The role that intuition plays in decision making in business has only recently been acknowledged. Now, thanks to advances in social cognitive neuroscience, what was previously perceived as a fuzzy “hunch” can be assessed more sharply for its importance in organizational decision making.

This article considers the implications of recent advances in scholarly research into intuition for understanding managerial strategy. Over the past two decades, scholars have made considerable progress in distinguishing intuition from closely related constructs such as instinct and insight and the interplay between these non-conscious forms of cognition and explicit reasoning processes is now much better understood.

Several of the earlier assumptions underpinning classic theories and frameworks in strategic management and entrepreneurship research are being called into question. Old models based on a simplistic left brain/right brain dichotomy are giving way to more sophisticated conceptions, in which intuitive and analytical approaches to decision making are underpinned by complex neuropsychological systems. In the light of these advances, the authors offer their reflections on what all this means for the assessment, development and management of intuition in the workplace and provide lessons for managers on how to harness this resource.

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