8600-300 Solving Problems and Making Decisions

Unit Overview

Leaders in different areas of the organisation have to possess the capability to effectively identify problems within the organisation that could compromise the performance of their teams, individuals or areas of responsibility. They should also ensure that they are able to make effective decisions that contribute to solving the problems. This process of developing solutions to problems within the organisation and in various areas of responsibilities calls for mastery of skills and information.

8600-300 Solving Problems and Making Decisions is a unit within the ILM Level 3 module that contributes to building the capacities to effectively identify problems from their root cause, analyse the nature, scope and impact of the problem and generate effective solutions for these issues. Leaders at different levels, including junior managers, first-line managers and supervisors within the organisation, must ensure that they mobilise available resources to facilitate evidence-based decision-making in creating and implementing solutions to organisational problems.

This unit provides the leaders with the necessary training in building skills and capabilities to achieve this role. The main aims and purpose of this unit are to help the learner, mainly practising or potential leaders in different areas of responsibility, with the ability and training required to effectively use data-based mechanisms of making decisions and implementing this decision to solve problems within the organisation. The unit is taught in 9 hours of guided learning and has a credit value of 2 in the overall completion of the ILM Level 3 module.

Suitability of the Unit

This unit is important for all leaders tasked with the process of decisions making. There are different levels of decision manning within the organisation. The strategic level is designed for the executive management and senior leader, the tactical level of decisions making is the responsibility of the middle managers within the organisation, and the operational level is the responsibility of the junior managers and first-line managers.

This unit provides the information that is supposed to support the decision-making in all three levels of organisational management. It is designed to majorly meet the learning needs of the junior managers, first-line managers and supervisors who are responsible for interacting with employees and ensuring that services are provided to the customers. These individuals have the duty of mobilising resources and managing teams or individuals who are assigned different tasks aimed at addressing problems that contribute to the accomplishment of organisational goals and objectives.

The unit, therefore, helps to build the mastery of skills and knowledge required for this process, making it suitable for the theme. However, the information within this unit is highly suitable for other leaders, including the middle managers and executive management. External consultants supporting organisational decision-making can also pursue the unit to improve their understanding of the process of solving problems and making decisions using available data within the workplace.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of the unit, the learners should be able to:

• Identify a problem , its nature and its impact within the organisational setting, especially in their area of responsibility

• Collect and interpret information that is important in identifying the possible solutions to the problem

• Develop a summary of the options that can be implemented in addressing the problem providing evidence and facts to support the options that are suggested

• Apply a relevant decision-making model and technique to evaluate the best option among the solutions that have been identified

• Develop an effective implementation and communication plan that can be used to share the selected choice to different stakeholders and pass information on the process

• Describe the techniques that have been established to monitor and review the outcomes that are achieved with the implementation plan.

Key Areas of Learning

8600-300 Solving Problems and Making Decisions is a unit aimed at improving awareness of the managerial roles and responsibilities of effective decision-making to solve problems within the organisation. As such, the unit covers critical areas of learning that include:

Data Collection on the Problem

This area of learning covers two critical aspects that include: collecting data using investigation and analysis to identify the problems and set objectives in relation to addressing the problem. Here the learner is guided to understand the processes of brainstorming and developing problem-solving and creative thinking skills that contribute to the ability to devise diagnostic solutions to the problem.

The second approach is collecting data from primary and secondary sources and interpreting it to build information that is useful in addressing the problem that has been identified. This involves effective approaches of indexing, referencing and structuring qualitative and quantitative information to achieve the desired decision-making purposes.

Models of Decision Making

This area of learning helps the learners to develop an effective understanding on the process of generating potential solutions to the problem identified within the organisation based on data collected and make objective decisions on the problem that is being solved within the organisation.

The area focuses on providing the learners with an understanding on the techniques that they can use to evaluate options and models that support their decisions making to ensure that they aligned to the organisational goals and objectives. This is achieved by helping the learners understand the relevant information that can be used for specific decisions and the context within the organisations where this data is applied.

Implementation and Monitoring

This area provides the learners with an understanding on approaches to planning for implementation and review of the techniques and solutions that have been selected. Some of the main planning techniques covered within this area of learning include the development of action plans and Gantt charts.

Learners are also provided with the necessary approaches they can use to present and argue their case to different audiences, including other stakeholders, using facts and evidence that supports their decisions making rather than mere opinion. Lastly, the learners are taught the significance of effective monitoring and reviewing of the techniques implemented in facilitating success within the organisation. The learners are introduced to different tools that can be used to achieve the desired levels of evaluation of outcomes.

Evaluation

Upon completion of this unit, the learners are evaluated to determine the accomplishment of learning objectives. The evaluation is conducted using a summative assessment where the learners provide written feedback to a template on the unit. Supervised practice, simulated exercises and case studies can also be used for summative assessment to ensure the learners can use the principles and models learned in a practical setting.