One of the more important aspects of leadership is decision-making. Interestingly, it is very difficult to fully evaluate how someone makes decisions. Typically, it requires working with them for years to fully see their process.

One of the better discussions about decision making in the leadership literature comes from Vroom and Yetton. They argue that leaders improve group performance by using an optimal amount of participation in the decision-making process.

So a first question I would ask you is: How do you involve others in your decision-making process?

Secondly, I would suggest that you consider how you determine the quality of your decisions.

The two most important criteria for judging the adequacy of a decision are:

Decision quality- does the decision result in an objectively or measurably better outcome for the group or organization. “Does this decision improve services to the client”?
Decision acceptance- to what extent do followers accept the decision as if it were their own and do not merely comply with the decision. (Leaders often mistakenly assume their decisions have been accepted and will be fully implemented.)

How do you make decisions?