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• Does this decision break any laws?
• How would I feel if this decision was broadcast on the news?
Types of Decisions
Despite the far-reaching nature of the decisions in the previous example, not all

decisions have major consequences or even require a lot of thought. For example,
before you come to class, you make simple and habitual decisions such as what to
wear, what to eat, and which route to take as you go to and from home and school.
You probably do not spend much time on these mundane decisions. These types of
straightforward decisions are termed programmed decisions; these are decisions that
occur frequently enough that we develop an automated response to them. The
automated response we use to make these decisions is called the decision rule. For
example, many restaurants face customer complaints as a routine part of doing
business. Because this is a recurring problem for restaurants, it may be regarded as a
programmed decision. To deal with this problem, the restaurant might have a policy
stating that every time they receive a valid customer complaint, the customer should
receive a free dessert, which represents a decision rule. Making strategic, tactical, and
operational decisions is an integral part of the planning function in the P-O-L-C
(planning-organizing-leading-controlling) model.
However, decisions that are unique and important require conscious thinking,
information gathering, and careful consideration of alternatives. These are called
nonprogrammed decisions. For example, in 2005, McDonald’s became aware of a
need to respond to growing customer concerns regarding foods high in fat and
calories. This is a nonprogrammed decision because for several decades, customers of
fast-food restaurants were more concerned with the taste and price of the food, rather
than the healthiness. In response, McDonald’s decided to offer healthier alternatives,
such as substituting apple slices in Happy Meals for French fries and discontinuing
the use of trans fats. A crisis situation also constitutes a nonprogrammed decision for
companies. For example, the leadership of Nutrorim was facing a tough decision.
They had recently introduced a new product, ChargeUp with Lipitrene, an improved
version of their popular sports drink powder, ChargeUp. But a phone call came from
a state health department to inform them that several cases of gastrointestinal distress
had been reported after people consumed the new product. Nutrorim decided to recall
ChargeUp with Lipitrene immediately. Two weeks later, it became clear that the
gastrointestinal problems were unrelated to ChargeUp with Lipitrene. However, the
damage to the brand and to the balance sheets was already done. This unfortunate
decision caused Nutrorim to rethink the way decisions were made under pressure so
that they now gather information to make informed choices even when time is of the
[3]
essence.

To ensure consistency around the globe such as at this St. Petersburg, Russia,
location, McDonald’s trains all restaurant managers (over 65,000 so far) at
Hamburger University where they take the equivalent of two years of college courses
and learn how to make decisions. The curriculum is taught in 28 languages.
Decision making can also be classified into three categories based on the level
at which they occur. Strategic decisions set the course of organization. Tactical

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