Considering the money he is responsible for and the people he is responsible to, one can be sympathetic, but one cannot condone his bumbling. His ability in this regard has been-or should have been-one of the major reasons he reached his high position. If he and his company endure, it is probably because he has delegated all decision-making-an action that is, in a way, a big decision in itself.
No matter what company level you have reached, you must constantly demonstrate your ability to decide. If you make, or do not make, only one decision a week, that one action or inaction will bring you more attention than all the other various things you do or fail to do in the same period.
In the previous chapter we discussed the need for planning and for acquiring broad, as well as specific, knowledge. If you heed the advice in these areas, you will find that the making of sensible decisions will gradually become easier and easier.
You, and your department or company, must have a program, and that program must be based on knowledge. With a strong-not rigid-program, decisions will often follow naturally. Assuming that a good, farsighted program has been established, you can arrive at any necessary conclusion by:
- Analyzing the various aspects.
- Balancing the details against the overall program.
- Using imagination and daring-and decisions.
Gertrude Stein lay dying in Paris, her old friend, Alice B. Toklas, at her bedside. Suddenly Miss Stein looked at Miss Toklas and said, "What is the answer?" Miss Toklas had no reply. There was a moment of silence, and then Miss Stein said, "In that case, what is the question?"
Analysis in the business world bears some relation to this anecdote. Seldom are you given a problem, as you are in school, and asked for the answer. More often than not, you must find the problem before solving it. People may refer to those who probe in this way as creators of problems, but we executive-status seekers cannot be bothered with those who are complacent.
You must go at every aspect of your job with the attitude, "Is this the easiest and best way to do this?" You must ask constantly, "Can I produce a better product or service?" You must put everything to the test, "What will this action bring the company in terms of money?" Never be satisfied with the status quo; there is always a better way to do something.
To analyze the problem and find the better way, you must first research the facts. The higher your position the less actual fact-gathering you will do, but your experience will tell you how solid and complete the information collected by your subordinates is. You must bring all the knowledge you and the people around you can muster to analyze anything.
Develop the ability of looking at a problem from all sides. It is also best to break every project or problem into the smallest divisions possible. Solving one small aspect at a time may prove the easiest and most enduring method of analysis.
Another important requirement in the gathering of all the facts and in the objective studying of the problem is conferring with those who know something about an aspect of the situation or who have something to contribute. Ignoring the opinions and theories of your associates on your own level, above you and below you is foolish management.
Coolness and objectivity are important during the process of analysis. At the same time, don't ignore your emotional reaction to proposals or problems. Your instinct may prove more correct than the facts that you have amassed. If all the facts say, "Go ahead," and you smell trouble, it is probably a sign that more digging is necessary.
Experts on Analysis
We must assume that there is probably a better way to do almost everything. We must stop assuming that a thing which has never been done before probably cannot be done at all. Donald M. Nelson
A man who is at the top is a man who has the habit of getting to the bottom. Joseph E. Rogers
If things are not going well with you, begin your effort at correcting the situation by carefully examining the service you are rendering, and especially the spirit in which you are rendering it. Roger Babson
Business is never as healthy, like a chicken, it must do a certain amount of scratching for what it gets. Henry Ford
There is an easier, better and quicker way to do most everything, and now as never before, we must seek those easier, better, quicker ways and methods. Gustav Metzman
Think as you work, for in the final analysis your worth to your company comes not only in solving problems but in anticipating them. H. H. Ross
If I were to prescribe one process in the training of men which is fundamental to success in any direction, it would be thoroughgoing training in the habit of accurate observation. It is a habit which every one of us should be seeking ever more to perfect. Eugene G. Grace
Learn to depend upon yourself by doing things in accordance with your own way of thinking. Make your judgment trustworthy by trusting it. Cultivate regular periods of silence and meditation. The best time to build judgment is in solitude, when you can think out things for yourself without the probability of interruption. Grenville Kleiser
"There’s not to make reply, there’s not to reason why," may be a good enough motto for men who are on their way to be shot. But from such men expect no empires to be build, no inventions made, no great discoveries brought to light. Bruce Barton
Research is the process of going up alleys to see if they are blind. Barstow Bates
Men of action are always subjects of worship and adulation. It's only natural for ambitious men to "get on the ball and keep it rolling." But when the ball stops rolling and the dust dies down, results are what count. Action, to be effective, should be taken only after analyzing problem areas and deliberately determining the best course to follow. Men of action are weakest in their ability to size up circumstances and to think things through before acting. They often waste energy on jobs they tackle. Ulcers and nervous breakdowns reflect attempts to act before thinking things through. Philip Marvin
If education has failed to give a businessman the ability to analyze a given problem, that is, to break down the facts in any situation so that he can see the component parts clearly; and then to synthesize, to put together the clearly revealed facts as they stand out before him, in proper pat terns to form new concepts leading to logical conclusions, then I maintain that he can lay no just claim to being a really educated man. H. W. Prentis, Jr.
Thousands of engineers can design bridges, calculate strains and stresses, and draw up specifications for machines, but the great engineer is the man who can tell whether the bridge or the machine should be built at all, where it should be built, and when. Eugene G. Grace
Research is an organized method of trying to find out what you are going to do after you cannot do what you are doing now. It may also be said to be the method of keeping a customer reasonably dissatisfied with what he has. That means constant improvement and change so that the customer will be stimulated to desire the new product enough to buy it to replace the one he has. Charles F. Kettering
Wisdom consists of the capacity to confront disturbing ideas, even intolerable ideas, with equanimity, Leo Rosten
On the clarity of your ideas depends the scope of your success in any endeavor. James Robertson
In a mathematics class ... a teacher gives you the problem, and you work out the solution to it. In business, you often have to find the problem before you can even start thinking about the solution. Henry Ford II
Almost all really new ideas have a certain aspect of foolishness when they are first produced, and almost any idea which jogs you out of your current abstractions may be better than nothing. Alfred North Whitehead
Progress is not made by taking pride in our present standards but by critically examining these standards, hypothetically setting higher standards and attempting to achieve them. J. L. Rosenstein
If something is obvious to you, then it is more than likely that nobody else can see it. It is a sound rule to assume that you are the only one to whom it is obvious. If not somebody else would have seen it. Peter F. Drucker
The success of the early twentieth-century American businessman rested primarily in his ability to adapt rapidly to changes in his environment. Today, this is no longer true. The success of the businessman of the 1960s results is his ability to create changes in his environment. Robert S. Stitch
Good executives thrive on problems because it is their job to solve them calmly and efficiently. Guy Fergason
By perseverance the snail reached the ark. C. H. Spurgeon
2. Details
Balancing the importance of details against the overall programs of the company is a difficult job. You will notice a seemingly strange disagreement in the executives' quotes that follow these paragraphs. If you were able to get these men together, however, you would probably find that they agree.
On one hand, the details of any endeavor in business must not be ignored. A detail overlooked can destroy an entire project (or company) no matter how well it is planned. On the other hand, if you take care of the infinitesimal details without keeping your eye on the goals, you will be busy but will seldom produce.
This juxtaposition of aspects small and large requires a firm plan and a solid knowledge of all phases of your endeavor. Do not think you will ever be too important to concern yourself with the little things. You must be able to master them. As you climb in the corporate world-and, moreover, to help you climb-you must work out systems that will guarantee that every detail is taken care of. To do this:
a. Set up a network of checks and double-checks on yourself and others.
b. Institute an effective follow-up system.
c. Create an organization that moves projects smoothly from department to department.
d. Keep careful records.
e. Put everything in writing.
f. Don't leave anything to chance.
An executive who follows such a system can be freed, in one sense, from the deluge of details; but the fact of his using such a set-up shows his concern for detail. He most certainly had to deal with many of these aspects personally at one time or another in his career. Otherwise, he would not likely appreciate the need for such a concern for minutia. When something starts to go wrong, he will be ready to pitch in and track down the smallest problem.
The executive who refuses to concern himself with anything except the grand-stand plays, who says that his staff should handle all details but who doesn't set up a system to cope with them, deserves the chaos he creates.
This balancing of large and small matters is required in the handling of finances as well. Firm control of the money spent on even the most insignificant item should be maintained.
Every penny spent should be put to the test: what will this expense return toward the operation and growth of the company? At the same time, the leader should not hold back on spending just for the sake of saving. A company can be "saved" out of business in this fast-moving world. Care must be taken also not to create a stifling atmosphere of penny-pinching. A company must spend wisely, and part of corporate wisdom is providing money for the daring and imaginative projects of the future.
Experts on Details
Details often kill initiative, but there have been few successful men who weren't good at details. Don't ignore details, Lick them. W. B. Given, Jr.
An executive cannot gradually dismiss details. Business is made up of details and I notice that the chief executive who dismisses them is quite likely to dismiss his business; Success is the sum of detail. It might perhaps be pleasing to imagine oneself beyond detail and engaged only in great things, but as I have often observed, if one attends only to great things and lets the little things pass the great things become little; that is, the business shrinks.
It is not possible for an executive to hold himself aloof from anything. No business, no matter what its size, can be called safe until it has been forced to learn economy and rigidly to measure values of men and materials. Harvey S. Firestone
Many blunder in business through inability or an unwillingness to adopt new ideas. I have seen many a success turn to failure also, because the thought which should be trained on big things is cluttered up with the burdensome detail of little things. Philip S. Delaney
Many little’s make a much, Cervantes
We get so involved in the detail of our job that it is very easy to forget this profit thought. Try the simple idea of summarizing your presentation of a new idea or new ma chine with the words; "And this should all add up to $4,000 more net profit after taxes." Boone Gross
In the general enthusiasm over data processing applications, too many managers and systems men have allowed themselves to be carried away with technicalities and techniques. But top management has learned the hard way that the man who devotes his exclusive effort to finding the best method for milking the cow will never have a very large herd. C. W. Rowles
We are not to judge thrift solely by the test of saving or spending. If one spends what he should prudently save, that certainly is to be deplored. But if one saves what he should DETAILS 81
Prudently spend, that is not necessarily to be commended. A wise balance between the two is the desired end. Owen D. Young
For the want of a nail the shoe was lost,
For the want of a shoe the horse was lost,
For the want of a horse the rider was lost,
For the want of a rider the battle was lost,
For the want of a battle the kingdom was lost,
And all for want of a horseshoe’s nail.
Benjamin Franklin
3. Decide
You have discovered the problem, gathered the facts, analyzed the situation from all angles, conferred with associates and balanced the details against the larger picture. Now, decide! March up to the cannon’s mouth and do it. If there ever was a time to use positive thinking it is the moment of decision.
The quick, ill-thought-out decision-which is usually no more than an emotional reaction-is worth little. The more experience an executive has, of course, the more his "off-the-top-of-the-head" reactions turn out to be sensible decisions. But, in a sense, he is going through all of the procedures of analysis in that split second.
There will be many times that you will be forced into the position of making immediate decisions, and you must face them. If you strive constantly, even when you are in the lowest positions, to get in the habit of being decisive about the small tasks, then when you become responsible for the big decisions you will make them easily. Educate yourself and expand your abilities, as we have discussed previously, and you will have given yourself the best preparation for the quick decision.
We have emphasized the need for detailed analysis but, be careful of using this as a method for procrastination. You can study all sides of a problem so many times and be so objective about it that it will be impossible for you to take a stand. Keep the goals and the needs of your company firmly fixed in your mind, and keep yourself and the company moving ahead.
Fear of making the wrong decision is the worst problem. Of course, no one wants to make bad decisions, but remember that a wrong one made on time is usually better than a right one made too late.
We have spent a good deal of time talking about the need for daring, imagination and creativity. In the area of decision making these traits are particularly important. The higher you climb in corporate life the more danger there is that you will use a formula for analysis and decision. If you find yourself saying to your associates every time you offer a solution, "I did it this way last year when a similar problem came up," you may be getting stale. Look for unusual solutions and put them to a test. Don't be satisfied with last year's solutions.
Experts on Decisions
Indecision is debilitating; it feeds upon itself; it is, one might almost say, habit-forming. Not only that, but it is contagious; it transmits itself to others. . . . Business is dependent upon action. It cannot go forward by hesitation. Those in executive positions must fortify themselves with facts and accept responsibility for decisions based upon them. Often greater risk is involved in postponement than in making a wrong decision. H. A. Hopf
While an open mind is priceless, it is priceless only when its owner has the courage to make a final decision which closes the mind for action after the process of viewing all sides of the question has been completed. Failure to make a decision after due consideration of all the facts will quickly brand a man as unfit for a position of responsibility. Not all of your decisions will be correct. None of us is perfect. But if you get into the habit of making decisions, experience will develop your judgment to a point where more and more of your decisions will be right. After all, it is better to be right fifty-one percent of the time and get something done, than it is to get nothing done because you fear to reach a decision. H. W. Andrews
The moment a question comes to your mind, see yourself mentally taking hold of it and disposing of it. In that moment is your choice made. Thus you learn to take the path to the right. Thus you learn to become the decider and not the vacillator. H. Van Anderson
Decision and determination are the engineer and fireman of our train to opportunity and success. Burt Lawlor
Decision is a sharp knife that cuts clean and straight; indecision, a dull one that hacks and tears and leaves ragged edges behind it. Gordon Graham
Executive ability is deciding quickly and getting somebody else to do the work. J. G. Pollard
An effective executive makes these decisions as a systematic process with clearly defined elements and in a distinct sequence of steps. Peter F. Drucker
Beaten paths are for beaten men. Eric Johnston
When people try to solve a problem, their most typical difficulty is trying to make full use of information available. A case in point is the story of the truck that was stuck in an underpass. Various onlookers tried to be helpful by suggesting ways for extricating it, but all their suggestions involved reasonably major deformations-either of the truck or of the underpass. At this point, a little boy stepped forth and suggested letting air out of the tires. Many such stories exist in science and invention, and all serve to show the same point: A solution, once stated, can be seen as obvious. Ray Hyman
Habits are formed by action. The way to become a good administrator is to administer. This is also the way to become a bad administrator: for vice is a habit too. The minimum function of the administrator is to decide, and, since he has to make more decisions than most men, he has the chance to be either an especially good or an especially bad man. Robert M. Hutchins
We know that when we are looking for men with executive ability to promote, their technical knowledge at that stage is often relatively less important than their ability to deal with more abstract problems involving judgment and ability to reason. A. L. Nickerson
Caesar divided his enemy into smaller groups and concentrated on them one at a time. Similarly, when attacking a tough problem, break it into smaller, easier problems, conquering them one at a time. Paul A. Vatter
Defining the situation always requires a decision on objectives, that is, on values and their relationship. It always requires a decision on the risk the manager is willing to run. It always, in other words, requires judgment and a deliberate choice between values. Peter F. Drucker
In the industrial firm a bad decision made on time will not usually be as costly as a good decision made too late... The bad decision can often be reversed at low cost. The time lost waiting for the good decision can never be retrieved. John Kenneth Galbraith
Stop trying to do a dozen things at once; they are just fighting each other in the process. Solve one problem all by itself, then go on to the next. Man is like a machine. His gears, belts, pulleys, etc., have been designed to function perfectly under normal conditions. Handling one chore at a time is normal procedure. When he attempts more, he creates an overload on himself; an overload that results in stresses. Ernest W. Fair
No one man is capable of determining the facts and making all the decisions in the complex industrial economy in which we live and work. To live with one's peers, to have respect and to have the ability to abide by the decisions of the recognized authority, these are the qualities essential to success. Gilbert W. Chapman
We sometimes see a fool possessed of talent, but never of judgment. La Rochefoucauld
Ideas to Remember
If you and your company have a strong program, decisions will be easier.
Never be satisfied that the present method of doing something is the best way.
Learn to look for problems; don't wait for them to appear.
Gather the facts.
Put your experience behind every decision.
Look at all sides of the problem with objectivity.
Confer with associates.
Balance the details against the overall plans and needs.
Don't procrastinate; learn to decide quickly.
Don't use a formula to make decisions.
Look for unusual, imaginative solutions.
