lives become entangled in German-occupied France during World War Two. A story of humanity, differences and what draws us together, it’s emotive, delicate and powerful. You’ll be drawn into the characters’ worlds, and understand more about what makes us human, because of – or in spite of – the decisions we make along the way.

By Daniel Kahneman

Selected by: Dr Sonal Minocha, Chief Partnerships Officer and Professor of Management

We’re all constantly making judgments about the world around us. But why do factors as apparently arbitrary as a font being bold, or a person being particularly good looking, affect our decision-making? The answer is in the way we think, according to Daniel Kahneman, or rather the two precise ways in which we think. Exploring our fast, intuitive thinking alongside our slower, rational thinking, this is a book to help you understand your own prejudices, and thought processes, and make better, more intelligent decisions.

By Carol S. Dweck, PhD

Selected by: Glenn Magid, Director of Learning Success

Think success is all about your own innate ability? Think again. Renowned Stanford University psychologist Carol S. Dweck is here to tell you exactly how much your mindset plays a part. Dweck spent decades researching success–from the sports field to the arts, at school and in business. And she says, quite simply, your mindset, and how you view your own abilities, is the key factor to success in your achievements. If you believe your ability is fixed, you’re less likely to flourish than if you believe that very same ability can be developed.

By Richard Susskind and Daniel Susskind

Selected by: Lilibeth Tello, Senior HR Generalist

Whose jobs will exist in the future, and who’s will be replaced by technology? Uncovering the professions set to decline as tech takes over, the authors look too at the systems that will replace them and make their own proposals for a better, and fairer world. We all know about driverless cars and chat bots, but the focus here is on doctors, teachers, accountants, architects, the clergy, consultants and lawyers as examples of professions the authors say are antiquated and opaque and unaffordable. Tearing up the systems that dole out expertise in our societies, the authors explore, warn and make their bold pitch for a new social order.

By Richard P. Feynman

Selected by: Paul Coleman, Chief Technology Officer

Eccentric, outrageous and certainly one of a kind, Nobel Prize winning physicist Richard P. Feynman charts his own adventures. If you think physics is all about the serious stuff, you’re about to have your assumptions blown. From swapping ideas on atomic physics with Albert Einstein to cracking apparently uncrackable safes, this fizzing autobiography charts the endless curiosity, bravado, irrepressible energy and knack for a good story of the famous American theoretical physicist. You definitely don’t need to be scientist to enjoy the tale of a life well lived, and appreciate the power of the individual.

This reading list was brought to you by Nexford’s faculty – meet them here!

About the author

Victoria Rusnac

Victoria Rusnac is the director of marketing at Nexford. Originally from Moldova, Victoria began her career in FMCG with Nestlé, where she managed an assortment of popular brands, including Nescafé, KitKat, and Nesquik. She then moved on to working in telecommunications in the UK at Orange and subsequently EE, leading on the marketing strategy, customer acquisition and the retention of millions of customers.

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