| The purpose of this study was to describe various strategic decision-making processes used by Chief Executive Officers involving significant organizational change, and describe the effects of those practices on the decision maker himself or herself. The data collected in this study reveal 13 conclusions that emerged from discussions with the participant CEOs and their spouses. These themes offer insight and understanding of CEO decision-making in a stressful environment and the personal effect of decision implementation.; A multiple case study method with a strong phenomenological emphasis was used to conduct the investigation. The participants included five CEOs from public and privately held companies. Interviews were conducted with the CEOs' spouses as a means of triangulating the data and providing additional perspective to the knowledge base. Each CEO was interviewed two times and their respective spouse was interviewed one time.; Five major themes were discussed during the interview sessions: (1) the primary decision-making processes and leadership styles; (2) descriptions of the personal decision-making processes; (3) descriptions of a decision of consequence; (4) the consequences of internalizing decisions, including various physical and emotional manifestations; and (5) CEO lifestyle changes desired by spouses. From these themes, 13 conclusions were developed and discussed. The conclusions reveal far more similarities than differences in the participants' philosophies regarding their decision-making processes and the impact upon them as decision makers. The conclusions also reveal that the study's participants did not consciously use the classical approach to organizational strategic decisions.; Finally, recommendations for praxis are presented. Retrospectively, this research provided many unanswered questions, some beyond the scope of the current study, yet important enough to consider as recommendations for future research. As such, the work provides recommendations for future research and its intent as a catalyst for healthier organizations and their leaders. |
