Team Decision-Making Issues

Teams frequently have trouble making decisions, which can be very frustrating for members . At various times in the problem-solving process, a team needs to decide to focus on a particular problem; decide on the root causes of that problem; decide on the best strategy to address those root causes; and decide what actions need to be taken to implement the strategy. Later the team will need to decide whether the actions taken have successfully addressed the root causes and decide how to express appreciation to those people who made the resolution possible. Teams need to make lots of decisions. Yes, it is important to communicate and hear everyone's point of view, but ultimately it must get beyond the diplomacy of "agreeing to disagree ." Ultimately the team must unite around a set of decisions to make a difference in the work they must perform.

Traditionally we think of decision making in business settings as a logical, step-by-step process. We lay out our options, assign values or probabilities to those options, and then logically ”almost mathematically ”come to a conclusion. Yet, human beings are not computers and businesses do not operate in a sterile laboratory protected from outside forces. The reality is that many factors, some logical and some not, affect decision making. There are more unknowns than knowns in most business decisions. No one can truly predict the future, but we make decisions to attempt to produce a better one. Your team will not be able to produce perfect, risk-free solutions. But your team can become aware of the factors affecting its decision making. It can dedicate itself to using a systematic problem-solving process and follow through on the rules of decision making that it establishes for itself.

What are the factors affecting decision making, and how can the team manage them? Dr. Frank Yates (2003) of the University of Michigan has identified the ten cardinal decision-making issues:

• Need

• Mode

• Investment

• Options

• Possibilities

• Judgment

• Value

• Trade-offs

• Acceptability

• Implementation

The team begins the process by deciding whether a need to make a decision exists. How much is the current problem costing the organization and its people? Some rely on the argument that "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." However, that doesn't mean team members shouldn't consider examining something that is currently working well. They may want to see if others are doing it even better than they are. They may want to examine whether their current approach is likely to be successful in satisfying the demands the team anticipates facing in the future. The point is that there must be a need to make a decision. Don't waste the team's time on "academic" exercises.

The second cardinal issue is mode. Who should be making this decision, and how should it be investigated? Should the decision be made by your team? Is the subject matter of the decision within the boundaries established in your team charter? Should the decision be made in conjunction with others in the organization? How will this be determined? Is there a methodology that should be utilized?

Then there is investment. What resources does your team have to address the problem? Are there additional resources available within your organization that might help? How much do you need of which resources? Who should explore the availability of these resources? What is your business case for the investment of these resources?

Next consider the options. This is particularly important during the "alternatives" step of the problem-solving process (see Table 13, p. 142). What are the strategies and actions that could be taken that might make a difference? Have all the options been considered ? This issue is not to be confused with the fifth issue, possibilities. Possibilities are things that could be set into motion if action is taken. If we resolve the matter by choosing option X, what might the ramifications be? What might be the side effects? Are these things that we should care about?

1 ^st A: AWARENESS

Expand your thinking to include all the problems to consider

• Brainstorm (no criticism or discussion allowed)

• Chart all ideas

Narrow your focus to the one problem you will work on now

• Use specific criteria to review each problem

• Write a one- sentence problem statement

2 ^nd A: ANALYSIS

Expand your thinking to all possible causes of the problem

• Brainstorm or use "fishbone" diagramming

• Design an experiment to gather data for identifying causes of the problem

Narrow your focus to the one to three core causes

• Use specific criteria to review each cause

• Apply the Pareto principle (i.e., 80% of the problem results from 20% of the factors) and highlight the chief cause(s)

3 ^RD A: ALTERNATIVES

Expand your thinking to all solutions to the chief causes

• Provide individual quiet time for writing down ideas

• Encourage creative thinking and use round- robin brainstorming

Narrow your focus to the best strategy available

• Use specific criteria (e.g., effectiveness, cost, etc.) to screen the alternatives

• Seek consensus decision making to select which option to try

4 ^TH A: ACTION

Expand your thinking to all possible implementation actions

• Specify what might have to happen concretely

• Be sure the implementation plan is real, not just philosophical

Narrow your focus to who is to do what with whom by when for each step

• Clarify individual responsibilities

• Chart an implementation timeline

PLUS 1: ASSESSMENT

Expand your thinking to identify all data that maybe should be tracked

• Establish metrics/documentation that might help determine if the problem has been alleviated

• Identify strategies that could be used to gather this evaluative data

Narrow your choices and choose the data/documentation that best builds your case

• Determine which data will be tracked and where they will be posted

• Determine who is responsible for gathering the data and how they will do it

PLUS 2: APPRECIATION

Expand your thinking regarding who should be thanked for their role in this effort

• Verify who helped with the problem identification, analysis, planning, and implementation

• Decide what can be done to let these people know their efforts are appreciated

Narrow your choices regarding whom to recognize for what

• Decide who will be honored by whom, when, and how

• Devise a way to provide individual recognition without detracting from the team's effort

The next cardinal issue is judgment. To what extent is it likely that these effects would actually happen? It is especially important to consider those effects that we really care about. This leads to the issue of value. Would people really care if the expected effects actually occurred? Who would be upset by the decision, and who would be happy? To what extent are the actions consistent with the values of the people who will be affected by the decision?

Since no decision is going to be perfect, what trade-offs should be considered? What combination of solutions might best capitalize on the various strengths and weaknesses available among the options? Can we package these trade-offs to help us with the next cardinal issue, acceptability? Who needs to buy into this decision and our decision-making process? Is it acceptable to all team members? To management? To the "customers" of the product or service our team will produce as a result of this decision?

The final cardinal decision-making issue is implementation. Who and what must be involved in putting the idea into practice? The team should not wait until the end of the process to address this issue. It is of no value to have a team produce a decision that it can't actually implement.

Your team needs to keep all ten of these issues in mind as it approaches the task of decision making. No wonder decision making is a difficult responsibility. It is easy to criticize the decisions of others. Allowing teams to wrestle with the difficulties of decision making makes them insiders instead of sideline critics . Team decision making provides an opportunity to learn about how the organization operates. Team involvement in decision making also provides collective wisdom from people close to the action.