Survey for Decision Making Process at First Level Management

1.

Thank you for agreeing to take part in this survey. It should only take 4-5 minutes to complete. All answers will be kept in the strictest confidentiality. Your feedback is important.

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* 1. Which industry is your company active in?

Manufacturing

Services

Other (please specify)

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* 2. Which of the following best describes your role?

Senior Leadership (C-Suite, EVP, etc.)

Upper/Middle Level Management (VP, Director, Manager, etc.)

First Level Management (Team Lead, Supervisor, Specialist, etc.)

Employee, Individual Contributor, etc.

Other (please specify)

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* 3. How important are the following types of decisions regularly made by first level managers in your company? Please select one response for each decision type.

	Very Important	Somewhat Important	Neutral	Not Very Important	Not At All Important	N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Preparing / Updating Company Procedures	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures Very Important	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures Somewhat Important	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures Neutral	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures Not Very Important	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures Not At All Important	Preparing / Updating Company Procedures N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Time Management and Defining Priorities	Time Management and Defining Priorities Very Important	Time Management and Defining Priorities Somewhat Important	Time Management and Defining Priorities Neutral	Time Management and Defining Priorities Not Very Important	Time Management and Defining Priorities Not At All Important	Time Management and Defining Priorities N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Compliance and Risk Management	Compliance and Risk Management Very Important	Compliance and Risk Management Somewhat Important	Compliance and Risk Management Neutral	Compliance and Risk Management Not Very Important	Compliance and Risk Management Not At All Important	Compliance and Risk Management N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting Very Important	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting Somewhat Important	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting Neutral	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting Not Very Important	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting Not At All Important	Identifying the Indicators of Budgeting & Forecasting N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Budgeting & Forecasting	Budgeting & Forecasting Very Important	Budgeting & Forecasting Somewhat Important	Budgeting & Forecasting Neutral	Budgeting & Forecasting Not Very Important	Budgeting & Forecasting Not At All Important	Budgeting & Forecasting N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.)	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) Very Important	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) Somewhat Important	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) Neutral	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) Not Very Important	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) Not At All Important	Workforce Planning (i.e. as work schedules, annual leaves, absenteeism, work-life balance, succession, etc.) N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Hiring	Hiring Very Important	Hiring Somewhat Important	Hiring Neutral	Hiring Not Very Important	Hiring Not At All Important	Hiring N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Performance Appraisals	Performance Appraisals Very Important	Performance Appraisals Somewhat Important	Performance Appraisals Neutral	Performance Appraisals Not Very Important	Performance Appraisals Not At All Important	Performance Appraisals N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.)	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) Very Important	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) Somewhat Important	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) Neutral	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) Not Very Important	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) Not At All Important	Rewards and Recognition (i.e. wages, promotions, premiums, project bonuses, etc.) N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Learning & Development	Learning & Development Very Important	Learning & Development Somewhat Important	Learning & Development Neutral	Learning & Development Not Very Important	Learning & Development Not At All Important	Learning & Development N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions Very Important	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions Somewhat Important	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions Neutral	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions Not Very Important	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions Not At All Important	Employer – Employee Dispute Resolutions N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Redundancies / Firings	Redundancies / Firings Very Important	Redundancies / Firings Somewhat Important	Redundancies / Firings Neutral	Redundancies / Firings Not Very Important	Redundancies / Firings Not At All Important	Redundancies / Firings N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Operation / Production Planning	Operation / Production Planning Very Important	Operation / Production Planning Somewhat Important	Operation / Production Planning Neutral	Operation / Production Planning Not Very Important	Operation / Production Planning Not At All Important	Operation / Production Planning N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Quality Issues	Quality Issues Very Important	Quality Issues Somewhat Important	Quality Issues Neutral	Quality Issues Not Very Important	Quality Issues Not At All Important	Quality Issues N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Inventory Optimization	Inventory Optimization Very Important	Inventory Optimization Somewhat Important	Inventory Optimization Neutral	Inventory Optimization Not Very Important	Inventory Optimization Not At All Important	Inventory Optimization N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Vendor Selection	Vendor Selection Very Important	Vendor Selection Somewhat Important	Vendor Selection Neutral	Vendor Selection Not Very Important	Vendor Selection Not At All Important	Vendor Selection N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Purchase Orders	Purchase Orders Very Important	Purchase Orders Somewhat Important	Purchase Orders Neutral	Purchase Orders Not Very Important	Purchase Orders Not At All Important	Purchase Orders N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Prepare and/or Approve Contracts	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts Very Important	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts Somewhat Important	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts Neutral	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts Not Very Important	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts Not At All Important	Prepare and/or Approve Contracts N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution Very Important	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution Somewhat Important	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution Neutral	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution Not Very Important	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution Not At All Important	Choosing Delivery Methods and Execution N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs Very Important	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs Somewhat Important	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs Neutral	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs Not Very Important	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs Not At All Important	Customer Acquisition & Loyalty Programs N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)
Customer Complaint Resolutions	Customer Complaint Resolutions Very Important	Customer Complaint Resolutions Somewhat Important	Customer Complaint Resolutions Neutral	Customer Complaint Resolutions Not Very Important	Customer Complaint Resolutions Not At All Important	Customer Complaint Resolutions N/A (Don't Make These Decisions)

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* 4. How often do first level managers use each of the following decision making techniques?

	Very often	Often	Sometimes	Rarely	Never	Not Familiar
Break Even analysis	Break Even analysis Very often	Break Even analysis Often	Break Even analysis Sometimes	Break Even analysis Rarely	Break Even analysis Never	Break Even analysis Not Familiar
What If analysis	What If analysis Very often	What If analysis Often	What If analysis Sometimes	What If analysis Rarely	What If analysis Never	What If analysis Not Familiar
Pair-wise Comparison analysis	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Very often	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Often	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Sometimes	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Rarely	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Never	Pair-wise Comparison analysis Not Familiar
Intuitive analysis	Intuitive analysis Very often	Intuitive analysis Often	Intuitive analysis Sometimes	Intuitive analysis Rarely	Intuitive analysis Never	Intuitive analysis Not Familiar
Cash Flow analysis	Cash Flow analysis Very often	Cash Flow analysis Often	Cash Flow analysis Sometimes	Cash Flow analysis Rarely	Cash Flow analysis Never	Cash Flow analysis Not Familiar
Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis)	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Very often	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Often	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Sometimes	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Rarely	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Never	Pareto analysis (80/20 analysis) Not Familiar
Cost – Benefit analysis	Cost – Benefit analysis Very often	Cost – Benefit analysis Often	Cost – Benefit analysis Sometimes	Cost – Benefit analysis Rarely	Cost – Benefit analysis Never	Cost – Benefit analysis Not Familiar
Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Very often	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Often	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Sometimes	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Rarely	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Never	Ishikawa/Fishbone/Root-Cause analysis Not Familiar

Other (please specify)

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* 5. Which of the following tools, if any, do first level managers in your company utilize for decision making?

ERP

Excel

CRM

Ad-hoc software

Customized Software

Other (please specify)

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* 6. Which platforms do first level managers use the tools or software on? Please check all that apply

Installed desktop

Installed laptop

Installed tablet

Cloud desktop

Cloud laptop

Cloud tablet

Mobile app

Other (please specify)

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* 7. What, if anything, do you like most about the tools your first level managers utilize?

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* 8. What, if any, issues or problems exist with any of the tools first level managers in your company utilize?

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* 9. How are the results of first level managers' decisions measured? Please check all that apply.

Not measured

Measured by cost of the postponing

Measured by consistency of business objectives

Measured by consistency of company culture

Measured by opportunity cost

Other (please specify)

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* 10. What range of financial decisions are first level managers authorized to take on a sole basis?

$ 0 - 1,500

$ 1,501 - 5,000

$ 5,001 - 15,000

$ 15,001 - 30,000

$ 30,001 - 50,000

Other (please specify)

Please take a moment to read the following concept regarding a decision making tool that is intended to aid first-level managers:

SafeLink is a mobile/web app providing first-level managers with an interactive toolkit that combines business analytics with management techniques. SafeLink enables these management/analysis techniques for first-level managers' daily operational use by a carefully designed simplification and easy-to-navigate user experience. Using SafeLink, first-level managers get access to exercises that will easily formulate business decisions - otherwise possible only via a rigorous training/education, measure them alongside the historic and live data and share across the organization when desired.

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* 11. Would your company utilize such an app within their decision making process that was just described?

Yes

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* 12. What do you like most about the decision making tool described?

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* 13. What do you like least about the decision making tool described?

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* 14. Given the features this decision making tool includes, indicate how important you might find the following features?

	Very important	Somewhat important	Neutral	Not very important	Not at all important
Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile)	Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile) Very important	Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile) Somewhat important	Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile) Neutral	Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile) Not very important	Multi-device (accessible via desktop, laptop and mobile) Not at all important
Mobile-first (mobile device access)	Mobile-first (mobile device access) Very important	Mobile-first (mobile device access) Somewhat important	Mobile-first (mobile device access) Neutral	Mobile-first (mobile device access) Not very important	Mobile-first (mobile device access) Not at all important
Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed)	Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed) Very important	Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed) Somewhat important	Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed) Neutral	Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed) Not very important	Simplified design (little to no time for getting accustomed) Not at all important
Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit)	Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit) Very important	Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit) Somewhat important	Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit) Neutral	Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit) Not very important	Direct measuring (visible correlation for savings/profit) Not at all important
Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization)	Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization) Very important	Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization) Somewhat important	Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization) Neutral	Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization) Not very important	Approval (requesting customized approval across the organization) Not at all important
BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data)	BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data) Very important	BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data) Somewhat important	BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data) Neutral	BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data) Not very important	BI/data aggregation (feeding historic company data with live data) Not at all important

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* 15. What other insights would you like to be added in this decision making tool?

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* 16. In which city and state do you work?

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* 17. In which generation do you consider yourself belonging?

Baby boomers

Generation X

Generation Y

Generation Z