Growing a business is a thrilling ride—but it’s pretty unforgiving when it comes to poor decisions. When you’re a small or scaling company, the price of a bad call isn’t just a bruised ego. It could mean lost revenue, wasted effort, and missed opportunities. Fortunately, you don’t need decades of experience or a boardroom full of consultants to upgrade your decision-making. You just need a solid process, a bit of discipline, and the willingness to lead from the front.
Why Decision Making Matters More as You Grow
As your company scales, every decision carries more weight. The ripple effects travel further, meaning missteps are noticed not just by your immediate team, but by staff, suppliers, and customers too. Research from McKinsey estimates that managers spend 40% of their work time making decisions, but 60% of that time is ineffective due to unclear processes or lack of information. That’s a lot of lost productivity.
So, how do you instantly up your game and make better, faster calls that set your business apart?
Start with Prioritisation: Not All Decisions Deserve Equal Time
What are Decision Types?
Effective leaders know not all decisions are created equal. If you agonise over every daily choice, you’ll lose steam before the week’s out. The most successful firms categorise decisions into three ‘levels’:
- Strategic decisions: Big, high-stakes moves—entering a new market, launching a new product, securing major funding.
- Tactical decisions: Important, but not business-defining—hiring a new role, changing suppliers, adjusting pricing.
- Operational decisions: Routine choices—approving expenses, scheduling shifts, selecting software tools.
Spend most of your energy on the strategic, delegate or systemise the routine, and review the tactical at regular intervals.
Pro Tip:
Create a simple matrix or checklist for team leads to use before escalation. If a decision doesn’t meet the bar for “strategic impact”, it probably doesn’t need a boardroom debate.
Centralise (and Democratise) Information
You can’t make a good decision with half the facts or out-of-date info. Growing businesses tend to have knowledge scattered everywhere—spreadsheets, inboxes, WhatsApp chats, and people’s heads.
Fix this fast by creating a shared, central information hub. Even a well-organised Google Drive or SharePoint can make all the difference. Ensure it’s easily accessible and structured, covering:
- Financials (budgets, forecasts, spend reports)
- Customer feedback
- Market intelligence and competitor research
- Project status updates
- Staff feedback and HR issues
If everyone’s looking at the same numbers, there’s less room for confusion.
Real-World Example
One of our clients in the professional services sector halved their weekly meeting times simply by agreeing on a single dashboard for KPIs. It stopped those endless debates about “whose numbers are correct”.
Implement Robust Frameworks (Even Simple Ones)
Making Complex Choices Simpler
A framework is just a fancy word for a system to help you think clearly. For business decision making, the most effective (and quick to implement) are:
- Decision trees: Great for mapping out outcomes based on various choices.
- Cost-benefit analysis: Sets out all the pros, cons, and risks on a single sheet.
- Pre-mortems: Instead of waiting to see what goes wrong, get your team to list all the ways a decision might fail—then plan to avoid them.
Frameworks reduce bias, encourage input, and get team members thinking several steps ahead. For a quick starter, check out YouTube channels like Valuetainment which break down frameworks for real business scenarios.
Tool Tip:
Free online resources such as MindTools and Trello’s Decision Matrix template can help your team pick and implement frameworks instantly.
Assign Ownership and Accountability from the Outset
One of the silent killers in scaling businesses is ‘decision-by-committee’. When nobody’s sure who’s got the final say, decisions get delayed—or worse, made and blamed on someone else.
Assign a single, empowered sponsor for every major decision. Make it clear who’s responsible, what information they’re expected to gather, and when they need to make the call.
- Write up decision criteria in advance (what “success” looks like)
- Keep a simple log of who made what decision, and why
- Debrief on both wins and fails—turn mistakes into learning opportunities
Watch Out For:
A culture of blame slows decision making and stifles innovation. Praise decisions made in good faith, even if they don’t pan out—then share what’s been learned team-wide.
Keep Everything Aligned to Strategic Goals
How to Anchor Every Decision
The surest way to waste time is by sweating over choices that don’t actually help your business move forward. Before launching into a new project or change, ask:
- Does this support our current strategic objectives?
- What’s the measurable improvement if we get this right?
- Is there data from past decisions that could guide us here?
Start every major choice by restating your goal. As an example, if your focus this quarter is boosting customer retention, prioritise decisions that directly impact customer experience and loyalty—don’t get sidetracked by shiny distractions.
Good Practice:
Publish your business priorities somewhere visible: the intranet, an office whiteboard, or your company handbook.
Make Practice Part of the Process
Build Decision-Making Muscle
Great decision-making is a skill you build, not a switch you flick. Encourage your managers to run short scenario or simulation sessions—role playing upcoming business challenges, discussing “what would you do if…” This works especially well for training new team leaders.
- Run after-action reviews following big decisions (win or lose)
- Invite external advisors or non-executives for occasional ‘critical friend’ sessions
- Use feedback loops—ask teams for honest input after each cycle
Online tools like Harvard Business Review’s case studies or leadership games on MindTools can be excellent resources.
Handy FAQs
How do I stop getting bogged down in minor decisions?
Automate or delegate low-stakes decisions wherever possible. Use team rules, budgets, and project charters to make sure your own time is spent on genuinely impactful calls.
What’s the best way to handle pushback from the team?
Be transparent about your process, involve key voices early, and frame decisions around shared strategic goals—not personal opinion.
Should I bring in an outside advisor?
For major moves or when you lack in-house expertise, yes. An external director or part-time executive can provide clear-headed guidance, especially when emotions run high. Learn more about how fractional leadership can transform your business at Leadership Services.
Quick-Start Checklist: Level-Up Your Decision-Making
- Categorise your decisions (strategic, tactical, operational)
- Centralise data—everyone uses the same numbers
- Roll out frameworks for structured thinking
- Appoint accountable owners—no committees for crucial calls
- Test everything against your main business goals
- Review, learn, repeat—embed ongoing practice and feedback
For more leadership tips and real-world strategies, visit our Insights Hub or check out our feature on Transformative Leadership On Tap.
Ready to take your business decision making from good to game-changing? The next move is yours.
