Leadership is defined as a process by which a leader is able to assert influence over a group of people to achieve a pre-decided common goal. Decision making is a process involving a certain amount of deliberation and social action in order to choose from among a certain number of options when faced with a problem.

A good leader is able to assert his influence to empower and support people in order to think and act in the direction of accomplishing strategic goals. He/she is someone who has the ability to make decisions in the face of adversity and choose the best alternative even then. They have the courage to bear complete accountability of their decisions and actions even if they go wrong. They are able to accept their mistake in public and move on to the corrective course as soon as they realise the error.

It has been observed through research done in this area that people tend to value and respect such leaders a lot more. They associate and connect with such leaders who display high moral ground, integrity, honesty and authenticity and the ability to publicly acknowledge their own shortcomings. Such leaders are considered to be assets to the organization by all employees and are regarded highly for not adopting a defensive attitude towards organizational problems.

One of the key problems faced by organizations across the world is erroneous decision making. On a number of occasions, the leaders and senior managers take decisions that only solve the symptom and not the root problem causing the symptom. A number of times this is done knowingly, i.e. leaders know that they are just scratching the surface of the problem and not actually addressing the problem. The reason is often a lack of deep understanding and information to solve the problem, the lack of sufficient initiative to get to the root of the problem or simply the lack of good decision-making skills.

In any case, this is a serious problem plaguing a large number of organizations. In fact, scholars agree that any organization which is faced by such negative decision making from its leadership and strategic management team is likely to face continuous failure and its people will be left wondering about the actual cause of the problem. This would, in turn, have a negative influence on the overall efficiency and productivity of the people of the organization. The organization would become unproductive in the long run and people in the organization will have a way to break job performance protocol and never achieve the organizational goals.

One of the major challenges for organizations is to avoid the bad policy and inconsistent decision making. It is one of the leading causes of dissatisfaction among employees and their leaders in the current time.  The incompetence of leaders and managers in discussing a problem statement and delivering a quality decision to solve the problem has caused many organizations to close down. This is the kind of power and influence that the decision making skills of leaders and managers can have on the people and organization.

In contrast, a good leader is one who has self-confidence and is able to invest time and energy to gather information and resources which will help in overcoming a problem. He/she has great analytical skills and can process the information in great detail, consider all the pros and cons and finally arrive at the most suitable decision.

People tend to have a preference and regard for such a leader with self-confidence. They get confused by leaders who are immersed in self-doubt and as such form a notion that such a leader would not be able to take requisite action nor would he/she ever command that respect. It is important for the people to know that their leader is a good decision maker and when the time comes to make a tricky decision this leader would consider the interest of all stakeholders before arriving at the final decision. Such strength in character and quality of decision making makes the followers intensely committed to their leaders.

A leader with good decision-making skills also fosters an environment of continued creativity and innovation in the organization and is able to propel his/her team towards excellence. An organization is a complex structure and a leader has to steer through this complex and dynamic web of activity through sound decision making. The leader may have to make tough decisions at the end but it is the quality of these decisions which is the hallmark of great leadership. For organizations which are looking to forge a path of excellence, it may be good advice to get online leadership certificate programs for professionals specifically focused on good decision-making skills.

There are all kinds of leaders. While some find the notion of dictating their team comfortable, others like a more collaborative approach. We all know that successful businesses need effective leaders. Professionals, who can formulate & communicate new strategic directions while also motivating employees to perform better and meet the company’s goals, are vital to the growth and success of any organization.

The role of a leader is multi-faceted. While you need to ensure continued business growth and success, you also need to bring out the best of your employees and ensure they are happy with what they do. Part of it also includes creating more leaders and encouraging them to do better. All this requires a deeper understanding of what leadership is all about and how to apply it to everyday life.

The Executive Certificate Program in Leadership by Jack Welch Management Institute is a uniquely practical and relevant course that helps participants understand the importance of continuous improvement and innovation in fostering growth, evaluating and overcoming leadership challenges. This online leadership course is designed to drive powerful insights that one can apply immediately to become a better leader. This course aims at enabling participants to build and lead winning teams.

Some of the other key takeaways of this course are:

Opportunity to earn an international certificate awarded by The Jack Welch Management Institute at Strayer University, USA.

Learn to build guides, checklists and playbooks to create your own Professional Leadership Development Plan.

Access to multiple exclusive videos by Jack Welch, a once-in-a-lifetime experience that organizations across the globe pay top dollar for Guest lectures by industry leaders & CXO’s in India to help understand relevant, practical and must-know aspects of leadership and what it means in the Indian context

Experiential leadership program where you learn to apply concepts to real-world situations immediately

Course content & structure designed by JWMI, under the guidance of Jack Welch himself.

If you are looking to step-up in your career and ready to take on a leadership role then the Executive Certificate Program in Leadership from JWMI is the perfect start. Fill in your details and we’ll call you back with more information on this international online course in leadership.

More Information:

What Skills are Required to be a Marketing Analyst?

Make data analytics work for you; not the other way around

Learn to derive insights with this Marketing Analytics Course

9 everyday exercises that will help you become a better leader

Build Your Research & Analytical Skills to Become an Effective Marketer