Decision making can be one of the most frustrating aspects of being a leader, a manager, an employee, and a human being.
Decisions are second guessed. That’s the genesis of the term “arm-chair quarterback.”
It seems much easier to debate a decision after it has been made than to make the decision in the first place.
Information requested upon which to base a decision is not believed. People fight over the information. Is the data right? Go get more data to prove whether it is right or wrong.
We get push-back when honest projections are made. Our latest projections add up to $900 million in revenue, and we’d like time to determine how to meet the annual target of $950 million. Here comes the knee-jerk: Not good enough, we’re told. Change it to $950 million.
How fruitless it is to analyze and make recommendations when people don’t want to face the truth or risk. Or when they fear the consequences of bringing “bad news” to the table.
I’ve found every company has a particular decision-making style. Greg Spira, in his white paper, boils it down to two styles: Being roughly right or precisely wrong.
Is the culture punitive? I can guarantee the decision-making style will be precisely wrong.
Do company leaders plan over long-term horizons, like at least 24-months rolling? Those cultures usually have a roughly right decision-making style.
Hats off to Greg Spira for sharing his wisdom in the white paper, Roughly Right or Precisely Wrong? Insights on Decision Making.
His white paper will challenge you to rethink how decisions are made in your company. It will cause you to challenge your own personal decision-making style too.
Write me and tell me about your decision-making style – and why it suits you.