Decision Making
“Tell me about a time when you had to make a deci-
sion that you knew would be unpopular.”
■“I consider myself a strong manager who is open to sug-
gestions. I had one experience in which I had to make a
decision that was not well accepted by my staff. It involved
cutting one of the benefits they were receiving. I had a
meeting and announced the news to the staff. It was
greeted with a great deal of anger and frustration. I lis-
tened and addressed every question that was asked of me.
I had done my research and homework and was able to
use facts to demonstrate that the cost-benefit ratio was
not in line with good business decisions. They left less
upset than when they first heard the news, but it took
some time for the bad feelings to go away completely. I
believe that talking with them intelligently and using facts
made a difference in their feelings in the long run.”
■“There was a time when I hired a manager from outside
the organization. This was met with hard feelings by some
of the contenders for the job who had been passed over. I
took a hard stand, even though it was not a popular one. I
talked to the disgruntled individuals one-on-one and tried
to explain my reasons. Although it is not my preferred style,
I had to exercise my authority here. I have to admit there
were some tense days to live through at that time, but I
firmly believed that I knew what was best for the long haul,
and it turned out I was right.”
■“As part of management, I realize that my decisions will not
always be viewed as positive. One of those times was when
I had to make a quick decision to buy advertising at a spe-
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