Decision-making is a complicated process where the consequences can be good or bad depending on the prevailing situations and the decisions taken. In spite of the fact that all and sundry are involved in the decision-making process, very few understand the implication of a decision till they encounter negative consequences. Understanding various decision-making tools will allow businessmen/managers to leverage on these tools to take not only business decisions but also the day-to-day decisions.

The crux of any managerial role is to make decisions day in and day out. One leading politician, who later went on to become India's Prime Minister, once commented that not taking a decision is also a decision taken after evaluating alternatives. Decision-making prima facie may seem very easy as every one of us engages in decision-making, but we generally do not feel the pinch of making a decision, till something goes horribly wrong. For a manager or an entrepreneur managing an enterprise, decision-making is pivotal to the success of an organization.

A marketing manager may be in a fix whether to launch a product now or wait for the competitor to put the product first in the consumer's kitty. An HR manager may face a dilemma whether to recruit horses for courses or go for the proverbial jacks and likewise all other functions be they operations, production, purchase encounters situations where taking a call can make or break an organization. The million-dollar question is: How should a manager take decisions matching the needs of the organization? There are various ways of decision-making, which can be used judiciously if we understand the situation we are in.

Hindustan Unilever (HUL), formerly Hindustan Lever, had an extended product portfolio consisting of more than 100 brands. The company was unable to understand what amount of attention in the form of advertisements, promotion, sales push, and distribution expansion was required for every brand so as to maintain and grow the bottom line. After thorough introspection and minute observation, the company noticed that only 20% of the brands in the product portfolio brought in 80% of profits. Therefore, the company decided to restructure the product portfolio where 30 power brands were identified. The company decided to focus on these 30 brands as they brought in 80% of the profits. It enabled the company to optimize the resource utilization and also increase the sales revenue.

HRM Review Magazine, Decision-Making Process, Hindustan Unilever, HUL, Decision Making Tools, Multi Attribute Utility Theory, Managirial Grid Analysis, Decision Matrix Analysis, Decison tress Analysis, Direct Marketing, Organizational Objectives, Cost-benefit Analysis.