Decision Making 382

Decision-Making
HRT 382
Thank You!
 Thomas R. Harvey, William L. Bearley, and
Sharon M. Corkrum, authors of The Practical
Decision Maker: a Handbook for Decision Making
and Problem Solving in Organizations
 Thomas R. Harvey, presenter on Decision
Making (ULV, Fall 2001)
 Michael Doyle and David Straus, authors of How
to Make Meetings Work
 Stephen R. Covey, author of The 7 Habits of
Highly Effective People
 Ken Blanchard and Steve Gottry, authors of The
On-Time, On-Target Manager
SITNA
 “Situation That Needs Attention”
 Phrase and term coined by John Jones
 Reframing a problem as a SITNA helps remove

the negative connotation we place on ‘problems’
– Complaint
– Challenge
– Improvement Need
– Opportunity
– Performance Gap
What ever the term…
Problem Solving
is one type of
Decision Making
Blanchard and Gottry point out…
 We have four categories of daily activities
we face
– Things we want to do and have to do
– Things we have to do but don’t want to do
– Things we want to do but don’t have to do
– Things we don’t want to do and don’t have
to do
Prioritizing Activities
YES MAYBE
Want to do Want to do
and but
have to do don’t have to do
Have to do
NO
but Don’t want to do
and
don’t want to do
don’t have to do
Personal Decision Making
 Time Management vs. Life Management
 Time management is a decision making process
 Effective personal decision making requires
effective time management
 However, efficient scheduling and control of time
can be counterproductive
 Covey’s phrase is:

“Organize and execute around priorities”
Personal Decision Making
 An “efficiency focus” may limit the:
– Development of rich relationships
– Our ability to enjoy the moment
 If we organize and execute around priorities, the
focus is:
– Preserving and enhancing relationships
– Accomplishing results
 Life management is decision making

 Life management is managing ourselves
Time Management Matrix
 Importance of personal vision or mission
and personal goals
 Covey’s time management matrix helps to
understand how to manage ourselves and
our lives
 His concepts are: Urgent & Important
– Urgent means “Now!”
– Important relates to results
 Goal is to be a “Quadrant II” person

Time Management Matrix
I. Urgent/Important II. Not Urgent/Important
Crises Prevention
Pressing issues & problems Relationship building
Deadline-driven projects Planning
Recreation (worthwhile)
III. Urgent/Not Important IV. Not Urgent/Not Important

Interruptions Trivia & busy work
Some mail and phone calls Some mail and phone calls
Some meetings Time wasters
Proximate, pressing issues Pleasant activities
Moving from Individual to Team
 Teams are composed of individuals
 Some individuals are hardy
– Resilient
– See problems as challenges and opportunities
 Some individuals demonstrate self-efficacy
 Who are you?
 On a fully-functioning team, most, if not
all, individuals demonstrate these traits
A Fully Functioning Team will…
 Work together successfully
 Solve problems and reach decisions in a
way that incorporates individual input
 May reach decisions through consensus
 Adapt to change
 Achieve or exceed desired results
Teams & Decision Making
 A team has a purpose
– A vision of where it is heading
– A picture of the desired results
– The question is, “Which path do we take?”
 Decision making is the art of choosing and
implementing a solution to a identifiable
SITNA
 Without vision and without decision
making, there is no need for leadership
(Thomas Harvey)
Writing Time!
 Please print you name and “lunch” or
“dinner” at the top of an 3x5 card
 Think about a decision you recently
reached while part of a team
 Draw a diagram or list the steps showing
the process and briefly explain each step
 I will ask a few of you to share your
decision-making steps
Types of Decisions
 Command
– Urgent / Important
 Convenience
– Not Important / Not Urgent
 Consultation
– Not Urgent or Urgent / Important
 Consensus
– Not Urgent / Important
Team Consensus
 With both Consultation and Consensus, let
people know up front what their thoughts
will be used for
 Not Urgent / Important
 Keys for Consensus:
– Everyone understands the issue
– Everyone expresses an opinion
– Everyone can live with the decision
Practical Decision-Making
 For Consensus Decision Making
 Six Steps
– Mind-set
– Problem definition
– Solution criteria
– Possible solutions
– Solution choice
– Implement
Step 1: Mind-Set
 Talk, don’t solve – create a safe environment
 SITNA – Thinking and discussing the problem
– What resources will be needed?
 Organizational context (circumstances and
setting)
– Vision, values, organizational direction, toxicity
– How will it affect the organization?
 People context
– How do people feel and what positions are evident?
– Is the problem political?
 Decision making context
– What type of decision making is needed?
– The “givens” – resources, legal, and other parameters
Step 2: Problem Definition
 If the problem is clear, this step is short
 New venture
– A choice (non-reactive); new vision and goals
 Short fall
– Existing Condition < GAP > Desired Condition
– Why? & Causes?
 Improvement
– Existing Condition < GAP > New Expectations
– New processes needed
 Opportunity
– Why is it an opportunity?
Step 3: Solution Criteria
 Criterion examples
– 100% consensus
– It will not cost more than $XXX
 Needs Must have to reach a decision
(Must)
 Wants It would help to have these
(Should)
 Nice, too! A perk, but not required (Bonus)
 This step is critical to help remove emotion and
politics
 It also helps focus possible solutions
Step 4: Possible Solutions
 Generate ideas
– If natural solutions are 3 (A, B, C), then generate 2½
times as many (at least 8 in this example)
– Some may be silly, but beyond silly is genius! (Harvey)
 Clarify
– In the first step, get the ideas out; then clarify
 Combine
– Some ideas may be combined to enhance the option
 Document
– Generate a list of possible solutions in their final form
Step 5: Solution Choice
 Compare all possible solutions with the
Solution Criteria generated in Step 3
 What is the best solution?
 It is the one that satisfies all needs, the
most wants, and it may have some “nice,
too’s”
 Has the least negative consequences
 Reach consensus with the team
Step 6: Implement
 Action plan
 Do it
 Inspect
Structuring Team Meetings
 Get the Doyle & Straus book!
 Have norms
 Have a proper agenda
 Have assigned responsibilities:
– Facilitator, Recorder, Timekeeper, Process Observer,
and maybe a Facilities/Materials Person and a Snack
Provider
 Rotate responsibilities - Why?
 Report using a “Group Memo” rather than
minutes
 Use formal “structuring devices”
Use of Structuring Devices
 Techniques to help individuals
– Understand the issue
– Offer their thoughts and opinions
– Reduce emotion, stress, and politics
– Stay on track, on time, and move toward decision
 Techniques for ordering how people decide
things
 They structure behavior
 Each step in the decision making model has a
menu of structuring devices from which to
choose
“We don’t have enough
time to do it right, but
we always have time to
do it over.”
- Author Unknown

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Decision-Making

 Phrase and term coined by John Jones

 Reframing a problem as a SITNA helps remove

 Covey’s phrase is:

 Life management is decision making

 Goal is to be a “Quadrant II” person

III. Urgent/Not Important IV. Not Urgent/Not Important

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