"Gut Feel" vs. Data Based Decision Making

As I summarized the data from an upward appraisal that I conducted I wondered how many decisions we were making without data.

Do you make decisions based on good data or do you use "gut feel," some feedback and partial data?

I got the feeling from looking at the upward appraisal that some of the staff were not using the same data to give feedback. This could be because one person's experience with the leader gives a set of data that is different from someone else's on the team. This could be because we have new members on the team that have limited experience interacting with the leader. The data could also be different because a team member could use only one incident that stands out in their mind, or the most recent discussion. People could have biases when gathering information and this means we don't get the full range of available data.

Getting good data for making decisions is not as easy as it seems. As a leader, I'm responsible for making the best decisions I can.

Sometimes the data isn't available, but when possible I should gather the appropriate information to make data based decisions.

Where do you gather your data? Do you have an unconscious bias? Are you making decisions upon partial data?

Let's talk about decision making. Contact me at Valerie.MacLeod@HainesCentre.com