Decisions, Decisions: How Your Actions (or Lack Thereof) Affect Your IT Team

One of leadership’s critical responsibilities, no matter what the industry, is to make strong, effective decisions within an appropriate timeframe. According to TechRepublic writer Patrick Gray, “For IT leaders especially, the pace of rapid technical change has made decision making in a timely manner all the more critical.” But not all managers live up to this responsibility – often with disastrous results, as projects stop or start, promises cannot be relied upon, and direction or follow-through are lacking.

Reasons for Reluctance

There are many reasons why managers find it difficult to make decisions. “If a manager is prone to risk-aversion, it will also affect his or her ability to move forward with decisions,” says Susan Steinbrecher, CEO of Steinbrecher & Associates, a management consulting firm. “I also see leaders/bosses/execs that get caught up in analysis paralysis. This type of leader will continue to gather more and more information — stats, figures, surveys, etc. — that ultimately prolong the decision-making process.” In addition to risk-aversion and analysis paralysis, some managers are afraid to take an unpopular stand or rock the boat. But what they don’t realize is that refusing to make a decision actually is a decision – one that can have very negative consequences for their department’s morale and work product.

Deadlock-Defeating Strategies

If decision-making is difficult for you, try these helpful techniques:

• Develop core priorities, and use those to determine which issues require the most immediate action.
• Ask more questions, instead of worrying that you may come across as not knowing enough. More information can lead to a more comfortable decision.
• Choose a devil’s advocate, and have that person be responsible for always offering a countering viewpoint. Not only will this help you see an issue more clearly, but it can often get a person who loves to challenge authority on board with your plan of action, as they will feel like their objections were heard and taken seriously.
• Set a deadline, and stick to it. Sometimes it takes a while to gather enough information, but don’t let that become an excuse for inaction. Choose a reasonable amount of time, and follow through.

Of course, as Gray notes, “There are certainly times when the timing simply isn’t right to make a good decision.” In cases like this, it’s important to keep your team informed as to why you are holding off on making a commitment, the factors that will influence the course of action, and a definitive time frame for revisiting the issue.

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