GPA: Separate decisions into Goal, Priority, and Alternatives, and use a different decision style at each stage.
Podcast: Manus' Final Interview Before the Acquisition: Oh, the Surreal Odyssey of 2025… - YouTube
Manus co-founder described a GPA decision framework. It splits a decision into three stages:
- Goal: decide what we are trying to achieve.
- Priority: decide what matters most right now.
- Alternatives: generate a wide set of options.
And each stage needs a different decision style.
The goal phase should be autocratic. The leader sets the target so everyone is aligned.
The priority phase should be mixed. The leader decides, but the team provides input and context.
The alternatives phase should be democratic. The team generates options as widely as possible.
Most arguments happen because people are in different stages. For example, someone might be debating the goal while someone else is already picking between options.
The alternatives stage is oftentimes overlooked, but it determines the quality of the outcome. A small option space leads to bad decisions, no matter how smart the team is. A wide option space gives the decision-maker real leverage.