On September 29th Organizational Excellence hosted Dr. Kathleen Paris for a session on Decision-Making in Complex Times. Paris emphasized:

• that decision-making is a sequenced process, not an event; and
• that powerful and exploratory questions need to be asked at each stage of the process.

A deliberate decision-making process is necessary because of the complexity, interconnections and biases in our organizations and enables better outcomes. The following quote illustrates why the process matters, "...the most significant predictor of successful decision-making is the quality of the discussions and debate." Bias Busters: McKinsey Quarterly

5 Step Model for Decision Making

1 - Identifying the Issue
2 - Generating Solutions
3 - Evaluating and Selecting Solutions
4 - Implementing

5 - Checking Back and Regrouping

A handout with a list of potential questions and tools to use in each stage is available here.