Similar to a personality type, most people lean more toward one decision making style than the others. In regards to decision making in management, there are four styles: directive, analytical, conceptual, and behavioral.
Make your decisionOnce you have taken the time to outline your goals, gather your information, and then evaluate your different possibilities, the time has come for the most important step in the decision-making process.
Evaluate alternatives by examining the benefits and drawbacks of each alternative. During the evaluation of alternatives, careful consideration is given to social, economic, and ecological factors that influence the predicted outcome. Encourage discussion and use visual aids to help explain alternatives.
Contents
- Step 1: Identification of the purpose of the decision.
- Step 2: Information gathering.
- Step 3: Principles for judging the alternatives.
- Step 4: Brainstorm and analyse the different choices.
- Step 5: Evaluation of alternatives.
- Step 6: Select the best alternative.
- Step 7: Execute the decision.
First step in decision making process is to identify problem. The first step in making the right decision is recognizing the problem or opportunity and deciding to address it. Determine why this decision will make a difference to your customers or fellow employees.
- 5 Decision Making Skills for Successful Leaders.
- Identify critical factors which will affect the outcome of a decision.
- Evaluate options accurately and establish priorities.
- Anticipate outcomes and see logical consequences.
- Navigate risk and uncertainty.
- Reason well in contexts requiring quantitative analysis.
The steps are: 1) Define the problem 2) Identify possible alternatives 3) Develop criteria and a ranking system 4) Evaluate alternatives against the criteria 5) Make a decision. Assign students an economic decision or let them identify one of their own.
Significant factors include past experiences, a variety of cognitive biases, an escalation of commitment and sunk outcomes, individual differences, including age and socioeconomic status, and a belief in personal relevance. These things all impact the decision making process and the decisions made.
The DECIDE model is the acronym of 6 particular activities needed in the decision-making process: (1) D = define the problem, (2) E = establish the criteria, (3) C = consider all the alternatives, (4) I = identify the best alternative, (5) D = develop and implement a plan of action, and (6) E = evaluate and monitor the
A 7-STep Guide to Ethical Decision-Making
- State the problem.
- Check the facts.
- Identify relevant factors (internal and external).
- Develop a list of options.
- Test the options.
- Make a choice based on steps 1-5.
- Review steps 1-6.
A good decision is one that is made deliberately and thoughtfully, considers and includes all relevant factors, is consistent with the individual's philosophy and values, and can be explained clearly to significant others.