Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

Decision Making in the Workplace

Charles Walker
University of Kentucky

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

It is in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped. This quote, stated
by American life coach and author Tony Robbins, perfectly describes the role of decision
making in the workplace. Each and every company is shaped and developed through the
decisions it makes in the marketplace; the growth of any organization is relied upon the
decisions made by those in charge. In this paper, Im going to be talking about steps to
decision making, behaviors that lead to good decision making, and behaviors that lead to
poor decision making.
One major part of being a successful decision maker relies on developing a
system or strategy that can help ones self when a decision is to be made. This system
should include things such as thinking about the problem at hand, the possible solutions
to this problem, and the possible consequences that can occur from each solution. The
first step in decision making involves identifying a problem that exists and determining a
solution is needed (Sergey, 2014). In order to proceed to the steps that are necessary to
solve a problem, you must first realize a problem is in fact present. The second step to
this plan is gathering information such as figuring out what factors the problem involves.
The third step is identifying the principles to judge possible alternatives; this includes
identifying what standards and judgment criteria the solution should meet (Sergey, 2014).
From this last step, the next two things to do are brainstorming and then listing the
different possible choices and evaluating each choice in terms of its consequences; each
of these choices is evaluated by using the standards and judgment criteria to determine
the pros and cons of each alternative (Sergey, 2014). All decisions have consequences
whether they are intended or unintended it is important therefore to consider both the

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

positive and negative effects which might result from your decisions (Higson, 2014). The
next step is to determine the best alternative; this is where the decision is made.
Then one needs to put the decision into action; a decision without action taken is a
waste of time and in the end, worthless (Higson, 2014). The last, and possibly most
important step, is evaluating the outcome of his or her decision. This last step helps
someone learn lessons from decision making and is an
important step for further development of decision
making judgment and skills (Sergey, 2014). The decision
making process is shown in the image to the left. Simply
stated, one notices there is a problem, they find the problem, they
gather information, they make a decision, they take that decision into action, and then
they evaluate their decision. Because decision making happens every day, this cycle is
practically never ending. If one follows this process correctly, the process of decision
making becomes easier.
In decision making, there are certain behaviors that lead to making good
decisions; these behaviors include abiding moral values and using intuition wisely. A
major part of being a successful decision maker relies on abiding moral values and
making ethical decisions. To understand how to do this, one must first understand what
ethics are. Ethics are the standards of behavior that explain how human beings ought to
act in the many situations in which they find themselves; this includes situations where
humans are acting as friends, family, citizens, business people, teachers, professionals,
etc. (Velasquez, 2014). Simply stated, ethics is doing the honorable and morally correct
thing when given the opportunity. Abiding by moral values and making ethical decisions

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

should call attention to the common conditions that are important to the welfare of
everyone; when the opportunity is present, a decision should have consequences that are
fair to everyone involved (Velasquez).
The key to ethical decision making is being able to treat everyone with the respect
he or she deserves. When thinking of what exactly is ethical, it is sometimes easier to
think about what is unethical. For example, a mortgage lender that gives large sums of
money to borrowers unable to repay the loan or a car company not immediately
disclosing serious problems with its vehicles are all samples of unethical actions
(Gallagher, 2014). These, along with all unethical actions, create serious consequences
that affect everyone involved in the organization.
However, using correct morals and following an ethical code play an important
role in decision making while also building and leading successful and ethically sound
organizations (Gallagher, 2014). When a decision is made using ethical values, the
reaction is usually a positive effect rather than a negative consequence. Having a noble
morality and strong ethical values are large factors in making honorable decisions that are
in favor of the welfare of everyone and cause positive results. When the opportunity is
present; one should always choose the most ethically sound alternative, for this
alternative is usually the correct decision.
Another behavior that leads to good decision making is being able to use intuition
wisely. Intuition is derived from Latin word intueri meaning to look at or to
contemplate and is the natural ability that makes it possible to know something without
any proof or evidence (Mick, 2014). Simply stated, using intuition is one in the same with
following a gut instinct. Using intuition wisely can be an extremely useful tool in

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

decision making and when combined with information on a topic, will result in a decision
being made, whether or not the decision is the right one comes with trial and error.
Former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell states, "dig up all the information
you can, then go with your instincts. We all have a certain intuition, and the older we get,
the more we trust it. I use my intellect to inform my instinct. Then I use my instinct to
decide the action needed (Mick, 2014). This is a wonderful use of intuition and a great
plan to follow when making a decision. As Mr. Powell says, every human being has a
certain intuition and as a human grows older and wiser, the more he or she trusts his or
her instinct. Developing a trustful intuition is also based off trial and error; something can
be learned from each decision made in the past and as one learns from decisions in the
past, intuition grows stronger and stronger. Intuition pushes a final decision to be made,
which is important in the workplace (Mick, 2014).
The best thing about intuition, besides the fact that it pushes a decision, is that
intuition leads to creativity, and creativity leads to innovation. When intuition, creativity,
and innovation are all three combined, successful ideas and decisions are made. Business
men around the world agree that intuition is a major tool in the marketplace; names such
as Bill Gates and Albert Einstein come to mind. Mr. Gates once said in an interview,
one often has to rely on intuition and Albert Einstein once said, the only real valuable
thing in business is intuition (Mick, 2014). Both of these men are great idols and
innovators to look at and learn from; using intuition correctly is the most effect way to
becoming a successful decision maker.
Just like there are behaviors that lead to good decision making, there are also
many behaviors that lead to poor decision making. These factors include overanalyzing

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

data, dodging decisions, rushing to conclusions, and letting emotions overly affect a
decision. Overanalyzing options occurs when someone has a decision that needs to be
made and this person is thinking about each alternative too much. Human beings
overanalyze things because that is our nature; we routinely overestimate what we know,
we fail to predict what we will want in the future, and we are inconsistent about our
preferences (Rosenfeld, 2014). Human beings overanalyze things because as a whole,
humans change their minds on what they truly want frequently.
Overanalyzing also occurs when someone is trying to find the perfect solution.
When trying to find the perfect solution, humans dither and refuse to commit, because to
make a choice is to enter a realm of uncertainty and missed opportunities (Rosenfeld,
2014). Because humans are afraid that one choice will obtain something another wont or
lead to something bad when another plan might lead to something good, humans
overanalyze options and end up applying stress when none is needed. Though being
diligent and well-informed is an important part of the decision making process,
overanalyzing a decision can lead to a waste of time-sensitive opportunities (Rosenfeld,
2014). When a decision is to be made, do not waste time overlooking every option.
Two more methods that are harmful to decision making are dodging a decision
and rushing to a conclusion. Dodging a decision occurs when one procrastinates until the
deadline of a decision and blindly makes a choice. This is never a good thing for any
workplace because this type of decision making leaves everything up in the air and puts
the success of an organization into a blind chance. Dodging a decision is also harmful to
an organization because it is completely time consuming and can affect ones relationship

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

with his or her staff. When someone dodges a decision, his or her staff may perceive this
as a lack of care for their well-being, which can create a loss of respect (Miller, 2014).
Rushing to conclusions leads to negative decision making because if one skips the
necessary steps to decision making, this person could misdiagnose the problem and make
a decision that ends up solving nothing. Although it can save time rushing to a
conclusion, more than often it will have negative effects to an organization. If one doesnt
take the time to collect the facts around a problem, him or her may not be looking at the
problem holistically. This can result in a decision being made that only treats the
symptoms of the problem and not the root cause (Miller, 2014).
The last and possibly the biggest detriment to decision making is allowing
emotions to overly affect the outcome of a decision. When making decisions, humans
often let emotions override facts and choose the alternative that makes them happiest
instead of the choice that seems the smartest. Notice how
the emotional part of the seesaw in this image to left is
farther down than the brains side of the seesaw and the
person on the seesaw is wobbling and unbalanced. This is
demonstrating that when someone decides an alternative
based of emotions over facts, it results in a poor decision
with negative consequences. It is important to find the correct balance between emotion
and data when making a decision.
When making choices, we tend to ignore facts that do no jibe with the outcome
we desire (Rosenfeld, 2014). Ms. Rosenfeld is saying that humans ignore facts around a
decision because they already have the choice they want made up in their mind. Ms.

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

Rosenfeld also says, humans can sometimes focus on information that is irrelevant and
get distracted by their fleeting emotions (Rosenfeld, 2014). Humans can focus on
information that really doesnt matter in a decision to make it seem like the decision they
want makes sense. Again this is an example where humans let emotions override
knowledge and what they know is actually the right choice. Letting emotions overly
affect making a decision is extremely harmful to decision making in the workplace.
Decision making is the key to success in any workplace. There are certain
behaviors that can cause bad decision making; these behaviors include overanalyzing
options, dodging decisions, rushing to conclusions and letting emotions dictate action
over knowledge and facts. However, there are also certain behaviors that cause good
decision making; these behaviors are correctly using intuition and making decisions
based off ethical values. If you want to become a good decision maker in the work place,
follow the decision making steps, abide by moral values, and use intuition wisely.

Running Head: Decision Making in the Workplace

References Cited
Gallagher, T. (2010). Integrating Faith, Ethics, in Business Decision-making. National
Catholic Reporter, 46(17), 22.
Higson, P., Sturgess A. (2014). Intuition and decision making. Retrieved from
http://www.the-happymanager.com/articles/intuition-and-decision-making/
Mick, B. (2014). Essays on Excellence Intuition and Decisions. Workforce, 93(2), 36-39.
Miller, J. (2017, August 6). Do you make these three decision making mistakes? [Web
log comment]. Retrieved from http://www.insperity.com/blog/do-you-makethese-3-decision-making-mistakes
Rosenfeld, S. (2014). The Choice Isnt Clear. Nation. 298(26), 31-35.
Sergey Dudiy (2002). Workplace Skills: Reasoning, Problem Solving, and Decision
Making Skills. Retrieved from http://www.illinoisworknet.com/vos_portal
/residents/en/Prepare/WorkplaceSkills/Reasoning2.htm
Velasquez, M., Moberg, D., Meyer, M., McLean, M., & Hanson, K. (2009, May 1). A
Framework for Thinking Ethically. Retrieved November 17, 2014, from
http://www.scu.edu/ethics/practicing/decision/framework.html