The difference between decision-making and problem solving can be confusing. Let’s look at an example. The year was 1985. Coca-Cola was having market share problems. In April of that year, it had replaced the original formula Coke with a much sweeter version. We now know of course that the decision to change the formula created a global uproar and sales plummeted. By July of that year, the “classic” formula was brought back alongside New Coke, and subsequently sales increased by almost 30 %.
As in any organization, leaders make mistakes. It takes a poor decision to create a problem, and then another higher quality decision to fix it. Often organizations confuse decision-making with problem solving, but as you can see in this Coca-Cola case study, they are two different things altogether.
Organizational teams exist because it is critical to make quality decisions and to solve business problems quickly and efficiently. The sharing of both knowledge and information is important to the culture and the climate of not only the team but the much larger organizational structure.
It is interesting to note that leadership processes are driven by decision-making and problem solving. There can be no positive growth without communication and adjustment. In fact, goals and results are always the focus of good teams. There are indeed only two ingredients that create success. The factors of task and individual are in constant interaction to make things happen.
Leadership knows that groups, rather than one individual, usually produce better solutions with increased accuracy and quality. When leadership combines with participation, changes can happen to make things better. In North Dakota, when we drink our share of Coke; we are glad they fixed things through quality decision-making!
Decisions and problem solving all come from effective communication and human relations. With five offerings in February and early March, Dale Carnegie’s Course: Effective Communication & Human Relations/Skills for Success, just has to find a place on your calendar. Click on the course title for further info.
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