Decision Quality

16Embarking on the DQ Journey

The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.

—Lao Tzu

Every serious campaign of improvement is a journey. Over its course, attitudes and expectations are bound to change. Old outmoded habits and practices are set aside, making way for new and better ones. New skills are learned. Encounters with potholes and obstacles, however, are inevitable, and we will periodically go astray in our travels, delaying progress. But every success, even a small one, will direct us along the path to a better place. The decision quality (DQ) journey—the venture to make DQ a habit and an organizational competence—is no different, and the rewards at the end make it all worthwhile.

* * *

This book provides the understanding needed to advance one's journey to DQ. It explains the important distinction between good decisions and good outcomes. It presents the six requirements for DQ—an appropriate frame, creative alternatives, and so forth. The goal is to reach 100%—the point where it isn't worth the time or resources to do more—on each requirement. Once we have reached 100% on all six requirements, we can make the decision with confidence, knowing that regardless of the eventual outcome, we have achieved DQ. DQ gives us peace of mind in the face of uncertainty.

On the journey, complexity and uncertainty will surely test our mettle as decision makers. The tools offered in various chapters—the decision hierarchy, decision tree, relevance diagram, tornado diagram, ...