In my working environment, the decision-making process and communication structure were one of the major challenges. An illustration of this was the unilateral decision-making without consulting relevant departments. In such a case, the chain of commands was disrupted through bypassing the hierarchy; employees were directly instructed without consulting the heads of departments. It also manifested without notifying those involved in the implementation of the internal control processes. Furthermore, sometimes decisions were taken behind closed doors out of the company by owners and employees who were members of their families without feedback to the company staff about decisions made.
The working team spirit was also hindered by a lack of regular board meetings. This led to miscommunication, which resulted in feeling powerless and disengaged and favouring unnecessary and counterproductive conflicts within the administrative board. This communication gap was exacerbated by the one-to-one discussions favoured by the top management with a person directly responsible for a given specific task/issue. This stood as a threat to the company team building; efforts were duplicated, and departments operated more and more independently with no respect for the company’s strategic objectives. Policy changes or process adjustments were most often communicated informally and/or behind closed doors. In such an environment, maintaining consistency, enforcing controls, and monitoring performance were extremely difficult.
The work of an internal auditor is stressful and challenging. My duty required a clear understanding of internal policies and the ability to ensure compliance across the company. Without being informed on policy changes or having a seat around the high table for decision-making, I could not operate efficiently and effectively. My proposed problem-solving approach would be the implementation of a structured and transparent governance process. I would recommend establishing a cross-functional executive committee that includes all heads of departments. This committee would meet regularly to review major decisions, align on strategies, and approve policy changes before implementation of actions. This would engage all departments and empower them in the decision-making to implement the endeavours of the company for successful results.
Additionally, introducing a centralised decision-tracking and policy management system functioning as a shared digital platform to document, review, and track policy updates and strategic actions. This would improve transparency, reduce miscommunication, and allow employees to operate based on the company internal policy and guidelines.
Finally, I would advocate for leadership development training/retraining for senior management, focusing on collaborative leadership, communication, and corporate governance. This will develop a culture of collaboration, accountability, and respect for professional roles to boost employee engagement and ownership to ensure long-term sustainability. This shift from an informal, personality-driven leadership model to a structured and participatory one would significantly benefit the company in terms of internal control, collaborative decision-making processes, transparency, trust, and feedback from relevant stakeholders. All the above will be consolidated by streaming a feedback mechanism across the departments to allow employees’ and stakeholders’ input on decision-making processes.