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DECISION MAKING
Decision making is a process of making choices by recognizing the problem, gathering information about feasible solutions and finalizing the best alternative.
Decision making is a daily activity for any human being as there is no exception to it. Decision making is a habit and a process as well in any business organization. Effective and successful decisions make profit for the company. Thus the corporate decision making process is the most critical in any organization.
In the process of decision making, we may use many techniques like tools & perceptions. In the process we choose one particular action from a few possible alternatives. We may make our own decisions or prefer a group decision. Usually making a decision is hard as the majority of corporate decisions involve some level of conflict and dissatisfaction.
Decision making as a manager is crucial because it allows you to make informed decisions that help you and your teams succeed. In addition, it enables you to identify problems and solutions and take action to achieve team goals. Besides decision making helps you to stay motivated and focused when faced with uncertainty.
Using a step by step decision making process can lead to more deliberate, thoughtful decisions and effective judgments. Decision making is the essence of management. If you make decisions quickly, you are someone who is decisive.
Someone with good decision making skills at work can assess all the facts, understand the company’s current state and choose the best course of action. Decisive people are confident decision makers. They tend to make up their minds more quickly and stick with their chosen course of action. Decision quality provides the defining framework for a good decision.
Some steps required for Decision Making are like Gathering Information. The organization will have many stakeholders thus a dozen of factors involved affecting the problems. You need to gather as much as information related to the stakeholders and the factors to solve the problem.
Principles for judging the alternatives: The most important criteria for judging the alternatives are the set up. Organizational goals as well as the corporate culture should be taken into consideration when it comes to defining the criteria. In every decision making process profit is one of the main concerns. Usually companies do not make decisions that reduce profits.
Identification of the purpose of the decision: Here the problem is thoroughly analyzed and a few questions one should always ask when it comes to identifying the purpose of the decision. Like what exactly is the problem, why it should be solved, who is getting affected and if there is a deadline for the problem.
Evaluation of alternatives: To evaluate each alternative use your decision making criteria and judgment principles. You need to compare each alternative for their positives and negatives in which experience and effectiveness of the judgment principles come into play.
Brainstorm and analyze the different choices: It is important to understand the causes of the problem and brainstorming to list down all the ideas is the best option. For this you can make use of Cause and Effect diagrams which helps you to identify all possible causes of the problem. The pareto chart will prioritize and identify the causes with highest effect.
The selection of the best alternative is easy as you have already followed the method. Execute your plan above or with the help of colleagues and convert your decision into a plan or a sequence of activities. Evaluate the outcome of your decision and see whether there is anything you should learn and then make changes in future decision making. This is one of the best practices to improve your skills.
When it comes to making decisions one should always compare the positive and negative business consequences to favor the positive outcomes. This avoids the possible losses to the organization and keeps the company running with sustained growth. But making the decisions and accepting its consequences is the only way to stay in control of your corporate life. It is common for management to make important decisions that are in the best interest of their workplace. Effective decision making can improve workflows and create an environment that cultivates innovation.
Decision making in management is important because you have come across situations where you have several options that may impact the workplace in different ways. They may affect employees, other members of management or the company’s reputation.
Improve your management skills with a better decision making process. You make several decisions every day. From the moment you wake up you start making decisions, what to eat for breakfast, what to wear and should you spend extra time on meditation, workout or extra sleep. Some decisions are simple and you make them with barely a thought. If you are a manager or want to be one, the decision making process in management positions demands more attention to detail. You need to know what steps to take to make the best decisions possible.
Sometimes even managers have great fear in making decisions. There is a lot at stake when you lead the decision making decisions. Your team members’ count on you to be a good leader and sometimes you may not have enough time to make a thoughtful decision. Sometimes the information available does not offer a straightforward course of action. You may have self doubt in case you fear making the wrong decision. Sometimes you might struggle with a decision and feel exhausted by even the smallest decision.
The entire process of how and when to decide something is a lot. But you will feel better prepared if you have cultivated a rational business decision making process.
You can best solve a problem when knowing what it is, so always start by familiarizing yourself with the issue so you know precisely what you are deciding on. Always ask open-ended questions to get detailed answers. If there are multiple decisions involved in solving a problem, break them down into steps and eliminate decisions if one step solves one of them.
Reviewing a lot of information can get chaotic. Try to stay organized by using strategies like flowcharts or colored sticky notes. Always get other team members involved in compiling relevant information. Do the same when considering solutions to your problem.
Once you have reviewed your information carefully, you probably considered several options. But this is not the stage where you figure out the best choice, there could be many alternatives. Focus on asking questions and listening to feedback.
Review the possible wins and losses that you could experience for each possible alternative. Also consider how your decision would impact your group members and stakeholders. You want to make a decision that you feel comfortable with and confident in.
Trust yourself then make your decision. You have arrived at the step where you make your final decision. Review your information and alternatives.
Create a plan that sets your business up to succeed which is the final step in executing your decision. If you execute your action plan properly, you will reap the benefits of a successful decision, such as satisfied team members and mental clarity.
Reflecting on your step by step process and the result of your decision is important to internalize your work and set up for future success. Laying your decisions out clearly in front of you will ensure that you continue to repeat good behavior down the road.
The decision making process can be challenging in the management world. It does not matter if you have been making managerial decisions for one, five or ten years. It is easy to get overwhelmed with all the information you have gathered. With practice, prioritization and picking the most crucial information to review will become easier. To better guide your decision, do not hesitate if you need to do some more research. These skills never go out of style you will know how to prioritize what you find. Being 100 percent certain is not the goal. The goal is to give you the resources necessary to make an educated decision. You rarely have all the time or information you might like.
The first step in your decision making process is an important one. You cannot reach the best decision in the end if you do not identify what you are trying to decide on. Some decisions require a lot of time as they are complex.
Being confident is great, but overconfidence can lead to unnecessary errors. Too much self confidence can cause you to alienate others and take on too much responsibility. Even though you are doing your best to make informed decisions, you could always make the wrong decision. But if you do not acknowledge the possibility it could make you more prone to mistakes or failure.
As a manager you have the final word, but hearing feedback and working collaboratively are crucial. Be clear with your team whether the decision will be collaborative. Be as transparent as possible about the criteria to make the decision and what the timeline will be.
It makes your decision more challenging and clear communication more important, if the rest of your team members cannot agree on anything.
There will be both easy going and challenging moments for every decision you make. The following four tips will help you feel confident about the decision you make. Communicate clearly and regularly to everyone involved. Find a routine that works for you and stick to it. Take advantage of organizational tools. Do not let your past mistakes make you hesitant about decisions.
Every day you make multiple choices, but some of the choices appear small since they are part of your daily life. No matter how little the choice is, it can have repercussions on your day to day life outcomes. These effects can be more ripples in the context of professional or social life. It is important to master the art of decision making so that it can impact the social or professional environment around you.
Decision making is an important management skill. An indecisive manager can destroy a corporate culture with employee frustration and there can be bottom line consequences. On the other hand, having a manager who makes sudden decisions based on emotion or without the necessary facts can have similar negative consequences for a company.
There is always room for improvement, especially in management positions, so consider working with a coach to develop your management skills. All of these skills contribute to making more confident, comfortable decisions.
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