Leveraging Data to Make Decisions
Everyone, thank you for joining us for FountainBlue's May 5 Front Line Managers Online program on the topic of 'Leveraging Data to Make Decisions'. Please join me in thanking our panelists.
as a People Leader - Tammy Sanders, Lam Research
as a Program Leader - Susan Eagleson, Jade Global
as a Business Leader - Dennise Gearty, Cisco
Our panelists represented a range of organizations, backgrounds and roles, but they had much in common:
They are experienced managers and leaders committed to making decisions which benefit the individuals, teams, and organizations they work with.
They are open-minded and strategic while also being plan-ful and action-oriented.
They are clear and inspiring communicators who help us all think through how we make decisions leveraging data.
Below is a compilation of their suggested best practices.
Be Strategic
Create guidelines and guardrails for the decisions you make:
Guardrail: Choose to be in compliance with mandates and requirements for your selves, your team, your product, your organization.
Guideline: Choose to be in alignment with your core values as well as the corporate values and business goals for your organization.
Organize and prioritize the vectors which impact the success of a decision (like efficiency, culture, customer requirements) and consider how various solutions might serve the needs of the range of stakeholders before deciding which solution is optimal.
Consider which parties are the responsible, accountable, consulted, and informed parties (RACI) as you strategically think through what decision to make and how the decision will be implemented.
Use past experiences, projected future demands and scenario planning to make decisions which would impact our teams, products and organizations in the future.
Choose Relevant Data
Collaborate with stakeholders to help ensure that the data in consideration is relevant, timely, accurate, updated, etc., so that a decision is made based on accurate data.
Err on the side of action, but be nimble about pivoting to another strategy should the data suggest that's warranted. If a shift should occur, proactively communicate the shift and reasoning and ensure alignment and buy-in from stakeholders.
Focus on the larger strategic objectives rather than repeatedly focusing 'ditch-to-ditch', doing deep dives into collections of raw data.
Communication is Key
Clearly, authentically and transparently communicate throughout the decision-making process.
Send detailed updates, reports and roadmaps after a decision is made to keep stakeholders in the know.
Invite input, feedback, data and perspectives throughout the decision-making and implementation process.
Choose to Be Inclusive
Chime in and be heard, and help make it culturally safe to do so, welcoming others to share their perspectives, no matter where they sit at the table, and even if their opinion deviates from the norm.
Solicit input from multiple stakeholders and facilitate collaborative conversations to help ensure that the goals and requirements are clear, the right data is collected, the right people are involved and supported, and that the results are in alignment with the objectives.
Empower, train and motivate a wide range of people to participate in the decision-making process.
It's not simple or easy to leverage data to make decisions. But this month's leaders and managers show how we can more clearly and strategically manage and lead through the decision-making process.