This tool will help you make good decisions

The Ethics Centre has developed an online Quality Decision Making tool, due to be launched to Ethics Alliance members by the end of this year, to guide and support quality decision making for any member of an organisation.

Co-head of advice and education, John Neil, explains how the tool will help you in your business:

1. What is the Quality Decision Making tool?

The online platform guides users through a framework for ethical decision making, especially when those decisions are challenging and difficult. It provides personal insight, knowledge, awareness, case studies, tips, and hacks.

Ethics Alliance members are invited to be part of the testing and refining of the platform before its full roll out in November. Funded by The Ethics Centre, it has been custom designed for our corporate Alliance members and will be made available to all employees of Alliance members.

2. What kind of decisions can the tool tackle?

The platform is designed for difficult decisions – personal or professional – where there is no clear right or wrong answer. It will help discern:

•    What is important
•    What is at stake
•    What matters most
•    Who is involved
•    Impacts and implications
•    Possible options
•    How to evaluate options
•    What principles might apply to assess options

While helping solve a specific dilemma, the platform helps users develop core decision making capabilities, such as intention, context mapping, judgement, bias minimisation, root cause analysis, innovation, communication, wisdom, and courage.

3. What is the process like?

It takes about 45 minutes for first time users and, after that, return users will spend around 10 to 20 minutes on specific decision making challenges.

4. What is unique about this platform?

There are a number of decision making tools on the market, ranging from apps to analogue models, however the Quality Decision Making Platform is the first of its kind to combine skills development with help to make specific decisions.

5. Can you give me a scenario where it would help?

Troublesome rainmaker: You are a line manager in the finance sector. One of your key staff is excellent at her job and generates a lot of income for the company – no other team member comes close to her results. She has rejected overtures from competitor companies, much to your relief because your department is heavily reliant upon her abilities and your bonuses depend on your department’s profitability. Unfortunately, she has also been reported to HR and you about repeated inappropriate behaviour. What should you do?

Disaster warning: You work for the director of human resources and have access to confidential information about a coming restructure, including the names of those about to be made redundant.

At lunch, a colleague mentions her boss is about to take on a heavy debt to buy a new house, in preparation for the birth of his third child. You know that man is about to be made redundant. What should you do?