STRATEGIES OF DECISION MAKING

Behavioural Decision Making (Theoretical Session)

This session seeks to render the participant aware of the behavioural aspects associated with decision making. The extent to which increasing competition has put pressure on the decision-making time limits of managers. This session will discuss how the development of a Mind-Space Checklist can help decision-makers reshape the context within   which people act and emotional intelligence can help improve the speed and quality of decision making.  The session will end explaining how experience, instinct and leadership decisiveness affects the quality of decision-making.

Impacts of Behavioural Techniques on Decision Making (Practical Session)

This session seeks to engage executive and managers responsible for decision making with different techniques and short case studies about how to asses the quality of their strategic decisions and how to take the bias out of their meetings. The idea is to offer them some take-home deliverables they can apply in their professional business context

Problem solving and decision making are critical competencies for every human resource across all levels in any organization. The ability to predict, identify and quickly/timely resolve problems arising out of daily operational issues as well as long term strategy have become imperative to keep pace with the varying organization requirements.  The right decisions can lead to success while, a wrong one can lead to failure. With so many riding on each decision, it becomes imperative that thoughtful consideration is put into place for each option so that rational and effective decision can be made. Generating a number of different options may seem to make one decision more complicated at first, but the act of coming up with alternatives forces one  to dig deeper and look at the problem from different angles. In this way, getting an understanding about the various techniques of choosing from wider options may help in arriving at better, realistic and innovative decisions. As evident, decision making also relies on a thorough knowledge of a variety of strategies and processes. Various techniques are being used for effective rational decision making process including brainstorming, ideas writing, six thinking hats, decision tree analysis. Choice of effective technique for rational decision making process aims to facilitate the participants to think like a leader. Thus, interactive session would be aimed to provide insight regarding a variety of creative problem solving and rational decision making tools and techniques. Participants will learn to analyze problems, generate creative solutions, and decide which solution most closely matches their needs and organization requirements.

Business executives have to take decisions round the clock.  Decisions can make or mar the future of an enterprise.  Decisions can strengthen or weaken the entire fabric of management.  To be good at decision-making, the enterprise executives have to the grips of art and science of decision-making.  Mostly decisions are influenced by the accumulated experience or inputs provided from the concerned seekers.  The gut feeling also plays an important role in the decision-making process.  The decision-making sans due consideration to ‘noise’ and ‘biases’ does not produce the requisite results.  It is important to keep track of noise in and around the enterprise.  Keeping ears alert to noise helps in capturing facts which go beyond experience, insights and advice.  Developing algorithms around the decision-making issues generate information in the form of trends and data producing patterns. It has been revealed that decision-making based on algorithm de-risk more from the losses and enhance the chances of gains.  The research reveals that losses weigh more than gains in general but more so in the case of an enterprise culture.  The biases are different from errors.  The later are not intentional whereas the former are repetitive and intentional.  Understanding errors are as much important as preventing errors from noise in decision-making.  Cognitive biases have to be also understood comprehensively.  This is how data driven decision-making has been lauded by behavioral management experts.  This might even require bringing on machines as artificial intelligence has become a bigger part of the professional lives of managers.  As a back up to this, it would be appropriate to conduct a noise and error audit for enhancing the quality of decisions.  Through a visual illustration we exhibit how noise and bias affect accuracy of decisions.  Similarly, through relevant case studies we establish as to how data based decision-making could lead to overcome human errors in decision-making

Underpinned by strong theoretical foundations, this course investigates decision as a result of a group decision-making process. It investigates and compares alternatives according to the assessment criteria being used, selecting the best approach for leaders and their corresponding followers. Decision-makers often face conflicts from non-conformity in their individual preferences towards alternatives. The extent to which the views of decision-makers are taken into account often determines their receptiveness to the business’s development as well as to consumers. This course identifies factors influencing effective group decision-making and discusses characteristics for group decision-making solutions. It further discusses the role of Social Affect in group decision-making with an emphasis on the role of collaboration as a common form of networking. The fundamental role of trust, also viewed as one of the most important among the key variables by social exchange theorists is discussed. Drawing from interdisciplinary research, an example of trust as an effective basis for eliminating differences to assist with higher quality group decision-making is illustrated. In line with Foucault’s perspective, this course also teaches that power in social exchanges is not used in the context of authoritarian rule, but rather in a way to achieve mutual benefits between the actors involved in the exchange process. Inclusion of power in social exchanges is necessary because it determines the partners’ ability to take advantage of the outcomes of the exchange. Trust and power complement one another across different contexts and situations and remain fundamental in group decision-making. The application of the proposed solution is illustrated using a case-study approach emphasizing stakeholder engagement illustrating how collaborative efforts among decision-makers and their corresponding followers contributed not only to the organization’s success but also to broader societal goals aligning with the 2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals