A reliable process for major workplace decisions has five steps: define what you are actually deciding, gather the information that could change your mind, consult the people who will live with the consequences, decide and record your reasoning, then review the process rather than only the outcome. If you have been asked this in an interview, answer with a real example structured as situation, task, action and result. Interviewers are testing whether you have a repeatable method, not whether you happened to be right.
Being asked how you make decisions is unnerving, because the honest answer for most of us is “it depends”. But there is a structure underneath good decisions, and once you can name it you can both use it and describe it.
This guide covers the five steps, then how to turn them into an interview answer that does not sound rehearsed.
What are some steps you take to make major decisions at work?
Five steps. They work for a rostering call at 6am and for a supplier change that runs to six figures.
Step 1. Define the decision you are actually making
Most bad decisions are answers to the wrong question. Before anything else, write down what you are deciding in one sentence, and what outcome you are trying to achieve.
Be specific about scope. “Should we change suppliers” is a different decision from “should we move this one product line to a different supplier”, and the second is usually the one that matters. Narrowing the question early is the cheapest improvement available to any decision.
Also name the constraint. Is this decision bounded by time, budget, headcount, or a compliance requirement? A decision made without knowing its real constraint tends to get reversed.
Step 2. Gather the information that would change your mind
Not all information. The information that could actually change the answer.
That distinction saves enormous amounts of time. Ask yourself: what would I need to see to choose differently? Then go and look for that, rather than assembling a general pile of context.
This is also where structured tools earn their place. A SWOT analysis, a simple decision matrix scoring each option against weighted criteria, or an honest pros-and-cons list all do the same job: they get the reasoning out of your head and onto a page where its gaps are visible. Use one if the decision is genuinely complex. Do not use three.
Be alert to the difference between data and impression. “The supplier is unreliable” is an impression. Six months of delivery records is data, and it will often show the problem is narrower than the impression suggested.
Step 3. Consult the people who carry the consequences
Some decisions can be made alone. Any decision that changes how other people work cannot.
Seek input from the people who will live with the result, not just those senior to you. The person operating the machine usually knows something about the machine that the org chart does not capture. Colleagues, mentors and subject experts add perspectives you cannot generate on your own.
Consulting is not the same as seeking consensus. You are gathering information and testing your reasoning, and you still own the decision at the end of it. Say that plainly when you consult, so nobody mistakes being asked for having a vote.
Step 4. Decide, and record why
Make the call, and write down the reasoning in two or three lines: what you chose, what you were optimising for, and what you knew at the time.
That record does two things. It protects you if the decision is questioned later, because the standard you will be judged against is whether the reasoning was sound given what was known, not whether the outcome was lucky. And it lets you learn, because you can compare your reasoning against what actually happened.
Then communicate the decision to the people it affects, including the ones whose preferred option you did not choose. Being told why is what separates a decision people accept from one they resent.
Step 5. Review the outcome, not just the result
The result is what happened. The outcome is whether your process was any good.
A decision can be well made and turn out badly, and it can be poorly made and get lucky. If you only review results, you will learn the wrong lessons from both.
Ask three questions afterwards: what did I know, what did I miss, and what would I check earlier next time. Then move on. Reviewing is useful; re-litigating is not.
How to answer this question in an interview
If you are here because an interviewer asked how you make major decisions, this is the part that matters.
Why interviewers ask it
They are not testing whether you were right. They are testing three things: whether you have a repeatable method, whether you consult before acting, and whether you can be honest about a decision that did not go perfectly.
Candidates who describe a process without an example sound theoretical. Candidates who describe a decision with no consultation sound like a risk. Candidates who have never made a decision they would revisit sound like they are not being straight.
Structuring your answer with STAR
The STAR structure keeps the answer tight and stops it drifting into backstory.
- Situation. One sentence of context. Where you worked, what was happening, why a decision was needed.
- Task. What you specifically were responsible for deciding. Not the team, you.
- Action. The steps you took, in order. This is where your five-step process appears, in your own words.
- Result. What happened, with a number if you have one, and what you would do differently.
Spend roughly 15% of your answer on Situation, 15% on Task, 50% on Action and 20% on Result. Most candidates invert this and spend two minutes on the backstory. If you want to practise the structure more broadly, our guide to behavioural interview questions covers the other questions it applies to.
Sample answer 1: team leader or supervisor
“At my last site we ran two production lines, and one morning an operator called in sick an hour before shift with a delivery deadline that afternoon. I had to decide whether to run both lines short-staffed or shut one down and run the other properly.
I checked the actual order commitments rather than the schedule, because only one of the two orders had a hard deadline. I spoke to the two most experienced operators about what running short would mean for quality and safety, since they were the ones who would carry it. I decided to shut the second line and put everyone on the priority order, and I sent a short note to my manager explaining the reasoning so it was not a surprise.
We hit the deadline with no quality issues, and the second order went out a day late with the customer notified in advance. Looking back, I would have called that customer earlier. I made the operational decision quickly and the communication decision slowly.”
Sample answer 2: office and administrative roles
“In my last role I managed supplier bookings, and we had to decide whether to move to a new provider mid-contract after repeated late deliveries.
I pulled six months of delivery data rather than relying on the general feeling that they were unreliable, and it showed the failures were concentrated in one product line rather than across the board. I asked the two people who dealt with the supplier daily what they would change, and I got quotes from two alternatives so I was comparing real numbers. I recommended keeping the supplier but moving that one product line, and I wrote up the comparison so my manager could see the reasoning.
It cut late deliveries by about 70% without the cost and disruption of a full changeover. What I learned was to check whether a problem is general or specific before proposing a general solution.”
Mistakes that sink this answer
- Describing a process with no example. The interviewer asked what you do, not what one should do.
- Choosing an example where you were the only person affected. It reads as low stakes.
- Never mentioning consulting anyone. It reads as someone who does not check.
- Blaming someone else for the difficult part. It reads as someone who will blame you next.
- Claiming you were right every time. Include one thing you would do differently. It is the most credible sentence in the whole answer.
If the conversation is progressing, our second interview tips cover what changes at the next stage, and if it is happening on video, so does preparing for a virtual interview.
How to make better decisions when the information is incomplete
Most real workplace decisions are made without enough information, and waiting for certainty is itself a decision.
Ask what a wrong answer actually costs. A reversible decision with a low cost of error should be made fast. An irreversible one deserves more time. Treating both the same way is the most common failure in practice.
Set a decision deadline in advance. “I will decide by Thursday with whatever I have” prevents indefinite drift and is usually better than the decision you would make three weeks later.
Look for the cheapest test. Can you trial the option on one line, one shift or one product before committing? A small reversible step often beats more analysis.
Name your assumption. If you are assuming demand holds, write that down. When it changes, you will know to revisit rather than discovering it later.
Analysis paralysis is not caution. It is a decision to accept the current situation, made without admitting it.
Making decisions about your team
If the decision in front of you is a hiring one, the same structure applies. Define what the role actually needs rather than copying the last job ad. Gather evidence that would change your mind about a candidate rather than confirming a first impression. Consult the people who will work alongside them. Record why you chose who you chose.
Defining what you are measuring is often the hardest part, and it is worth doing before you advertise. Our breakdown of warehouse manager skills and KPIs is a worked example of what that clarity looks like for one role.
And if you are on the other side of the table and preparing for interviews, browse our current vacancies to see what is open now.
Frequently asked questions
What are some steps you take to make major decisions at work?
Five steps: define exactly what you are deciding and what constrains it; gather the information that could change your answer rather than all available information; consult the people who will live with the consequences; make the decision and record your reasoning; then review the process afterwards, not just the result. The same structure works for small operational calls and major commitments.
How do you answer "how do you make decisions" in an interview?
Use a real example structured as situation, task, action and result. Give one sentence of context, state what you personally were responsible for deciding, walk through the steps you took in order, then give the result with a number if you have one. Include one thing you would do differently, because it is the most credible part of the answer.
What is the STAR method for interview answers?
STAR stands for situation, task, action and result. It keeps an answer structured and stops it drifting into backstory. Aim to spend roughly 15% of the answer on situation, 15% on task, 50% on action and 20% on result. Most candidates spend too long on context and not enough on what they actually did.
What is a good example of decision making at work?
The strongest examples involve real stakes, other people affected, and a decision you owned. A rostering call under time pressure, a supplier change, or a change to how work is allocated all work well. Avoid examples where you were the only person affected, because they read as low stakes.
How do you make a decision when you do not have all the information?
Ask what a wrong answer would cost. Reversible, low-cost decisions should be made quickly; irreversible ones deserve more time. Set a decision deadline in advance to prevent drift, look for the cheapest way to test an option on a small scale, and write down the assumption you are relying on so you know when to revisit.
