How to announce a superior's decision I don't necessarily agree to? [duplicate]

Question

Sometimes I disagree with a boss's decision. That's ok, I can disagree and commit, no problems at all.

What really bothers me is passing my boss's decision to other stakeholders outside the team. I would like to tell people what the decision in a way that would attend the following criteria:

1. I want them to know it was not my decision;
2. I don't want to sound like I'm blame-shifting;
3. Not sounding like a politician weaseling out with corporate language would be a bonus.

So the answers I usually came out are something like

1. "It is not going to be this way."

   Precise, but sounds like I decided it.

2. "My boss decided it is going to be this way."

   Sounds like blame-shifting.

3. "The team decided it is not going to be this way."

   Mumbo-jumbo that manages to give both bad impressions at once.

I know it is quite a general question, and a hard one, and I am most probably missing relevant information or carrying wrong preconceptions, so thank you for reading it.

Answer 1

The possible phrases you mentioned sound like blame shifting because the phrasing itself leads someone to believe that the entire decision is deserving of blame.

You may want to try and phrase it a bit more neutral and open for interpretation. Something like this may work nicely for you.

There have been some internal discussions in regards to x and going forward it's been decided that we are commiting to do xyz.

The first part about discussions is probably always true and the ultimate decision is at the end of the day always made by your boss.

Answer 2

This happens a lot, nothing too uncommon I would say. While we may have differences in our viewpoints, if a decision is made / approved, you need to carry that considering you are involved and responsible.

However, you do not need to appear solely responsible for the decision. You can always say something:

"We discussed about it, and finally the decision which we could agree upon and got approved is ..........".

Answer 3

Your job is to support the decisions your boss makes. Back door messages to let everyone know you don't agree undermines your boss and your career as well. There is no way you can convey a message to that effect that does not make either you, or the boss look bad.

If you send mixed messages to your team, you will cause divided loyalties and confusion. State the objective/ideas plainly, and take it from there, and accurately report back to your boss, the execution of the ideas. The boss needs you to be his advocate for the team. If anyone questions you, simply say "The decision has been made" and no more. Let them infer from that what they will

Answer 4

I want them to know it was not my decision;

This is not the same as disagreeing and committing. This is disagreeing and continuing to disagree as you present the decision to others. Don't weasel around the words, just say this is it, the company is moving in this direction.

If you can't support the decision, you aren't the right person to present it.

Answer 5

Rather than phrasing it as your Boss's decision, just present it as a request from the Boss.

This lets the stakeholders know that:

• It was not your decision ( it isn't even a decision)
• You aren't blaming anyone, just simply relaying a request
• You aren't weaseling out of anything since you are just passing along what was requested.

If anyone questions you over the boss's request, you can refer them to the boss and let him deal with any disagreements or questions that you personally can't answer.