Leadership decision making includes both how and when decisions are made as well as who gets involved.
Directive decision makers tend to rely on their knowledge and past experience when making decisions; they tend to favor one course of action over others. Analytical and conceptual decision makers take time gathering information and encouraging ideas from team members before making their choices.
How it works
Decision-making is an integral aspect of leadership roles, saving time and facilitating work projects while increasing employee productivity. If not executed effectively however, decision making processes can cause headaches; companies that create clear processes around decision making have an edge over those who don’t – such processes foster shared accountability among stakeholders while simultaneously reducing complexity and unintended effects and speeding up decision making processes.
Effective leadership decision-making begins by recognizing a challenge. A manager then needs to establish what factors have led up to it and come up with possible solutions, before carefully considering their advantages and disadvantages for making an informed decision. Once implemented, this decision must also inform employees about its impact.
Leadership requires a balance of excellent decision-making based on experience and business intuition with team collaboration rooted in trust and empathy. Decision making can be complex; leaders may require time to gain an understanding of its repercussions before reaching decisions made while stressed or emotional. These tools in decision making can help leaders effective in making hard decisions.
Managers should ensure their decision makers represent all parts of the organization and represent its diversity, lest any “inclusion gaps” arise that prevent consensus from being reached on decisions.
Why its best
Excellent leaders have the ability to make difficult decisions with ease, often under duress from customers or team members within their business community. When faced with making such tough calls, exceptional leaders rise above.
Effective decision-making skills can save time and increase employee productivity. Many professionals have experienced delays while waiting for management to decide their next move in their workflow, which can be disruptive and frustrating. Leaders with strong decision-making abilities can weigh thepros and cons of different options to provide clear direction that speeds up processes and accelerate results more quickly.
Some leaders rely on their experience and business intuition when making decisions, yet this approach may lead them down an overly confident path that does not consider long-term ramifications of choices made. Other leaders can seek advice from other managers or team members before reaching a decision – this approach known as integrative leadership is especially useful when viewing all sides of an issue before choosing an ideal option.
Selecting an effective decision-making style is as crucial to reaching the correct conclusion as making it itself. Leaders who allow emotions or gut instinct to control them can make unwise choices; some essential steps in decision-making include gathering all relevant facts and considering alternative solutions before informing employees about the final choice.
Types
Effective decision making is integral to running a successful business. Leaders who establish clear processes and accountability for decision making can help empower teams, eliminate confusion and minimize unintended outcomes. All four styles and levels — autocratic, hierarchical, participative and collaborative — have their place; those who favor one style over others should remain open-minded about exploring others to improve decision making effectiveness.
Low risk decisions typically come up frequently and seem routine, and should be made by those closest to the work, who understand all its details and ramifications better than anyone. Setting out who is accountable for these decisions ensures all employees understand what is expected from them and have access to any needed resources.
High risk decisions involve decisions with potential for serious repercussions if they go wrong, be they financial, social, or psychological risks. They require careful thought, extensive information gathering, and consideration of all available alternatives before reaching a decision. Collaborative decision makers who consider multiple outcomes and impacts are best equipped to make high risk decisions effectively while delegating decisions effectively, for instance allowing an executive director to decide the contents of an advisory board letter while leaving stationery purchases up to an assistant manager are the ideal candidates to make these types of decisions effectively.
Considerations
No matter how trivial or expansive, every decision involves risks. Adopting an approach that accounts for these potential issues can help minimize unintended outcomes while considering ethical considerations as part of this decision process, something which may prove challenging without having a full grasp of your company culture.
Leaders must consider the ramifications of their decisions on others, such as employees or customers. This is especially important if leading an organization with an aim of positively impacting society. If unsure how to approach decision making in leadership situations, seeking help from someone experienced can be beneficial.
Finally, it’s essential that leaders identify which decisions will fall to them personally and which should be delegated. Leaders should assume responsibility for making strategic choices with significant implications for the organization; however, employees with decision-making skills could make better tactical or operational choices than leaders themselves. Finally, leaders should always remember to seek information that supports their decision and avoid confirmation bias – an unfortunate tendency where individuals only seek evidence that confirms their beliefs while disregarding information that doesn’t.
