Optimizing Performance Through Leadership Decision-Making

Pressures to remain agile and flexible while struggling with costly operations and sustaining competitiveness in the global market have forced leadership to make complex, organizational decisions quickly. This study explores best practices in decision-making for senior leaders to improve organizational performance by re-engaging middle management in strategic decisions. Ludwig Von Bertalanffy general system theory and Herbert Simon’s decision-making theory guide the research. Combined, this theoretical framework views the organization as an entire system and effective decision-making as an integrated subsystem. Themes. Findings revealed five emerging themes: (1) Leadership styles influence decision making; (2) relevant information is necessary to make rational, quality decisions; (3) advantages and disadvantages exist for engaging middle managers in senior executive decision making; (4) adopted best practices lead to effective decision making and improved organizational performance; and, (5) internal and external factors impact organizational decisions and how they are made. Recommendations: Three recommendations are presented: Perform an assessment of individual leadership styles; create a standard decision-making process; and engage middle managers in senior leadership decision-making. Implications: A concept called middle management optimization is introduced to management practice to help leaders optimize the support that middle managers can provide in leadership decisions to improve organizational performance.Abstract Title of Dissertation: Optimizing Performance Through Leadership Decision-Making Naomi DeShields Sims, DBA, 2022 Pressures to remain agile and flexible while struggling with costly operations and sustaining competitiveness in the global market have forced leadership to make complex, organizational decisions quickly. This study explores best practices in decision-making for senior leaders to improve organizational performance by re-engaging middle management in strategic decisions. Ludwig Von Bertalanffy general system theory and Herbert Simon’s decision-making theory guide the research. Combined, this theoretical framework views the organization as an entire system and effective decision-making as an integrated subsystem. Themes. Findings revealed five emerging themes: (1) Leadership styles influence decision making; (2) relevant information is necessary to make rational, quality decisions; (3) advantages and disadvantages exist for engaging middle managers in senior executive decision making; (4) adopted best practices lead to effective decision making and improved organizational performance; and, (5) internal and external factors impact organizational decisions and how they are made. Recommendations: Three recommendations are presented: Perform an assessment of individual leadership styles; create a standard decision-making process; and engage middle managers in senior leadership decision-making. Implications: A concept called middle management optimization is introduced to management practice to help leaders optimize the support that middle managers can provide in leadership decisions to improve organizational performance. Keywords: decision-making, senior leadership, re-engagement, middle managers, organizational performance. Optimizing Performance Through Leadership Decision-Making by Naomi DeShields Sims Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration University of Maryland Global Campus September 2022 iv Dedication This dissertation is first dedicated to my mother whose dying wish was to ensure her little children were well taken care of and received a good education. Mom, this is my highest honor in memory of you! Second, to my father who told me that I could achieve anything I aspired to do. Third, to my siblings who are my true heroes in life. Finally, to my three amazing sons, my lions who are my greatest accomplishments, pride, and joy. To God be the Glory. To my family and friends, thanks for all your encouragement and many sacrifices. To all who read this dissertation, never stop learning and believing in yourself. v Acknowledgments I would like to acknowledge and honor exceptional contributors to this dissertation. First, Dr. Laura Witz, my primary academic mentor. You are absolutely amazing! I could not have achieved this goal without your tough but incredibly wise feedback and guidance, constant encouragement, patience, and push for me to think and become a true scholar. Dr. Raymond Marbury, my second academic mentor. You have a gift of helping others look at a management problem through a theoretical lens and turn it into a topic worthy of scholarly research. Thanks for challenging me along the way. I would also like to acknowledge the cohort members that I had the privilege of learning and collaborating with throughout the doctorate program and dissertation journey. We shared and learned so much from each other. Thanks for grabbing my hand whenever I wanted to pull back! I could not have completed this goal without your empathy and encouragement, and I hope I did the same for you. Next, I would like to acknowledge Andra Hoxie who told me to never give up on my dream and keep the faith, Dr. Rich Hornberger, Dr. Joanna Bennerson, and Dr. Barthelus, who took the time to offer guidance and shared their experiences. Thank you, to all those who made sacrifices for me as I furthered my educational pursuit. vi Table of Contents List of Tables ............................................................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ............................................................................................................................................... v Chapter 1: Introduction and Overview of the Management Problem ......................................................... 1 Overview of Management Problem ......................................................................................................... 1 The Value of Effective Communication .................................................................................................... 3 Perception of Middle Managers ............................................................................................................... 4 Purpose of Study ..................................................................................................................................... 5 Undervaluing Middle Managers ......................................................................................................... 6 Returning to Middle Managers .......................................................................................................... 8 Organization of the Study ......................................................................................................................... 8 Chapter 2: Scoping Literature Review and Theoretical Framework ........................................................... 11 Decision-Making ............................................................................................................................... 11 Calculated Choice ............................................................................................................................. 12 A Strategic Process ........................................................................................................................... 13 Decision Errors ................................................................................................................................ 14 Misjudging Risks and Business Models ............................................................................................ 15 Deciding Under Stress ...................................................................................................................... 16 Minimizing Decision Errors Through Inclusion ................................................................................. 17 Leadership Styles .............................................................................................................................. 18 vii Organizational Performance ............................................................................................................ 19 Leadership’s Responsibility for Performance................................................................................... 20 Challenges ....................................................................................................................................... 20 Middle Managers ............................................................................................................................. 21 Middle Management Roles .............................................................................................................. 21 Re-Introducing Senior Leadership to Middle Managers .................................................................. 22 Known Contributions to Organizational Performance ..................................................................... 22 Ability to Fulfill the Requirements of Sound Decision-Making ........................................................ 23 Active Elimination of this Resource ................................................................................................. 24 Passive Failure to Harness this Resource ......................................................................................... 24 Disengagement ............................................................................................................................... 25 Costs to Middle Management Attitudes and Performance ............................................................. 26 Cost of Organizational Performance ................................................................................................ 27 Harnessing the Capabilities of Middle Managers ............................................................................ 27 Re-Engagement ............................................................................................................................... 27 Benefits of Re-Engagement .............................................................................................................. 28 Theoretical Framework .......................................................................................................................... 30 General System Theory- A View of the Organization as a Whole ...................................................... 30 Decision-Making Theory- Bounded Rationality as the Primary Ingredient for Decision-Making ...... 33 Applying the Theory to Senior Leadership Decision-Making ............................................................. 34 Combining the Theories ..................................................................................................................... 36 Chapter Summary .............................................................................................................................. 37 viii Chapter 3: The Methodology ...................................................................................................................... 39 Review Design and Methodology ........................................................................................................... 39 The Evidence-Based Research Framework ............................................................................................. 40 The Systematic Review Described .......................................................................................................... 41 Types of Systematic Reviews .................................................................................................................. 43 Stakeholders and Subject Matter Experts .............................................................................................. 45 Systematic Review- A Realist Synthesis Process .................................................................................... 45 Search Strategy ...................................................................................................................................... 46 Search Locations .................................................................................................................................... 47 Search Terms ......................................................................................................................................... 47 Searching Using the Boolean Logic Approach ........................................................................................ 48 Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria .............................................................................................................. 51 Inclusion Methodology of Selecting Date Ranges ............................................................................. 51 Types of Sources Included ................................................................................................................. 52 Sources for Searching Evidence .............................................................................................................. 53 Grey Literature .................................................................................................................................. 53 Hard Searching .................................................................................................................................. 53 Peer-Reviewed Publications .............................................................................................................. 53 Other Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria ................................................................................................... 54 Inclusion Criteria ............................................................................................................................... 55 Exclusion Criteria............................................................................................................................... 55 ix Selective Screening .......................................................................................................................... 55 Organization of Data Collection and Ranking ......................................................................................... 56 PRISMA Diagram .................................................................................................................................... 56 Method of Quality Appraisal of the Included Studies ............................................................................ 59 Weight of Evidence A (Reliability) .......................................................................................................... 60 Weight of Evidence B (Relevance) ......................................................................................................... 60 Weight of Evidence C (Consistency) ...................................................................................................... 60 Analysis and Synthesis Methodology ...................................................................................................... 62 Coding as an Iterative Process ................................................................................................................. 64 Open Coding .......................................................................................................................................... 66 Axial and Selective Coding ...................................................................................................................... 66 Selective Coding .................................................................................................................................... 66 Thematic Analysis .................................................................................................................................. 67 Chapter Summary .................................................................................................................................. 68 Chapter 4: Analysis and Findings ................................................................................................................ 69 Subject Matter Experts ........................................................................................................................... 69 Recruitment of SMEs .............................................................................................................................. 69 Summary of SME Feedback .................................................................................................................... 70 Theoretical Framework and General Feedback ..................................................................................... 71 Results of Source Search ........................................................................................................................ 73 Boolean T1 Search Results...................................................................................................................... 74 x Boolean T2 Search Results...................................................................................................................... 75 Boolean T3 Search Results...................................................................................................................... 76 Summary of Final Source Pool ................................................................................................................ 76 Results of Relevancy Screening .............................................................................................................. 77 Results of the Quality Appraisal of the Data Set .................................................................................... 80 Summary of WoE Scores ........................................................................................................................ 81 Characteristics of Sources ...................................................................................................................... 81 Data Range Selection .............................................................................................................................. 86 Open Coding .......................................................................................................................................... 86 Second Cycle-Axial Coding ....................................................................................................................... 88 Third Cycle Selective Coding ................................................................................................................... 90 Finding Discussion-Realist Synthesis Approach ...................................................................................... 91 1. Leadership Characteristics and Styles .......................................................................................... 91 2. Availability of Quality of Information ........................................................................................... 92 3. Pros & Cons of Engaging Middle Management ............................................................................ 92 4. Best Practices in Senior Leadership Decision-Making .................................................................. 92 5. Impact of Contingent Factors on Organization-Wide Decisions .................................................. 92 Finding 1- Characteristics and Styles ...................................................................................................... 96 Leadership Style Influences ............................................................................................................... 97 Leadership Support of Middle Management Engagement................................................................ 97 Top Managers Verses Middle Management Perceptions .................................................................. 97 Finding 2-Availability of Quality Information ......................................................................................... 98 xi Need for Quality, Accurate Information to Make Informed Decisions .............................................. 99 Information Gathering Through Engagement and Participation .................................................... 100 Variables that Impact the Use of Quality and Accurate Information .............................................. 100 Finding 3- Pros and Cons of Engaging Middle Management ............................................................... 101 Pros of Engaging Middle Managers Senior Leadership Decision-Making ........................................ 102 Benefits of Middle Management Engagement ................................................................................ 103 Cons of Engaging Middle Managers in Senior Leadership Decision Making ................................... 104 Finding 4-Best Practices in Senior Leadership Decision-Making .......................................................... 104 Decision-Making Starts with a Strong Foundation and Standards .................................................. 105 Senior Leadership Decision-Making Models and Processes ............................................................ 106 Finding 5- Internal and External Conditions Have a Direct Link to Decision-Making Practices and Performance Outcomes ................................................................................................................... 107 External and Internal Environmental Factors That Impact Organizational Outcomes ......