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Management Practices and Organisational Behaviour

Notes method is continued until the decision maker finally arrives at a course of action that
convinces him of success. This allows a manager to change and adjust his plans until the
final commitment is made.
7. Conditional: Conditional decisions allow an individual to keep all his options open. He
sticks to one decision so long as the circumstances remain the same. Once the competitor
makes a new move, conditional decisions allow a person to take up a different course of
action.

3.9.2 Types of Decision-making

The different types of decision making that a manager typically encounters are:

1. Authoritative: In authoritative type of decision making the manager is the sole decision
maker which subordinates follow. The manager has all the information and expertise
required to make a quick decision. It is important that the manager is a good decision
maker as it is he who has to own up to the consequences of his decision. Though effective,
in case the manager is an experienced individual, it can harm the organization if the
manager insists on an authoritative type of decision making even when there is expertise
available within the team.

2. Facilitative: In facilitative type of decision making, both the manager and his subordinates
work together to arrive at a decision. The subordinates should have the expertise as well
as access to the information required to make decisions. Such an approach could be useful
when the risk of wrong decision is very low. It is also a great way of involving and
encouraging subordinates in the working of the organization.
3. Consultative: As the name suggests, consultative decisions are made in consultation with
the subordinates. However, the fact remains that unlike in the facilitative decision making
style, in consultative decision making it is the manager who holds the decision making
power. A wise manager tends to consult his subordinates when he thinks that they have
valuable expertise on the situation at hand.
4. Delegative: As per the term, the manager passes on the responsibility of making decisions
to one or more of his subordinates. This type of decision making is usually adopted by the
manager when he is confident of the capabilities of his subordinates.

3.10 Barriers in Decision-making

Managerial decision making typically centres on three types of problems that act as barriers:
1. Crisis: A crisis or critical problem is a serious difficulty requiring immediate action.

2. Non-crisis: A non-crisis problem is an issue that requires resolution but does not
simultaneously have the importance and immediacy characteristics of a crisis. Many of
the decisions that managers make centre on non-crisis problems.
3. Opportunity: An opportunity problem is a situation that offers a strong potential for
significant organisational gain if appropriate actions are taken. Opportunities typically
involve new ideas and novel directions, and, therefore, are major vehicles for organisational
innovation.

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