Of all project manager skills, decision making is perhaps the most valuable.
Strong decision making skills are necessary to weigh the available options and choose the best course of action. Indecisiveness or poor decisions can put the brakes on a project – not to mention your career.
Studies have shown that strong project managers adjust their decision making skills to each situation. For example, if an employee on your project requests a week off, you probably wouldn’t ask the company CEO’s permission. You’d analyze workloads and deadlines, and either approve or deny the request accordingly.
Other decisions require careful consideration and consensus among stakeholders. If that same employee proposed canceling or indefinitely postponing the project, it’s not likely you alone would make that decision. You’d consult everyone affected – including the company CEO.
Not surprisingly, a project manager’s decision making ability can have a domino effect on the entire organization. Companies may struggle without the leadership of skilled project managers. These struggles often include problems fulfilling sales and profit goals, efficiency and productivity objectives.
Other aspects of an organization’s business health that depend on effective decision making include:
- Maintaining product or service quality
- Keeping projects on schedule
- Keeping costs on budget
- Fostering a strong company culture
- Helping staff succeed in their roles
- Delivering on customer expectations
Want to learn more? Tonex offers Decision Making Training for Project Managers, a 3-day course where participants learn the notions and philosophy behind decision-making as well as the process, tools, techniques, and strategies of management decision making. Moreover, you will be provided with the tips to influence the others’ decision-making and to stay away from the drawbacks of typical mistakes of decision making.
Additionally, Tonex offers over five dozen other courses in Business Skills. Training covers everything from business writing and briefing skills to SOW Writing and Risk Management. Here are just a few of our courses in Business Skills:
Strategic Planning and Management Training (3 days)
Time Management and Organizational Skills (2 days)
Writing for Engineers, Scientists and Technical Managers (2 days)
Scope Management and Baseline Development (2 days)
Conflict Management Training (1 day)
Corporate Social Responsibility Training (2 days)
For more information, questions, comments, contact us.