What You Don't Know About Making Decisions

Garvin, D. A., & Roberto, M. A. (2001, September). What You Don't Know About Making Decisions. Harvard Business Review, 1-8.

Summary

Leaders are often judged by the quality of decisions they make. What this article sheds light on is that most leaders approach decision-making in such a way that not enough options are evaluated and those that are evaluated and not given enough time for a thorough evaluation. Here, a process driven more by inquiry is proposed over that of advocacy. It is in inquiry that more options surface, there is interest from all parties in participating, and alignment is more easily attained.

Experience

In this article, I see so much of what happens in my works environment when it comes to decision-making. We often set up a decision process to have people advocate for their ideas rather than take a more open stance to explore options. It’s more like a contest with winners and losers than a collaborative effort. What I’ve been able to do base on this article is to be more open to other’s ideas and set up decision-making as a more constructive team effort rather than a competitive one.

KEYWORDS: Decision-making, inquiry, advocacy, conflict, consideration, closure, fairness, debate