How to Make a Wise Decision at Work

As a CX leader, you’re expected to make countless decisions. The level of importance varies from which service platform the company should adopt, to whether or not you want the team to honor Bob’s 5th warranty claim this year. 

Not all decisions will turn out to be winners, and that’s okay. Nobody makes the “right” decision every single time. Ask your CEO if they make the right decision every single time. (You already know they don’t.) It’s not possible. What we can do is make the best decision we can with the information that we have to increase the chances we’ll be happy with the outcome. Here’s a few suggestions for how you can do that: 

Know the Best (& Worst) Decision Making Moments

The ideal time for you to make a decision will be unique to you. You know whether you think more clearly early in the morning or later in the day. Maybe you need your Slack on DND for 30 minutes so you can process without interruption, or you need 5 minutes of meditation to clear your head. While you won’t always have the luxury, take advantage of that self-awareness whenever you can to help ensure your success.

That being said, there are certain times that nobody should make a decision: 

• If you were just presented with a deck and are being asked to share your input right then in a way that would be critical to next steps, ask if you can get back with an answer later in the day when you’ve had time to reflect. This will prevent impulse decisions, or from something from getting overlooked.

• If you’re feeling strong pressure from one of your team members to make a quick move, pause and take a step back to evaluate the situation so their emotions aren’t triggering the action. Their priorities may not be your priorities, and they may not have the big picture.

• If you’re missing key stakeholders, you may be tempted to just move forward anyway, but doing so leaves a certain amount of unknowns on the table. At minimum, ensure key stakeholders have the opportunity not only to review and share information but communicate any questions or concerns before a final decision has been solidified. 

• If you’re operating on three hours of sleep and Dayquil fumes, if feasible, kick that decision out another day. You’re not thinking straight. 

• When possible, make a decision before you need to make a decision. When you’ve got an overwhelming volume or a broken system or a deadline you absolutely must meet, it only adds to the stress of the situation. You may rush in your evaluation, missing critical elements,  or opt for a solution with short-term gain but long-term pain. 

Understand the Full Impact

Nothing exists in isolation. Most of us as leaders have had the experience of making a decision in a silo and then watching other departments grit their teeth through the storm. Whoops. 

Not only should you consider every person the choice impacts, you should consider that you don’t know every person the choice impacts. Assuming there are no confidentiality concerns, discuss what’s on your mind widely before the decision needs to be made. (This doesn’t mean you need to involve everyone as decision makers but they should be consulted.) As you’re discussing cross-departmentally with leaders, ask if they know of anyone else who would be impacted to ensure all questions, concerns, and lift can all be accounted for and there are no competing initiatives.

If you’re relying on other colleagues for action items, remember your timeline is not their timeline. A task that takes an hour to do will not necessarily take an hour to complete if the person responsible has two week’s worth of tasks ahead of it. The more awareness you can provide people up-front, the better.

In addition to understanding how your decision will impact other people and departments, consider other resources. How will this decision impact departmental finances? How much time will it take? How will this alter manpower or task allocation? How will partners or customers be involved?

Consider the permanence of the decision. How does this decision look 1-3 years from now?  Can you try on the decision before you commit? Which doors open when you make this decision, and which doors close? Does this decision set a precedent for something else? 

Lastly, while it may not factor into the decision itself, consider how the decision will impact you personally. How do you feel about the choice you’re making? Why do you feel this way? How will this change your day-to-day?

Practice Objectivity

A big factor in solid decision-making is having an objective mindset. This is easier said than done. While we are all leaders invested in making the best decisions for our departments and teams, we’re also human beings invested in things like careers, politics, relationships, self-confidence and self-image. Those interests don’t  just go away when we have an important choice to make.

The goal is not to ignore that modifying service hours would benefit your manager who also happens to be your friend, or that successfully implementing a new system would look pretty darn good on your end-of-year review. The goal is to be aware of how those truths may impact your thought-process and create bias as the decision is being made. If you feel unable to make a clear decision because of a conflict of interest, that may be a good opportunity to involve another leader or remove yourself from the decision completely. 

You can also increase your objectivity by utilizing data. Not just any data. Good data. Your information should be complete, reliable, and current. If you don’t have data to make the decision, decide what would be important to know and find a way to measure. 

If You Make a Poor Decision 

First off, congratulations! You’re truly a leader and you’re in good company. While it doesn’t always feel good, you can take comfort in knowing every one of us has been there, and you’ll be here again too. Failing is just one potential outcome of trying. 

Start by gaining perspective. What was the impact? How much did this decision hurt the department, colleagues or customers as opposed to your own ego? Oftentimes what feels like a “big mistake” to us, is a shrug to a more senior leader, and not even on the radar for the organization. Think of other leaders at your company who may have done something similar. You’re not the first person to pick a partner that isn’t delivering, or hire someone who just got let go, or send an email by accident. When we can see the size of the issue clearly, we are more likely to remain calm and find an appropriate fix.

If taking responsibility for the decision is appropriate, do so, and then focus your mind on the solution. Don’t circle the drain of should haves. It’s not helpful to yourself or those around you, and it’s not necessary. Once an appropriate amount of time has passed, reflect on the choice that was made and the insights you gained from it. 

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