Incorporating a partner’s strategic value into a fast-and-frugal heuristic for decision-making

Purpose This paper aims to propose an accurate and efficient decision-making process adapted to the specific context of Claim Management situations, implying partners engaged in a high-involvement relationship. Design/methodology/approach We used a three-step approach: first, an inductive phase based on 12 past case studies. Second, a theory-building phase. Third, a theory-testing phase based on an ongoing case study to observe and test our propositions. Findings Proposal 1: Partner’s Strategic Value is an influential decision parameter that must be incorporated into Claim Management-related decision-making processes in high-involvement relationships. Proposal 2: The Fast-and-Frugal Heuristic is adapted to the intense, interactive and iterative nature of the Claim Management context. Our final proposal combines these two findings, i.e. a Fast-and-Frugal Heuristic incorporating the Partner’s Strategic Value and based on using decision criteria as a sequence, not simultaneously. Originality/value In the context of high-involvement business relationships and Claim Management, this study introduces the importance of selecting an appropriate decision methodology and integrating a strategic decision parameter (Partner’s Strategic Value) into an operational decision-making context. Furthermore, the principle of considering decision parameters in a specific sequence corresponds to the iterative and interactive nature of the Claim Management processes.