Summarize the four decision-making styles. For each style, explain the extent to which a person has a high need for structure, control, and ambiguity in his or her life. Then, identify which decision-making style each of the following managers has:

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

(a) April has a tendency to overanalyze a situation. For this reason, she is slower to make decisions, but she responds well to new or uncertain situations, which makes her the perfect candidate to open a new branch of the business in a neighboring town.

(b) Bob has a long-term perspective, and he relies on intuition and discussions with others to acquire information. He is willing to take a risk and is good at finding creative solutions to problems; however, sometimes he can be indecisive. Because of his skills and his ability to gather information, Bob is a good candidate for the director of market research position at his company.

(c) Calvin holds a lot of meetings and prefers to avoid conflict. He enjoys working with others and social interactions in which opinions are openly exchanged. He is supportive, receptive to suggestions, and prefers verbal to written information. Due to his decision-making style, Calvin has been promoted to the floor manager of a local restaurant, where he will oversee the kitchen and waitstaff.

(d) Devora, the CEO of a beauty supply company, is action-oriented and decisive. She focuses on the facts and on profits in the short run. She tends to be autocratic and enjoys being in control. Devora would never work for any company where she cannot be "top dog."

Directive: People with a directive style have a low tolerance for ambiguity and are oriented toward task and technical concerns in making decisions. Devora has a directive decision-making style.

Analytical: People with an analytical style have a high tolerance for ambiguity and are oriented toward task and technical concerns in making decisions. April has an analytical decision-making style.

Conceptual: People with a conceptual style have a high tolerance for ambiguity and are oriented toward people and social concerns in making decisions. Bob has a conceptual decision-making style.

Behavioral: People with a behavioral style have a low tolerance for ambiguity and are oriented toward people and social concerns in making decisions. Calvin has a behavioral decision-making style.