Publish at November 06 2024 Updated November 06 2024
Decision-making is part of our daily lives. We spend our time making decisions big and small, whether it's what to eat, how to get to a place or how to plan tasks at work. Nothing could be more normal, in fact, since it's based on the principle of solving a problem, gathering useful information and using it to decide on the best strategy.
While most decisions are made alone, there are times and contexts when we need to confront our visions and solutions with others in order to solve a complex problem. The professional environment is probably where this is most obvious, but most of the techniques and approaches can be applied to school situations.
Wouldn't it be better, some might think, to call on an enlightened sage to make the decisions? The problem with this strategy is precisely that nothing can guarantee the "enlightenment" or genius of the person making the decisions and imposing them. We won't name anyone, but everyone will easily have in mind a political figure of their choice who has made bad decisions, whether at local or international level. Not to mention that imposing decisions generally leads to more resistance.
Governance by collective decision is a way of empowering each player, who can also contribute his or her own vision of things and enrich the solutions. It's much more motivating for everyone to participate in the progress of the company or the work to be done. What's more, this approach allows for greater flexibility in the face of new challenges or elements added to a problem.
But the team has to be well organized, because it takes longer to consult several people than to choose on your own. This is probably one of the biggest obstacles to this strategy. It can be much more difficult if the rules aren't clear and the team doesn't develop connections.
This lack of clarity of purpose and group dynamics are the biggest challenges to team decision-making. Indeed, certain personalities may clash or, conversely, strong characters may push others to go along with their proposals, without everyone being able to contribute their own vision.
There are different ways of involving the work team. There can be the democratic version: everyone votes on a proposal and the majority wins. But this strategy comes with a big caveat. The "losers" may feel frustrated by the outcome of the vote and not have been listened to in the process. So it's best to put tools in place to reduce friction in these cases.
The consensus approach requires everyone around the table to be satisfied with the decision. This may take longer, but it's more satisfying for everyone. One approach to use is the "thumbs-up" approach. After each proposal, participants give a thumbs-up to indicate agreement, put their hand flat to show they are neutral and side with the majority, and those against give a thumbs-down. The latter should then each have a turn to speak and explain their point of view. This will allow the decision to be fine-tuned until there is a large majority of thumbs up.
Another approach is to vote by priority. If several choices are proposed, rather than voting on each one, the members note them in order of preference. A scrutineer can then tally the points and show which has the most and least support.
The Delphi method, on the other hand, avoids the need for big personalities to take charge. A facilitator asks the experts to respond independently and anonymously to open-ended questions. The team then sees all the anonymized answers and can draw on what has been written to make its choice.
Other, more collaborative approaches to creating solutions are to create a decision tree, for example. Some might call on members to play devil's advocate to gain different perspectives on an issue.
Whatever strategy is employed, it should lead to a decision that all (or most) members approve of. It can be put in place for some time and, importantly, re-evaluated over time. Indeed, if the decision doesn't achieve its objectives, it's best to review it, modify it, or even change the decision altogether for another solution. By not being stubborn, groups in any environment gain in flexibility and productivity.
Image: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
References:
"How to facilitate decision-making in your company?" Business Intelligence Solutions. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://solutions-business-intelligence.fr/comment-faciliter-la-prise-de-decision-dans-votre-entreprise/.
Ferrazzi, Keith. "How to make fast, bold, and inclusive team decisions: a leader's guide." Forbes. Last updated September 18, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/keithferrazzi/2024/09/18/how-to-make-fast-bold-and-inclusive-team-decisions-a-leaders-guide/.
Granger, Laurent. "Collective decision-making: tools and methods." Manager GO! Last updated May 17, 2024. https://www.manager-go.com/management/dossiers-methodes/decision-en-groupe.
Guenet, Florian. "Teamwork: benefits and challenges for companies." Jamespot Blog. Last updated October 2, 2024. https://jamespot.com/blog/travail-collaboratif/travailler-en-equipe-avantages-defis/.
Heitz, Simon. "How to handle ineffective decision-making in team building?" Urban Challenger. Last updated November 23, 2023. https://www.urbanchallenger.com/blog/how-to-handle-ineffective-decision-making-in-team-building.
Jaspart, Audrey. "Understanding and applying the decision-making process in business." HubSpot Blog. last updated May 20, 2024. https://blog.hubspot.fr/marketing/processus-decisionnel.
"Leadership: dare to make collective decisions!" Sow & Grow. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://semergrandir.com/leadership-osez-les-decisions-collectives/.
Mongeau, Pierre, and Johanne Saint-Charles. "De la prise de décision et de ses étapes." Group & Animation. Last updated 2024. https://groupeetanimation.uqam.ca/conduite/de-la-prise-de-decision-et-de-ses-etapes/.
PMO Team. "10 effective group decision-making techniques for teams." ClickUp™. Last updated January 19, 2024. https://clickup.com/fr-FR/blog/129394/techniques-de-prise-de-decision-en-groupe.
"Team decision making: 4 consensus techniques every leader must learn." Step Change. Last updated June 27, 2024. https://blog.hellostepchange.com/blog/team-decision-making-4-consensus-techniques-every-leader-must-learn.
"The three critical elements of team decision-making." Executive PA Media. Last updated: October 22, 2024. https://executivepa.com/the-three-critical-elements-of-team-decision-making/.
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