Decision Making Is an Essential Leadership Skill

Decision making is an essential leadership skill. If you can learn how to make timely, well-considered decisions, then you can lead your team to well-deserved success. If, however, you make poor decisions, your time as a leader will be short. Many organisational decisions are not made by an individual manager, but by a group of managers. The impact of not having the right people and capabilities on group decision making team will be discussed after the four techniques for improving group decision making.

The following four techniques have been identified for improving group decision making :

* Brainstorming, group brainstorming can be very effective for bringing the full experience and creativity of all members of the group to bear on an issue. When individual group members get stuck with an idea, another member's creativity and experience can take the idea to the next stage. Group brainstorming can therefore develop ideas in more depth than individual brainstorming. Another advantage of group brainstorming is that it helps everyone involved to feel that they've contributed to the end solution, and it reminds people that other people have creative ideas to offer. What's more, brainstorming is fun, and it can be great for team-building.

* Nominal Group technique - The technique ensures that even the shy and intimidated has an equal impact in the process outcome and it can be used not just for consensus decision making and problem solving but also for priority settings, strategy building.

* Delphi Technique - The Delphi technique is a widely used and accepted method for gathering data from respondents within their domain of expertise. The Delphi technique is well suited as a method for compromise by using a series of questionnaires delivered using multiple iterations to collect data from a panel of selected subjects.

* Group Deceision Support Systems - A group decision support system is an interactive, computer-based system that facilitates group decision making by providing tools to facilitate communication, encourage brainstorming, and manage shared information. A number of commercial decision support products are available, including Meeting works and Team Works.

Decision making is an essential leadership skill. If you can learn how to make timely, well-considered decisions, then you can lead your team to well-deserved success. If you make poor decisions, your time as a leader will be short. Many organ