Marcia's Leadership Q and As: Better Decisions: Why Leaders Need Statistical Thinking
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Q. How do leaders make decisions in these uncertain times?
A. It’s in the perspective--with knowledge and in context. There will always be some levels of uncertainty. No one has a crystal ball to know what the future brings. Making decisions can be a challenge. Fundamentally, we assume leaders do the best they can with the data they have and in context.
Not all decisions will be right and good. The decision-making process is a learning process. Scan the issue, problem, challenge, and opportunity. What are the options and possibilities to achieve your aim? Decide, plan to implement the decision, study it and the outcomes. What worked? What didn’t work? Make modifications and new decisions as needed.
Leaders and their teams make decisions continually. Some are immediate while others can take time as data are gathered and ideas are explored from as many contributors as possible. There’s no one way to make decisions; there are multiple ways depending on the urgency and impact.
What many decision-makers lack is a key leadership concept called statistical thinking. When leaders have this knowledge, the decisions may not be quite as difficult. A basic nut critical concept is that there is variation in everything. Great leaders predict and anticipate. There will always be surprises (special causes), but with foundational knowledge, they can sense-and-respond accordingly. Leaders understand and manage variation and do not react to ups and downs. They look at the data over time and look for trends and special causes. There will always be variation in life and work.
Q. What are the benefits of considering a four-day work week, and shall we try it?
A. Each organization has the opportunity to open up discussions to consider if a 4-day work week will work for them. Some organizations have had this in place for decades. For others, it doesn’t work. Leaders and their teams can explore: why they want to consider a 4-day week; the purpose in considering it; plan and methods needed to make it work for them; the options and pro’s and con’s; and how does it impact the employees, the business, and the customers. What are the benefits and value?
Many organizations are considering the 4-day work week now to better meet the flexibility needs of the employees. With employee retention being a challenge for many organizations, offering a better quality of life benefit is crucial. It’s important to ask and answer strategic questions first and involve people across the organization in generating ideas. Once a plan is created, experiment with it. What works? What doesn’t work What needs to be modified and improved? Creating a workplace where people can learn, work, and improve together is a strong foundation for progress and success.
