Managing in the Gray

Managing in the Gray

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Yet another valuable form of pushback is asking for

“plain English.” This means asking experts to explain their

assessments of likely consequences in the language of ordi-

nary mortals. This tactic can help everyone in a group grasp

important elements of a situation and reduces the chances

that some people will defer to abstruse analysis so they don’t

look dumb. The “plain English” standard can also prepare

you to explain your decision, clearly and persuasively, to

larger groups of non-experts, once you’ve made a decision

and implementation begins.

All of these tactics for encouraging pushback are basi-

cally ways of helping you make sure you have really thought

through the net, net consequences, when you face a gray ar ...