Consensus-Building Case

Consensus-building

(Adapted from Kenneth Crow - "Consensus Decision-making", and John Abrams - "Finding Common Ground Through Consensus Decision-making".)

What is consensus and why do groups use it to make decisions?

Consensus-building is a problem-solving process that utilizes the resources of a group to create a reasonable decision that all members of the group can accept. The defining characteristic of consensus-building is that a group of individuals with differing interests in a common issue builds a decision together, rather than choosing among one or more proposals that are brought to the group. While it may seem more difficult and time consuming to reach an agreement through consensus than through a majority vote or an autocratic decision, decisions arrived at through consensus are likely to work, to be supported by the group, and to last. The process itself tends to build cooperation among group members and to foster healthy relationships. Consensus-building is an ideal process where there are significant differences in perspectives or interests among group members, and resolution of the issue is important to the on-going success of the group. Decisions are more likely to be supported by group members because the process considers and addresses their interests and perspectives relative to the group's purpose. Consensus-building tends to engender mutual trust and respect among team members, and can foster ownership in decisions and a willingness to make them work.

A consensus-based problem-solving process makes it possible for each individual to have the opportunity to express his or her opinion, be listened to, understand others' perspectives and interests, and be a part of creating a group solution that considers all relevant factors and is based on logic and feasibility. Differences will likely remain, but they become part of a collaborative process rather than reasons for adversarial behavior. A consensus-based decision in not likely to be the decision that each group member would make if working alone; however it is a decision that each member can accept as reasonable and implementable.

Key attributes of successful participation include:

* Curiosity - willingness to listen to others and understand their perspectives;

* Cooperation - willingness to focus on interests instead of positions;

* Adventure - willingness to go beyond conventional solutions and explore new ideas;

* Flexibility - willingness to share ideas without insisting they are the best ones;

* Commitment - willingness to stay positively engaged with the group and remain focused on group goals and outcomes that meet interests of all stakeholders.

When should a group use consensus-building?

Consensus-building helps a group create decisions that address complex issues. This is especially true when the issues involve conflicting interests (wants, needs, limitations) among group members. Consensus-building provides opportunities to recognize, validate, and respond to everyone's interests in both the definition of the problem and in the solution. This makes it particularly helpful when there is potential for strong disagreement among group members. Taking time to build consensus may not be necessary where a group already has clear agreement about the decision, when a decision must be made quickly, or the decision is not critical to group success; however, the basic underlying principal of considering all pertinent interests before making a decision can still apply.

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How consensus-building works:

The first step in consensus building is to establish the group and its purpose, the scope of its responsibility and authority, the procedures that it will use, resources that are available, and any timeframes or constraints that apply. If the group is already formed and these are established, the group should review them. If it is a newly formed group, the person or authority that is appointing the group should establish a charter or an agreement that makes these things clear.

There are three stages in the problem-solving process:

1) Defining the issue, i.e. the problem that the group is tasked with solving:

a) Identify stakeholders and their interests and concerns and limitations ;

b) Clarify desired outcomes;

c) Establish criteria or measures of success that define successful resolution of the issues;

2) Exploring options to solve the problem:

a) Without evaluating them, gather ideas on what actions might help solve the problem;

b) Openly discuss the ideas, identifying those that appear to have significant potential and eliminating those that don't;

c) "Tweak" remaining ideas to improve their potential to solve the problem; combine ideas where it makes sense;

3) Making a decision:

a) Look for emerging ideas that bring together the qualities that could be part of a solution that everyone could agree to;

b) Combine these ideas to form a proposal;

c) Identify and discuss concerns about the proposal;

d) Modify the proposal to address the concerns until all group members agree to implement it.

To finalize the decision, identify what will be done, who will do what, and when they will do it. This should be documented in a final written agreement.

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Guidelines for reaching consensus:

In order for the process to work it is imperative that the problem being solved is clear, that the group work within the boundaries of the problem, and that the group members understand and are willing to address pertinent interests of all group members. Each member needs to own the whole problem, in all its complexity, rather than only focusing on his/her own interests. The following suggestions will help make that happen:

1. Focus on understanding and solving the problem at hand. Avoid focusing on solutions before the problem