Workshop on Decision Making Techniques - 01 June 2019

Good decision making is an essential skill for career success generally, and effective leadership particularly. If you can learn to make timely and well-considered decisions, then you can often lead your team to spectacular and well-deserved success. However, if you make poor decisions, your team risks failure and your time as a leader will, most likely, be brutally short. The techniques in this module help you to make the best decisions possible with the information you have available. These tools help you map out the likely consequences of decisions, work out the importance of individual factors and choose the best course of action to take.

These techniques build on the tools discussed in the module on Problem Solving Techniques, in that Decision Making follows on from an understanding of the situation. The module on Practical Creativity will help you to explore what alternatives that is open to you.

Scope & Objectives: Do remember, though, that the tools in this module exist only to assist your intelligence and common sense. These are your most important assets in good Decision Making. The contents of this module somewhat overlaps with those of the modules on Problem Solving Techniques and Practical Creativity. Yet they are tools that can be used for Good Decision Making, hence the contents of this module covers the following topics.

1. Introduction to Decision Making
2. Pareto Analysis - Choosing which changes to make
3. Paired Comparison - Working out relative importances
4. Grid Analysis - Making a choice balancing many factors
5. PMI - Weighing the pros and cons of a decision
6. Force Field Analysis - Analyzing pressures for and against change
7. Six Thinking Hats - Looking at all points of view
8. Starbursting - Understanding new ideas by brainstorming questions
9. Stepladder Technique - Making better group decisions
10. Cost/Benefit Analysis - Simple financial decision making
11. Cash Flow Forecasting - Testing the viability of a financial decision
12. Decision Trees - Choosing by projecting possible outcomes