Decision-making is often associated with power. Those who make organizational decisions, goes the line of thinking, have more power (over people, resources, schedules, and more). There is probably some truth to this idea. Although informal power and influence is also very powerful in an organization. But alas, it is important to think about it (decision-making) when it comes to metabolizing change.
We all want to be included.
There’s the basic principle leaders need to remember about decision-making.
We can’t all be included.
There’s the basic reality leaders face everyday. What it points out is the tricky nature of decision making and metabolizing change. Simply, when people are “out of the loop” on decisions that affect them, we get frustrated or worse. There is both a feeling and thinking component to this frustration. No one wants to be the voiceless recipient of news that changes life or work. No one wants to be chosen last, left off the team, not invited to the party, or avoided in some way. We feel bad when this happens. Leaders underestimate the power of this unhappiness when they spring important decisions on unwitting victims. The bad feelings can produce a slow metabolism of the change. Watch out, because frustration is one or two steps from resentment; and then things get really dicey.
The “thinking” part of this frustration is that we don’t like it when our perspective, which may be important, was missing from the decision. It makes us feel unnecessary. “What’s the use, they’re going to do what they want anyway.” You have no idea how many times I’ve heard that from skeptical followers. People tend to have good ideas about issues that face the organization. The issue is how in the heck do you get that input without it causing such a bottleneck of time or violating confidentiality? As I mentioned in the second part of this musing on change, type the word STREAM into my search engine and you will begin to see an answer to this question. However, there is no easy answer. What it requires is this:
An awakened leader who is more interested in people and good decisions than rushing to a conclusion just so he or she can feel resolution has occurred.
More to come