Leadership Assessment Decision Making and Problem Solving 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which leadership decision-making style involves seeking input from team members but retaining final authority?
- Autocratic
- Consultative (Correct answer)
- Delegative
- Laissez-faire
Correct answer: Consultative
The consultative style gathers team perspectives and expertise to inform decisions while the leader retains accountability for the final choice.
Question 2: A SWOT analysis helps leaders make decisions by assessing:
- Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (Correct answer)
- Strategies, Workflows, Operations, and Targets
- Staff, Work, Outcomes, and Tools
- Systems, Waste, Objectives, and Trends
Correct answer: Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats
SWOT analysis evaluates internal strengths and weaknesses alongside external opportunities and threats to inform strategic decision-making.
Question 3: What is 'groupthink' and why is it a risk in leadership decision-making?
- A productive team brainstorming technique
- A bias where desire for group harmony overrides critical thinking, leading to poor decisions (Correct answer)
- A structured decision-making framework
- A type of democratic voting process
Correct answer: A bias where desire for group harmony overrides critical thinking, leading to poor decisions
Groupthink suppresses dissent and individual critical evaluation, causing teams to make poor decisions in pursuit of unanimous agreement.
Question 4: Which tool visually maps out all possible decision paths and their outcomes?
- Gantt chart
- Decision tree (Correct answer)
- Force field analysis
- RACI matrix
Correct answer: Decision tree
A decision tree maps choices and their potential consequences in a branching visual format, helping leaders evaluate options systematically.
Question 5: What does 'escalation of commitment' mean in leadership?
- Increasing team motivation over time
- Continuing to invest in a failing course of action due to prior investment (Correct answer)
- Delegating more decisions to subordinates
- Expanding the scope of a successful project
Correct answer: Continuing to invest in a failing course of action due to prior investment
Escalation of commitment, or the sunk cost fallacy, occurs when leaders persist with a failing decision because of resources already spent.
Question 6: Which problem-solving approach encourages generating a large volume of ideas without judgment before evaluating them?
- Critical path analysis
- Brainstorming (Correct answer)
- Force field analysis
- Cost-benefit analysis
Correct answer: Brainstorming
Brainstorming separates idea generation from evaluation, allowing creativity to flourish before critical analysis begins.
Leadership Assessment Decision Making and Problem Solving 2
Which leadership decision-making style involves seeking input from team members but retaining final authority?