Evidence-Based Decision Making
A rapidly spreading movement in the medical profession is
evidence-based decision making. The business community has also
begun to take notice. Pfeffer and Sutton's recent "Harvard
Business Review" article argues for evidence-based decision
making in business management.
Physicians using evidence-based decision making are committed to
identifying, disseminating, and applying the latest research
that is soundly conducted and clinically relevant. While this
makes common sense, it is not common practice.
Thousands of studies of medical practice are conducted each
year. You may find the research findings disturbing. Only 15% of
medical decisions are evidence based!
What do physicians rely on the other 85% of the time? It appears
to be a combination of the following:
- generally accepted, but never proven, tradition
- methods in which they are most skilled
- information from vendors of products and services
- obsolete knowledge acquired in medical school
Pfeffer and Sutton believe, "managers are actually much more
ignorant than doctors about which prescriptions are
reliable--and less eager to find out." A harsh accusation, but
one containing a serious reason for concern.
I should point out that Pfeffer and Sutton's research focuses on
"how companies ought to be managed" (their own words). Their
prescriptive, rather than descriptive, conclusions often clash
with the reality of real-world business decision making.
Nevertheless, their work reveals opportunities for improving our
decision making effectiveness.
As I stated in my book, "Strategic Organizational Learning,"
competence in any
profession (medicine, management, or consulting) depends largely
on the tacit knowledge gained from experience. While I am an
advocate for seeking real-world professional experience, our
experience will always be limited.
Pfeffer and Sutton, correctly state, "Seasoned practitioners
sometimes neglect to seek out new evidence because they trust
their own clinical experience more than they trust research."
They go on to say, "information acquired firsthand often feels
richer and closer to real knowledge than do words and data in a
journal article."
So, what am I suggesting? Should you discount the hard-earned
tacit knowledge you have acquired over many years of
professional work? Of course not. But, I do recommend that you
become any active member of a community of practice, read the
journals in your field, and always question what you "know."
To read more about this topic, I recommend Pfeffer and Sutton's
new book, "Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total
Nonsense: Profiting from Evidence-Based Management" (Harvard
Business School Press).