Summary.Judgment—the ability to combine personal qualities with relevant knowledge and experience to form opinions and make decisions—is “the core of exemplary leadership,” according to Noel Tichy and Warren Bennis (the authors of Judgment: How Winning Leaders Make Great Calls). It is what enables a sound choice in the absence of clear-cut, relevant data or an obvious path. Likierman believes that a more precise understanding of what exactly gives someone good judgment may make it possible for people to learn and improve on it. He approached CEOs at a range of companies, from some of the world’s largest right down to start-ups, along with leaders in the professions: senior partners at law and accountancy firms, generals, doctors, scientists, priests, and diplomats. He asked them to share their observations of their own and other people’s exercise of judgment so that he could identify the skills and behaviors that collectively create the conditions for fresh insights and enable decision makers to discern patterns that others miss. As a result, he has identified six key elements that collectively constitute good judgment: learning, trust, experience, detachment, options, and delivery. He describes these elements and offers suggestions for improvement in each one.
Idea in Brief
The Objective
A manager’s core function is to exercise judgment—to form views and interpret ambiguous evidence in a way that will lead to a good decision.
The Challenge
We have no clear framework for learning good judgment or recognizing it in others. To evaluate a leader’s judgment, we often rely on his or her track record, which can be misleading.
The Solution
This article identifies six components that contribute to good judgment: learning, trust, experience, detachment, options, and delivery. By working on each, leaders can improve their ability to make sense of an ambiguous situation.
A decision must be made. The facts have been assembled, and the arguments for and against the options spelled out, but no clear evidence supports any particular one. Now people around the table turn to the CEO. What they’re looking for is good judgment—an interpretation of the evidence that points to the right choice.
A version of this article appeared in the January–February 2020 issue of Harvard Business Review.
FAQs
The Solution
What are the six elements of Judgement? ›
Measuring judgment and engaging in the process of improving it requires understanding the six elements of judgment, according to Likierman:
- What you take in. ...
- Who and what you trust. ...
- What you know.
- What you feel and believe. ...
- Making the choice. ...
- Acting on the decision.
Good judgment is about making the best decision rather than relying on your own opinion. By listening to others, you can collect and assess important information that applies to your decision. Asking open-ended questions and waiting to form a decision can help you can make a more informed final decision.
What are the qualities of Judgement? ›
In this article I'll walk through the six basic components of good judgment – I call them learning, trust, experience, detachment, options, and delivery – and offer suggestions for how to improve them.
What are the 3 elements of judgement? ›
But the judgment is composed of three elements: subject, attribute, and copula. To these three elements of the judgment correspond the three elements of the proposition: two terms, which express the subject and predicate or attribute, and the copula, which unites them.
What are the five steps in the judgment process? ›
These are:
- Identify and define the issue. ...
- Gather the facts and information, and identify the relevant literature. ...
- Perform the analysis and identify alternatives. ...
- Make the decision. ...
- Review and complete the documentation and rationale for the conclusion.
Luke 6:37 “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven; For those that are filled with the Holy Spirit the truth of God is revealed to them. Through God's word, His church (family in Christ) His path for us is made clear.
What does the Bible mean by good judgement? ›
Good judgment is the natural exercise of right thinking, an expression of our God-given spiritual nature as His intelligent children. Let's embrace and practice this quality of inspired thought. We will find ourselves thereby kept safe as we make wise choices that bring progress.
What does the Bible say about using good judgement? ›
5 Get wisdom; develop good judgment. Don't forget my words or turn away from them. 6 Don't turn your back on wisdom, for she will protect you. Love her, and she will guard you.
What is the spiritual meaning of judgement? ›
judgment--Mental act of evaluation through comparison or contrast. Spiritual discernment; the inner voice through whose expression we come into a larger realization of ourselves. Judgment is a faculty of the mind that can be exercised in two ways--from sense perception or spiritual understanding.
To accurately assess the quality of someone's behaviour and the impact of their performance is to show good judgement. This is the key task of a leader or manager. But to speculate negatively on their motivations, or be perceived as criticising their identity, is to become judgemental and possibly bullying.
What are the 4 types of judgments? ›
The pretrial types of judgments are as follows: Confession of Judgment, Consent Judgment, Default Judgment. And Summary Judgment. A Confession of Judgment is a judgment that is filed when the debtor admits that there is a debt and agrees the judgment may be entered against the debtor.
What's another word for good judgement? ›
Some common synonyms of judicious are prudent, sage, sane, sapient, sensible, and wise. While all these words mean "having or showing sound judgment," judicious stresses a capacity for reaching wise decisions or just conclusions.
What are the stages of judgment? ›
In its development from crude to expert forms judgment exhibits three typical stages—the impersonal, the reflective, and the intuitive.
What are the levels of judgement? ›
In Table 1, the authors outline the three levels of reflective judgment with teaching examples from this framework: pre-reflective thinking, quasi-reflective thinking, and reflective thinking.
What are the different types of judgement in the Bible? ›
Finally, God judges, in at least five ways: to create, to identify, to provide, to incarnate, and to consummate. He gives us our universe, our personal identity, our lifelong provision, our salvation, and our glorification.
