The decision Making process

Decision making is a daily activity for any human being. There is no exception about that. When it comes to business organizations, decision making is a habit and a process as well.

Effective and successful decisions make profit to the company and unsuccessful ones make losses. Therefore, corporate decision making process is the most critical process in any organization.

In the decision making process, we choose one course of action from a few possible alternatives. In the process of decision making, we may use many tools, techniques and perceptions.

In addition, we may make our own private decisions or may prefer a collective decision.

Usually, decision making is hard. Majority of corporate decisions involve some level of dissatisfaction or conflict with another party.

Decision making is the process of making choices by identifying a decision, gathering information, and assessing alternative resolutions. Using a step-by-step decision-making process can help you make more deliberate, thoughtful decisions by organizing relevant information and defining alternatives.

Step 1: Identification of the purpose of the decision

In this step, the problem is thoroughly analysed. There are a couple of questions one should ask when it comes to identifying the purpose of the decision.

·        What exactly is the problem?

·        Why the problem should be solved?

·        Who are the affected parties of the problem?

·        Does the problem have a deadline or a specific time-line?

Step 2: Principles for judging the alternatives

In this step, the baseline criteria for judging the alternatives should be set up. When it comes to defining the criteria, organizational goals as well as the corporate culture should be taken into consideration.

Step 3: Brainstorm and analyse the different choices

For this step, brainstorming to list down all the ideas is the best option. Before the idea generation step, it is vital to understand the causes of the problem and prioritization of causes.

For this, you can make use of Cause-and-Effect diagrams and Pareto Chart tool. Cause-and-Effect diagram helps you to identify all possible causes of the problem and Pareto chart helps you to prioritize and identify the causes with highest effect.

Then, you can move on generating all possible solutions (alternatives) for the problem in hand.

Step 4: Execute the decision

Convert your decision into a plan or a sequence of activities. Execute your plan by yourself or with the help of subordinates.

Evaluate the outcome of your decision. See whether there is anything you should learn and then correct in future decision making. This is one of the best practices that will improve your decision-making skills.

Conclusion

When it comes to making decisions, one should always weigh the positive and negative business consequences and should favour the positive outcomes.

This avoids the possible losses to the organization and keeps the company running with a sustained growth. Sometimes, avoiding decision making seems easier; especially, when you get into a lot of confrontation after making the tough decision.

But, making the decisions and accepting its consequences is the only way to stay in control of your corporate life and time.

The Advantages of Decision Making Strategies in Management:

Decision making s related to planning, organizing, directing and controlling functions of a manager. Decision making is important to achieve the organizational goals/objectives within given time and budget. Decision-making is a pervasive function of managers aimed at achieving organizational goals.

Making solid decisions is a necessary management skill. Because it is a route to possible failure, many managers are uncomfortable with making decisions, choosing to follow orders from superiors instead. While no person makes the right decision 100 percent of the time, having a strategy that guides management’s decision-making fosters confidence in the process and the results of management decisions.