The concept of leadership is conceived by many bosses, managers and directors as an almost supernatural quality, however, like any other competence it is made up of various attitudes, knowledge and skills that must be developed one by one so that working together and systematically generate the behaviors and thus the expected results.
One of these skills is decision-making, which is understood as choosing an alternative for action. Decision-making in an organization is of vital importance, a large part of the salary that is earned is attributed to this work (the higher in the organizational structure, the greater responsibility in decision-making), and it naturally leads to responsibility for the execution of one or another action and therefore for the results obtained.
While this is a crucial leadership skill, many of our Managers find it difficult to determine the best option to execute. This situation may be associated with a lack of self-confidence or fear of risk, and generates dangerous chain insecurities towards your work team, a high level of stress and, obviously, a lack of results.
This is how decision-making must follow at least the following phases:
- Definition of the problem to be solved: It is vital to determine what the situation is, what is being sought, what are the indicators to improve, etc. If the problem is not well defined from the beginning, the solution will clearly not be what is required. Information gathering : For a manager, it is essential to collect information from various sources and see the situation from different angles, for which he must have the collaboration of his work team. Verify figures, antecedents, complementary situations, etc. they will make the difference between a good decision or a disastrous one. Analysis of the information:The information is only letters and numbers if it does not have an analysis process, so a study of the variables that are at stake should be generated from all the information collected. Generation of action options: The action options must emerge from the analysis carried out, all of them must have feasibility according to the study carried out. Disposition of the best of them: It is the moment of truth in which one of the options generated is chosen Said decision must be made based on the mission and vision of the Company, its policies, code of ethics, culture and all that factor that emotionally or intellectually makes a difference.
Although these steps point to a mostly rational decision-making, in today's organizations it happens that these must be taken quickly and probably with incomplete information.
For this reason, leaders must perfect the ability to generate the steps in a natural way, locating clear and measurable objectives, constantly nourishing themselves with information, analyzing each variable from multiple points of view, generating multiple creative options for action and finally developing security. On his own criteria, assuming that whatever the decision, it involves a risk worth taking.
Paola Ortiz
Psychologist National University of Colombia, student of Specialization in Management for Organizational Development University of Cundinamarca
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