The Decisiveness Habit

News flash: Not making a decision, is making a decision. A CEO was once asked how he became so successful. His reply: “Good decisions!” The follow-up question was then how he made good decisions. His reply: “Bad decisions!”

Making a decision, even a bad one, is an opportunity to learn and grow. In the July issue of Departures magazine, chef and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson put bad decisions in the context of “love for the craft” and the learning process.

Effective practices make decisions in a timely manner, and there are many decisions to be made on projects to pursue, revenues to invest, or profits to take or hold. In order to support decision making, effective practices are able to test decisions against the firm’s core values. Did I say something you didn’t understand? Yes, your firm must have core values. These define how difficult decisions can be made. If the firm’s core value is profitability, it will make decisions based on its fiduciary position. If the firm’s values reflect client service and client need above all else, decisions will be based on clients’ satisfaction.

Why is this important? Because as organizations grow, decisions that must be made on a daily, hourly or minute-to-minute basis cannot be controlled by one person. Decision making must be shared by all levels of the organization. In the absence of clearly defined core values against which staff can test and make decisions, the result is either a lack of decision making (at any or all levels of the organization) or a fear that one will make a mistake and be chastised. This is often called the “paralysis of analysis,” and characterizes an ineffective organization paralyzed by fear.

Let me give you the advice I gave to a senior partner in a successful architectural firm...ready? Staff are going to make mistakes. They are NOT going to always do it your way. Provide staff with the framework to make a decision (values), define the outcome you expect and move your firm forward by practicing the Decisiveness Habit.

Karen Compton, CPSM. Karen Compton is principal of A3K Consulting (Glendale, CA), a business development and strategic planning firm specializing in the architecture, engineering and construction industries. Ms. Compton is also the founder of Industry Speaks™, a web-based business-to-business portal that connects AEC firms with experienced consultants, provides peer reviews of consultants, reports on key industry trends, and publishes expert reviews of professional courses and books. Contact her at kcompton@a3kconsulting.com.