Peers tend to look for a more senior manager, even if he is not the most competent or knowledgeable person involved, to take over because they are afraid to stick their necks out.You can overcome the peer-group syndrome by fostering self-confidence, which stems from being familiar with the issue under consideration, experience and the realization that nobody has ever died from making a wrong business decision.

The Peer-Group Syndrome

<ol><li>Free discussion: all viewpoints and different aspects of an issue are openly debated and where everyone has a chance to speak or express their opinions.</li><li>Reaching a clear decision. The terms of the decision should be framed with utter clarity.</li><li>Everyone involved must give the decision reached by the group full support. This does not necessarily mean agreement: so long as the participants commit to back the decision, that is a satisfactory outcome. </li></ol>

The Ideal Decision-Making Process

Before jumping into any decision-making process, ask:<ul><li>What decision needs to be made?</li><li>When does it have to be made?</li><li>Who will decide?</li><li>Who will need to be consulted prior to making the decision?</li><li>Who will ratify or veto the decision?</li><li>Who will need to be informed of the decision?</li></ul>

Striving for the Output

How To Overcome The Peer-Group Syndrome In his book, " Only the Paranoid Survive", Andy Grove (former Chairman and CEO of Intel) described how he and Gordon Moore (Founder, former CEO and Chairman of Intel)made the crucial decision to get out of the memory business.

Understand yourself and those around you.

psychology

Psychology