OPERATIONAL DECISION MAKING: DIFFERENCES IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY PERCEPTION

This paper outlines the differences in perception between the person making an operational decision within an SME (Primary) and someone who is knowledgeable of the decision being made, but not directly involved in the process (Secondary). An empirical rating mechanism is used to ascertain a participant’s attitude to a specific set of operational decisions. Over 130 interviews were carried out in 25 SMEs. The Primary and Secondary responders were assessed and the differences in decision rating outlined and discussed. The difference in attitude to a decision within an SME is not a new topic in literature. Nicholson and Cannon (2000), discuss the differences in how CFO’s and MD’s view top team dynamics, where differences are elucidated in interviews between the different groups. In this paper the differences in perception are based on a decision taxonomy methodology, which allows for the empirical rating of one operational decision over another. The delta in perception can thus be deduced and plotted graphically for analysis and discussion.