3 Ways to Reach Project Decisions

    PMI-RMP Exam Prep

  •  Minute Read

Project managers are faced with numerous decisions. And many times, you need to engage your project team in reaching project decisions. Voting may be used to quickly make a decision.

people voting

A decision is reached when the largest block of individuals vote for an option is called:

A. Majority vote

B. Unanimous vote

C. Plurality vote

D. Autocratic vote

Improving your Decision Making

Facilitating high-quality decisions can be difficult. Individuals have strong opinions. And the decision process can even become heated, possibly causing relational strain within your team.

Think about your upcoming decisions. Determine who will make the decisions? Will it be your project sponsor, you, or your team?

Another way to handle decisions is to facilitate discussions with your team, share the results with the ultimate decision maker, and let that person make the final decision.

If your team will be making the decision, determine which voting technique you will use. Consider these 3 ways to reach project decisions: unanimity, majority, or plurality. 

people voting

Answer Key

Answer:  C

Plurality. This type of voting occurs when the largest block of individuals vote for an option. This technique is used when there are numerous options (two or more options). 

Unanimous voting is when all of your team members agree on a single option.

When more than 50% of your team votes for an option, we call this a majority vote. This works best with an uneven number of team members.

How about you?

Do you capture your decisions in a decision register? How many times have you heard someone make a significant project decision but no one summarized and captured it? Later in the project, someone challenges the decision. Questions start to surface:

  • Who made the decision?
  • Did the decision maker have the authority to make the decision?
  • What data or information was used to make the decision? Wise project managers have their antenna up, listening for important decisions.

Once the decisions are made, validate and capture the decisions. Download the Decision Register Template.

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