The Truth About Better Decision-Making (Collection), 2/e

Truth 35. Make decision roles clear

President George W. Bush once commented, "I am the decider." You may not have always agreed with his decisions, but this statement made his role very clear. Sometimes when groups come together to make decisions, it isn't clear who is actually going to make the final decision. This leads to finger-pointing and inaction. For making complex group decisions, especially in teams where there is no clear leader, roles need to be clear upfront. The most important roles are who will make the decision, who will need to give input on it, and who will need to implement it. You need to decide how you're going to decide.

First, decide how to manage the decision. I once served on a board of a nonprofit that had an unusual ...