Actionable process and recommendations to make an Effective Decision and Managing for Effectiveness

John Felipe Branch, • entrepreneurship
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Actionable process and recommendations to make an Effective Decision and Managing for Effectiveness, based on Peter Drucker's insightful articles.

In short: focus on decisions and actions, rather than knowledge and insight.

Making a better decision

👣 Sequential steps, involved in the decision-making process:

  1. Classify the problem. Is it generic, exceptional or unique? Or is it a new one for which a rule has yet to be developed?
  2. Define the problem. What are we dealing with?
  3. Specifying the answer to the problem. What are the “boundary conditions”?
  4. Decide what is “right,” rather than what is acceptable, in order to meet the boundary conditions.. What will fully satisfy the specifications before attention is given to the compromises, adaptations, and concessions needed to make the decision acceptable?
  5. Build into the decision the action to carry it out. What does the action commitment have to be? Who has to know about it?
  6. Test the validity and effectiveness of the decision against the actual course of events. Test your assumptions and measure results.

🕹️ Doing a better job at managing

Prioritize effectiveness in your decision-making. Differentiate between effectiveness (doing the right things ) and efficiency (doing things right). There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all.

Resource allocation, focus on opportunities and not on problems. The most crucial decisions involve allocating resources, especially high-potential human talent. Drucker's rule: satisfy the needs of high-promise areas first (invest in opportunities >> problems), even if it means abandoning other activities entirely.

🚶‍♀️ Courage to abandon

Every product and activity should be put "on trial for its life" every few years. Ask: "If we weren't already doing this, would we start now?" If the answer is no, develop an exit strategy. This requires courage but is essential for maintaining organizational vitality.

“Every decision is a risk-taking judgment.” and remember to take action!