Jul 26, 2021
What’s your current process for making a complex, high-stakes decision as a leader? Do you conduct extensive research? Rely on your intuition? Ask for advice from trusted parties?
Most decision-making models include some version of each of these components. But few actually guide you through a specific, logical research process — and fewer still include built-in cognitive bias challenges. That’s what makes the AREA Method different.
In this week’s episode of The Enlightened Executive, we are joined by Cheryl Strauss Einhorn, the developer of the AREA Method — a decision-making system for individuals, companies, and nonprofits to solve complex problems.
AREA is an acronym that stands for Absolute information, Relative sources, Exploration and Exploitation, and Analysis.
As a result of applying this process, leaders end up with a documented trail of ordered steps they took to arrive at their decision, including self-reflection. This trail not only makes them feel more confident in their final decision but also helps improve buy-in from team members who now have proof they did their due diligence.