TIPS ON DECISION MAKING

Most people—including product managers—have not had formal training in decision making. So they may seek “best practices” to supplant decision making. Unfortunately, “best practices” don’t necessarily teach people how to think. In fact, they may make it too easy for people to be trapped by the adequate when a better alternative might exist. Effort is required to generate alternatives beyond the obvious ones. I encourage product managers to look for next practices in addition to best practices as they explore the future for their products. Not doing so results in complacency—and complacency is occasionally fatal (or at the least it yields nonoptimal results).

Let’s talk a bit about the decision-making process. (See Figure 2.1.) In general it involves: (1) defining and framing the issue, goal, or problem requiring the decision; (2) gathering appropriate data; (3) generating alternative solutions; (4) evaluating the solutions; (5) choosing an acceptable solution; (6) acting on the chosen alternative; and (7) evaluating the outcome. The way a product manager frames a decision has a significant impact on the remaining steps in the process. For example, assume that a product manager is considering a price increase on a product because profitability is lower than desired. If the decision is framed as whether or not to increase the price, different information will likely be gathered than what would have been obtained if the decision had been framed as how to improve the product’s profitability. Give careful thought to how you frame your decisions.