How Big Decisions are Made

In business, most people think if they analyze and present the right data, the “very important decision” maker will make the obvious decision towards where the data they have shown the has presented them.

Here’s the problem with this logic: it may be true when picking office furniture or getting a new e-mail marketing service that is 30% cheaper, but it doesn’t work in firing the Accounting firm we have had for twenty years or Hiring a New VP of Sales in a organization that only had 2 C-level Executives or buying another company.

Analyze – Compare – Decide – Execute is the decision model for small decisions for Corporate America, not for Big Decisions.

This takes a much more thought out and full understanding of how “people,” not businesses make decisions. After all, companies are run by “people” that have the same strengths, weaknesses, talents and demons we do. Here is how to get Big Decisions through in Corporate America.

First Step: Make the See it and Feel it

Find a way to see and feel the pain of not taking action (show them examples of companies that turned down new product lines that might still have them in business. Put products in their hands that product that sold billions of dollars.

Get them a Simple Next Step

Don’t sell the entire investment of the new product line (the financing, new capital expenditures, or the management team they would have to fire), rather, just meeting the inventor, or seeing if the technology works would be suffice. The magic of momentum can take over just from there.

Give it a Rally Cry

Make sure you have taken the time to create some rally cry for your initiative (“2000 by 2000,” “IDI or Die,” or “Beat Microsoft” for example).  Businesses are teams that can rally for extended periods of times to do some incredible things if they play like a team. They need an evolved mission to take on this kind of effort consistently.

Celebrate the Wins, Share the Love

The nay-sayers will look for their chances to pull you down. Celebrate your wins often and without taking any of the credit rather assign it to the player who helped the most and edify them in the process. The initial product launch can turn into a company wide movement with this alone.

So, the Decision Model for “getting big things done” in Corporate America is the following:

See it – Simple Step – Rally Cry – Celebrate Wins – Share the Love = Dynamic Change

It is not about being right, its about getting people excited about what they can do together when they come together. It is about being clear and simple in the steps and building on the momentum of others engaging in the change.  It is not about pride of authorship but about leading a movement.

Now go get it!