What is actually driving decision making in your neck of the woods?

Data is only as good as the folks interpreting it.....
There are lies, damn lies, and statistics...

As an independent consultant helping organizations make decisions, I found that facts and data were the foundation of almost all decisions, but ultimately, the processing of that information was subconscious. What most refer to as "gut instinct" was really the product of complex logical functions that key stakeholders weren't even aware of. My job was primarily helping multiple stakeholders agree on the problem/issue/goal and then stand back and watch the decision-making progress. Interestingly, the greatest roadblock to good decision making (and the greatest cause of cross-conference table bickering was a lack of agreement on the definition of the project (that most were not even aware of - they were arguing without realizing they were all speaking a different language). My basic strategy almost always began by asking them to tell me what we were trying to do. In almost every case, some young turk would laugh at my stupidity. But when they tried to respond to my questions, a new argument began. That was when I stepped out of the way and let them fight it out. Once they agreed on the problem/issue/goal, strategies and next steps came easily

Data is one input into decision making. Data tells you what happened in the past. There is interpretation of that data which can be subjective. Then there are future trends, changes in market conditions, resources available to support decisions and yes even company politics. No one makes decisions based solely on data. If they did, I would never want to work for them.