Data-Driven Decision Making

There's been a lot of talk about using data to "make" decisions, but I prefer to think about using data to "inform"  the decision making process.

Take for example the process of buying a car. You could just buy the first car you see, the one that's most popular, the same kind you always buy or the one the salesman recommends. Or you can start by collecting some data. You may look up information online, solicit advice from friends or relatives, visit a dealer, research auto loans. Once you have gathered some data, you have to evaluate it and decide what is most likely true, what is most valuable in making a decision, whether you need more data and if so, what kind of additional data and where can you get it. The data doesn't necessarily make the decision, it informs the decision making process.

The same process can be applied in schools. For example, instead of blindly using the same textbook year after year, you can examine the data related to the use of the textbook like test score is that subject area, research alternative course materials like online educational resources, compare them to current standards, research best practices in other schools and districts and then make an informed decision on whether or not to continue to use that textbook.

My school is currently in the midst of the open enrollment application period - a critical process that will determine how many students we will have next year and consequently what our budget will be and how many teachers, laptops, server space, online textbook licenses, etc. we will need. Since we cannot wait until the application period is over to do our budgeting and staffing for next year, we analyze the available data on the number of applications that are coming in compared to prior years to inform our decision making.

The blue line indicates the number of applications received to date this year. At this point in the application period, we are ahead of pace compared to last year, but slightly behind compared to 2010 and 2009. We had to make some assumptions and adjustments to this year's projections because in previous years, the application period was only three weeks long and this year it is three months. Even so, analyzing this information will help us make some projections about enrollment numbers that will really help our planning for next year. It will also help us make midstream adjustments to our marketing efforts. If application levels go up compared to other years, we can cut back on our Internet marketing expenditures. If application lag behind, we can shift some funds to pay for an additional direct mail campaign. In either case, the data informs the decision making.

Are Leaders Born or Made?

Most people have probably heard someone described as a "natural born leader." True, some people seem to have an unusually high degree of confidence or charisma that draws people to them. Does that mean that people who do not possess that same qualities can never assume a leadership role? In other words, are some people predestined from birth to be leaders, while others who were born without the "leadership gene" relegated to just accept their position as a follower? The nature vs. nurture debate can be argued in regards to many social attributes and leadership is no exception.

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When asked to describe the qualities of a good leader, many people cite characteristics like passion, intelligence, vision, ability to communicate clearly, sense of humor, strength of character, patience, wisdom, common sense, reliability, creativity, sensitivity, etc. Surely, no one is born with all these traits fully developed. And people who have not previously demonstrated a quality like patience or the ability to communicate clearly can learn and practice those skills.

Legendary Green Bay Packers Football Coach Vince Lombardi once said, "Leaders are made, they are not born. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal that is worthwhile." (Note: As a Packers fan, I rarely pass up an opportunity to quote Vince Lombardi). I think there is some truth to that. In fact, I believe everyone possesses the intrinsic characteristics required for leadership, and that those characteristics can be nurtured and developed. This may be interpreted as a cop out, but my analysis is that leaders are both born and made.

Of course, that raises another question. What factors cause some people to assume leadership roles and others not? Economist John Kenneth Galbraith notes that, "All of the great leaders have one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of the people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership." That would explain the actions of famous historical leaders, but what about your garden variety leaders; your CEOs, your police captains, your aldermen, your committee chairperson or your classroom teachers? For them I think their motivation is much more subtle. It's the vision to see the world as a better place and the recognition of their ability and responsibility to make it happen.

I consider myself a leader in my educational organization in the same way that President John Quincy Adams regarded leadership when he said, "If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader." For me that applies both to my colleagues as well as the students I come in contact with. I lead by doing my own job to the best of my ability every day and by advancing the vision of our organization.

In terms of my personal leadership style, I subscribe to a style of servant leadership championed by Lao Tzu, father of Taoism, that describes the function of leadership as producing more leaders, not more followers. "A leader is best when people barely know he exists," Lao Tzu teaches. "When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves."