Developing a Decision-Making System to Navigate Transitions

Year after year, as a school principal, I would set school improvement goals based on data and input from teachers. I turned it in on the required date and updated it throughout the year with some communication to the faculty about it. While we might have met our goals, sometimes it was by accident. Why wasn’t it more of a focus?

According to The 4 Disciplines of Execution, written by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey, and Jim Huling, schools often struggle to reach their goals because they get overwhelmed by the “whirlwind”—the constant flow of urgent, day-to-day tasks and demands that consume time and energy. This whirlwind diverts focus away from strategic goals, making it difficult for school leaders and teams to sustain momentum on high-priority initiatives.

Additionally, schools might set too many goals at once, diluting focus and spreading resources thin. Without clear priorities, measurable lead measures, and regular accountability, it becomes challenging to create the disciplined focus required for successful goal achievement.

Include Teachers in Decision-Making

Principals, you can’t do this important and difficult work alone. Including teachers in decision-making is crucial because it fosters a sense of ownership, builds trust, and enhances buy-in for new initiatives. Teachers bring valuable insights from their direct interactions with students, making them essential voices in shaping policies and practices that impact classroom outcomes.

When teachers are involved, they are more likely to implement changes effectively, as they feel respected, supported, and aligned with the school’s goals. Moreover, collaborative decision-making strengthens the school community, creating a culture where everyone feels responsible for student success.

Implementation science—focusing on clear goal-setting, using evidence-based practices, and continuously assessing progress—is a solution we haven’t used much in education yet. Following implementation science helps schools achieve their goals by providing a structured approach for planning, executing, and sustaining new initiatives. And it emphasizes collaboration and the importance of adapting strategies to fit the specific context of a school, ensuring that initiatives are relevant and responsive to students’ and teachers’ needs.

By following these principles, schools can build strong support systems, reduce barriers to change, and create lasting improvements aligned with their goals.

Start With Small Steps

According to Learning to Improve: How America’s Schools Can Get Better at Getting Better, by Anthony S. Bryk, Louis M. Gomez, Alicia Grunow, and Paul G. LeMahieu, one of the key tenets of successful implementation in schools is an iterative approach. This means principals should start with small steps, assess the outcomes, and then refine and expand, ensuring teachers are an integral part of the process.

By implementing this iterative approach, school teams can build on what works, learn from challenges, and avoid the common pitfall of rolling out too much too soon. Implementation science, therefore, becomes a roadmap to make effective decisions that lead to sustainable progress in school initiatives with the strong element of teacher voice.

 A Principal’s Framework to Building a Decision-Making System

1. Clarify Goals and Define Success Early On

When introducing a new initiative, it’s essential for principals to first clarify what success looks like. According to Jenice Pizzuto and Steven Carney in Implement With Impact, defining clear objectives allows leaders to measure progress and make adjustments. Without a clear picture of the end goal, decision-making becomes reactive, with principals often getting lost in the day-to-day demands, or the “whirlwind.” Focusing on a clear goal enables school teams to pay attention to what matters most and prevents distraction.

For instance, if a principal’s goal is to improve literacy rates, they should outline specific metrics to track and regularly check progress, then hold themselves accountable to observations and team meetings with the goal as a focus. By defining success early, principals create a foundation for all subsequent decisions, allowing them to measure effectiveness and adapt strategies as needed.

2. Develop Strong Organizational Support

According to a study led by Gregory A. Aarons, Mark G. Ehrhart, Lauren R. Farahnak, and Michael S. Hurlburt, building organizational support is a critical part of implementation leadership. Principals should ensure that teachers, staff, and stakeholders are aligned with the new initiative and understand their roles. This shared understanding creates a strong foundation for effective decision-making. Engaging teachers and staff as part of the decision-making process increases buy-in and ensures that the initiative fits well within the school’s existing culture and practices. Ideally, the principal becomes the lead listener to support collaborative decisions.

For example, if a principal is planning to adopt a new student behavior management program, involving teachers in the planning phase can help identify potential challenges early on. By collaborating in consistent meetings focused on the goal, principals and teachers can make informed decisions that align with both the needs of the students and the school’s operational dynamics. This helps hold each other accountable, as well.

3. Adaptation and Flexibility

Shifts in education are rarely linear, and flexibility is key to navigating them effectively. Implementation science emphasizes that interventions should be adapted to fit the local context rather than implemented uniformly across all settings, according to D.L. Fixsen, Sandra Naoom, Karen A. Blasé, and Robert M. Friedman in “Implementation Research: A Synthesis of the Literature.” For principals, this means adapting initiatives based on student needs, teacher feedback, and resource availability.

A study by Kevin Kelloway, Julian Barling, and Jane Helleur, “Enhancing Transformational Leadership,” highlights the importance of leaders adjusting their approach based on feedback. Principals should view feedback not as criticism but instead as a necessary part of the adaptation process.

For instance, if an initiative is not producing the desired outcomes, principals should be prepared to change course rather than adhere rigidly to the original plan. This adaptive approach, grounded in flexibility, will allow principals to make informed decisions and sustain momentum.

Practical Strategies for Principals in Decision-Making

1. Use Data to Drive Decisions

Data is a powerful tool for principals, allowing them to make objective, informed decisions. Strategic implementation leadership emphasizes the use of data to guide decision-making and measure progress. Principals can gather data from various sources, including student assessments, teacher feedback, and attendance records, to understand the impact of new initiatives and identify areas for improvement.

By analyzing data consistently, principals can identify patterns and make proactive adjustments. For instance, if data reveals that student engagement is low during certain periods, principals might explore scheduling adjustments or additional support services. Data-driven decision-making fosters a culture of continuous improvement and ensures that initiatives are truly benefiting students.

2. Implement Continuous Feedback Loops

Effective decision-making relies on regular feedback from all stakeholders. Douglas Reeves points out in Ahead of the Curve that successful implementation hinges on closing the feedback loop, which allows leaders to make timely adjustments based on real-time information. For principals, setting up continuous feedback loops with teachers, students, and parents provides valuable insights into the effectiveness of initiatives and helps build trust.

Principals can set up periodic check-ins or surveys to gather feedback. For example, after implementing a new reading program, principals can seek input from teachers, and even students, about student engagement and progress. This feedback should inform future decisions, such as whether to expand the program, make modifications, or provide additional resources for certain classrooms.

3. Empower Teacher Leadership in Decision-Making

Principals are not alone in the decision-making process. Bryk, Gomez, Grunow, and LeMahieu suggest that fostering teacher leadership can drive successful implementation. By empowering teachers to take ownership of initiatives, principals not only lighten their load but also encourage a culture of shared responsibility and accountability.

When teachers are involved in decisions that affect their classrooms, they are more likely to implement initiatives with fidelity. For example, a principal could create a teacher advisory board to review new policies and provide input or even integrate it into current leadership team meetings that include teacher leaders. This collaborative approach allows for diverse perspectives and strengthens the school’s decision-making framework.

Building a System That Sustains Change

In today’s rapidly evolving educational landscape, principals need more than just good intentions; they need a system of decision-making rooted in implementation science and leadership principles. By clarifying goals, leveraging data, fostering inclusivity, and empowering teacher leaders, principals can navigate shifts and transitions with confidence and effectiveness.

As principals build these decision-making systems, they move beyond reactive management and toward a sustainable, proactive model that benefits students, staff, and the entire school community.

Kelly Hastings is the founder of Enlightening Leadership for Educators.