A question can be decided where capability and authority come together. Often the capability sits close to the work and the authority further up. Delegating a single decision solves this for one case. A decision space solves it for a whole kind of question.

What is set at the top

Goal, resources, limits, rights, a date for feedback and what explicitly stays at the top. Within this frame the team decides itself, without approval case by case. In the Compass field High-Impact Teams, this is the “may” in can, want, may.

Where it fails

On limits nobody states, and on approvals that are sought anyway. A space in which every decision lands at the top again is not a space. That is why decision rights belong, regularly, where the capability sits. In depth in the book “Die eine Entscheidung”, chapter 09.

Go Deeper

Related Concepts

Decision Rights
The explicit assignment of who may, must, and is accountable for which decisions — the foundation of any governance.
Can, Want, May
Three conditions for effective action: capability, motivation, and permission. All three have to come together.
Context Steering
Leading through designing boundary conditions rather than direct instruction — the organization steers itself within defined corridors.
Empowerment with Guardrails
Effective autonomy requires clear boundaries. Unlimited freedom produces paralysis, not empowerment.
The One Decision
The binding commitment that now opens the most room for the next decisions, made despite uncertainty, with a review date.

Related Tools

Transformation Self-Check 5–10 Min Agile Führungs-Paradoxien 5–8 Min

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