SelfGrowth.comThe Self Improvement Guide
Article

Decisions, Decisions

Topic: Conflict ResolutionBy Margaret MeloniPublished Recently added
Expert website

Legacy signals

Archived popularity: 1,183 legacy viewsImported historical SelfGrowth signal; not blended with current reader activity.

Archived rating: 2/5 from 1 legacy voteImported historical vote signal; separate from signed-in SelfGrowth ratings.

Reader rating

Not enough ratings yet

Aggregate average appears after enough eligible reader ratings.

Rate this resource

Sign in to rate this resource.

Sign in to rate this resource

“Tom I really think that when there is a technical decision to be made, it makes perfects sense for you to delegate the decision to Simon. After all he is our technical lead.” Marilyn chimed in, “I agree with Jacob. I think the trick is that you need to make it clear that you trust Simon to make the call.” Tom was once again meeting with Jacob his business analyst and Marilyn his subject matter expert. In a prior meeting they had told Tom (their project manager) that his decision making style was not effective. Now they were working with Tom to discuss the different approaches Tom could use to lead the project team in decision making. Truthfully Tom had not felt completely confident about his role in team decisions. He was the project manager, but he worked in an environment where he had responsibility but little authority. He always found this to be challenging. He felt fortunate to have team members like Jacob and Marilyn, both of whom were knowledgeable and helpful. “Tom, it will not take much for you to get on the right track. The team likes you and they will respond to you when you take the lead”, said Jacob. Then Jacob and Marilyn proceed to give Tom some steps to take to improve his approach to decision making:
  1. When a question or an issue arises and a decision needs to be reached, determine if this is the proper time to make the decision.
  2. If now is the time, state what it is that needs to be resolved or decided. If not, do not let the issue go, record it and make sure the right people are assigned to follow up so that a decision can be made as soon as possible.
  3. Select a decision making approach. a) Consider using delegation when you do not need to be involved and when a subset of the team can be trusted to make the decision. b) Consider using consensus when it makes sense for the whole team to weigh-in. c) Consider using voting if the issue is easily understood and a simple majority is enough to make the decision. This works if you can do it without making people feel like adversaries and without creating ‘winners’ and ‘losers’. c) Sometimes you need to make the call. Do not be afraid to be the one who makes the decision, your team needs to see you make decisions.
    1. Tell the team how the decision will be reached.
    2. Use the agreed upon approach to reach a decision.
    3. Communicate the decision to all the appropriate parties.
    After listening to Jacob and Marilyn, Tom agreed with them, it was not going to take too much for him to improve his decision making style. He had already decided to be a success!

    Article author

    About the Author

    Margaret developed a passionate belief that it takes courage and skill to be human at work and that all individuals have a responsibility to treat each other with dignity, respect and compassion. Motivated by her beliefs and the desire to make a difference in the lives of others, Margaret acted on her vision by founding Meloni Coaching Solutions, Inc. Her vision is to create a group of successful individuals who are at peace with their authentic selves; a group of people who help and support others; a group who bring humanity to the office and thrive because of it. Margaret sees a world where achieving peace and achieving success go hand-in-hand. Margaret’s students and clients often find that what she really brings them is freedom to bring their authentic selves to the office. As a former Information Technology Executive, Margaret always knew her preference was for the people behind the technology. Now Margaret brings those beliefs to individuals from many professional backgrounds. The common thread across her client base is the desire to experience peace at work and the recognition that peace is not absence of conflict, peace is the ability to cope with conflict. For these people, Margaret Meloni is truly ‘A Path to Peace’. ™

    Further reading

    Further Reading

    4 total

    Article

    How to Select the Best Face Cream for Oily Skin?

    Living with oily and glossy skin becomes even more difficult in the rainy and winter seasons. People with this skin type start getting acne and pimples due to the clogging of skin pores because the skin cells do not stop producing their required quota of essential oils. This is a terrible situation to deal with. That’s why you need a specialized solution in the form of the best face cream for oily skin. And here is what you can do first to get rid of the nuisance- that ofte

    March 11, 2022

    Article

    How To Say Sorry To Husband After A Fight: How To Apologize To Your Husband After A Fight

    How To Say Sorry To Husband After A Fight: How To Apologize To Your Husband After A Fight Conflicts are an unavoidable part of relationships. You can decide how to manage them and you can learn to pick your battles. But what happens when they are over? Do you apologize? Do you simmer in anger for a few days and then pretend nothing happened? What if you were not at fault for the argument? Are you sure? Before you decide that you were the injured party and your spouse is the v

    October 8, 2021

    Article

    My Husband Wants To Leave Me: What Should I Do If I Can Make Him Feel Guilty About Separation

    My Husband Wants To Leave Me: What Should I Do If I Can Make Him Feel Guilty About Separation I am leaving are words no wife wants to hear. They can tear you up inside, cause you to feel overwhelmed or absolutely angry. For some wives their husband's reasons for leaving just don't make any sense while for others they know exactly what the problem is but don't know how to cope with it. No matter why he is leaving, there are seven things you should never do when faced with a si

    October 8, 2021

    Article

    My Husband Asked For A Divorce I Said No: My Husband Won't Say Why He Feels Our Marriage Is Over

    My Husband Asked For A Divorce I Said No: My Husband Won't Say Why He Feels Our Marriage Is Over Though some say that they knew it pretty early on that their marriage was not working out, some couples are not that lucky. They fail to recognize the early signs of a marriage going sour and actually wake up when it is too late in the day for retrieval. But the main question still remains that when your marriage is over, what role should you play? Should you call it quits or give

    October 8, 2021