“What You Don’t Know About Making Decisions”

by David A. Garvin and Michael A. Roberto.

Davin A. Garvin and Michael Roberto stressed that Decision making is

arguably the most important job of the senior executive and one of the easiest to
get wrong. It doesn’t have to be that way—if you look at the process in a whole
new light. 
They emphasized that most executives think of decision making as a
singular event that occurs at a point in time. Though, decision making is a
process fraught with power plays, politics, personal nuances, and
institutional history. Leaders who recognize this make far better decisions
than those who persevere in the fantasy that decisions are events they alone
control. That said, some decision-making processes are far more effective
than others. Most often, participants use an advocacy process, possibly the
least productive way to get things done. They view decision making as a
contest, arguing passionately for their preferred solutions, presenting
information selectively, withholding relevant conflicting data so they can
make a convincing case, and standing firm against opposition. Much more
powerful is an inquiry process, in which people consider a variety of options
and work together to discover the best solution. Moving from advocacy to
inquiry requires careful attention to three critical factors: fostering
constructive, rather than personal, conflict; making sure everyone knows
that their viewpoints are given serious consideration even if they are not
ultimately accepted; and knowing when to bring deliberations to a close.

Decision making in the Department of Education, especially in

deciding a program to be implemented during the conduct of Brigada
Eskewela, the school head that serves as the executive of the school
encourages the participation of stakeholders. She considers that every
members of the school governing council were given the opportunity to
participate in the decision-making process. They were given a time to have
a deliberation to discuss the situation to be decided like having an income
generating project to support the said program.

Another situation was during the conduct of School Monitoring,

Evaluation and Plan Adjustment (SMEPA). This situation, the school head
presents a report of the school highlighting the status of Key Performance
Indicators (KPI) and programs, projects and activities affecting the said KPI.
After the presentation the school head will encourage the participation of the
participants of SMEPA to decide an intervention to the factors affecting the
performance of the school. They also discuss in detail strategies for moving
from an advocacy to an inquiry process, as well as for fostering productive
conflict, true consideration, and timely closure. And they offer a framework
for assessing the effectiveness of your process while you’re still in the middle
of it.
 Davin A. Garvin and Michael Roberto further underscored that
Decision making is a job that lies at the very heart of leadership and one
that requires a genius for balance: the ability to embrace the divergence that
may characterize early discussions and to forge the unity needed for
effective implementation.