 |  Organizational Behavior: Solutions for Management Paul D. Sweeney,
University of Central Florida
Dean B. McFarlin,
University of Dayton
Effective Decision-Making
Chapter Objectives
1Decision making is a complex process, not just an outcome. It’s important to look closely at that process to figure out what makes for a good decision. |
| | | 2People use a variety of rational and quantitative methods to make decisions, whether good ones or otherwise. “Bounded rational” approaches, ones that recognize the immense time and resource constraints on managers, are among the most common. |
| | | 3Sometimes, people simply don’t make good decisions. Several things account for this, including the fact that some decision styles don’t match well with the business environment. Among the most important reasons is an over-reliance on heuristic thinking. |
| | | 4Heuristics are decision short-cuts that help us speed through the many decisions we have to make daily. While these can be effective, an over-reliance on heuristics can lead a decision-maker astray. |
| | | 5Five general suggestions for improving decision making involve issues such as speed, quality and ethics. A final suggestion you may want to consider is a group decision making alternative. |
| | | 6While group decision making offers a number of advantages over individual decision-making, it is not problem-free. In fact, a few of these problems can have serious and dramatic effects on organizations. However, a variety of methods are available to overcome these obstacles and enjoy better group decision making. |
|
2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education