About the Course
Making business decisions is your most important function as a leader – and your riskiest. Every leader is expected to make strategically sound decisions, but decisions are more than judgment calls based on experience and domain-specific knowledge. Leaders are made or broken by the quality of their decisions. Surprisingly, many of us approach decision making in a way that neither puts enough options on the table nor permits sufficient evaluation to ensure that we can make the best choice. Strategic decision making employs processes and tools to solve problems taking into consideration all elements affected by the decision and the resulting potential outcomes.
In this course, you will learn how to apply systematic decision-making processes in order to reduce risk and choose the best course of action for the project, team, the organization, and you. This course reveals the steps necessary to making decisions that are strategically aligned with business objectives and provides problem solving tools to address a range of challenges that every leader encounters.
Who Should Attend?
Executives, managers, team and project leads, and emerging leaders who make decisions about capital, talent, products or services. This course is for those who want to learn a process for making better critical decisions in order to increase their effectiveness and results within their organizations.
By the end of this course you will be able to:
- Establish decision making processes that work across organizational silos and enterprise boundaries.
- Successfully implement the five levels of decision making and learn when to use them situationally
- Clearly define and frame complex issues using structured decision-making models.
- Implement consensus decision-making models effectively.
- Quickly and successfully identify root causes and analyze problems.
- Identify and select priorities.
- Effectively assess and manage risk critically evaluating costs, risks, benefits and impact.
- Apply systems thinking and strategic scenario planning.
- Identify, position, and build agreements with key stakeholders.
Course Duration: 1 day
Course Contents
- Introduction to Decision Making
- Elements of a good decision.
- Decision Making Traps
- Origin of poor decisions and impact on current circumstances.
- Mental reasoning flaws.
- Application Exercise— Participants complete self-assessment survey to evaluate types of “traps” they are most likely to fall into. They will also analyze the success and limitations of their current decision making style.
- Introduction to Generating Tools and Frameworks
- Application Exercise— Small group teams to apply and discuss one of these tools to a specific work-related issue.
- Introduction to Focusing Tools and Models
- Evaluating strengths, limitations, and value of each model.
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- Contrast between the desired process for making a decision and the reality and challenges.
- Decisions versus “Strategic Decisions”.
- Group Discussion:Brainstorm ideas on five topics:
- Characteristics of a “gifted” and strategic decision maker.
- Challenges of making good strategic decisions.
- Examples of the kinds of cultural decisions within an organization.
- Effects of better decisions on leadership impact and organizational performance.
- Factors to consider when decisions are made at different levels i.e. Senior management, project team, cross-functional etc.
Material given during the training: [DVD’s and Case Studies will be used during this course to illustrate examples of good and bad change implementation processes].
Before the course
Each delegate will be asked to complete a Pre-Course Assessment Form to determine their current level and objectives for attending the course. The content of such Form will be used by the trainer only to give tailored training that is focused on each group of delegates.
At the end of the course
Each delegate will be asked to complete an Individual Development Plan and Vocational Completion Certificate.
* Discounts available for multiple bookings