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For those of you who have followed the ongoing UK Inquiry into the Iraq war chaired by Sir John Chilcott, it has thrown up a number of interesting insights into decision making at national level.
The then Prime Minister, Tony Blair, made much in his evidence of the fact that it was for him the most significant decision making process. He talked about how events changed the "calculus of risk" he employed for viewing world events and positioning his thinking.
In responding to questions, Mr Blair made it clear that having made a decision about how the UK would be involved nationally, that he then needed to position its effort to be able to influence international thinking, primarily US.
Such actions clearly reflect the way that many major deliberate decisions are never the act of one discussion but are instead the product of a process which facilitates discussion and develop understanding and situational awareness.
Interestingly there has also been the very clear view that what actually took place within the government was disfunctional and did not allow the Cabinet to properly contribute to and make the national decision. Clare Short, then a Cabinet Minister, presented a very different picture of the nature of the Cabinet. A group, she said, which did not receive all of the information and was not open to debate on key issues.
Whichever view is right, they do illustrate very clearly that accountability for decision making is critical. Making sure that your decision and leadership support tools are working well is a vital check on your organisational health.
Drawing on our tangible experience of being involved in, and leading, organisational decision processes, Decisive Operations can help you review and improve your decision making.
To hear more about how we can help, why not contact leadership@decisiveoperations.com.
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