The Decision Process
In business, decision making infers to the process of coming up with choices by collecting information, setting goals and looking for alternative solution to problems. There are several steps that need to be undertaken during the decision making process. One needs to find out the decision that needs to be made, gather all the relevant information needed, find out the alternatives, weigh the evidence, select from the set of alternatives, take action and finally review the decision (Dubois, 2013). It is easy to make a decision as a person, since one does not have any opposing views and one is at liberty to do what they deem right. Making decisions as a group on the other hand is difficult since people have different views and there are more alternatives. In any business, it is necessary to have a second or third opinion in any decisions that are about to be made. Decisions are like taking risks, a lot of factors need to be considered. The paper will dwell on the case study of Toyota Company in Mississippi. A father and daughter had to come up with a decision that would affect the lives of people both in and outside the company.
Decision Statement
In order to come up with a decision statement regarding the Toyota Company, the actual problem needs to be addressed and a solution found. In this case, according to Muller, the company was about to go bankrupt due to recession. In her opinion, the solution to this problem demanded that the company at Michigan to close and the company should forge into new markets and partner with foreign automakers. On the other hand, the father wanted to restructure the organization and adjust the payment plan to make sure the people in Michigan did not lose their jobs if the company moved to seek greener pastures (Kovacs, 2010).
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Pros and Cons of Group vs. Individual Decision Making
Pros
In a group, people have varied views and opinions and thus more meaningful information is collected and compared. This is unlikely for individual decision making process.
Decisions made in a group tend to be better since they are thoroughly thought through and there is elimination of bias.
In a group set up, involving the group members in the decision making process creates motivation and morale. People feel part of the organization and they tend to work towards achieving a common goal.
There is also a greater commitment to decisions if they are made in a group.
Cons
Group decision making process can be tedious and time consuming since there are varied thoughts and ideas by group members. It is therefore more time-consuming and the view of the majority has to win, whether they are wrong or right.
Group decisions are often irrational and the view of the majority often wins whether they are right or wrong. An individual is more focused and rational in making a decision.
No one takes responsibility or accountability for any actions made. Decisions are made at a group level and are not tied to anyone.
One can be forced to conform and develop a group think mentality therefore suppressing the individual consequences as a result of the group mentality.
It is satisfying since there is no one to blame.
Factors Affecting Decision Making
It is very difficult to make decisions in a team, especially in big organizations such as Toyota. There are many people and one need to consider a variety of factors before making any decision. For instance, in the case study, the decisions made by Mueller are biased and they are only in the interest of making profit other than benefitting the society. She does not pay attention to their corporate responsibility thus making her decisions biased. Brofft on the other hand is torn between accepting the daughter’s proposal and protecting his workers. Either way, there has to be consequences for every decision taken (Karen, 2009). He had to involve the stakeholders, which in this case were the plant managers and union leaders. The stakeholders did not make his work any easier. There was no conclusive decision made and thus making the decision process a tedious and cumbersome procedure.
The Authority, Type and Composition of a Team
When it comes to structuring teams, a lot of management and leadership skills need to be applied. Creating work teams largely depends on the organization’s authority structure, type and the composition of the personnel at the work places. An effective work team needs to have members of the organization from various vertical levels. This means that people from various departments such as finance, human resource, marketing and accounting need to be part of a team. In addition to this, the company needs to set up cross-functional a team which is composed of members from various departments within the organization in relation to their areas of expertise. In order to make a good decision as a team, all these factors need to be considered (Daft & Marcic, 2009).
Best Type of Decision Making Team for this situation
The best type of decision making team in this situation is the cross-functional team. This is simply because the decision will be made across the board and all areas of the organizations will be involved. Each member of the team will bring a new perspective that has to be reasoned through by all members of the team. An organization is not made up of only one departments and this therefore means that all the areas of management within the organization need to be addressed (Earley &Gibson, 2002).
Who Should Comprise the Team?
The team should be comprised of all the stakeholders and the shareholders of the company. This means that, Brofft who is the owner of the company and Mueller, the CEO need to be present in the meeting. Members from various departments within the organization need to be there too. These are managers, leaders of workers union and various heads of departments. The shareholders of the company also need to be involved in the decision making process. The company’s board of directors play a vital role in the organization and they need to be involved in the decision making process.
In summary, in question shed details on the challenges organizations face when they have to make decisions. Every decision made is a risk and one does not really know the consequences. One cannot say that this is the right path that needs to be followed, so a lot of consultations are needed. A person’s personality largely determines the decision one makes in any organization. For instance, Mueller does not seem empathetic; she is only interested in making profits and not the well-being of her employees. On the other hand, her father is concerned about his employees and involves them in the decision making process. Regardless of the type of decision made, the father and daughter have to both make sacrifices and determine what is beneficial to the company. The case study reveals just how difficult it is to make decisions in an organization especially when the lives of people and the interests of the company are at stake. Despite all these, the most feasible decision needs to be made and the owners of the company need to be prepared for the outcome of their choices.
References:
Barrett, A. (2009). Auto-Parts Suppliers Brace for Downturn,” BusinessWeek . Retrieved April 22, 2016 from: http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/content/jun2009/sb20090616_816915.htm
Daft, R. L., and Marcic, D. (2009). Understanding management . Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning. Print.
Dubois, D. (2013). Decision Making Process Concepts and Methods. John Wiley and Sons, New York. Print.
Earley, C. and Gibson, C. (2002). Multinational Work Teams. Wright Brother, New Jersey. Print.
Karen E. K. (2009). Survival Advice for Auto Parts Suppliers. BusinessWeek . Retrieved April 22, 2016 from: http://www.businessweek.com/pri.t/magazine/content/09_62/s0902015954839.htm
Kovacs, B. (2010). The decision-making process for library collections: Case studies in four types of libraries . New York: Greenwood Press.
Toyota (2016). Retrieved April 22, 2016 from: http://www.toyota.com
