Critical Thinking Means Business
Learn to Apply and Develop the #1 Workplace Skill of the 21st century!
Judy Chartrand, Ph.D., Heather Ishikawa, MA, & Scott Flander
With globalisation and the increased speed of business, employees at every level are facing an increasingly complex flow of information. Work settings are changing rapidly, and employees are moving into new roles, often with limited direction. Employees can no longer rely on others to make key decisions. They often must make them on their own, and quickly. And the decisions have to be good ones. If they fall short, there may be no time to recover.
Good decisions require focusing on the most relevant information, asking the right questions, and separating reliable facts from false assumptions – all elements of Critical Thinking. And yet too few employees possess these essential skills.
What can be done? Once organisations understand the role of Critical Thinking in everyday decision making, they can begin to take steps to develop that skill in their leaders and employees. This paper describes some possible solutions, including a model for understanding and developing Critical Thinking. It also provides trainers with some specific techniques that can jump-start the process.