Best Practices for Improving Decision-Making
I call it “swirling the drain,” and we’ve all experienced it: You’re in a leadership team meeting, and the discussion is going nowhere. Two hours into the meeting, the group is still no closer to making a decision. Frustration mounts, and the time feels wasted.
The balance between individual leader and collective team decision-making is a difficult one to get right. In fact, it often emerges as a theme in the Leadership 360 Feedback Process I conduct for clients. Typical comments include:
“Decision-making on our leadership team is slow and painful.”
“We would like the leader to step in and make the tough calls more often.”
“We revisit the same conversations over and over again, with little progress.”
The decision-making topic is a complex one, and getting it right requires leadership from every member of the team, not just yours.
Signs of Decision-Making Challenges
Even without the benefit of a Leadership 360 Feedback process, you can get a good sense of how both you and the team are doing with decision-making. Observe your leadership team meetings as objectively as possible; any of the following can be a sign that it’s time to make some changes:
This is the third or fourth time the decision has been discussed in a leadership meeting, without much progress.
Key milestones are being missed on important initiatives, without a clear explanation of root cause.
There are long stretches of time that go by without follow-up on the decision.
If you’re noticing some of these signs, the balance in decision-making may be off. Several different scenarios could be at play, and the solution requires each leader in the group to take a slightly different approach.
Common Scenarios
Scenario #1: This should be a collective decision, but the team isn’t effectively working through the decision-making process together.
You want to empower the leaders on your team to work together and make a decision, but they just aren’t getting there. This could be because the accountability of each leader is unclear. It could be that not all leaders feel comfortable speaking up. Or they need more time to productively discuss opposing viewpoints.
Scenario #2: This is clearly a decision that you should make as the team’s leader, but you don’t have everything you need.
The team is looking to you to make the ultimate decision, but they haven’t held up their end of the responsibilities. This one is tough because both you and the team are looking to each other to take action. This could be because you need the team to dig deeper and present a better option. Or because there is additional information required that they haven’t provided to you.
Scenario #3: This would be better as a team decision, but you may need to make the call. You’re hesitating to be the “tie breaker.”
You want the team to work together to reach the best conclusion, but there are competing priorities at stake and you may need to step in to make the call. The team may not be sending clear signals that a final call is needed. You may also be second guessing whether the timing is right to close out discussions.
If you sense that decision-making is off, pick a current topic and ask yourself which of the three scenarios above fits the best. It’s important to understand the dynamics and identify the root cause. Should this be a team decision or is it ultimately your call? What is getting in the way of reaching a conclusion?
Best Practices for Improving Decision-Making
For any of the three scenarios, you can deploy these best practices to see improvements in decision-making.
Be clear on who ideally should make the decision. Is it you, the whole team, or just part of the team?
Set expectations on who is accountable to contribute to the decision, and by when. Accountability could look like gathering additional data, following up with a vendor to find a new solution, or meeting with a sub-committee to refine details.
Push the team when you think there should be another option on the table. Set the expectation and get commitments on follow-up.
Identify what additional information is needed to make the decision and communicate clearly with the team on “what” and “why.”
Experiment with different formats for group discussions. Does the team work best with a designated facilitator? Do they prefer that each person takes a turn providing their perspectives? Is the “Yes, and” game the best way to encourage them to think innovatively?
Be on the lookout for opportunities to provide direct support. Your employees may not always be ready to say, “I don’t know” or “I need help.” Ask them frequently how you can support them in making progress towards the decision.
I’ve seen teams dramatically improve using these strategies. A great example is the “by when” practice that Amy Egtvet, CEO of WE Trust, implemented with her team. For each decision that needed to be made, the leader on that specific initiative provided a date for when the next step should be completed.
“Implementing this practice really helped us hold one another accountable for forward action,” Amy shared. “When you have a ‘by when’ it gives colleagues permission to ask ‘how’s that going?’ and provide support if you need it to get things over the finish line. Such a simple change with huge results!”
For more information on Executive Coaching to support improved decision making, visit www.intrinsicnow.com or contact me directly at loala@intrinsicnow.com.
