Special 5-Day Report

Ensuring Maximum Speed and Quality of Decisions

by Kepner-Tregoe

In earlier articles in this series, we identified five preconditions to successful decisions. The Kepner-Tregoe survey on "Decision Making in the Digital Age" identified seven preconditions. In this article, we look at the final two.


VI. Connectivity through Process

The word "process" has many meanings and usages. When referring to the material world, people speak of an engineering process or a manufacturing process. In the mental realm the world process refers to the series of steps one goes through to organize and analyze information and make judgments about it.

In either case, a process channels decision making. And having an agreed-upon, common process enables all those involved in a decision, regardless of background or function, to work collaboratively toward a common goal.

To ensure maximum speed and quality of decisions, Decision Leaders pay careful attention to "process" in both senses of the term. Illustrating the former meaning of the term, Intel knew that to remain competitive in a hotly contested market it had to significantly shorten its product development cycle. As a result, it moved to install a company-wide product development process, the Product Life cycle (PLC) process, which serves as a road map on which key synchronization points or milestones are clearly marked. By following this process, everyone involved in the development knows exactly when the data is going to come together, when they are going to look at it and make changes, and how they will move forward from that point.

In terms of process as a mental discipline, Corning has spent a good deal of time and effort developing the critical-thinking skills of its employees. It expects them to use a systematic, step-by-step approach when making decisions or presenting recommendations. Alan Eusden cites an example of a meeting he recently attended where a decision had to made about the best way to satisfy one of Corning's largest customers. As they are accustomed to doing, the team members began by developing a set of very specific objectives for the decision. They then classified them into "musts" and "wants," against which they were able to assess the relative merits of competing alternatives. Going through these few basic steps enabled the team to organize its thinking and information to arrive quickly at a quality decision that more than satisfied the customer.


VII. They Bank on Memory

Those who ignore the past are condemned to repeat its errors. Many of today's organizations have yet to take Santayana's dictum to heart. When asked if their organization maintains a database of information relating to past decision making, over 91 percent of all respondents to the Kepner-Tregoe survey either said "no" or couldn't answer the question. As a result, many organizations spend time, money, and effort reinventing the wheel. Such decision-making amnesia carries a high cost.

One characteristic that sets Decision Leaders apart is their ability to retain information about past decisions so it can be applied to current ones. At DaimlerChrysler, for example, thousands of lessons learned have been documented in "Books of Knowledge." There is an Engineering Book of Knowledge, a Manufacturing Book of Knowledge, and so on. Every person in the organization has access to his or her discipline's Book of Knowledge. DaimlerChrysler also fosters "tech clubs," where employees in a certain discipline get together and exchange war stories and lessons learned. Any suggestions that come out of the clubs' meetings are documented and submitted for inclusion in the relevant Book of Knowledge. These tools enable the auto maker to pass on hard-earned knowledge from one design facility or plant to another and from one generation of employees to the next.


Summing Up….

Each generation of executives thinks that the challenges it faces are unique and more daunting than those faced by its predecessors. This generation is no different, and with good reason. Information technology has triggered a revolution in the way we think about—and operate—business organizations. In the face of this revolution Decision Leaders have on the one hand rejected the neo-Luddite temptation to turn their backs on technology and on the other hand have refused to embrace the notion of technology as the Digital-Age panacea.

Instead, they are working to evolve a new, integrated approach, one that combines the best of what technology offers with the power of the human intellect, so that decision making in their organization is faster and better than ever.


A complete copy of the Kepner-Tregoe report "Decision Making in the Digital Age" can be purchased for $395.00, plus shipping and handling, from the Kepner-Tregoe web site (www.kepner-tregoe.com). Or contact Dolly Weldon-Gordon at (609) 252-2665 or via e-mail at dweldon-gordon@kepner-tregoe.com. For more information about Kepner-Tregoe, contact Dr. Peter Tobia, via phone (609) 252-2634 or e-mail (ptobia@kepner-tregoe.com).