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Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government

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PSL-503xtraLesson PublicLeadership & Governance in Public SectorIntermediate
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About Course

Course Code: PSL-503

Pillar: Leadership & Governance in Public Sector

Course Overview: Government decisions often involve incomplete information, competing needs, regulation, budgets, public expectations, and consequences across multiple stakeholders. Structured thinking helps leaders define the real problem before moving too quickly toward a solution.

Learners use evidence, root-cause analysis, option evaluation, risk awareness, consultation, judgment, and review to make responsible decisions, implement them clearly, and learn from results.

Learning Outcomes:

  • Explain the importance of structured decision-making in government.
  • Define public sector problems clearly using evidence, context, and stakeholder insight.
  • Distinguish between symptoms, root causes, risks, constraints, and decision needs.
  • Analyze options using public value, feasibility, fairness, risk, cost, compliance, and citizen impact.
  • Apply problem-solving tools to operational, service, policy, and stakeholder challenges.
  • Make responsible decisions within authority, mandate, policy, and legal boundaries.
  • Implement decisions through communication, ownership, monitoring, and follow-through.
  • Develop a practical decision-making and problem-solving improvement plan.

Target Audience: Public-sector supervisors, managers, department heads, emerging leaders, policy and programme staff, service leaders, planners, project leads, and senior specialists who support complex decisions.

Course-specific Learning Experience: Learners engage through focused video overviews, audio deep dives, study guides, practical examples, reflection prompts, workbook activities, applied tasks, discussion activities, knowledge checks, and end-of-module quizzes. Activities guide learners from problem definition and root-cause analysis through evidence review, option evaluation, risk judgment, implementation, and learning.

Course Structure: 5 modules / 20 lessons.

Special Feature: Every module concludes with a Putting It All Together audio deep dive that connects the key lessons and supports reflection and practical application.

Pathway Focus: Define the problem. Decide responsibly. Learn from outcomes.

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Course Content

Course Introduction
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  • Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government
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Foundations of Decision-Making in Government
This module introduces Foundations of Decision-Making in Government within Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government. Introduce learners to decision-making as a public sector leadership responsibility and explain how responsible decisions support governance, accountability, public trust, and citizen outcomes. Learners explore Understanding Government Decision-Making, Public Value, Mandate and Decision Responsibility, Decision Quality and Public Trust, and Common Decision-Making Challenges in Government.

Defining Problems Clearly
This module introduces Defining Problems Clearly within Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government. Help learners analyze public sector problems accurately before selecting solutions, with attention to symptoms, root causes, evidence, stakeholders, and service impact. Learners explore Understanding Public Sector Problems, Symptoms, Causes and Impacts, Gathering Evidence and Context, and Stakeholder and Citizen Impact Analysis.

Structured Problem-Solving Methods
This module introduces Structured Problem-Solving Methods within Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government. Introduce practical problem-solving tools that public sector leaders can use to analyze causes, generate solutions, prioritize actions, and improve outcomes. Learners explore Root Cause Analysis for Government Problems, Generating Solution Options, Evaluating Solutions and Trade-Offs, and Prioritizing Actions and Sequencing Implementation.

Responsible Decision-Making Under Complexity
This module introduces Responsible Decision-Making Under Complexity within Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government. Help learners make sound decisions when facing uncertainty, competing priorities, resource limits, stakeholder pressure, and governance requirements. Learners explore Decision Criteria and Governance Boundaries, Managing Risk and Uncertainty in Decisions, Balancing Competing Priorities, and Decision Documentation and Communication.

Implementing Decisions and Learning from Outcomes
This module introduces Implementing Decisions and Learning from Outcomes within Decision-Making & Problem Solving in Government. Enable learners to translate decisions into action, monitor results, manage implementation challenges, and learn from outcomes to improve future decisions. Learners explore Turning Decisions into Action, Monitoring Implementation and Results, Learning from Decision Outcomes, and Decision-Making and Problem-Solving Action Plan.

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