My Role as a Decision Leader in the Global Marketplace
amhs2000
modules.docxModule 01: Judgment in Managerial Decision-Making
Learning Outcomes
1. Critique the components of the decision-making process.
2. Explore prescriptive and descriptive decision-making.
3. Assess the use of heuristics in decision-making.
4. Evaluate the role of critical thinking in decision-making.
1. Leadership and Decision-Making
In this module, we will examine leadership and decision-making within the organization. As such, we will discuss the importance of decision-making and the organizational leader. Further, we will examine these important decision-making concepts in light of the various challenges that confront 21st-century organizations. As an organizational leader, it is important for you to have a solid understanding of leadership and decision-making as you help lead your organization toward its goals, objectives, and overall mission.
Leadership and Decision-Making
Leadership and decision-making go together hand-in-hand. In fact, leaders are often confronted with important decisions continually, even in the midst of uncertainty. Nevertheless, great leaders understand how to make decisions that have a positive impact on their organizations, employees, and stakeholders (Kase, 2010). In today's highly volatile global environment, organizational leaders are required to face challenges that confront their organizations with increased complexity (Campbell, 2013). Moreover, organizations rely heavily on decision leaders who have been delegated the task of leading the organizations amid complex challenges unlike any other time in human history (Harnes, 2007; Story, 2011). As a leader, you will also be confronted with such challenges as you seek to influence your team, group, or organization toward optimum performance and efficiency (Latham, 2014). As such, global companies need leaders who are capable of working anywhere and feel empowered operating in a diverse and complex environment (Smith & Victoria, 2012).
It has long been established that sound decision-making is an essential part of management and leadership functions (Northouse, 2015). Without proper decision-making, it is only a matter of time before undesirable results occur within the organization (Daft, 2012). Moreover, organizational leaders are required to make key decisions that will have a direct impact on how the organization solves its internal problems, reacts to external pressures, and ultimately accomplishes its mission (Latham, 2014).
Both management and leadership are required to make a number of decisions on a daily basis. Some decisions can be relatively simple, while others can be quite complex (Daft, 2012). Nevertheless, organizations require individuals who hold such positions within the organization to make sound decisions with the intent of producing desired outcomes.
As organizational leaders are faced with uncertainty, all too often they are forced to make decisions with limited hard data as they are faced with unknowns or a high level of ambiguity (Northouse, 2015). As such, decision-making skills are essential abilities that are required in order to keep organizations moving in the right direction. Therefore, organizational leaders who strive to improve the quality of their decisions are in a better position to yield positive results for their organizations, customers, employees, and stakeholders (Kase, 2010).
2. Critical Thinking and the Organizational Leader
Beyond decisions required for the day-to-day routine, there are also decisions that are much more challenging and require a higher level of critical thinking and critical thinking skills (Butterfield, 2013). As suggested by Mangieri and Block (2004), learning to think critically is essential to effective leadership. As indicated by the literature, organizations that have leaders who demonstrate critical thinking skills make better decisions to meet immediate and long-range goals and objectives. In the Harvard Business Review article entitled How Leaders Should Think Critically, John Baldoni (2010) suggests that in order for organizational leaders to succeed in 21st-century business, they need to become critical thinkers. Baldoni (2010) posits that critical thinking has always been a prized attribute of leadership and is all the more important now that the rate of complexity has risen significantly in recent years. He further suggests that in a world of growing uncertainty, organizational leaders will need sharp critical thinking skill in order to “size up the situation” and realize potential where others may not, and seize opportunities through effective decision-making.
Anatomy of Decisions and the Rational Decision-Making Process
Referring to the term judgment, Bazerman and Moore (2013) present an anatomy of decisions. Moreover, they suggest that in order to fully understand judgment, it is necessary to identify the components of the decision-making process. Further, they also suggest that there are six steps that should be taken when applying a rational decision-making process. The authors suggest that if a problem has alternative solutions, then there is a “required” decision to make (2013). However, if there are no alternatives to choose from, that eliminates the need to seek out an appropriate solution. However, when alternative solutions are available, then steps should be taken either implicitly or explicitly when applying a rational decision-making process.
Prescriptive and Descriptive Decision-Making
As suggested by Bazerman and Moore (2013), there are two major schools of thought when it comes to decision-making. They are identified as prescriptive and descriptive. The authors divide these models into two distinct categories and are largely based on an analytical process of making a rational decision. The authors suggest that descriptive decision-making involves looking at how decisions are actually made. Prescriptive decision-making, on the other hand, is based on a method of making the best possible decision in light of all available options (2013). Review these methods:
· How people make decisions
· Finds out the best decisions
· Assuming an ideal decision-maker
· How people act in reality
· Why do they act this way?
Heuristics and the Decision Leader
As suggested by Gigerenzer and Gaissmaier (2011), heuristics can be thought of as “mental shortcuts” and can play a key role in decision-making. As such, a heuristic is considered a strategy that ignores part of the information, with the goal of making decisions more quickly than more complex methods (Gigerenzer & Gaissmaier, 2011). In the article entitled Swift and smart decision making: heuristics that work, Hoy and Tarter (2010) provide several reasons why heuristics are used by stating the following: “The reasons are many: situations are fluid and changing; the outcomes of the decision are not clear; information is sparse, overwhelming, or unreliable; goals are often neither clear nor specified; and the number of decisions required each day is relentless. Time is a scarce commodity that restrains the number of alternatives a decision maker can generate and consider” (p.1). Whatever the case, leaders will use heuristics instinctively, especially when they are seasoned leaders and have been faced with similar scenarios throughout their leadership careers. Decisions that are made based on those past experiences are obviously no guarantee of future success. However, heuristics, if understood and practiced correctly, can yield positive results.
3. Summary
As discussed above, leadership and decision-making go together hand-in-hand. As an organizational leader, you will be required to make sound decisions on behalf of your organization, employees, customers, and stakeholders in a way that brings about positive results. Whether you are an aspiring leader, currently serving in leadership capacity, or a seasoned organizational leader of many years, having a proper understanding of decisions and the decision-making process is vital to your organization’s success. As such, making sound decisions on behalf of your organization will better ensure that your organization and its constituents will reach their maximum potential in today's challenging global marketplace.
Module 2: Decision-Making Techniques, Tools, and Approaches: Part 1
Learning Outcomes
1. Analyze the use of decision-making tools.
2. Explore decision-making approaches.
3. Evaluate decision-making techniques.
1. Overview of Decision-Making Approaches
In this module, we will examine three major decision-making models used by leaders and managers alike as presented in the literature. As established in the previous module, leadership and decision-making go together hand-in-hand. As there are different styles of leadership, there are also differing models of decision-making. Moreover, leadership research in the Middle East has developed substantially in recent years. In fact, Littrell, Serra, Handan, Durmas, and Katrinili (2013) seek to identify the ideal managerial leader within the context of Istanbul and Izmir, Turkey, by analyzing leadership behaviors through explicit leader behavior theory and organizations.
The study reveals that business leaders in the two regions of Izmir and Istanbul demonstrate leadership behaviors ranging anywhere from autocratic to paternalistic. Further, as noted by Elanain (2013), there has been an extensive amount of empirical leadership studies performed mainly in Western contexts. However, Elanain suggests that more empirical evidence is needed to understand the nature of relationships primarily in the Middle East. As such, the researchers sought to conduct a study in a non-Western context of the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) and the Middle East.
Researchers suggest that ongoing leadership development in the Middle East will continue as more challenges surface that confront business organizations. As each organization has its own unique challenges, the appropriate leadership and decision-making models will be contingent upon the needs of the organization and its constituents. As indicated by the literature, the major decision-making models can be organized in four different ways based on the type of decision that managers make. Contingent upon the type of decision made, these models can be organized as follows:
· Rational model
· Bounded rationality
· Intuitive approach
· Creative decision-making
The rational model of decision-making is a process whereby a leaders make decisions based on the best possible outcome available. As such, a leader will think through a sequence of steps in order to arrive at the final decision. Of note, the rational model of decision-making is best used when information of varying alternatives can be assessed and evaluated when determining the best course of action. The next decision-making model is based on the concept of bounded rationality. Such an approach is common when there is an abundance of information, which cannot be fully processed. Further, when the leader is faced with limited information or is faced with limited time constraints, the leader may utilize the bounded rationality approach when making a decision.
When a leader is making a decision based on experience or when faced with a similar problem, it is common for them to take the intuitive approach. Oftentimes, this model is based on the emotional reaction of the leader to a particular choice. Moreover, such a model of decision-making can result when there is extremely limited or even inaccurate information. Finally, a leader may choose the creative decision-making model. Such an approach often leads to innovation and can assist the organization in maintaining or even gaining a competitive edge in the marketplace. When there is a need for new ideas, creative strategies, or the need for solutions, the creative decision-making model has been established as a highly effective approach.
As discussed above, leaders can use each of these models in a highly effective manner contingent upon the scenario. Again, each of these models of decision-making will fit the organizational leader’s particular style or facilitate the organization’s particular needs. Whatever the case, learn more about the details when each of the models should be used:
Use This Model When:
· Information on alternatives can be gathered and quantified.
· The decision is important.
· You are trying to maximize your outcome.
Use This Model When:
· The minimum criteria are clear.
· You do not have, or you are not willing to invest, much time to make the decision.
· You are not trying to maximize your outcome.
Use This Model When:
· Goals are unclear.
· There is time pressure and analysis paralysis would be costly.
· You have experience with this problem.
Use This Model When:
· Solutions to the problem are not clear.
· New solutions need to be generated.
· You have time to immerse yourself in the issues.
2. Decision OODA Loops and Vroom-Yetton Decision Models
The next model we will examine is known as the OODA loop model. OODA is simply an acronym for:
· Observe
· Orientation
· Decision
· Acting
This model has been established as very effective in a wide variety of organizational settings, but has not gone without criticism. It is important to note that with any decision-making model there are strengths and weaknesses to each approach. Nevertheless, there are strengths that exist in each model that are important for you to understand as an organizational leader.
The OODA loop model was developed by John Boyd for use in military warfare decision-making. While not widely used today, this model can be very useful in managerial decision-making. The basis of this model is a step-by-step process that first begins with observation, and then moves toward orientation to deciding and acting as illustrated below:
The first stage in this model is to observe. A leader using this model in stage one should consider what is happening in the environment, as well as the information that is available. The next stage in this model is orientation. Boyd (Bryant, 2006) recognized that people process information based not only on previous experience but also on cultural traditions, genetic heritage, new information, and the ability to analyze and synthesize information. As leaders move through this model they are constantly reorienting. The next stage in this model is the decision, which Boyd considered best guesses based on both observation and orientation. The final stage in this model is that of acting. Once a leader acts on a decision, he or she moves back to the observation stage and tests the impact of the action.
Bryant (2006) critiqued Boyd’s model, stating the “greatest failure of the OODA Loop as a framework of human decision making is that it does not hint at this necessary dependence of perception on preexisting knowledge and concepts” (p. 186). He suggested a Critique–Explore–Compare–Adapt (CECA) Loop. This model of decision making is a framework for “describing natural human cognition” (Bryant, 2006, p. 194) and using prescriptive decision-making as illustrated below.
The Vroom-Yetton Decision Model is based on the work Victor Vroom and Phillip Yetton completed in the early 1970s. The basis of this model is rooted in the process of deciding how to decide. There are three factors that impact how leaders decide how to decide. These factors include the quality of the decision, the commitment of subordinates, and time constraints. The leadership style a leader chooses to use in the decision-making process is selected based on asking a series of questions as illustrated below.
These leadership styles are described as either Autocratic 1 or 2 (A1 or A2), Consultative 1 or 2 (C1 or C2) or Collaborative (G2). In an autocratic decision leadership style, the leader makes the decision and informs others of the decision. If the leader requests information from subordinates, an A2 approach is being used. In the Consultative style, the leader gathers information from subordinates in order to make the decision. If the leader explains the decision to subordinates and gathers their suggestions, a C2 approach is being taken. If leaders use a consensus style where they act as facilitators, they are using a collaborative (G2) approach.
3. Decision Trees and Mind Maps
There are a number of tools that are available for leaders to use in making decisions. Decision trees and mind maps are two popular tools to use in decision-making. Decision trees help leaders choose from several different options, whereas mind maps help leaders consolidate and summarize information to organize information and solve complex problems.
A decision tree is relatively easy to design and use. A leader would start with a decision he or she needs to make and would draw a small square to represent this. Possible solutions are then drawn with lines that explore the possible results of each solution. Decision trees are effective because they lay out problems with all possible solutions and the consequences of these solutions as illustrated below.
Mind maps help you break down large problems into manageable information. They are best used when you are brainstorming ideas and need to consolidate information from several sources in order to solve complex problems. Leaders would start diagramming a mind map by placing the problem or the task in a circle on the center of a piece of paper. Ideas and facts about the problem are then extended from the problem. Below is an illustration of a mind map:
Conclusion
In this module, we have examined several established decision-making models and tools available to the organizational leader. As indicated by the literature, such decision-making models can be organized based on the needs of the organization or on the type of decision that should be made. As such, it is important for you to have a thorough understanding of the appropriate tool or decision model in order to help you navigate your way through the decision-making process. Having a proper understanding of the nature and dynamics of these decision-making models may also help you lead your organization in an informed, efficient, and effective manner.
Module 3: Decision-Making Techniques, Tools, and Approaches: Part 2
Learning Outcomes
1. Analyze the use of decision-making tools.
2. Explore decision-making approaches.
3. Evaluate decision-making techniques.
1. Decision Matrices and Quantitative Tools
In previous modules, we examined the various methods, tools, and models commonly used by organizational leaders. As such, we sought to gain a solid understanding of them within the context of the organization. Further, we also examined ongoing leadership research in the Middle East. Business leaders in Saudi Arabia understand the importance of effective leadership. In this module, we will continue our examination of decision-making and the role of the organizational leader. It should be noted that quite a number of leadership development initiatives have taken place in recent years; specifically in the Middle East. For example, Varshney (2014) discusses the Khaled Alfaisal Administrative Leadership Development Program that provided a global exposure blended with experiential learning in Saudi Arabia (p.249).
The key role of the assessment center used in this research was to observe, evaluate and eventually rate each participant's performance. Such programs are a strong indication that leadership development is understood as a necessary component of the Middle Eastern business organization. Further, Alsalami, Behery, and Abdullah (2014) sought to examine the correlation between effective leadership styles and organizational innovation, soliciting participants from public and private organizations in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.). Results of the research indicated that there is a strong correlation between effective leadership models, appropriate decision-making, organizational efficiency, and innovation (Alsalami, Behery, & Abdullah, 2014, p.61).
As previously noted, effective leaders are skilled at making decisions. As such, in order for such leaders to make appropriate decisions on behalf of the organization, it is critical to have a proper understanding of available quantitative decision-making tools. That said, we now turn our attention toward the decision matrix. We will see how the organizational leader can use such quantitative tools as appropriate for the type of decision that is being made. It should be noted that there are a number of different quantitative tools that the decision leader can use. Moreover, there are also several types of decision matrices available to the organizational leader when going through the decision-making process. A decision matrix might consist of options, which can be scored, ranked, or weighted. Moreover, a decision matrix may be considered useful based on the fact that the data provided could be more objective based on the data contained in the matrix.
As mentioned, there are a number of different decision matrices leaders can use in the decision-making process, as well as several quantitative tools. Leaders should know that these options are available. Depending on the type of decision being made, a leader may elect to use either a matrix or one of the many quantitative tools available. Such quantitative tools have been established as effective when properly understood and used by the decision-maker. It is also important to understand that there are a wide variety of such tools available to the leader, but for the sake of brevity, we will share a basic and commonly used decision matrix in this module.
Simply stated, a decision matrix will list given sets of values in columns and rows, providing means whereby a decision-maker can analyze or systematically identify relationships between sets of information. Moreover, a matrix can be useful in relatively simple or (more commonly) large amounts of decision factors in order to systematically display the relevance or significance of each. As with previously mentioned tools, the decision matrix has been designed to help the organizational leader to make better decisions. While it may be impossible for an organizational leader to control the outcomes of the decision, the decision matrix can help the leader to improve the process of the decision itself. In this module we will provide an illustration of the decision matrix itself, its key components, basic structure, and layout.
It is common for organizational leaders to create a decision matrix by listing factors and criteria individually, collectively, or in a group. The rationale is to sum up and evaluate the different options against the criteria. Although leaders commonly make decisions based on instinct, previous experience or other data, the decision matrix can help the leader make an informed decision based on the total score presented in the matrix. Should the organizational leader be strictly confined to quantitative data when making an important decision? Simply stated, the answer is no. There may be other qualitative factors that come into play, which may be considered very important to the decision being made.
2. Using a Decision Matrix in the Decision-Making Process
Keep in mind that there may be other factors involved that cannot be quantified and should also be taken into consideration during the decision-making process. Of course, such will be contingent upon the scenario faced by the organizational leader when navigating through the decision-making process. It is very important that the organizational leader pays close attention to the process when the decision is being made. Ignoring other factors beyond quantitative data could certainly produce unfavorable results for obvious reasons—especially when the organizational leader is faced with complex decisions.
Using a decision matrix, a leader can evaluate and prioritize a list of options and then evaluate them based on established criteria. A decision matrix should be used when a leader knows that a list of options can be narrowed to just one and there are several different criteria that are the basis of the decision. Leaders use a standard procedure in developing a decision matrix. This includes brainstorming the criteria, discussing and refining it and assigning a weight to it. Typically, a matrix is drawn that includes the criteria and the weight. How the leader evaluates the criteria can vary from establishing a rating scale to establishing a baseline. The Mind Tools website offers a good breakdown of a decision matrix.
The illustration below portrays a good example of a decision matrix:
A leader uses quantitative tools for making decisions and solving problems when he or she obtains solutions mathematically. Some of these models include inventory models, project models, critical path methods, forecasting techniques, and statistical models. These models and tools are often used in operations management and have become popular due to the ability of computers to handle the calculations required. While this class does not focus on these specific tools, it is important to understand their contribution to leadership decision-making.
Conclusion
As we have examined the decision matrix this week, it is hoped that you will benefit by having an understanding of its use in the decision-making process. Again, there are a wide variety of matrices available to the decision leader, and they can often be tailored to suit a particular need of both organization and decision-maker. As such, using a decision matrix can assist the leader in evaluating and prioritizing a list of options when faced with a decision and evaluating those options based on established criteria. From there, the leader will be in a better position to make an informed decision based on weighing each option.
Module 04: Problem-Solving and the Decision-Making Process: Part 1
Learning Outcomes
1. Understand the problem solving process.
2. Analyze problems.
3. Develop effective problem statements.
4. Formulate management questions.
1. The Problem-Solving Process
In a study conducted by Mishra, Grunewald, and Kulkarni (2014) leadership styles of midlevel managers, senior level managers, and organizational leaders were examined within the context of Muscat, Sultanate of Oman. As revealed in the study conducted in the Middle East, multiple styles were examined in light of their effect within the organization. In this module, we will examine an overview of the problem identification and problem-solving process and its importance to the organizational leader. Moreover, we will see how such is critical to leadership decision-making. Further, we will look at decision-making theory in order to explain problems in light of the leadership context. As such, we will seek to apply these theories to our own leadership role and discuss the importance of problem identification as organizational leaders. Finally, we will examine the steps of the problem-solving process and illustrate them in our discussion this week.
As covered in previous modules, leadership and decision-making are critical functions within the organization. In fact, it's nearly impossible to be able to separate the two. Effective leaders understand how to make important decisions in order to better their organization, or position their organization to maintain its competitive edge. As already mentioned, sound decision-making is an essential dynamic of the leadership function.
Moreover, management at all levels of the organization is required to make key decisions that will have a direct impact on desired outcomes. As such, organizational leaders are required to make those decisions in a way that helps to accomplish the organization's mission, react to external pressures, or solve internal problems that are all too common; especially in today's highly volatile global marketplace.
Due to the rapid change of the global marketplace, organizations seek leaders who are proficient at making the right decision, at the right time, in the right place in order to produce the right results. Think of a time when you had to make a key decision in your workplace. What were some of the issues? What were some of the challenges? What factors needed to be taken into consideration? Importantly, what were the end results? That said, it is important for you to have a proper understanding of the decision process as an organizational leader. As such, we will examine the importance of accurately defining a problem with the aim of formulating an appropriate strategy to solve the problem.
Leaders are required to make a wide variety of decisions on both micro and macro levels. Moreover, despite the structure of the organization or its reach, leaders will find themselves confronted with problems that need to be solved. It is also important to understand that decision-making is not simply confined to the leadership role. It is also a required function of management personnel as well. While leaders will more often make decisions based on the macro environment, managers will likewise find themselves required to make important decisions in their immediate sphere of influence. Whatever the case, effective decision-making can only come about through problem-solving and is an ongoing process that is critical to the success or even survival of the 21st-century organization.
Regardless of the setting a leader works in, he or she will spend a great deal of time solving problems. Understanding this process is important if leaders are going to make effective decisions. Butterfield (2013) suggested that one thing that distinguishes a manager from line staff is the role that managers play as problem-solvers. Problems are often the basis of many managerial decisions. Take a closer look at the steps in the problem-solving process:
2. Identifying and Defining Problems
Before a leader can clearly define a problem, he or she must recognize that a problem exists. On occasion, a leader will ignore problems until they become too big. Once a leader does recognize a problem, he or she should see it as an opportunity for solutions and positive organizational change.
A clearly defined problem can lead to a list of solutions. Thus, a leader should start with a clearly defined problem statement. This description should include the scope and size of the problem, as well as how the problem impacts the organization. It should also note the consequences of the problem.
One major barrier to clearly defining a problem occurs when a leader has a preconceived notion or idea as to the existence and cause of a problem. As a result, the leader may not consider the data that actually define the problem. Leaders must collect data to demonstrate the existence of the problem and then clearly define the problem. Learn more:
Based on previous years, tour sales overall should be steady, with an increase in trips to adventure travel destinations.
Customers report that fears about the economy, airline service, and security are preventing them from traveling.
Tour sales in all areas have decreased by 8%, with no increase in adventure travel.
Even our most popular European tours show no increase in enrollment, despite heavy promotion.
Plans to add tours, develop our website, and expand staff are now on hold until we can solve this problem.
50% of travel companies reported significant loss of revenue last year.
Conclusion
In this module, we examined problem identification and the problem-solving process. Moreover, we also looked at the importance of these functions in the role of the leader. Clearly defining a problem is a critical step toward subsequent problem-solving and decision-making techniques. There is no doubt that as you lead in your organization, you will find yourself serving as a problem-solver. Therefore, it will be critical for you to understand these necessary steps in order to identify a given problem, and arrive at a viable solution.
Module 5: Problem-Solving and the Decision-Making Process: Part 2
Learning Outcomes
1. Understand the problem-solving process.
2. Analyze problems.
3. Develop effective problem statements.
4. Formulate management questions.
1. Leadership Theory and Decision-Making
As we move into the fifth week of this course, we will continue our discussion of problem-solving within the context of the organization. Moreover, we will further our understanding of various theories that have developed and have been established by previous research. Further, we will seek to address these challenges that confront managers and leaders who are assigned the task of problem-solving and decision-making within the modern organization. It is important to understand that being aware of a symptom is not enough. As a decision leader it is critical for you to dig deeper and get to the root of the problem in order to ensure that the organization continues to move forward in the right direction.
Theories and research play a role in how problems are solved in organizational settings. People develop theories to help explain what is happening around them every day. A personal theory has its place in personal life. For example, a man might have a theory of how a family comes to be either a functional or dysfunctional unit. The man’s family theory was developed over time and influenced by experiences, observations and interpretations that helped him to choose terms, conditions, and situations that predict family behavior.
In organizations, theory is also used to predict or explain what is happening. In individual and organizational instances, a theory is built upon definitions and systematically interrelated concepts (Cooper & Schindler, 2013). Organizational leaders who have the greatest understanding of relevant theories and research are in the best position to make insightful and sound decisions.
Relevant Leadership and Organizational Theories
Organizational problems such as those that leaders experience every day in the work world must be approached in a structured way if leaders are to reach resolution. A leader facing a business problem can never look at all aspects of a problem simultaneously. Therefore, the problem and potential resolution must be defined within a framework, or exploration becomes overwhelming. Additionally, a framework helps to reduce bias from those involved in problem resolution. Even when a leader believes that he or she knows little about the problem, personal preconceived notions still exist. For example, a person may have a theory about whether or not it will rain this afternoon. He or she may not consciously think about the afternoon rain theory when clouds begin to form, but undoubtedly a preconception exists.
In the study of decision-making and organizational leadership, theory plays a very important role. Today’s managers and leaders address organizational problems that require a full understanding of theoretical constructs. Leaders may not think about theory every hour of every day at work, but astute leaders rely on theoretical constructs to understand the organization and make sound decisions. Understanding the interrelated ideas of a theory allows decision-makers to evaluate whether a particular theory is relevant to a particular problem. When faced with an urgent management problem, a thoughtful manager or leader takes necessary steps to better understand options and alternatives to aid in the decision-making process.
2. Management Questions and Decision-Making
An effective leader does not make decisions off the cuff. Instead, good decisions are grounded in asking good questions. Developing the management problem and question is what drives decisions throughout the research and problem-solving process. Stating the problem with ambiguity, uncertainty, or misstatements means that the decision-maker cannot confidently proceed to find a relevant resolution. An effective manager or leader will begin to investigate an organizational issue by first correctly understanding the problem. Leaders might describe symptoms of a problem in this way:
· Revenues are down by 5%
· Marketing department is not communicating with IT
· The plant in India is underproducing
· Data are not readily available to make sound financial decisions
These symptoms do not accurately describe the management problem in need of resolution. Symptoms are often interpreted differently by different people. Bias and individual perceptions about symptoms influence the research approach. Relying on symptoms to design a research approach nearly always results in flawed results. An enlightened manager or leader will often use exploration to take a symptom or ambiguous issue, discover more about the problem itself, and turn the management dilemma into actionable research.
For many people, stating an organizational issue in the form of questions helps to frame detailed responses. For example, Sheila has been observing that more and more baby boomers in her organization are taking early retirement. Conversations with some of her managers have revealed that important “institutional memory” is going with them when they leave. Sheila may ask the following questions as she begins to gain an understanding of this organizational issue:
Spending time to articulate the management problem and research question with exactness and specificity is imperative when conducting sound practical research. Allowing a well-stated management problem to guide decisions on how to solve a problem should be a goal of all leaders.
3. Research and Solution Development
It is rare that business problems completely and openly manifest themselves. Usually, a leader will need to gather and analyze data before the issue becomes clear and solutions can be developed. One of the first steps in this process is to define the data that are needed to clarify the problem. Data gathering can be costly, so it is important that leaders use existing sources of information when possible. This will include talking to others who have observed the problem, reviewing organizational documents, and making observations. During this process leaders should document both the data and the sources.
Once data are gathered, the leader is ready to address the managerial questions that could lead to problem resolution. This is the stage when a leader develops alternatives and solutions. Many of the tools discussed earlier in this course can be used at this stage of the decision-making process. A leader will consider several solutions to the problem and make a decision on the best possible alternative.
The problem-solving method as described does not end with the solution. Good leadership decision-making involves a process of evaluating the decisions that have been made and determining whether or not the solution actually resolved the problem. The leader can use the same process of data collection to do this. An important responsibility of leaders in the problem-solving and decision-making process is that of organizational learning. When leaders solve problems, they can avoid problems in the future by exploring how their decisions have impacted the organization, and documenting the problem and solution so that the same mistakes do not occur again.
Module 6: Managing Group Dynamics in a Decision Environment: Part 1
Learning Outcomes
1. Evaluate group dynamics in decision-making.
2. Assess group behaviors in decision-making.
3. Evaluate group decision-making processes.
1. Overview of Group Dynamics
Leaders do not work in isolation. In fact, many leaders work in teams and groups, and the dynamics of working in these groups can impact the decision-making process. Some leaders, when dealing with complex organizational problems, will form a group or a team to study the problem and make a decision (Butterfield, 2013).
Groups are formed primarily to share information and to make decisions, thus helping each group member to enhance his or her individual ability to contribute to the organization. Conversely, a work team is a group that is formed to provide synergistic benefit to the organization. While work groups have a goal of sharing information, work teams have a goal of benefiting from collective performance. Additionally, groups have neutral to negative synergy with individual contribution accountability, while teams have positive synergy with individual and mutual accountability. Therefore, groups may have random and varied skills, while teams have complementary skills.
This week, we will examine effective leadership and decision-making in light of the group environment. Researchers have put forth an extensive effort in order to ascertain how to establish effective leadership practice within a group setting. Moreover, studies have also examined the results of failed leadership and provide recommendations on how to avoid it. For instance, Aboyassin and Abboud (2013) conducted a study, seeking to explore how ineffective leadership behavior affects individual and organizational performance within the context of Jordanian institutions. This study was limited to the manager's point of view and suggests that there are similarities with managers in Arab institutions. However, the researchers caution about generalizing the results of the study to other Arabian countries. Nevertheless, there were quite a number of practical implications and useful information that may help curb or even eliminate ineffective leadership practices which may exist not only in Jordanian institutions, but also in surrounding territories.
It should be noted that there have been an extensive amount of studies in American and European regions regarding ineffective leadership and failed practices. However, effective leadership concepts have been highly established for quite a number of years and in a wide array of organizational settings. Effective leadership practices purport more of a collaborative team or group environment, which helped to undergird the organizational leader, the organization's mission, and the necessary steps required for effective decision-making. Perhaps you have been an eyewitness to effective leadership within a group setting. Also, you may have had the opportunity to experience challenges that can exist in a group. As such, organizational leaders in both Middle East and Western cultures can agree that the various challenges that can exist within the group setting can be overcome through effective leadership practices.
Leaders do not work in isolation. In fact, many leaders work in teams and groups, and the dynamics of working in these groups can impact the decision-making process. Some leaders, when dealing with complex organizational problems, will form a group or a team to study the problem and make a decision (Butterfield, 2013). Groups are formed primarily to share information and to make decisions, thus helping each group member to enhance his or her individual ability to contribute to the organization. Conversely, a work team is a group that is formed to provide synergistic benefit to the organization. While work groups have a goal of sharing information, work teams have a goal of benefiting from collective performance. Additionally, groups have neutral to negative synergy with individual contribution accountability, while teams have positive synergy with individual and mutual accountability. Therefore, groups may have random and varied skills, while teams have complementary skills.
Whether a group comes together on its own or is brought together through the direction of organizational leaders, there is a process that all groups go through that is fairly standard. Each group progresses through five distinct stages. These stages are described by Greenberg (2011) as forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning.
Read more about each stage:
During the forming stage, members are getting to know one another. They may be establishing ground rules for what they may find acceptable or unacceptable. Other than determining the ground rules, groups at this stage are not typically ready to address a complex problem.
The next stage, storming, can be characterized by a high degree of conflict (Greenberg, 2011). Typically group members can display some hostility with one another and individual members may struggle to control the group.
Once the conflicts are resolved, the group enters a norming stage, during which members form relationships with one another and adopt a common set of norms.
The performing stage follows this. During this stage, the group actually begins its work and can accomplish the tasks assigned to it.
The final stage of the group is that of adjourning. This typically happens when the task is accomplished and the group is no longer needed.
From a leadership and management perspective, group factors can impact performance and worker satisfaction and must be considered in decisions made regarding team member selection and objectives. Individual performance has been attributed to role perception, norms, status differences, size of the group, and cohesiveness. The closer the match between the managerial perception of a worker’s role and the worker’s understanding of the role, the higher the degree of performance evaluation and the higher the level of job satisfaction by the worker.
Group norms, like organizational culture, can influence favorable or undesirable behavior, while status inequities among group members can cause frustration and can impact productivity. Furthermore, reduced job satisfaction can result from having employees that are higher up the organizational ladder work with lower-level employees. Additionally, variations in group size can affect productivity based on the type of responsibilities required by an organization. Specifically, research has found decreased satisfaction with increasing group size, while the more cohesive a group, the higher the level of functioning it exhibits.
Individuals in most organizations become part of informal and formal groups from which they respond to organizational objectives. The formation of organizational groups can have a positive impact on individuals and on the organization as they can provide a sense of security, status and self-esteem; affiliation for social needs; power through numbers; and goal achievement of responsibilities that require more than one person for optimal output.
For example, a formal group created to address chronic customer service issues may include representatives from all departments in order to obtain all-inclusive customer service information, and therefore be quite large. A too-large group might cause the formation of informal subgroups with different methods of addressing the issue, thus reducing group cohesiveness and creating dissatisfied workers. However, group leadership that manages clear and appropriate individual roles and keeps social loafing to a minimum can leverage the data-gathering benefits of larger groups without jeopardizing the outcomes. Furthermore, the roles played by each member of the group may either be satisfying or dissatisfying, depending on the alignment between management and individual perceptions of the roles. For example, having senior managers work with lower-level customer service representatives may be dissatisfying to the senior managers but motivating to the lower-level customer service representatives. If the group norms include meeting agreed-upon deadlines and a high level of commitment to achieving group objectives, it is likely that that group will be high-performing.
Group decision-making can be a strong contributor to organizational success. The experience, knowledge, and perspective that individuals bring to groups can often promote optimal decisions. Nonetheless, group decision-making can suffer from time delays, internal conflicts, and pressures of conformity. Leaders and managers can alleviate negative outcomes of the group decision-making process by using techniques that work to overcome group conformity pressures and that limit interpersonal communication during the process by requiring that certain work and individual contributions be created in advance of the actual decision-making session.
2. Divergent and Convergent Thinking
Groups use both divergent and convergent thinking as they explore problems and make decisions. Divergent thinking was described by Butterfield (2013) as “thought processes or methods used to generate ideas” (p. 78). This thinking is typically spontaneous in nature. Convergent thinking was differentiated by Butterfield by its “organized, understandable and structured format” (p. 80).
A group using divergent thinking processes may use a variety of techniques to generate ideas and solutions, and to make decisions. One of the most well-known techniques is that of brainstorming. A group uses brainstorming when members list as many ideas as possible. Everyone typically contributes to this process and every idea is documented and included. Another divergent thinking technique is group mind mapping. Mind mapping was introduced as a decision-making tool in an earlier module. Groups can use this technique to record each of their ideas. The group could also use the process of free writing and journal writing to capture thoughts and ideas that members have. These techniques each require groups to gather as many ideas as possible from the members.
The group is typically ready to move on to convergent thinking if it has a set of ideas to consider. Butterfield suggested that one of the first tasks for the group was to “cull” the ideas developed during the divergent thinking process. He suggested that this be done by using the three-pile method of placing each idea into a Yes, No, or Maybe category. The group must then explore the pros and cons of each of the ideas generated. In addition, the group may conduct a cost-benefit analysis and an impact analysis, as it analyzes each of the ideas to move toward a decision (Butterfield, 2013).
3. Groupthink and Consensus Decision-Making
One of the most common problems of group decision-making is that of groupthink. Groupthink occurs when group members may not express their opinions because they differ from the majority of the group. It is thought to occur when the group member’s desire for harmony outweighs concerns about a good decision (Daft, 2012). If a leader understands groupthink behavior, it can be prevented.
One of the first symptoms of groupthink behavior is that of a cohesive group. The group may display a great deal of harmony and very little conflict. The leadership of groups that experience groupthink has a tendency to lack the ability to be impartial, and the group may be experiencing high stress and low self-esteem. Groups engaging in groupthink behavior display some common characteristics. They often overestimate their abilities and skills as a group, are close-minded, and pressure one another to conform to the group. Decision-making leaders must be ready to identify and address groupthink behavior.
One effective way of making decisions at the group level is that of consensus decision-making. The process of consensus decision-making involves exploring each solution that the group has generated and finding a common ground. The leader must ensure that each member of the group has an opportunity to express his or her reactions to the solution, as well as any objections he or she may have. All group members can express their support or lack of support for the solution. The leader is responsible for building consensus with the group on the solution. Often, part of this process involves discussing with the group what needs to happen before members are able to reach consensus. This process may be lengthy in nature, so it may not be the most effective process to use if a quick decision needs to be made.
Conclusion
Whether you are leading a group locally in Saudi Arabia, a region in the Middle East, or within the context of a global organization, research has established that effective leadership within the group environment is vital to success and efficiency. The various challenges that leaders face within the context of the group can be overcome if appropriate strategies are put in place. As such, groups can be highly effective within the context of the organization and have proven to assist the organization in reaching its goals, objectives, and overall mission.
Module 7: Managing Group Dynamics in a Decision Environment: Part 2
Learning Outcomes
1. Evaluate group dynamics in decision-making.
2. Assess group behaviors in decision-making.
3. Evaluate group decision-making processes.
1. Knowledge Sharing in Saudi Arabian Organizations
In 2014, Elaimi and Persaud performed a study to examine the influence of organizational considerations on the knowledge-sharing behavior of firms in Saudi Arabia. In the study it was discovered that Saudi firms are not fully explaining the benefits of knowledge sharing. As such, the results of the study suggested that if Saudi firms want to promote effective knowledge-sharing behavior they need to implement proactive policies to foster knowledge sharing among employees through incentives, training, and top management recognition in order to provide incentive. Further, as suggested by Barak, Herscoviz, Kaberman, and Dori (2009), knowledge is also a strategic resource for an organization and a source of power and advantage for the employees who possess it. Further, as the intangible asset of all firms, knowledge has to be carefully managed because it plays a vital role in organizational performance and is considered critical for global success (Robinson, et al., 2005).
Moreover, Saudi organizations that encourage employees to share knowledge tend to create a knowledge-sharing culture (Alatawi, Dwivedi, Williams, & Rana, 2014). As a result, organizational initiatives are enhanced and are in a better position to help organizations improve their products and services or even solve some of the most difficult problems. As suggested by the study, Saudi Arabia is in many ways similar to other Arab states in terms of religion, tribes, and cultural norms (Alatawi et al., 2014). As such, similarities of other surrounding countries can provide clear understanding of the importance of cultural knowledge sharing, top management support, and knowledge-sharing practices within an effective knowledge-sharing organization in the Middle East (Alatawi et al., 2014, p. 6).
Regardless of the geographical context, effective organizational leaders understand the importance of knowledge sharing and building a knowledge-sharing culture within a given organization. As noted by Alatawi et. al (2014), the study of knowledge sharing has been a bit limited in Saudi Arabia, but further research has been initiated to bring about understanding of the importance of such shared knowledge within the context of Saudi Arabian firms (p.1). Current studies reveal that if Saudi firms want to promote effective knowledge-sharing behavior, then they need to go beyond merely providing technology. They should provide employee incentives and also implement proactive policies to help foster knowledge sharing throughout the organization so as to assist organizational leaders in making companywide decisions that have a direct impact on organizational performance (Alatawi, Dwivedi, Williams, & Rana, 2014; Argote, & Ingram, 2000; Argote, McEvily, & Reagans, 2003).
A relatively recent phenomenon has harnessed the power of the masses in order to retrieve knowledge and information from the public at large. Such information gained from the general public or targeted area has proven to be a powerful form of mining data and harvesting good ideas in order to overcome problems. Organizational leaders and entrepreneurs have taken advantage of such information, which has proven to be of great benefit. Such a mode of knowledge sharing and retrieval has been identified as crowdsourcing. This term was coined in reaction to the dynamics of groups who solve problems within online communities.
2. Crowdsourcing
Crowdsourcing is a term that was first introduced in Wired magazine by Jeff Howe. Howe (as cited in Butterfield, 2013) used the term “crowdsourcing” to explain the way groups solve problems in online communities (visitors to blogs or websites). It is used when a member of an organization broadcasts a problem and asks others (the crowd) for solutions. The impetus behind the use of crowdsourcing is that by using technology to reach millions of people, new ideas can be generated to solve problems and make decisions. As with the group decision-making process, crowdsourcing ideas are gathered and considered in order to generate plausible solutions to problems. See how crowdsourcing works in six easy steps:
Company Has a Problem
Company Broadcasts the Problem Online
The Online “Crowd” Submits Solutions
The Crowd and Company Vet Solutions Jointly
Company Rewards Winning Solvers
Company and Community Profit (Source: http://www.ebizq.net/blogs/enterprise/images/crowdsourcing_steps.png)
A visit to Challenge.gov illustrates how the U.S. government uses crowdsourcing. Take a few minutes to visit this website and explore some of the problems the U.S. government is attempting to resolve.
Crowdsourcing has been criticized for several reasons. Some organizational leaders are reluctant to use the “crowd” since decisions made as a result of the use of crowdsourcing may change the direction of the organization. In addition, some problems may not attract enough of a “crowd” to actually generate solutions. Butterfield suggested that the use of crowdsourcing may be good for the organization as solutions achieved can lead to increased profits but bad for the crowd members as there is little recognition or benefit for them.
Conclusion
Regardless of its weak points, crowdsourcing has been established as a highly effective means of harvesting ideas, opinions, and possible solutions by harnessing the power of the masses. There has been some criticism of such an approach, but if managed correctly, organizations can greatly benefit from such knowledge sharing. While such an approach is a relatively new phenomenon, organizational leaders should see the value and benefit of crowdsourcing and the important information that can be gained by an organization seeking to solve its problems and overcome various challenges through the sharing of knowledge and ideas.
Module 8: Managing Biases and Emotional Influences in Decision-Making: Part 1
Learning Outcomes
1. Understand and analyze the impact that emotions and moods have on decision-making.
2. Assess common biases in decision-making.
3. Evaluate the impact of leadership emotional intelligence on decision-making.
1. Overview of Emotions and Moods
Recent studies to establish emotional intelligent constructs have been conducted in the Arab world primarily focusing on Arab countries; Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., and Kuwait. Researchers have sought to establish the validity of emotional intelligence measurement instruments within the context of the Middle East as opposed to the United States and European countries. As a result of these studies, it has been established that emotional intelligence continues to be recognized as a viable intelligence construct that continues to undergo further research within a wide variety of settings. As an organizational leader, it is very important for you to have a proper understanding of your emotional intelligence level and to understand moods, biases, and how such things relate to leadership and decision-making within the organization.
This week we will examine the importance of moods, biases, and emotional intelligence (EI) within the context of leadership and decision-making. Quite a number of years ago, the concept of emotional intelligence created quite a stir in academic circles. However, over the years it has been established as a highly important construct in leadership studies. Moreover, research over several decades has revealed that successful leaders who are highly developed in emotional intelligence are more prone to effective leadership skills that have a direct impact on developing high-performance, complex, or successful organizations (Brown, Scott, & Michael, 2006; Ekowati, Troena, & Noermijati, 2013).
Moreover, it is also revealed in the literature, leaders who have a high level of emotional intelligence are prone to lead communities, large organizations or smaller groups, as opposed to those who simply have a higher IQ.
Daniel Goleman (1995) of Harvard University suggests that emotional intelligence may be more important to leaders than is IQ. Such an assertion received a substantial amount of pushback when first introduced to the academic community. Nevertheless, further research has established that there is a certain percentage of successful leaders who are highly developed in emotional intelligence. Subsequent research also indicates that without such high developments in emotional intelligence, such leaders would be unable to have the high level of influence and success within their given organizations. Importantly, emotional intelligence appears to allow leaders to connect with followers in a highly effective manner. Further, emotionally intelligent leaders are able to self-regulate and keep their emotions in check.
Perhaps you have encountered a leader who was highly developed in emotional intelligence. He or she was able to relate to you in an effective manner, influence you in a way that increased your performance as a subordinate, and assisted you in your work as a constituent of the organization. On the other hand, perhaps you have encountered a leader who was undeveloped in emotional intelligence. Such a leader may have had a very high IQ but lacked the necessary EI in order to keep his or her own emotions and moods in check or were unable to read or react to the emotions in others. While emotionally intelligent leaders are able to create a positive environment whereby they influence organizational constituents, leaders who lack emotional intelligence generally have destructive tendencies toward followers and inevitably the organization as a whole. Learn more about the four fundamental capabilities of emotional intelligence:
· Emotional self-awareness: the ability to read and understand your emotions as well as recognize their impact on work performance, relationships, and the like
· Accurate self-assessment: a realistic evaluation of your strengths and limitations
· Self-confidence: a strong and positive sense of self-worth
· Self-control: the ability to keep disruptive emotions and impulses under control
· Trustworthiness: a consistent display of honesty and integrity
· Conscientiousness: the ability to manage yourself and your responsibilities
· Adaptability: skill at adjusting to changing situations and overcoming obstacles
· Achievement orientation: the drive to meet an internal standard of excellence
· Initiative: a readiness to seize opportunities
· Empathy: skill at sensing other people’s emotions, understanding their perspective, and taking an active interest in their concerns
· Organizational awareness: the ability to read the currents of organizational life, build decision networks, and navigate politics
· Service orientation: the ability to recognize and meet customers’ needs
· Visionary leadership: the ability to take charge and inspire with a compelling vision
· Influence: the ability to wield a range of persuasive tactics
· Developing others: the propensity to bolster the abilities of others through feedback and guidance
· Communication: skill at listening and at sending clear, convincing, and well-tuned messages
· Change catalyst: proficiency in initiating new ideas and leading people in a new direction
· Conflict management: the ability to de-escalate disagreements and orchestrate resolutions
· Building bonds: proficiency at cultivating and maintaining a web of relationships
· Teamwork and collaboration: competence at promoting cooperation and building teams
Leadership and management must be aware of individual differences related to emotions and moods. Emotions are intense feelings that are directed at someone or something, while moods tend to be less intense and are not attributed to specific causes. Emotions provide the motivation for human survival and a means of understanding the world around us. Therefore, they are strong individual attributes that organizational management must consider in its decisions for performance optimization.
From a management perspective, individual moods can have both a positive and negative effect on organizations. They can impact perception, which can then affect individual reality. They are triggers to emotional responses to events, and they generally last longer than emotions. Organizational leaders can improve worker moods to enhance productivity through recognition of worker performance, using humor to lighten the organizational atmosphere, and by selecting positive workers who have a contagious effect on the moods of others.
2. The Impact of Personality and Emotional Dissonance on Moods and Emotions
Emotions and moods are impacted by personality, which can cause certain moods or emotions to be felt differently by different people. For example, those personalities that have high affect intensity experience both positive and negative emotions more deeply. It many parts of the world, the day of the week and time of the day can also affect mood; research reflects that negative moods are highest on Sundays and Mondays and early in the day, with positive moods at the highest level at the end of the week and during the middle of the day. Moods can also be negatively impacted by the presence of stress and lack of sleep, while being positively affected by social activities and exercise. Increasing age has also been attributed to fewer negative emotions, while gender differences reflect emotional fluctuations depending on place and circumstances.
Leadership challenges exist for emotions and moods in several different areas. Emotional dissonance is the disparity between the emotions that individuals project and the emotions they feel, and can result in negative outcomes. For example, a doctor, who must express calm and lack of intense emotion but who may have a personality that intensifies emotion, can experience emotional dissonance leading to emotional exhaustion. The difference between felt and displayed emotions can also cause behavioral issues as felt emotions are blocked or hidden, resulting in a variety of undesirable workplace behaviors. Proponents of affective events theory maintain that workplace events cause emotional reactions to influence attitudes and behaviors that impact job satisfaction and performance. Emotional intelligence has been suggested as a predictor of worker self-awareness, management of emotions, and the ability to detect the emotional states of others.
The ability to understand emotions and moods and their implications to worker selection, decision-making, creativity, motivation, leadership, conflict, and negotiation can help management to manage and predict behavior.
Conclusion
As suggested in the literature, there is strong empirical evidence that links emotional intelligence to effective leadership style and organizational performance. Further, it is critical for you as an organizational leader to effectively manage your own emotions within the context of the workplace and department. Further, an effective leader in today's global organization must understand the importance of keeping his or her moods and emotions in check and under control. Moreover, being able to connect with followers by reading their emotions and being able to adjust accordingly is a critical skill as it relates to people. Research over decades has established that there is a direct correlation between effective leadership and emotional intelligence in today's modern organization. As such, it will be important for you to understand this viable intelligence construct as it relates to your own professional leadership career.
Module 9: Managing Biases and Emotional Influences in Decision-Making: Part 2
Learning Outcomes
1. Understand and analyze the impact that emotions and moods have on decision-making.
2. Assess common biases in decision-making.
3. Evaluate the impact of leadership emotional intelligence on decision-making.
1. Biases in Decision-Making
Last week, we laid the foundation for a proper understanding of emotions, moods, and biases as they relate to the leader and decision-making. Further, we looked at the development of emotional intelligence construct as related to effective leadership within the organization. Further, we also discussed at length the importance of such an understanding in your own professional leadership career and how such an understanding can assist you in becoming an effective leader. In this module, we will closely examine individual biases and how they can influence the way we make decisions as organizational leaders. Biases can be useful if the leader does not allow such to adversely affect decisions or negatively affect the way they relate to followers. On the other hand, biases can certainly be counterproductive if not kept in check or in some cases eliminated altogether. Whatever the case, we all are affected by individual biases to a certain extent and having a proper understanding of such biases will help us to avoid some of the unnecessary negative results that can occur in the organizational setting.
Individual biases can impact the decisions that leaders make. Bazerman and Moore (2013) discussed 12 different biases that impact these decisions. The first two are referred to as availability biases. Leaders use Ease of Recall when their “decisions are affected by the vividness of information” (p. 35). They use Retrievability based on how their memory structures the search process. As a result of these biases, managers can make assumptions that may not be accurate.
Bazerman and Moore (2013) discussed several representative biases. Review the five specific biases they discussed:
1. Insensitivity to base rates
2. Insensitivity to sample sizes
3. Misconceptions of chance
4. Regression to the mean
5. The conjunction fallacy
While the likelihood of a specific occurrence is usually related to the likelihood of similar types of occurrences, leaders tend to overuse this in their decision-making. This can lead to irrationalities, especially when they are not aware of this tendency. This kind of bias often manifests itself when leaders stereotype others or things based on a few characteristics.
The final set of biases identified by Bazerman and Moore (2013) are confirmation biases. Review the five biases involved in this set:
1. The confirmation trap
2. Anchoring
3. Conjunctive and disjunctive event bias
4. Hindsight and the curse of knowledge
5. Overconfidence
These biases occur when leaders fail to focus on perceiving differences in people and things as opposed to focusing on similarities. Leaders display this bias when they do not fully analyze evidence that contradicts their preconceived ideas of a situation.
You will see from the image below the different types of decision biases and their accompanying distortions.
2. Understanding Emotional Influences on Decision-Making
Module 8 presented the impact of emotions and moods on leadership decision-making. Bazerman and Moore (2013) discussed how specific emotions can influence the decisions leaders make. They identified some basic emotions that they stated were the same across cultures. These emotions included happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, and anger. Each of these emotions can impact how leaders make decisions.
Daniel Goleman popularized the term emotional intelligence in 1995 when he published his book Emotional Intelligence.Goleman built his work off the early work of Howard Gardner on multiple intelligences. He suggested the people have multiple intelligences as illustrated below.
Many leaders mistakenly believe that their emotions do not impact their decision-making. In many cases, leaders believe that they cannot control these emotions. As a result, emotions can impact the way decisions are made. The basis of Goleman’s work is the belief that people who understand their own emotions are able to understand the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is (1) self-awareness, (2) self-management, (3) awareness of others, (4) empathy, and (5) relationship management. As a result of managing emotions at work, leaders can increase both their personal and social competency. Leaders using emotional intelligence will encourage cooperation and collaboration in the workforce. They will build meaningful connections with their subordinates, which will lead to better decisions and outcomes for their organization.
Conclusion
This week, we have examined the important construct of emotional intelligence and individual biases. Importantly, we have seen how such can have a direct effect on how we make decisions as organizational leaders. Having a solid understanding of these concepts will help you become a more effective leader regardless of the organizational context. Whether you aspire to lead a large organization, or are assigned the task to function within a small team, the concepts this week are very important and should help you lead in a highly effective manner.
Module 10: Conflict Management and the Decision-Making Process
Learning Outcomes
1. Understand and apply conflict management techniques.
2. Evaluate the impact of group and individual conflict on leadership decision-making.
3. Evaluate the impact of negotiation in conflict management and decision-making.
4. Apply conflict management skills in dealing with difficult employees.
1. Overview of Types of Organizational Conflict
This week, we will closely examine issues of conflict management in light of the business organization. It is important to understand that theories of conflict management are not confined to the Western world. There was a study published by the International Journal of Conflict Management that focused on conflict management in the Middle East (Posthuma, 2011). The issue included five studies that were based on theoretical foundations building on prior conflict management research. The study revealed how conflict management theories and research methods have been successfully applied to conflicts in the Middle East and also revealed that such conflict management concepts are not merely confined to the Western world. Further, the Journal of Management and Sustainability released a study seeking to assess employee attitudes toward organizational commitment and change within the context of King Faisal Hospital in Al-Taif Governorate, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (2014). This empirical study was within the context of the field of human resource management, which sought to analyze the attitudes of employees toward organizational commitment and change. As with any organization undergoing change or facing the stress and strain of organizational performance, research has established that conflict, if handled correctly, can yield optimal organizational outcomes.
Conflict has been described in numerous ways in literature. Conflict is broadly defined as the process that “begins when one party perceives another party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect, something that the first party cares about” (Robbins & Judge, 2010, p. 194). Organizational conflicts can both create a need for leaders to make decisions and can stifle the decision-making process. Understanding both the types of organizational conflict and their impact on decision-making is therefore essential for effective leadership decision-making.
As leaders deal with decisions, there are three views of conflict necessary to understand.
· The traditional view sees conflict as negative and dysfunctional, and believes that all conflict should be avoided. Leaders using the traditional view of conflict would determine causes of conflict and make corrections in order to improve decisions in the organization. Robbins & Judge (2010) report that research provides evidence that this approach to conflict does not always result in better performance within an organization.
· Conflict, in the human relations view, is a natural occurrence and is seen as inevitable. In this view, conflict should be accepted and is often seen as being beneficial to the performance of the organization.
· The interactionist view of conflict actually encourages conflict, as it keeps organizations from becoming static and leads to change and innovation. However, conflict is not always viewed as good, and actually can be viewed as dysfunctional. There are three types of conflict, according to the interactionist view:
· Task conflict relates to the “content and goals of work” (Robbins & Judge, 2010, p. 196)
· Relationship conflict results from interpersonal relationships
· Process conflict “relates to how the work gets done” (Robbins & Judge, 2010, p. 196)
2. Impact of Conflict on Decision-Making
We will now examine the five stages of conflict. These stages begin with potential opposition or incompatibility and move toward the final stage of outcomes. As such, decision leaders are required to react appropriately or remain proactive in order to ensure that conflict is harnessed correctly and is moving the group, team, or organization toward desired results. That said, five stages are discussed:
The first stage of conflict is the presence of potential opposition or incompatibility. Potential sources of conflict can be generalized into three categories:
1. Communication
2. Structure
3. Personal variables
The second stage of conflict occurs when the potential source of conflict is actualized. This is the stage where conflict is actually defined. A leader’s role during this stage is very important.
The third stage in the conflict process involves understanding the intentions of those who are part of the conflict. This is an important part of the process, as some conflict occurs when one person attributes an incorrect intention to another person. These are the five intentions of those in conflict that Robbins and Judge (2010) discussed:
When people attempt to achieve goals at the expense of others
When both parties attempt to find a win-win situation
When conflict is avoided in the hope that it will go away
When someone gives up to make another person happy
When a midrange solution is agreed on
The fourth stage is when the conflict becomes visible. During this stage a conflict can intensify.
The fifth stage of this process is that of outcomes. This stage is very important to organizational leaders and decision-makers. This is the stage where the actions and reactions of the conflicting parties result in consequences. These consequences can lead to either functional or dysfunctional outcomes.
The outcome of a conflict has a significant impact on leadership decision-making. Constructive conflict, according to Robbins and Judge (2010), can improve the quality of decisions. It can lead to innovation and creativity in organizations, which can cause individuals and groups to make necessary changes. Conflict actually leads to quality decision-making, since all points of views are considered.
Conversely, conflict avoidance can facilitate negative outcomes such as groupthink and uncontrolled opposition that can destroy a group. Leaders can create functional conflict by encouraging workers to challenge systems and processes openly through incentives and policies that support nontraditional thinking to encourage dissension.
Conflict can be an antidote for groupthink behavior. It can challenge the status quo and create new ideas. Reflecting back to the discussion of the use of divergent and convergent thinking, conflicts can lead to group consensus decision-making rather than groupthink. This is illustrated below:
It is important to note that there are major differences between ideal consensus process and groupthink process. Groupthink is where individuals define a problem, yet fail to discuss alternative ideas, and move ahead and act on a given decision. The ideal consensus process, however, defines the problem, examines alternative ideas and opposing viewpoints sometimes through robust debate. However, the group then moves ahead by acting on consensus-based decision—finding common ground.
3. The Art of Negotiation
Conflict and negotiation incorporate communication fundamentals of selection and perception for either constructive or destructive outcomes. Both processes can result in collaborative processes and increased satisfaction, or they can result in dysfunctional and counterproductive behaviors.
Similar to conflict in that it provides both positive and negative outcomes, negotiation is a process in which parties attempt to agree on the exchange rate for goods and services. Two primary bargaining strategies are distributive bargaining and integrative bargaining. Distributive bargaining can resolve disputes, but is confrontational in nature and focused on short-term outcomes. Alternatively, integrative bargaining is intended to develop outcomes that satisfy all parties and that build lasting relationships.
Leaders should understand the process of negotiation, as many decisions result from successful negotiation. Before a leader attempts negotiation, preparation and planning needs to occur. A leader should gather information about the conflict and what led to it. The goals of both parties need to be understood as well as what is considered an acceptable resolution. Once information is gathered a leader should develop a strategy to deal with the negotiation. Before negotiation begins, ground rules should be established for each participating member. The process is ready to begin once group rules are established. At this point each party explains and justifies his or her position. The next stage in the negotiation process is when bargaining and problem-solving occurs. For negotiations to be successful, both parties must be willing to make concessions. The final stage of the process is when a formalized agreement is reached.
For example, a union head and an organization leader both have the opportunity to express their needs concerning overtime pay. The union head wants triple pay for overtime and the organization leader wants time-and-a-half. Both sides might work to devise a solution where they agree, such as double pay for overtime. In this case, the negotiation is integrative and optimal, as they have fully explored the needs of both parties and a solution is created that achieves the goals of both.
Organizational leadership should also be aware of cultural differences in conflict and negotiations. In some countries, such as Japan, conflict is considered a negative interaction and is usually avoided. In parts of Italy, however, conflict is an acceptable communication norm. In highly competitive countries such as the U.S., a winner-take all negotiation style is considered acceptable, whereas it would not be in Sweden, a country that values harmony and fairness. As a leadership professional in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, or abroad, you have the opportunity to respond to conflict in a way that advances because of your organization. Keep in mind that conflict, although commonly thought of as a destructive force, can certainly bring about positive results if handled with appropriate skill and leadership competence.
Module 11: Cultural Differences and Ethics in Decision-Making: Part 1
Learning Outcomes
1. Assess the impact that values have on ethical decision-making.
2. Evaluate ethical decision-making on a global level.
3. Analyze the impact of culture on decision-making.
1. Overview of Ethical Decision-Making
In recent years, there have been extensive studies regarding ethical issues and leadership in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, and abroad (Khan, Al-Maimani, & Al-Yafi, 2013). Current trends in the development of multinational organizations call for a greater understanding of ethical conduct in the global marketplace. Moreover, regardless of the geographical context, ethical considerations should be an important component in leadership decision-making. As discussed in previous modules, leaders have specific personality and behavioral traits. Personal needs, family and social influences, and religious background influence a leader’s value system. A leader who has a strong sense of self and is confident and independent is more likely to make ethical decisions (Daft, 2012).
Organizational values are vitally important and corporate culture can exert a powerful influence on the decisions that leaders make in organizations. The culture of an organization provides signals to employees about what is right and wrong. There are many other aspects of an organization that may influence ethical decision-making. These include the policies of the organization, the system of rewards and recognition, and the legal standards an organization complies with.
A code of ethics and recurring ethics training are important within any organization. It is not enough, however, to simply post a code of ethics and/or train employees on the code. Leaders must create an ethical culture within organizations if ethical decision-making is going to occur. Ethics should be emphasized throughout the daily activities of the organization’s employees. This occurs only when there is strong ethical leadership. Employees do what their leaders do. Leaders must demonstrate that ethical behavior and decision-making are important.
Robbins and Judge (2010) discussed the criteria that leaders should use to make ethical decisions. They discussed the use of the utilitarian criterion, or decisions being made based on their consequences or outcomes. The goal is to “provide the greatest good for the greatest number” (p. 41). This type of ethical decision-making is very common in businesses, and can be used to justify decisions that are founded on ensuring profits for an organization. The focus on rights is another criterion of ethical decision-making. Leaders use this criterion to make decisions based on the basic rights of individuals. A final criterion of ethical decision-making is that of justice. This typically occurs when rules are imposed fairly and impartially.
Each of these criteria has advantages, but they also have issues associated with them. When using utilitarianism in decision-making, leaders might ignore the rights of some individuals while addressing the benefits of others. In using rights, a leader could emphasize legalities and create an environment that is less efficient or productive. A leader who uses justice may actually create a sense of entitlement in the organization.
Managers must learn to recognize and manage ethical problems. They must proactively anticipate, confront, and scan for ethical challenges in all sourcing countries, addressing commercial environments, labor conditions, partner firms, customers, accounting practices, natural environmental conditions, sourcing, production, marketing, and distribution.
There are specific steps a leader should take in the ethical decision-making process. The first step is to gather all of the factors. This process involves determining the nature and dimension of the situation. The leader then must evaluate each course of action. This evaluation should explore whether or not the decision will result in the greatest good for the least harm, respect the rights of everyone involved, and be fair for all. The goal is to arrive at the best decision or most appropriate course of action. Finally, the leaders should implement the decision and then evaluate whether or not it was effective.
2. The Impact of Global Ethics on Leadership Decision-Making
One of the challenges leaders face in the global environment is that there are no global ethical standards. Robbins and Judge (2010) suggested that leaders of global organizations must establish ethical principles for decision-makers and modify them to reflect cultural norms if high standards are to be upheld and consistent practices are to be achieved. Global leaders must be both ethical and legal.
International business leaders will frequently face ethical dilemmas such as corruption, bribery, and abuse of power. Ethics, according to Cavusgil, Knight, and Riesenberger (2013), are a consideration in all international business decisions and should be considered when making financial decisions. Bribery is very common in many countries and payments to gain favors are also legal and expected in some countries. Cavusgil et al. (2013) provided a list of countries with low corruption levels. These include Canada, Denmark, Finland, and New Zealand. They also provided a list of countries with high corruption levels, including several nations in Africa and the former Soviet Union states.
Review some of the ethical issues a global leader will face:
1. Falsifying/misrepresenting contracts or financial statements
2. Paying/accepting bribes, kickbacks, or inappropriate gifts
3. Tolerating sweatshop conditions, child labor, or other employee abuses
4. Employing false/deceptive marketing practices
5. Engaging in deceptive, discriminatory, or predatory pricing
6. Deceiving/abusing intermediaries in international channels
7. Engaging in activities that harm the natural environment
Review some examples of unethical behavior:
Companies polluting the air, water, or land with factories
Employing workers, even children, in harsh conditions or for long hours at very low wages
Unfairly inducing people to buy products or offering defective or harmful products or packaging
Selling defective/harmful products or packaging that can lead to disastrous outcomes for public health and safety (e.g., most online pharmacies in developing countries operate illegally, offering fake/harmful drugs)
Ignoring Intellectual Property Rights
Intellectual property rights are not guaranteed in much of the world; laws enacted in one country are enforceable only in that country and confer no protection abroad.
Module 12: Cultural Differences and Ethics in Decision-Making: Part 2
Learning Outcomes
1. Assess the impact that values have on ethical decision-making.
2. Evaluate ethical decision-making on a global level.
3. Analyze the impact of culture on decision-making.
1. The Impact of Cultural Differences on Decision-Making
As presented in the previous module, organizations in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, and abroad are faced with the challenge of ethical issues within the organization (Khan, Al-Maimani, & Al-Yafi, 2013). As such, leaders who serve their organizations in a wide variety of geographical locations are faced with even more challenges due to the various customs, norms, and ethical constructs that vary from culture to culture. While there may be variances in ethical standards and conduct in Eastern and Western cultures, there is little argument that ethical dilemmas have only increased due to the continued complexity that exists within the global marketplace. As an organizational leader, it is also very important for you to understand that what may be considered ethical in one culture may be completely objectionable in another. That said, organizational leaders should have a proper understanding of what is appropriate or considered ethical in the communities where they do business. This may call for a bit of adjustment in the mind of the organizational leader, as there may be a conflict of ethical norms that exist from culture to culture.
Leaders of local organizations do indeed face ethical issues as they seek to influence their organizations locally. However, as organizations expand into different global territories, the ethical complexities only increase the challenges to the organizational leader and the organization as a whole. As a leader in the global marketplace, it is critical for you to understand that you represent your organization and should conduct business affairs with the highest ethical standards. However, how do you address key issues that raise ethical concerns when there seems to be an apparent conflict in regard to ethics? We will attempt to examine and discuss some of these ethical dilemmas in this week's module and seek to devise a strategy so as to help overcome those dilemmas. As discussed at length in the previous module, the ethical issues we explored in the last module may vary from culture to culture. Global business leaders must understand the impact of cultural differences on decision-making.
According to Cavusgil, Knight, and Riesenberger (2013), very little research exists on cultural differences in decision-making. It is, however, reasonable to assume that the cultural background of the decision-maker can have a significant influence on the decisions made. Business leaders must understand how their own cultural differences influence their decision-making, and they must also understand the variations of ethical standards among the countries they are doing business with.
2. The Impact of Cultural Differences on Decision-Making
One of the challenges here is that these standards vary around the world. What may be ethical in one country may not be in another. Consider some of the examples provided by Cavusgil et al. (2013). In China, counterfeiters frequently publish translated versions of imported books without compensating the original publisher or authors, which is an illegal practice in most of the world. In Africa, receiving expensive gifts from suppliers is acceptable, even if inappropriate elsewhere. In the U.S., CEOs receive compensation hundreds of times greater than that of their most junior employees, a practice considered unacceptable in the most of the world.
There are a number of concepts that help leaders understand the impact of cultural differences on decision-making. The concept of ethical relativism is illustrated below:
The concept of ethical relativism is often referred to as “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” Ethical normativism, on the other hand, refers to ethical behavioral standards that are universal. These standards are believed to be those that organizational leaders should uphold around the world. Most global business leaders of international firms strike a balance between these two. Global leaders must make decisions based on a set of values and standards that address the many dilemmas they will encounter due to cultural differences.
Conclusion
As we have examined in the previous modules, ethical considerations are very important to today's organizational leader. Virtually everyone would agree that business affairs on behalf of the organization should be conducted with the highest level of personal and professional integrity. However, how do we define ethics? How do we react when there is a conflict of ethics? These will be ongoing questions that you may have as an organizational leader who is faced with the task and challenge of leading your organization with impeccable integrity and with a high level of ethical conduct.
Module 13: The Decision Leader
Learning Outcomes
1. Describe leadership theories.
2. Evaluate the impact of leadership approach (style) on decision-making.
1. Overview of Leadership Theories
Researchers throughout Saudi Arabia have sought to deepen our understanding of effective leadership practices amid a wide array of organizational structures (AlHarthi, Al Shehri, & Al-Khatib, 2013). Moreover, being able to identify effective leadership and management practices has played a key role in helping organizations to reach their maximum potential (Daft, 2012). Further, leadership studies throughout the Middle East have sought to establish highly effective leadership and management practices within transactional environments as well as fluid organizations (AlHarthi et al., 2013). Current research has established that leadership and management theories developed over the last several decades have proven to be effective regardless of the characteristics of the organization (AlHarthi et al., 2013). As organizational leaders, it is critical for you to have a proper understanding of leadership theories as you seek to influence your organization in the 21st century.
It cannot be overemphasized that understanding different leadership theories is important for decision leaders. Early theories of leadership described by Robbins and Judge (2010) include trait, behavioral, and contingency theories. The major difference they suggested between behavioral and trait theories was that traits could not be taught. It was thought that people with certain characteristics would be good leaders. Behavioral theories were based on the fact that behavior could be taught so anyone could be trained to be an effective leader. Robbins and Judge, in discussing the Fiedler contingency model, proposed that effective group performance depended on the proper match between the leader’s style and the degree to which the situation gives control to the leader. Leadership style was identified by using the Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) questionnaire. This theory suggests that a person is either task- or relationship-oriented. The assumption is that a person’s leadership style is fixed and the theory offered three contingency dimensions. The combination of the measurements for these three dimensions creates eight potential situations that a leader might face.
Learn more about the contemporary leadership approaches, including charismatic, transactional, and transformational leadership, according to Robbins and Judge (2010):
Characteristics include vision, a willingness to take personal risks to achieve that vision, sensitivity to followers’ needs, and exhibiting behaviors that are out of the ordinary. Charismatic leaders influence followers by clearly communicating values and vision to them. They develop strategies with goals and model appropriate behavior for followers. They can easily engage others through the use of emotion-inducing behaviors.
Transactional leaders are those who guide or motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements.
Transformational leaders are described as those who inspire followers to transcend their own self-interest for the good of the organization. These leaders are capable of having a profound effect on their followers.
Research studies indicate that transformational leaders typically also score high on charismatic leadership, providing a combination of styles that produces lower turnover rates, higher productivity, and higher levels of employee satisfaction. Examples of such leaders include the late Steve Jobs of Apple, Inc., Jack Welch (formerly of General Electric), and Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase. These leaders have provided their employees with the vision, inspiration, and motivation to contribute to their respective organizations in a way that has allowed the organizations to rise above their industry competitors by maintaining a highly competitive and aggressive pace.
The environment most organizations have been operating in recently has been one of a great deal of uncertainty and change. Leaders have been faced with ethical and economic difficulties. Technological change and globalization have shifted both employee and stakeholder expectations of the organization. Daft (2010) referred to this era as a post-heroic time, since in the 1980s and 1990s leaders were viewed as business heroes and celebrated for great achievements. This is no longer the case. The post-heroic leader, Daft suggested, needs to act with humility and do what is best for the organization. The concept of servant leadership is an approach for this post-heroic era. These leaders focus on ensuring their followers’ goals and needs are met in order to realize the vision and mission of the organization. These leaders value people, encourage participation, share power, and help others to realize their full potential.
The concept of authentic leadership was introduced into leadership writings in 2003. Authentic leadership, according to Robbins and Judge (2010), refers to individuals who know and understand themselves, who espouse and act consistently with higher-order ethical values, and who empower and inspire others with their openness and authenticity. These leaders possess solid values and passion for their purpose. They inspire their followers. They lead with compassion and have courage to make difficult decisions. They stay connected to others and surround themselves with people they can help grow and develop. These leaders demonstrate self-discipline and will avoid unethical risks that could hurt others or their organization. They openly admit their mistakes.
2. The Impact of Leadership Approach on Decision-Making
Leaders have the responsibility for making decisions about the vision for an organization as they seek to inspire and empower their followers. Over the decades of research on leadership, there has been much debate on the various leadership theories. Nonetheless, from charismatic to transactional to transformational leadership, the theories have provided a basis from which workers are motivated and inspired to perform their responsibilities and to contribute positively to the organization.
The leadership issues of today and into the future will be driven increasingly by globalization and technology. The presence of the internet and other methods of electronic communication force the issue of leadership transparency and ethics. Nearly every move and every decision a leader makes can be tracked and monitored electronically, and as workers engage with each other around the world, information sharing has become ubiquitous. This communication ability will continue to magnify the impact of organizational leadership words and actions to highlight issues of trust and ethics.
Trust is the positive expectation that others will not opportunistically benefit from one’s actions. For example, if workers trust their leader, they believe that their hard work and effort will benefit the organization and themselves, and will not be used simply to provide positive outcomes for their leader. If we consider the Enron or Tyco examples, the leader benefits in both organizations began to rise substantially above those of the employees who were left trying to cover for leadership judgment errors; this ultimately led to whistle-blowing and employee-provided documentation, ensuring leadership penalties.
On a lesser scale, leadership decisions are now communicated on the internet and in the media almost instantaneously every day. This new dimension to leadership will increasingly be a challenge to all leaders as they seek to gain and maintain the trust of their followers. For example, U.S. President Barack Obama demonstrated his ability to use the power of communication technology to inspire and influence American voters. The strategy and execution was unprecedented and undeniably effective. President Obama effectively utilized social media and other communication technology avenues to attract voters who had not been previously involved in national political campaigns.
Similarly, leaders’ ability to communicate effectively to empower followers in a global market will also continue to be vital for organizational success. Establishing a vision and then equipping followers with the training and ability to meet their individual and team responsibilities to contribute to the vision will be increasingly more complex and more valuable as organizations grow globally. Furthermore, leaders of today (and even more so in the future) will need the skills to adapt to and leverage cultural differences to empower teams throughout the world to contribute to the organizational vision. These abilities will be based on the continued establishment of trust and the integration of individual and group contributions to benefit the organization and all its stakeholders.
Module 14: Leadership Reflection
Learning Outcomes
1. Describe leadership theories.
2. Evaluate the impact of leadership approach (style) on decision-making.
1. Leadership Reflection
This week we will have the opportunity to critically reflect upon our learning experience over the duration of the term. The wide array of complexities that exist in the global marketplace creates challenges to organizational leaders unlike any other time in history. As an organizational leader in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East, or abroad, you will be required to demonstrate your skill in meet those challenges on the behalf of your organization.
We have covered an extensive amount of important information that will be useful to you as a business leader seeking to advance your organization in today's highly competitive marketplace. As we move ahead into the final week of the course, you will be challenged to think back and critically analyze the various concepts gained throughout the term and how you might apply them to your own professional leadership career. It is important to understand that there is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach to leadership and decision-making. As such, every organization is different and faces unique challenges. However, regardless of the industry, the concepts that we have discussed at length are common across different industries and are sure to assist you in becoming a highly skilled and competent decision leader.
As we have discussed in the course, good decision-making is an essential part of the leadership and management function. Importantly, decisions that are made have a direct impact on the well-being of the organization and its constituents. Such decisions can be simple or highly complex. Nevertheless, when effective decisions are made, positive outcomes often occur. As an organizational leader you will be required to make the best decision possible on behalf of your organization. Keep in mind that organizations are seeking out individuals who demonstrate a high level of skill in strategic decision-making and are able to think quickly on their feet. Further, organizations seek individuals who have a proper understanding of what it takes to make the correct decisions even in the face of uncertainty.
2. Resources, Tools, and Ethics
A wide range of resources and tools that are available to you as a decision leader provide a tremendous advantage. Literally decades of research have indicated that leaders who are able to make appropriate decisions at both micro and macro levels can help their organizations to gain an added edge in the highly competitive global marketplace. As organizations continue to expand and evolve in their infrastructure, you will no doubt have the responsibility to lead teams, groups, and constituents in a conventional setting. Such a responsibility calls for individuals who have a solid understanding of effective leadership practices. As you know, a wide array of leadership models have been discussed at length in this course. These models have stood the test of time and have been established as very effective in a wide variety of organizational settings. As an organizational leader, you will have to determine which leadership approach is most conducive to your own personality and—importantly—to the needs of your organization.
Keep in mind that as we advance as a global society, new ethical challenges will emerge and confront the organizational leader. Global organizations often find themselves faced with ethical dilemmas and seek out competent leaders who have the ability to address such ethical issues. At the beginning of the 21st century, the global economy was shaken due to unethical practices in the business sector. As history seems to repeat itself, there is little doubt that global organizations will have to deal with ethical issues as we move ahead.
Various leadership studies conducted in Saudi Arabia in the Middle East show that there is a strong interest in ethical leaders who have the ability to lead the way despite the increased complexity of our modern world. Organizations can no longer be satisfied with increasing the bottom line. They must be focused on increasing value to the organization and the communities where they do business. As many organizations have branched out from local influence and into the global marketplace, leaders are required to have a proper understanding of the impact of global ethics on leadership decision-making. That said, it is hoped that the concepts gained in this course will assist you in leading your organizations in a highly efficient, strategic, and ethical manner as we move ahead in the 21st century.
