What is the first step in the decision making process

You're a decision-maker every single day.

From the moment you wake up, you start making decisions. You decide what to eat for breakfast, what to wear, and whether to spend 15 minutes on a workout, meditation, or extra sleep. These decisions, large and small, continue all day long.

Some decisions aren't too complicated. We make them with barely a thought.

Other decisions should be more intentional. If you are a manager or want to be one, the decision-making process in management positions demands more attention to detail.

Why is it so hard to make a decision?

If you’re a manager who sometimes dreads making decisions, it's understandable. When you lead the decision-making process, there's a lot at stake. Your team members count on you to be a good leader. Sometimes, you may not have a significant amount of time to best decide.

Other times, the information available to you might not offer a straightforward course of action. The fear of making the wrong decision can loom over your head and fill you with self-doubt. Sometimes, you might struggle with decision fatigue and feel exhausted by even the smallest decision.

Being the decision-maker is filled with opportunities with chances of success and failure. Making a bad decision is always a possibility. The key is to make the best possible decisions you can with the information you have available.

Trust your training and knowledge, but also keep working on improving your decision-making processes.

But trusting your abilities and having confidence in yourself doesn't come without some work. If you're looking for help with your confidence, check out what our BetterUp coaches can do for you. We're here to help you become more comfortable making your managerial decisions.

What are the main steps to take when making a decision as a manager?

The entire process of how and when to decide can seem like a lot. But being prepared and following steps can help you have a rational decision-making process.

You will develop your own process over time, but it helps to build on a basic framework.

Here's a step-by-step process that you can follow when you have to make managerial decisions:

1. Identify the decision that you have to make

It's essential to identify what you need to decide on. This way, you know what problem you're solving. If you don't know the details of what you're dealing with, make sure you take the time to familiarize yourself with them.

2. Review relevant information

You can start brainstorming after you've focused on what decision you must make. To make an informed decision, you need to take stock of all available information.

Reviewing a lot of information can grow chaotic. Try to stay organized by using strategies like flowcharts or colored sticky notes. You don’t want to lose an important document in a stack of hundreds.

3. Think about possible alternatives

How many possible solutions are there to this decision? Since you've reviewed your information carefully, you've probably considered several options. There could be many alternatives, but this isn't the stage where you figure out the best choice.

Ask questions. Then, listen to any feedback you receive about these alternatives from your team members or other trusted individuals. You’ll have plenty to think over, so stick to your organizational methods.

4. Weigh your evidence

Now that you have your possible solutions, it's time to weigh all the pros and cons. Think about your competitors and the outcomes they've had with such decisions. Review the possible wins and losses that you could experience for each possible alternative.

You can also consider how your decision would impact your group members and stakeholders. What kind of change will they have to adapt to? Don’t rush to this stage. You want to make a decision that you feel comfortable with and confident in.

5. Choose between your alternatives

You've arrived at the step where you make your final decision. Review your information and alternatives and weigh your evidence. Then you can make your decision. Trust yourself: you're prepared to make this call. You don't have to make perfect decisions. You need to make good decisions.

6. Take action

The final step is executing your decision. Create a plan that sets you and your business up to succeed. Your strategic planning could take a while, but that's important for your decision’s success. You won't reap as many benefits if you don't execute it properly.

7. Reflect on your decision

Some people consider this a bonus step. But if you want to become a better decision-maker, it's critical. You've followed a decision-making model. You made your decision and executed it.

Now that you're done, think about how well your decision-making skills served you and what you'd do differently.

The goal in reflection isn't to convince yourself that you made all the right choices. The goal is to be honest about what worked and what didn't about how you approached the decision.

Did you solve the problem you first identified? How good were you at gathering information? Are your goals being met?

Taking notes can help you learn from your mistakes and learn more effective decision-making processes for the future. This way you can become a better decision-maker for when the decisions get harder.

Common challenges

The decision-making process involves plenty of challenges that everyone experiences. It doesn't matter if you've been making managerial decisions for one year, five years, or 15 years: these challenges can impact anyone.

Here are four common challenges you may encounter in the decision-making process:

1. Having too much information

With all of the information you've gathered, it's easy to get overwhelmed. Having too little knowledge can be overwhelming, too, and let your biases slip in. With practice, prioritizing and picking the most crucial information to review will become easier.

Don’t hesitate if you need to do some more research to better guide your decisions. Research skills never go out of style, and you’ll know how to prioritize what you find.

Be realistic, though. As a manager, you rarely have all of the time or information you might like. Being 100-percent certain is not the goal.

2. Being overconfidence

Even though you're doing your best to make informed decisions, you could always make the wrong decision. It's part of life. But if you don’t acknowledge this possibility, it could make you more prone to mistakes or failure. Being confident is great, but overconfidence can lead to unnecessary errors.

3. Not identifying the problem correctly

The first step in your decision-making process is an important one. It sets the tone for the rest of your research and consultation. If you don't identify what you're trying to decide on, you can’t reach the best decision in the end.

Some decisions are complex and require a lot of time, so don't rush.

4. Getting everyone on board

The bottom line is that sometimes you're the decision-maker. As a manager, you make the final decision, but hearing feedback and working collaboratively is crucial. Be clear with your team whether or not the decision itself will be collaborative so you don't set the wrong expectations.

Will you be taking a vote as a team? Or, are you getting their input so that you can make the final decision yourself? Be as transparent as possible about the criteria you will use to make the decision and what the process and timeline will be.

If the rest of your team members can't agree on anything, it makes your decision more challenging and clear communication more important. You might need to strengthen your team's communication skills or discuss problem-solving strategies with the rest of your team.

4 pro tips to ace your way of making decisions

There will be both easy-going and challenging moments for every decision you make. Here are four final tips to help you feel confident about the decisions you make:

Take advantage of organizational tools
Communicate clearly and regularly to everyone involved
Find a routine that works for you and stick with it
Don't let your past mistakes make you hesitant about future decisions

Final thoughts

Ready to strengthen your decision-making abilities? There’s always room for improvement — especially in management positions. Leadership is a moving target, and our coaches at BetterUp would love to help you strengthen and refine your decision-making and other leadership skills.

February 10, 2017 | 5 Min Read

In general, the decision making process helps managers and other business professionals solve problems by examining choices and deciding on the best route to take. Using a step-by-step approach is an efficient way to make thoughtful, informed decisions that positively impact your organization’s short- and long-term goals.

The business decision making process is commonly divided into seven steps. Managers may utilize many of these steps without realizing it, but gaining a clearer understanding of best practices can improve the effectiveness of your decisions.

Steps of the Decision Making Process

The following are the seven key steps of the decision making process.

1. Identify the decision

The first step in making the right decision is recognizing the problem or opportunity and deciding to address it. Determine why this decision will benefit your customers or fellow employees.

Next, it’s time to gather information so that you can make a decision based on facts and data. This requires making a value judgment, determining what information is relevant to the decision, and how you can get it. Ask yourself what you need to know to make the right decision, then actively seek out anyone who needs to be involved.

“Managers seek out a range of information to clarify their options once they have identified an issue that requires a decision. Managers may seek to determine potential causes of a problem, the people and processes involved in the issue, and any constraints placed on the decision-making process,” according to Chron Small Business.

3. Identify alternatives

Once you have a clear understanding of the issue, it’s time to identify the various solutions at your disposal. You likely have many options when deciding, so it is essential to come up with a range of options. This helps you determine which course of action is the best way to achieve your objective.

4. Weigh the evidence

In this step, according to management experts Phil Higson and Anthony Sturgess, you’ll need to “evaluate for feasibility, acceptability and desirability” to know which alternative is best. Managers need to be able to weigh the pros and cons, then select the option that has the highest chance of success. It may be helpful to seek a trusted second opinion to gain a new perspective on the issue.

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5. Choose among alternatives

When it’s time to make your decision, be sure you understand the risks involved with your chosen route. You may also select a combination of alternatives now that you fully grasp all relevant information and potential risks.

6. Take action

Next, you’ll need to create an implementation plan. This involves identifying what resources are required and gaining support from employees and stakeholders. Getting others on board with your decision is a key component of executing your plan effectively, so be prepared to address any questions or concerns.

7. Review your decision

An often-overlooked but important step in the decision making process is evaluating your decision for effectiveness. Ask yourself what you did well and what can be improved next time.

“Even the most experienced business owners can learn from their mistakes … be ready to adapt your plan as necessary, or to switch to another potential solution.”
CHron Small Business

If your decision didn’t work out the way you planned, you may want to revisit some of the previous steps to identify a better choice.

Common Challenges of Decision Making

Although following the steps outlined above will help you make more effective decisions, there are some pitfalls to look out for. Here are common challenges you may face and best practices to help you avoid them.

Having too much or not enough information. Gathering relevant information is key when approaching the decision making process, but it’s important to identify how much background information is truly required. “An overload of information can leave you confused and misguided, and prevents you from following your intuition,” according to Corporate Wellness Magazine.

In addition, relying on one single source of information can lead to bias and misinformation, which can have disastrous effects down the line.

Misidentifying the problem. In many cases, the issues surrounding your decision will be obvious. However, there will be times when the decision is complex and you aren’t sure where the main issue lies. Conduct thorough research and speak with internal experts who experience the problem firsthand to mitigate this. Corporate Wellness Magazine says it will save you time and resources in the long run.
Overconfidence in the outcome. Even if you follow the steps of the decision making process, there is still a chance that the outcome won’t be exactly what you had in mind. That’s why it’s so important to identify a valid option that is plausible and achievable. Being overconfident in an unlikely outcome can lead to adverse results.

Decision making is a vital skill in the business workplace, particularly for managers and those in leadership positions. Following a logical procedure like the one outlined here and being aware of common challenges can help ensure both thoughtful decision making and positive results.

If you are interested in business management topics like these, consider Concordia University, St. Paul’s online MBA program. You can also download our free guide, “Climbing the Corporate Ladder: Your Guide to the MBA and Beyond,” for an in-depth look at the value of the MBA.

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