Decision making refers to a process of selecting a logical course of action among several available options. In the world of business, the manager faces challenges and scenarios in which he has to make a decision regarding the matter at hand. Therefore, every manager should have better decision making skills in order to navigate through these challenges. There are several criteria for determining whether the manager is making a good decision.
One of the criteria is through evaluating the results that come about by the decision that the manager makes. Every organization expects better results. Better results come as a result of better governance, good decision making and collective participation by members of the organization (Mikael & Roman, 2012).
Secondly, a good decision making process can be determined by evaluating the consequences of the whole process. Such consequences include the effect of the decision on the organization’s relations with the external environment and the employees who do not take part directly in the process. Lastly, a good decision can be determined by evaluating the possible alternatives that the manager could have equally chosen. A good decision should be logically better than the existing alternatives.
The process of decision making demands a lot of attention as it determines the fate of every given organization at any given time. The manager, therefore, should apply various techniques to ensure that he makes a good decision when faced with different scenarios.
In order to ensure proper decision making, the manager should consult from experts regarding the matter, this way the manager gets a deeper understanding of the problem. Usually, managers make informed decisions by understanding the problem (Wayne & Christopher, 2010).
Equally, the manager should involve other members of the management team and representatives from other sectors of production. The manager exposes his understanding to various options and possibly different ways of solving the problem by involving other members of the organization in the decision making process (Chip & Dan, 2012). It also places the manager in a position of winning over the select group who will be affected by the decision, thereby, making the implementation process easier.
Assumption as an element of decision making refers to the practice of making a decision over a given matter while taking a given variable that is directly related with the matter to be set at a given standard, such that the decision made depends on the variable standard at that time.
For example, operations manager at Lotto Milk processing company made a decision to increase the volume of production of milk from the initial quantity that the company used to produce since there was a financial meltdown. This decision was based on the assumption that most milk processing companies would be phased out by the great financial meltdown that hit the world economy.
The assumption by the automobile’s manufacturer’s that the demand for SUVs would continue because the gas prices would continue to rise is clearly inaccurate. This is because; just like other vehicles, SUVs do not use gas as their source of fuel. Therefore, the variation in the price of gas does not affect the demand market for SUVS.
On the other hand, the assumption by an airline that there is a need for an airline that provides no added amenities is quite accurate since amenities equally play a part in the travel tickets pricing. Such airlines would help cater for a large number of persons who are not able to afford the travel tickets for airlines that provide added amenities.
References
Chip, H., Dan, H. (2012). Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work. London: Crown business.
Mikael, K., Roman, T. (2012). The Decision Book: 50 Models for Strategic Thinking. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.
Wayne, W., Christopher, Z. (2010). Data Analysis and Decision Making. New York: Cengage Learning.