Introduction: Not Managed at All—How the Idea for This Book Occurred and What It Is About

Abstract

The idea for this book came from the massive losses incurred by the bank Christian Dinesen worked for during the 2008 financial crisis. The possibility occurred to him that banks may at times not be managed at all. As all banks do not fail in a crisis, it is management that makes the difference between survival and failure. Historically, management in banks developed much later and differently than that of non-financial corporations. Central themes in the book include regulation, incentives and the producer manager approach. The latter is where top management continues to produce, to be bankers, while also supposedly managing the bank.