¶ … working within your profession, which quadrant do you feel that you most often operate in? Why? What could you do to train yourself to think in another quadrant?
It is not surprising that most people tend to rely on a comfortable skill set in the day-to-day work that places them squarely in one of Hermann's quadrants or another. After all, people manage to achieve some degree of success in the workplace by using what they know and likely rely on standardized, fairly routine approaches to problem solving and management. Some situations, though, tend to evoke a different thinking approach, but these are typically anomalies and people quickly return to their comfortable quadrant for other purposes.
In my profession, most operations are in the "C" quadrant because I am a methodical individual who prefers a linear, step-by-step approach to problem solving. This is not to say, of course, that other styles of operation are not employed, only that the majority of my operations take place in the C. quadrant compared to the others. For example, I frequently compile "to-do" lists of the steps needed to accomplish a given goal, and follow these guidelines in pursuing its achievement.
Because this standardized approach to operation in the workplace has proven successful and effective in...
Which elements do you find to be evident in your decision making? Which elements could you have used to make your decision even stronger? How could you go about improving your skills in these areas?
A recent decision I made involved communicating the results of a quality improvement initiative that was suggested and implemented by me to my supervisor. The quality improvement initiative had produced the desired results and improved performance according to the quantifiable metrics used to evaluate its effectiveness. The communication to my supervisor assumed the form of an email that was titled, "Results of Quality Improvement Initiative to Date." The email provided a brief background of the initiative for ease of the supervisor's reference, the metrics that…
