The Art & Science of Decisions!

Shrabonee Paul & Saurabh Bajaj

‘What’s your point of view?’

Such a simple question, but perhaps the most crucial in your path towards leadership!

Haven’t we all seen so many disasters & wondered how exactly those decisions got taken anyway? Whether it be the decisions that lead to the collapse of global organizations, business tycoons that go bankrupt, or simply just that time when you let someone else decide for you on what clothes to wear, when you clearly didn’t like their choice.

Too many of us then end of chasing things that clearly does not make sense to us. And this happens when we make the cardinal mistake of ‘taking’ someone else’s decision - maybe because we have done insufficient homework before seeking a decision.

So do you take a decision or make your decision?

It’s always easy to ask your boss for his opinion or advice. But true leadership is to understand the matter, recommend a solution and then stand up for what you believe in. It’s rightly said you get the decisions you deserve! And you only have the chances of getting stuck with a decision that is likely wrong or one that you don’t agree to, if you have been lazy and asked for an opinion, rather than believing in your own point of view.

When you work with the ground realities you are closest to the problem and hence also the solution. This puts you in the best place to exercise your judgement. So if you are not clear, it certainly means that you have either not done your homework, or you are not fully committed to the role that comes with all its decisions and their results. But asking your line manager for a decision because you have not done your homework is just a display of sheer laziness.

While leading the change management programs at the sites for Bayer in North America, we were working towards incorporating advance manufacturing systems and process improvement. A critical aspect of this implementation was the shift in mindset and behavior of the people as well as leadership. A very typical behavior that was noticed at these important production sites was, that every time there was a challenge or issue, the line managers would jump into action to save the situation. The workforce looked up to them for such critical support any time there was an issue. While it quickly got resolved, the issue as we noticed in the bigger picture was the leaders were always busy helping the teams, and the teams were not learning how to solve problems.

They say the leader is only as good as his people. True! So, one of the major shifts in mindset and behaviors that we had to bring in the leadership was to stop giving solutions. Instead they were encouraged to ask the team the right questions that enabled them to seek the right answers to the problems. Over a period of few months, the teams developed the critical thinking ability to seek the solutions to their problems. The leaders had not only delegated the responsibilities well, but also empowered their teams to think responsibly to find their own solutions, and stand up for it. 

Needless to say, this contributed to immense job satisfaction and feeling of belongingness among the workforce, because they felt their roles were important and their decisions and opinions mattered.

So, leadership is just not about taking the ownership to find the right solutions. It is also about empowering your team to do the same.

So a few points for you to reflect on:

1.      How often do you feel straddled with sub-optimal decisions, and then do you ever wonder if you did the best to fight for what you believed in?

2.      How often do you ask the Golden Question from your direct reports – “What’s your Point of View?”

3.      Have you become a lightning rod for all decisions? Do you find your team mates running to you for everything big & small?

4.      Do you find the opportunities to reflect and invest time on longer term planning? Or are you spending every waking hour taking irrelevant decisions that could have been rightly done by any of your team members?

5.      Finally, what’s the exact culture of decision making that you have fostered in your organization?

Hence, the bottom line is, never reach out to others asking for a decision over a work which you have the ownership for when you don’t have clarity. Instead do the sincere work! Motivate yourself to arrive at a decision that you are ready to fight for. That’s the first step in leadership.

You don’t take the decision.You make the decision!