Strategic Decision Methods

Frequently, major strategic problems cannot be solved using objective, quantitative approaches alone. This paper addresses the methods with which top managers search for solutions, analyze alternatives, and share the authority to make decisions. Several decision models, in addition to the classic rational model, are examined. Variables that differentiate these models are identified and evaluated. Four dimensions emerge as the most important ones: analysis of alternatives, search for possible solutions, flexibility in the problem definition, and group behavior displayed by the advisory or decision-making group. Based on combinations of these four dimensions, sixteen modes of decision processes are identified.