Object Lesson #1: Decision Trees and Desire Paths PART ONE

Why does anyone try to do things differently than the way it first occurs to them? To get different results, usually. 

But what about when you want to do things the same way, over and over again reliably? That's what an intentional approach to running a business is all about, and it's the goal of all business systems.

Let's explore this difference by talking about decision trees and desire paths.

Desire Paths

A desire path is something we've all seen. If there is no paved path to a drinking fountain at a park, the shortest or easiest path will be visibly worn in by foot traffic. Paths to water are a great subset of examples and a good way to think about desire paths.

There is a certain kind of truth in evidence in desire paths, along the lines of "Form is the diagram of forces," and so systems designers in specialties from civil engineering to software engineering observe the emergence of desire paths and incorporate them, sometimes with little amendment, into their systems, formalizing behavior patterns that spring organically from people trying to do use the system in question for their own purposes.

Not only are these paths useful in their own right, but they can be powerfully illustrative examples of the difference in perspective and intention between those who design systems (or, in the case of a business owner, pay to have systems designed) and those who use them. 

For all the highflown technical language used to describe the iterative project management methodologies so favored in software and product development, what this paradigm really embraces is the value of having engineers' and other planners' assumptions contrasted with the intuitive responses of users. 

Now, the companies who invested in formalizing these project management standards did so because they saved them millions of dollars and years of wasted development time.

But when you make plans in a small business, this iterative approach is perhaps even more important. That's because an iterative approach not only allows for progressive, incremental investment of budget, time and resources, but as a small business owner who also personally manages the staff, you preserve and reinforce your personal credibility when you avoid an all-or-nothing. big-bet attitude toward change. 

In our own lives and businesses, looking for desire paths is just as useful, especially if we extend this concept out and away from literal paths and also include backlogs, shortcuts, and ongoing disagreements. Really, when we use the lens of desire paths to look at what's going on, it allows us to look beyond the surface and try to trace the origins and destinations, or desires and their fulfillment.

When bring the notion of desire paths into the EffectiveAction (EA) method, we can see both the positive and the negative applications. When we notice, or the Team brings to our attention a desire path in the form of a shortcut, workflow, or standard, we can run it as an EA experiment for a set timeframe to later correlate with business metrics.        

Decision Trees 

A decision tree is a way to model a decision-making process. Because they can document the decision making procedure simultaneous to revealing the consequences of all known branches, they are extremely useful for taking inventory of the requirements for wise decision making, as well as documenting, supporting, and sharing the reasons behind adopting a particular course of action. 

As with any model, a decision tree is only as good as the information available, but the value in decision trees is in how they preserve and make repeatable what otherwise is a product of one person's judgement. 

In a business, if a decision tree can be made that systematizes the analysis required to make a wise decision, the one person with the trusted judgement can turn their process into a tool for others to use, freeing the decision making task to be delegated to someone with less executive power or responsibility than would usually be organizationally necessary. Especially when the decision tree is made or approved by the full deck of supervisors, executives, etc., the decision making tool can serve as a set of standards that obviate the need to kick a decision up the ladder. 

When you're managing a business that you also serve another role in, as dentists and doctors often do, decision trees are a key tool in your toolbox for compartmentalizing your multiple roles. In all cases, it's nice to be able to work a previously developed, proven-effective process and avoid reinventing the wheel or double handling.

Bottom line, even used in the smallest possible domain, say, for personal decisions, developing a decision tree or heuristic diagram can be helpful for the sheer fact that it will represent multiple days' of your best effort, including revisions and redesigns, which is better than you at your best random moment. If you use a tool that's reliably thorough and smart, you can make thoroughly considered, objectively smart decisions whether you're having an "on" day or an "off" one. 

Continued in Part 2: Pave It or Put Up A Fence