3
Decisions as Avenues to Progress

The other major kind of decision is one in which you must determine how to take advantage of an opportunity, or how to move the goals and objectives of an organization forward. These are quite challenging, and demand quality decision-making skills.

As managers, we are often called upon to make decisions to move the organization forward—to increase the chances of achieving stated goals and objectives. We normally equate the achievement of these goals and objectives as progress, and that’s what managers do: they make progress, achieve goals and objectives, and ensure the constant success of the organization.

Achieving these goals almost always requires quality decisions made from a wide variety of alternatives and in a broad range of settings and circumstances. The decisions are often complex, involve many people, have significant consequences and ultimately determine the extent of success or failure of the organization.

How’s that for decision making as a management function? Feel the pressure? Stress building up?

Well, it doesn’t have to. There are tried-and-true ways to handle these decisions, and that’s what this section of the book is about.