All Articles
October 2, 2015

A path to better decision making

How can employees make better decisions at work?

How can employees make better decisions at work?

According The 2015 Pulse of the Profession on Capturing the Value of Project Management Through Decision Making, decision-making remains a vital part of the workplace environment.
The report found that 79 percent more projects meet original goals and business intent when formal, sound decision-making is implemented in the process. During the process of managing and creating business ventures, their success often lies in their beginning and how plans are carried out.
Projects can fail for a range of reasons, including ineffective communication, poor management and delegation, as well as disengaged employees. Research has shown that disengaged employees often make poor decisions, and contribute unsuccessful opinions or ideas to the overall project. The report found that nearly one half of unsuccessful projects are impacted by this kind of reasoning.
What are some other factors that may be holding leaders and employees back from great decision-making?

  • 81 percent of organizations don’t always have access to what they need in order to complete a thought-out decision-making process.
  • 43 percent of employees said they lack risk assessments and other fundamental information to make decisions with.
  • 35 percent said they had no clear view of project requirements from the beginning.

Another significant challenge many face is the disconnect between project level actions and what leaders think should occur. This discord creates an environment of mistrust, confusion and overall lack of productivity.
As decision-making is a crucial piece of a business, be sure to implement a simple, reliable and known plan to counter any issues and remain as productive as possible.
“Informed decisions guide projects and programs through planning, implementation, and completion,” said PMI President and CEO Mark A. Langley. “To achieve business goals, organizations need to proactively empower project teams by consistently providing the right information to decision makers at the critical points in the project life cycle.”
Keep the following four tips in mind when developing a better decision making plan:

  • Be transparent: If employees are unsure of how the decision-making process works, there will be a lack of communication and understanding. Ensure a process is agreed upon and followed accordingly.
  • Brainstorm effectively: One of the best ways to make a decision is to hear the input of numerous employees and collectively decide on a decision. Be willing to listen to a varied set of ideas and opinions and work with each to come to a definite conclusion.
  • Establish a real, working process: Once a working process is in order, often decision-making will be easier, as a clear path will be adhered to for both understanding and beneficial outcome.
  • Understand the risks: As with any decision, understanding the risks is essential when making a final choice.

Mastery  has a range of e-learning courses centered on decision-making including, “Group Decision Making: How Bad Decisions Are Made” and “The Cuban Missile Crisis: A Case Study In Decision Making and Its Consequences.” Visit our website to learn more.
Source

Leave a Reply