Assignment:
As a member of a promotion board, you have been confronted with a difficult decision. The board is fairly split on who to promote into the vacant manager position, and results from several valid predictors have not differentiated very well among the few candidates for the position: there is not a candidate that is clearly outperforming the others. Although you tried to avoid it, several board members have political reasons for preferring one finalist over the rest (this person is not the best choice, according to the predictor data).
Furthermore, the results of this promotion decision (a vacancy that the company has not seen in years) are likely to reverberate throughout the organization-all the finalists are key internal players who exercise immense influence and command the loyalty of their subordinates. If one of the finalists were to leave or become disgruntled, it would be devastating for the organization. Many of the board members believe that the finalists should not have the privilege of knowing what went into the decision; they believe the board's say is final, regardless of how it affects the finalists. As a key board member overseeing the promotion process, how would you go about making a decision?