Execution is a crappy management word for "how well you do stuff". For an Engineer, this means knowing your stuff, either through learning or experience. However, it's a different ball game for managers, because your objective is to get others to do stuff.

There are two extreme methods you can use here, and you need to balance yourself between the two.

• Get everyone together. Have lots of meetings. Throw all the decisions out to the group.
• Good: You will get closer to the right result, as everyone has an input.
• Sucks: It's incredibly slow.
• Note: Some people get annoyed by this as they just want to get stuff done.
• Just make a decision and do something. Don't ask anyone else about it, just do it.
  • Good: It's the fastest way to get stuff done.
  • Sucks: As only you are driving decisions, you don't get told that you're wrong when you're wrong.
  • Note: Some people get annoyed by this as they want to have input to what's going on.

Relationships

With more people, you can get closer to a good solution, as you minimise the internal biases of a few. But at some point, adding more people isn't going to do anything to help you accuracy, as they're all going to spend all their time bickering.

With fewer people, you can get closed to a fast solution, as you minimise the bickering and can just get stuff done. But there is noone available to curb your own internal biases.

Which one do you lean towards?

• If you need speed, tend towards just doing stuff.
• If you need to make sure you're making the right decision, tend towards meetings.

General Co-lin Powell has a view on this. In a military situation, you have to move pretty decisively, so here's his quote:

"Once the information is in the 40 to 70 (percent) range, go with your gut."