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Decision Support Tool: Instructions for Creating a “Value Tree”

Part of a value tree of one of my clients

Whenever you have a really big decision to make, the best place to start thinking about it is by identifying what really matters – that is, by clarifying your goals and values. To help with that, the exercise of constructing a “Value Tree” is a great decision support tool. Here you can download a set of instructions on how to create your very own value tree (written by myself and Barry Anderson).

The Research

Value trees (also known as “goal hierarchies” in decision theory) are an established method to support decision-making. Their effectiveness has been evaluated by several independent researchers with real career decisions. Those studies have shown that constructing a goal hierarchy leads people to process more information (Aschenbrenner et al., 1980, Paul, 1984), come up with more specific, rather than generic, goals (Teuscher, 2003), and be more satisfied with their decisions (Paul,

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Who Should Make Which Decisions in Your Team?

A practical tool and downloadable template to help determine decision authority.

For the most part, my work focuses on helping people figure out HOW to make good decisions. However, in an organization (or family! or any other group of people), the more urgent and conflict-prone question is often WHO should make which types of decisions, rather than how they should make them.

During a conversation with a client lately, I realized that this, too, is a decision that we can approach with the same frameworks and questions that are helpful for other decisions. In this case, the “alternatives” are people within the organization. In other words, each potential decision-maker is one option, and the main challenge is to define which criteria the decision-maker should fulfill in order to bear that responsibility. Once you have defined those criteria, it becomes much more straightforward to assign the right person the responsibility for any type of decision.

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How to Make Smart Group Decisions – Video



How to Make Better Decisions in Imperfect Communities
By Ursina Teuscher, PhD

This video is a short version (13min) of a keynote talk I gave at the at the XII° Convegno Nazionale S.I.P.CO Palermo, June 7-9, 2018 on how to make smart group decisions.

Summary

In communities that consist of diverse interest groups, it can be challenging to make decisions that are actively supported or at least accepted by all critical parties, despite their differing interests. Top-down decisions may face unexpected opposition, resulting in costs or delays.
This talk presents a process framework and practical tools to facilitate participatory decision processes. The suggested process is designed after a value-focused (Keeney, 1996) and multi-attribute model of decision making (e.g.,

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Summer Reading List 2018

New Summer Readings: Books on Decision Making and Goal AchievementAnother hopefully long and beautiful summer is coming up, and my intention is to spend a lot of it productively: reading. Preferably in a hammock. If you feel the same, here comes my new list of book recommendations about decision-making and goal achievement.

Dan Ariely and Jeff Kreisler (2017). Dollars and Sense: How We Misthink Money and How to Spend Smarter. I’ve always enjoyed Dan Ariely’s self-deprecating sense of humor, and in this collaboration he found a great match in Jeff Kreisler. Even though I was familiar with most of the concepts they discuss, this book not only kept me entertained, but also highlighted very clearly (and sometimes painfully) the irrationalities around money that I still allow into my life. Read a sample here.

Chris Guillebeau (2017). Side Hustle: From Idea to Income in 27 Days.

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Shortcut to Conflict Resolution With Game Theory

“Fair Outcomes”, an online system, offers an ingenious alternative to conflict resolution, based on the principles of game theory. The ABA journal has just published an article about it.

In contrast to litigation, arbitration, mediation, negotiation, and traditional sealed-bid/split-the difference arrangements, this system offers no incentive or excuse for either party to bluff or posture – or to try to posture through a refusal to use it.

The beauty is that it not only can save both parties an enormous amount of legal fees, but that the outcome is usually more favorable to each party than what that party
had proposed.

The system is very transparent and well documented, so if you’re interested in the topic, take some time to browse the website and think it through. If you prefer videos, here is a series of presentations that explain the underlying principles.

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