Improving decision-making effectiveness in crisis situations: developing intuitive expertise at the workplace

Abstract

Design/Methodology/Approach This review examines the role of intuition as a cognitive tool to better manage complex crises. The paper draws on a case study in the aviation industry, the Hudson river incident, to advance the potency and value of intuitive expertise in crisis situations. Purpose Crisis managers operating in safety critical domains are often faced with difficult and exceptional conditions that may challenge their expertise and cause them to rely more heavily on their experiential knowledge. This review therefore provides insights into intuitive thinking and demonstrates its importance in crisis decision-making. Findings Evidence suggests that intuition arguably offers a better cognitive option to decision-makers in high staked and time-pressured crisis situations. The Hudson River case study further highlights why organizations should aim to train their personnel to become better intuitive thinkers. Originality/value This review challenges conventional classical decision theory, outlining its limitations in typical fast paced crises environments. The paper instead positions intuition as a scientific construct that holds important value for crisis managers in extreme conditions.

Securing Operational Capability for Exceptional Circumstances: How Do Professional First Responders Respond to the Unexpected?

“…In such a situation, an actor should make decisions under high risk, acute stress, time constraints, and incomplete information [54,55]. One interesting aspect here is expert intuition, by which an actor can recognize familiar, previously learned patterns from the emerging situation and hence make quick yet effective decisions [16,23,[56][57][58][59][60]. In this study, expert intuition was instrumental in detecting anomalies [15,22], whereupon the actors were able to make critical decisions to influence the dynamics of the situations [61][62][63][64].…”

“…Therefore, it is important to plan in advance, set up structures, draw operational models and action plans, and commit the relevant actors to follow them, while still maintaining the ability to detect when these pre-established scripts (be they procedures, operational models, action plans, the formal division of work, rules, tools, etc.) hinder rather than help produce effective responses, and take actions needed [13][14][15][16][17][18].…”

Holistic View of Intuition and Analysis in Leadership Decision-Making and Problem-Solving

“…The initial intuition indicated where the subsequent analysis should focus. In a later study, Okoli (2020) investigated the use of intuition in complex crisis situations and the need for flexible and creative responding. They further comment "Seasoned experts are likely to approach difficult problems through an interplay of the intuitive and deliberative styles .…”