5 Types of Decision Making Skills You Need To Know

Every workplace needs people with different types of decision making skills. All workplace decisions, both big and small, require a decision making process. Even if you do not realize it, you’re using some type of decision making process every day.

There are many different types of decision making processes, not all of which are explored here. For example, “Emotional” is a very common decision making process, used by people that make decisions based on how they feel.

There are some types of decision making that are both common and valued in the workplace. Those are the ones we’d like to highlight here.

The following are several examples of decision making, and an example of how you might use it in the workplace.

Intuitive – Intuitive is one of the simplest, and arguably one of the most common ways to make a decision. It should be noted that it is not always the best way. Intuitive decision making involves relying on the decision that feels right, without necessarily thinking about the logic that goes into that choice. An example may be deciding to use a software because you like it after a few minutes, rather than comparing it to other types of software and determining which is the better value.

Rational – Rational decision making is the type of decision making most people want to believe they do. It is the act of using logic to determine what is best, by reviewing all possible options and then evaluating each option using logic and rationality. An example would be listing out all possible marketing methodologies, along with budgets, data, and more, and then working out which one(s) would provide the best investment.

Satisficing – Satisficing is accepting the one that is satisfactory for the needs of the company. A non work example would be deciding you need coffee, and then going to the nearest coffee shop even if it’s not the best, simply because you get the job done. It means you may miss out on better options.

Collaborative – Collaborative is exactly as it sounds. Rather than make a decision yourself, you collaborate in some way to make the decision. An example might include meeting with others to get their input, voting on the final decision (although that may integrate other types of decision making models), or, otherwise relying on the group as a whole.

Combination – Not all decision making falls into a simple bucket. Many people use a combination of these different types of decision making styles. For example, rational and intuitive may be easily combined. The person doesn’t necessarily use any data, or create any logic charts, but they think about the decision from a logical perspective and then go with their gut on the final decision.

Understanding your preferred decision making style will help you prepare answers to interview questions.