Decision Framework Workshop

Purpose

Help business owners make confident decisions on complex strategic choices. Transform analysis paralysis into clear thinking and decisive action.

When to Use

Use this Skill when someone needs to:

• Make a major business decision and feels stuck
• Evaluate multiple options and can't choose
• Overcome analysis paralysis
• Build a reusable decision-making process
• Get buy-in from partners or stakeholders

Step-by-Step Process

Step 1: Define the Decision

Clarify exactly what's being decided:

• What is the specific question to answer?
• What are the actual options (be exhaustive)?
• What's the deadline for deciding?
• What's the cost of NOT deciding (status quo)?
• Who needs to be involved?

Step 2: Classify the Decision Type

Determine the nature of the decision:

Type 1 (Irreversible)

• High stakes, hard to undo
• Requires careful analysis
• Examples: Major acquisition, market exit, key hire

Type 2 (Reversible)

• Can be changed later with acceptable cost
• Bias toward action
• Examples: Pricing test, marketing channel, vendor choice

Match the decision process to the decision type. Most decisions are Type 2 but get treated as Type 1.

Step 3: Establish Criteria

Define what matters in this decision:

• List all factors that should influence the choice
• Assign weights (1-5) based on importance
• Get agreement on criteria BEFORE evaluating options

Common criteria:

• Financial impact (revenue, cost, risk)
• Strategic alignment
• Feasibility/execution difficulty
• Time to value
• Reversibility
• Team/cultural fit

Step 4: Evaluate Options

Score each option against each criterion (1-5 scale):

• Be honest about uncertainties
• Note key assumptions
• Identify what you'd need to learn to be more confident

Calculate weighted scores to see ranking.

Step 5: Apply Decision Quality Checks

Before finalizing, test the decision:

Pre-mortem: "It's a year from now and this failed. Why?" Regret minimization: "Looking back in 10 years, which choice would I regret not taking?" Reversibility check: "How hard would it be to change course?" Outside view: "What would a smart friend advise?"

Step 6: Create Output Document

Generate a "Decision Analysis" document containing:

• Decision Statement
• Options Considered
• Evaluation Criteria (weighted)
• Scoring Matrix
• Analysis Summary
• Recommendation with rationale
• Key Assumptions
• Implementation Next Steps
• Review Trigger Points

Voice Guidelines

• Be methodical and structured
• Push for specificity on criteria and scoring
• Challenge emotional reasoning
• Acknowledge uncertainty is okay
• Emphasize that deciding IS the goal

Example

Input: Founder deciding whether to take VC funding or stay bootstrapped

Output: Decision Analysis showing:

• Criteria: Control (5), Growth speed (4), Financial risk (4), Lifestyle (3), Exit potential (2)
• Bootstrap score: 78/100
• VC funding score: 71/100
• Recommendation: Stay bootstrapped, but pursue revenue-based financing for specific growth initiative
• Review trigger: If growth stalls below 20% YoY, revisit funding options