In today’s rapidly evolving work environment, organizations are continually seeking innovative ways to facilitate collaborative decision-making. Consent-based decision-making stands at the forefront of these modern practices, owing to its effectiveness in promoting equality, efficiency, and innovation. Grounded in several key principles, this approach fosters a culture of active participation, mutual respect, empirical reasoning, and most importantly, it underscores the significance of consent.
Key Principles
- Ongoing Process: Here, decision-making is not a one-time event but a continuous, iterative dialogue where ideas are exchanged, and knowledge is iteratively co-created.
- Stakeholder Rights: Every individual deserves a voice. They have the right to participate in decisions affecting them, and equal consideration is given to each idea.
- Consent: Rather than pushing for unanimous approval, this process aims to create an environment where participants have no serious objection.
- Empiricism: Observations and data influence decisions, supporting evidence-based consensus and continuous learning.
- Continuous Improvement: Room for adaptation sites at this approach’s heart. Decisions are revisited and refined, paving the way for more effective outcomes.
- Equivalence: A commitment to nimbleness and democracy, where everyone has an equal stake and voice in the process.
- Transparency: Every member has access to necessary information, supporting informed, consensual decisions.
- Accountability: Ownership and commitment go hand-in-hand, reinforcing the value of responsibility.
Pre-conditions
- Inclusion: The success of consent-based decision-making requires widespread participation and buy-in. Every participant should feel that their voice is fairly included and that participating in the process is worth their time.
- Clear Understanding of Objection: Participants should understand that an ‘objection’ is not an issue with personal preferences but indicates an identifiable risk that the group cannot afford to take.
- Understanding of the Decision-making Process: Participants should understand the difference between consent and consensus, and realize that decisions are “good enough for now, safe enough to try” instead of perfect.
- Transparency: Each member should have access to the necessary information, upholding the principle of informed consent.
- Willingness to Collaborate: The decision-making process can be challenging and time-consuming. The consent-based governance model relies on the willingness of all participants to collaborate and value the process of reaching the decision over the speed of making the decision.
Deployment
- Educate and Train: Explain the process, its principles, and benefits to the team. Give everyone a clear understanding of what it involves, why you’re adopting it, and how it will affect them. When all members understand the need for change and the principles behind it, they’re more likely to cooperate and contribute.
- Start Small and Scale: Start with smaller decisions and smaller groups to avoid overwhelming the team. As individuals become comfortable with the idea and see its benefits, gradually expand its usage within the organization.
- Embrace a ‘Safe to Try’ culture: Encourage a culture where decisions taken need to be ‘safe enough to try’, not ‘perfect’. This helps people become comfortable with the process and be more open to potential modifications.
- Establish Communication Channels: Make sure everyone knows how information about decisions will be shared, where they can voice their objections or concerns, and provide avenues for dialogue.
- Define What Constitutes an Objection: Clearly define what would be a valid objection. This helps avoid personal likes or dislikes from muddying decision-making and keeps everyone on the same page.
- Use a Facilitator: Initially, it may be helpful to use a skilled facilitator to help guide the process, manage the flow of conversation, give everyone a chance to speak, and help the team work through any objections.
- Regularly Reflect and Adapt: Just like any new process, it needs regular review and adjustment. Make regular retrospectives part of your routine where you reflect on how consent-based decision-making is working, what needs to be improved, and how to adjust the method to fit your team’s needs better.
Consent vs. Consensus
While both consent and consensus hinge on collaboration, there are crucial differences that give the former an edge over the latter. Primarily, consent-based decision-making aims to reach “good enough for now, safe enough to try”, circumventing the paralysis that can result from seeking unanimous consensus.
Such an approach invites a diversity of voices, recognizing that objections are not necessarily impediments but opportunities for collective learning and choice refining. This effectively shortens the decision-making process and makes it more dynamic and resilient amidst productive disagreements.
Consent in Agile Teams
Agile teams are naturally fertile grounds for consent-based decision-making. Agile philosophies advocate for self-organization and collective commitment to outcomes. For Agile teams, consent contributes to a shared sense of responsibility and heightens alignment with shared project goals.
By empowering individuals to actively voice their opinions and objections without fear, teams can harness this diversity of thought to make more robust decisions and speedily navigate potential roadblocks.
Proof of Concept and Success Stories
Organizations across the globe are a testament to the success of consent-based decision-making.
One such example is the Dutch healthcare organization, Buurtzorg. Known for its self-managed teams, this nursing organization employed consent-based decision-making to remarkably increase nurse satisfaction, lower costs, and improve patient care quality.
Similarly, the global movement, Extinction Rebellion, structurally and decision-wise relies on consent decision-making, ensuring every view is heard and not ignored or suppressed.
Even major tech players like Zappos employ a version of consent-based decision-making within their holacracy model, shedding light on its dynamic adaptability across diverse fields and scales.
Conclusion
Consent-based decision-making is not just a method but a culture shift. By fostering an environment that invites objections, upholds transparency, and promotes shared responsibility, Agile teams and beyond can harness this approach’s full potential. Like all paradigm shifts, it takes adequate time, effort, and understanding for consent-based decision-making to flourish. However, once achieved, it opens doors to accelerated innovation, more comprehensive solutions, and ultimately, a more cohesive team.
Sources:
- The seven principles of decision-making and consent
- Decision-making and consent: the meaning of meaningful dialogue
- Consent Decision-Making – Sociocracy 3.0
- Circle Forward – Consent-based Governance
- Sociocracy For All – Consent Decision Making
- Sociocracy 3.0 – Consent Decision-Making Principle
- Consent-Based Decision Making – How To
- Scaling Shared Leadership – Management Innovations
- Towards a consent based society? – Percolab
- Holocracy – How Decisions Made – Guide
- Avoid Consensus and Focus on Consent – InfoQ
